CMM’s latest courtroom success has helped the Town of Smithtown avoid millions of dollars in potential exposure in a lawsuit stemming from a tragic accident.
In 2016, the plaintiff was a passenger in a car driven by a drunk driver that ran off the road after approaching a curve on Sunken Meadow Road in the hamlet of Kings Park, Town of Smithtown at 3:00 a.m. The plaintiff suffered severe life-changing injuries as a result. He filed suit against the drunk driver, as well as the Town of Smithtown and its Highway Department. The injured plaintiff alleged that the Town defendants were negligent in maintaining, constructing, designing, and operating the road and failed to warn motorists of the dangerous condition of accumulation of sand and clogged storm drains that allegedly resulted in the driver of the car losing control of his vehicle. Furthermore, the plaintiff alleged that the Town failed to correct the condition.
Following discovery, CMM’s Municipal Liability team, including Richard DeMaio and Scott Middleton, moved for summary judgment (essentially, a request that the Court dismiss the case because there are no facts at issue). DeMaio and Middleton argued that discovery had made it clear that while the accident was a tragedy, the Town defendants bore no liability. There had been no complaints about the road or excess sand at the site of the accident, nor did the Town receive prior written notice of an allegedly defective condition at the location or any accidents occurring there.
Thanks to CMM’s work, the Court granted the motion and dismissed the Complaint in its entirety “with prejudice” (permanently) against the Town defendants. As a result, the Town of Smithtown avoided millions of dollars in potential exposure. Visit our Municipal Liability page to learn more about our successful work for municipalities.