Giselle Hubbard v JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank, and Jones Lang LaSalle Americas, Inc.
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Attorneys and Parties
Brief Summary
Premises liability and contractual indemnification in commercial property management arising from a parking lot trip-and-fall accident.
The Bronx County Supreme Court granted conditional summary judgment to Apple Square LLC and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank (Chase), on Chase's third-party contractual indemnification claim against Jones Lang LaSalle Americas, Inc. (Jones Lang), and denied Jones Lang's motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint, third-party complaint, and cross-claims.
The Appellate Division modified the order only to deny conditional summary judgment on Chase's contractual indemnification claim against Jones Lang; it otherwise affirmed.
Although the indemnification clause was potentially triggered by plaintiff's allegations that Jones Lang negligently maintained the property, summary judgment on indemnification was premature because Chase did not establish that it was free from active negligence and that any liability against it would be only statutory or vicarious. The court also held Jones Lang's own summary judgment motion was untimely under CPLR 3212 [New York rule governing summary judgment motions, including filing deadlines and a good-cause requirement for late motions], and its claimed law office mistake did not constitute good cause.
Background
Plaintiff alleged that she was injured when she tripped and fell on a metal rod in the parking lot of property owned by Apple Square LLC, leased to Chase, and managed by Jones Lang. Chase and Jones Lang had a contract requiring Jones Lang to indemnify Chase for losses arising from third-party claims to the extent caused by Jones Lang's negligent, willful, or reckless acts or omissions. Plaintiff's allegations tied her injuries to allegedly negligent maintenance work by Jones Lang.
Lower Court Decision
The Supreme Court, Bronx County, granted Apple Square and Chase conditional summary judgment on Chase's third-party contractual indemnification claim against Jones Lang and denied Jones Lang's motion seeking summary judgment dismissing all claims against it.
Appellate Division Reversal
The Appellate Division, First Department, modified the order by denying Apple Square and Chase's motion for conditional summary judgment on Chase's contractual indemnification claim against Jones Lang. The court otherwise affirmed, including the denial of Jones Lang's untimely motion for summary judgment.
Legal Significance
The decision underscores that contractual indemnification language may be triggered by the pleadings, but an indemnitee still cannot obtain summary judgment on that claim without showing freedom from active negligence and that any liability would be purely statutory or vicarious. The ruling also reinforces strict compliance with CPLR 3212 [New York rule governing summary judgment motions, including filing deadlines and a good-cause requirement for late motions], holding that a belated claim of law office error is insufficient to excuse an untimely summary judgment motion.
Even where a property management contract appears to require indemnification, a tenant or lessee seeking summary judgment on that right must prove it was not actively negligent; meanwhile, parties filing late summary judgment motions must show real good cause, not merely a mistaken belief about prior court rules.