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Binensztok v. Marshall Stores

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Jun 17, 1996
228 A.D.2d 534 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)

Opinion

June 17, 1996

Appeal from the Supreme Court, Kings County (Vaccaro, J.).


Ordered that the order is reversed, on the law, with costs, the motion is granted, and the complaint is dismissed.

The plaintiffs brought this action to recover damages for personal injuries allegedly sustained when the plaintiff Leon Binensztok struck his head on a 4-inch hook in a dressing room of one of the defendant's department stores. The hook was located on a wall about 4 to 6 inches inside the dressing room, and about 6 feet off of the ground.

By holding its property open to the public, the defendant had "a general duty to maintain it in a reasonably safe condition so as to prevent the occurrence of foreseeable injuries" (Thornhill v. Toys "R" Us NYTEX, 183 A.D.2d 1071, 1072). However, "it is well settled that `[t]here is no duty on the part of a landowner to warn against a condition that can readily be observed by those employing the reasonable use of their senses'" (Ackermann v. Town of Fishkill, 201 A.D.2d 441, 443, quoting Tarricone v. State of New York, 175 A.D.2d 308, 309; see, Rowell v. Town of Hempstead, 186 A.D.2d 553).

The presence of the hook on the dressing room wall in the instant case was not an inherently dangerous condition. Furthermore, since the hook was a condition which was readily observable, the defendant had no duty to warn the plaintiff of the condition (see, Pilato v. Diamond, 209 A.D.2d 393; Brown v New York Med. Coll. for Comprehensive Health Practice, 162 A.D.2d 139). Therefore, the court should have granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment (see, Pilato v. Diamond, supra; Brown v. New York Med. Coll. for Comprehensive Health Practice, supra). Mangano, P.J., Thompson, Florio and McGinity, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Binensztok v. Marshall Stores

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Jun 17, 1996
228 A.D.2d 534 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)
Case details for

Binensztok v. Marshall Stores

Case Details

Full title:LEON BINENSZTOK et al., Respondents, v. MARSHALL STORES, Appellant

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department

Date published: Jun 17, 1996

Citations

228 A.D.2d 534 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)
644 N.Y.S.2d 333

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