$2,000,000 Settlement

divider

Unbeknownst to our client’s father, the landlord installed a window guard in the kitchen of the apartment in violation of the New York City window guard regulations.

The window guard appeared by casual inspection to be installed correctly, however, the gap between the top of the window guard and bottom of the window sash exceeded the 4.5 inch maximum gap permitted by New York City’s window guard requirements.

On the day of this incident, the infant plaintiff climbed up onto a radiator that was under the window, and while looking out was able to place her head through the opening between the top of the window guard and the window sash. As a result of the failure of the landlord to comply with the stringent window guard laws in place for the protection of young children, our client fell out of the window and landed on the grass below.

The landlord defended the action in court vigorously by arguing that the window guard was correctly installed and that the rubber stopper utilized to restrict the opening to 4.5 inches was either removed by the tenant or broke off during the tenancy, and that the landlord had no notice of this condition. The landlord further argued that any cognitive impairment that the child suffers predated the fall in that it was diagnosed before the fall and that the only injury our client suffered was fractured ribs and a partially collapsed lung for which she made a full recovery.

After all discovery was concluded, and the case was set down for trial, a settlement was reached in the sum of $2 million. This will provide our client with financial security for her future.