Court holiday.

The courts are closed today, and so there is no post.

Happy Thanksgiving, and thank you for your support throughout the year.

Tomorrow’s issue: Torts.

Landlord-Tenant Law.

Practice point: Landlords have a common-law duty to take minimal precautions to protect tenants from foreseeable harm, including a third party's criminal conduct.

Students should note that a tenant’s recovery of damages requires a showing that the landlord's negligence was a proximate cause of the injury.

Case: Muong v. 550 Ocean Avenue, LLC, NY Slip Op 08078 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Friday’s issue: Torts.

Attorney-client relations.

Practice point: Filing the requisite retainer statement with the Office of Court Administration is a necessary to receiving a fee.

Students should note filing nunc pro tunc will preserve the right to recover a fees, but only if the attorney sought leave of court for the filing.

Case: Giano v. Ioannou, NY Slip Op 08064 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Landlord-Tenant Law.

Torts.

Practice point: If a private physician attends a patient at a hospital, it is the physician’s duty, not the hospital’s, to get the patient's informed consent.

Students should note that a hospital employee's memorializing the consent does not transfer the duty to the hospital.

Case: Sela v. Katz, NY Slip Op 07918 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Attorney-client relations.

Attorney-client relations.

Practice point: Pursuant to Judiciary Law § 475, from the commencement of the action, the appearing attorney has a lien on the client's cause of action, and the lien attaches to any favorable final order or settlement.

Students should note that the lien is forfeited if the attorney withdraws without sufficient cause.

Case: Nassour v. Lutheran Medical Center, NY Slip Op 07906 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Monday’s issue: Torts.

Motion practice.

Practice point: An account stated is an agreement based on prior transactions with respect to the correctness of the account items and the balance due.

Students should note that the agreement may be implied from the retention of an account rendered, without objection, for an unreasonable period of time.

Case: Landau v. Weissman, NY Slip Op 07899 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Attorney-client relations.

Motion practice.

Practice point: A person whose conveyance or encumbrance is recorded after the filing of a notice of pendency is bound by all subsequent proceedings, as if he were a party, pursuant to CPLR 6501.

Students should note that, to cut off a prior lien, such as a mortgage, the purchaser or encumbrancer must have no knowledge of the outstanding lien and must win the race to the recording office.

Case: DLJ Capital Mortgage, Inc. v. Windsor, NY Slip Op 07886 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Motion practice.

Motion practice.

Practice point: To prevail on a motion for civil contempt, movant must demonstrate a clear and unequivocal mandate of the court, and prejudice of movant's rights.

Students should note that the mere act of disobedience, regardless of motive, can sustain the finding.

Case: Bais Yoel Ohel Feige v. Congregation Yetev Lev D'Satmar of Kiryas Joel, NY Slip Op 07875 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Motion practice.

Labor Law.

Practice point: There is an exemption to liability for one and two-family homeowners who merely contract for the work and do not supervise it.

Students should note that the owner’s attendance at meetings regarding the work's progress does not rise to the level of supervision necessary to impose liability.

Case: Castellanos v. United Cerebral Palsy Assn. of Greater Suffolk, Inc., NY Slip Op 07714 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Motion practice.

Labor Law.

Practice point: There is an exemption to liability for one and two-family homeowners who merely contract for the work and do not supervise it.

Students should note that the owner’s attendance at meetings regarding the work's progress does not rise to the level of supervision necessary to impose liability.

Case: Castellanos v. United Cerebral Palsy Assn. of Greater Suffolk, Inc., NY Slip Op 07714 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Tomorrow’s issue: Motion practice.

Contracts.

Practice point: Implicit in all agreements is a covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

Students should note that there is a breach when a party acts in a way that deprives the other of a benefit of the agreement.

Case: Atlas El. Corp. v. United El. Group, Inc., NY Slip Op 07699 (2d Dept. 2010)

Here is the decision.

Monday’s issue: Labor Law.