Generally speaking, fraud claims in a legal malpractice setting are dismissed as duplicitive of the legal malpractice claim.  For years, litigants have used the longer statute of limitations period for fraud as a way around a stale legal malpractice claim along with a discovery onset of the statute.  In addition, fraud allows for greater damage…

Allstar Elecs., Inc. v DeLuca  2020 NY Slip Op 07018 [188 AD3d 1121]
November 25, 2020 Appellate Division, Second Department demonstrates the danger of discovery failures.  Here, the entire case was dismissed over the failure to give what the Court termed a “failure to provide court-ordered discovery.”

“”The nature and degree of the penalty to…

We believe that a legal malpractice case based upon a medical malpractice underlying case may be amongst the most technically and procedurally challenging litigations that exist.  Proving a medical malpractice claim (as a plaintiff) is very difficult.  It requires a strong understanding of medicine, massive record discovery, use of specialist medical experts, depositions of physicians,…

Louie’s Seafood Rest., LLC v Brown  2021 NY Slip Op 06167  Decided on November 10, 2021 Appellate Division, Second Department is a novel defense to a claim of deceit.  Originally applicable to Anti-Trust litigation (where it excused certain litigation tactics), it is here applied (for the first time in state court legal malpractice claims) to…

Sometimes the AD thinks a case is pure speculation.  In Lindenwood Vil., Section C, Coop. Corp. v Denenberg  2021 NY Slip Op 02463 [193 AD3d 593] April 22, 2021 Appellate Division, First Department they spent little time affirming.

“This legal malpractice action was properly dismissed. There is no basis other than speculation to support the…

Alpha/Omega Concrete Corp. v Ovation Risk Planners, Inc.  2021 NY Slip Op 05113  Decided on September 29, 2021  Appellate Division, Second Department is a textbook of causes of actions in insurance law and negligent underwiring.

“In July 2015, Alpha/Omega Building Consulting Corp. (hereinafter Consulting) was awarded a contract to perform concrete work on a construction…

Real Estate entities, such as an apartment building will always have insurance against trip and falls.  However, that type of general liability insurance typically will not provide insurance against a claim of a person injured while working at the building, such as in a construction accident.  In Ruiz v 829 Realty LLC  2021 NY Slip…

It’s relatively rare to see an AD opinion which goes into the details of a trial, and makes such certain and minute decisions on evidentiary matters.  Disa Realty, Inc. v Rao  2021 NY Slip Op 05692 Decided on October 20, 2021 Appellate Division, Second Department involves a claim of Judiciary Law § 487 and is…