Opinion
605 CA 14-02073
05-01-2015
Catrina SARAF, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. Roger SMITH, Jr., Defendant–Respondent.
Spadafora & Verrastro, LLP, Buffalo (Richard E. Updegrove of Counsel), for Plaintiff–Appellant. Law Offices Of John Trop, Buffalo, Hurwitz & Fine, P.C. (Steven E. Peiper of Counsel), for Defendant–Respondent.
Spadafora & Verrastro, LLP, Buffalo (Richard E. Updegrove of Counsel), for Plaintiff–Appellant.
Law Offices Of John Trop, Buffalo, Hurwitz & Fine, P.C. (Steven E. Peiper of Counsel), for Defendant–Respondent.
PRESENT: SCUDDER, P.J., CENTRA, PERADOTTO, SCONIERS, and VALENTINO, JJ.
Opinion
MEMORANDUM:
Plaintiff commenced this action seeking damages for injuries she sustained in a three-vehicle accident. The accident occurred after defendant's vehicle struck the vehicle in front of him when that vehicle stopped to make a left turn. Plaintiff attempted to avoid a collision with defendant's vehicle by steering into the oncoming lane of traffic, but her vehicle struck the front driver's side of defendant's vehicle.
Supreme Court properly denied plaintiff's motion to set aside the verdict in favor of defendant as against the weight of the evidence. “A verdict rendered in favor of a defendant may be successfully challenged as against the weight of the evidence only when the evidence so preponderated in favor of the plaintiff that it could not have been reached on any fair interpretation of the evidence” (Krieger v. McDonald's Rest. of N.Y., Inc., 79 A.D.3d 1827, 1828, 914 N.Y.S.2d 480, lv. dismissed 17 N.Y.3d 734, 929 N.Y.S.2d 63, 952 N.E.2d 1055 [internal quotation marks omitted] ). Here, a fair interpretation of the evidence supports the jury's determination that, with respect to the collision with plaintiff, defendant was not negligent (see Pelletier v. Lahm, 111 A.D.3d 807, 808, 975 N.Y.S.2d 135, affd. 24 N.Y.3d 966, 994 N.Y.S.2d 565, 19 N.E.3d 491 ; Flynn v. Elrac, Inc., 98 A.D.3d 938, 940, 950 N.Y.S.2d 582 ).
It is hereby ORDERED that the order so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.