Practice point: A plaintiff-driver is entitled to judgment as a matter of law on the issue of liability if he or she demonstrates that the sole proximate cause of an accident was the defendant driver's violation of VTL § 1141 in turning left directly into the path of the plaintiff's oncoming vehicle which was lawfully present in the intersection.
Student note: A driver who has the right-of-way has a duty to exercise reasonable care to avoid a collision with another vehicle already in the intersection.
Case: Gause v. Martinez, NY Slip Op 00178 (2d Dept. 2012).
Monday’s issue: Punitive damages.
