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Spicer v. Community Family Planning Council

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
May 3, 2000
272 A.D.2d 317 (N.Y. App. Div. 2000)

Opinion

Submitted March 13, 2000.

May 3, 2000.

In an action to recover damages for wrongful death, the defendants Community Family Planning Council Health Center and Denise Sutherland appeal from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Queens County (Thomas, J.), dated July 7, 1999, as denied their motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against them.

DuBois, Billig, Loughlin, Conaty Weisman, Mineola, N.Y. (Debra A. DeMarchena of counsel), for appellants.

CORNELIUS J. O'BRIEN, J.P., WILLIAM C. THOMPSON, SONDRA MILLER, HOWARD MILLER, JJ.


DECISION ORDER

ORDERED that the order is reversed insofar as appealed from, on the law, with costs, the motion is granted, the complaint is dismissed insofar as asserted against the appellants, and the action against the remaining defendants is severed.

The Supreme Court improperly denied the appellants' motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against them. The appellants' motion was supported by expert medical evidence establishing their prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law (see, Alvarez v. Prospect Hosp., 68 N.Y.2d 320, 324; Winegrad v. New York Univ. Med. Center, 64 N.Y.2d 851, 853). Specifically, their medical expert offered his opinion that upon providing prenatal care to the plaintiff's decedent, the appellants did not deviate from good and accepted medical practice.

In opposition to the motion, the plaintiff provided an attorney's attorney's affirmation and photocopied excerpts from a medical textbook. The plaintiff did not, however, produce an affidavit of a medical expert demonstrating that the appellants deviated from accepted medical practice. Thus, they did not meet the standard of evidence required to defeat the appellants' motion (see, Orr v. Meisel, 248 A.D.2d 451; Schaefer v. Marchiano, 193 A.D.2d 664; Treinis v. Deepdale Gen. Hosp., 173 A.D.2d 605, 607-608).

O'BRIEN, J.P., THOMPSON, S. MILLER and H. MILLER, JJ., concur.

DECISION ORDER ON MOTION

Motion by the defendants Anita Grover, Annette Maffei, Jodi J. Sutton, Adelaide Nardone, and Womens Medical Association of Westchester on appeals from three judgments of the Supreme Court, Westchester County, all entered December 7, 1998, to dismiss the appeal from the judgment which is in their favor dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against them on the ground, inter alia, that the plaintiffs failed to file a copy of that judgment with this court. By decision and order on motion of this court dated January 24, 2000, the motion was held in abeyance and referred to the Justices hearing the appeal for determination upon the argument or submission of the appeal.

Upon the papers filed in support of the motion, the papers filed in opposition thereto, and upon the argument of the appeal, it is

ORDERED that the motion is denied (see, CPLR 5520[a]).

BRACKEN, J.P., SULLIVAN, ALTMAN and KRAUSMAN, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Spicer v. Community Family Planning Council

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
May 3, 2000
272 A.D.2d 317 (N.Y. App. Div. 2000)
Case details for

Spicer v. Community Family Planning Council

Case Details

Full title:LENNORA SPICER, ETC., respondent, v. COMMUNITY FAMILY PLANNING COUNCIL…

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

Date published: May 3, 2000

Citations

272 A.D.2d 317 (N.Y. App. Div. 2000)
707 N.Y.S.2d 466

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