FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 9, 2020

Contact:Eric W. Boyer, Esq.
Managing Partner
305.670.1101 Ext. 1023
Email: eboyer@qpwblaw.com


QPWB DEFENSE PROVE INSURED HAS NO DUTY TO MAINTAIN
UNDERGROUND WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM/WATER CAP
Trip and Fall Injury Claims – Negligence

Tanya M. Branch

Tanya M. Branch

NEW YORKTanya M. Branch defended insured, Pollard Water Company, Inc. Plaintiff alleged she tripped over defective, dilapidated, hazardous and dangerous water cap on the sidewalk, causing her serious injuries.  Plaintiffs alleged negligence because the defendant, Pollard Water Co. Inc., failed to properly inspect, install, maintain, control, manage and repair the defective dangerous hazardous and unsafe condition of the water cap on the sidewalk.

QPWB submitted a Motion to Dismiss which was converted by the Court to a Summary Judgment Motion arguing that plaintiffs’ complaint should be dismissed with prejudice, along with any cross-claims by co-defendants, because the insured is a third party distributor who did not manufacture or install the water cap.  Additionally, the insured did not own, operate, manage, maintain or repair the underground water supply system in question.  Since there was no duty to maintain, the insured did not have a duty to inspect or control the underground water supply system, including the water cap.

Honorable Leonard Steinman granted the motion and dismissed plaintiffs’ complaint.  The Court determined that the Defendants met their prima facie burden and plaintiffs failed to raise an issue of fact.  The Court agreed that Pollard Water Company Inc. is only a third party distributor and did not install, own, operate, manage, maintain, or repair the water cap on the sidewalk where the accident occurred.

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Tanya M. BranchIs the Managing Partner of the New York office. She represents contractors, subcontractors and municipalities in claims involving personal injury, property damage and construction accidents.  Her practice focuses on complex general liability and the representation of insurers and insureds in commercial general liability claims and all other aspects of personal injury litigation.  She received her law degree from Touro College Fuchsberg Law Center in 1994 and is admitted to practice in New York and the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York.

About QPWB
Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A. is the largest minority and women owned law firm in the nation with more than 400 lawyers serving clients from 24 offices in the United States and abroad across a spectrum of industries in over 40 areas of practice. Our lawyers provide representation in litigation, business, real estate and governmental law.

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