Brooklyn plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment denied in chain-reaction collision case

January 30, 2024 Robert Abruzzese, Courthouse Editor

Court sketch: Alba Acevedo

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Hon. Devin Cohen, Justice of the Kings County Supreme Court.Photo: Robert Abruzzese/Brooklyn Eagle — Hon. Devin Cohen, Justice of the Kings County Supreme Court.
Photo: Robert Abruzzese/Brooklyn Eagle

Inessa Zeldin, a plaintiff in a personal injury lawsuit arising from a multi-vehicle collision, has had her motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability denied by the Supreme Court, Kings County.

The order, dated June 15, 2022, was issued by Judge Devin Cohen and subsequently affirmed by the appellate division.

Zeldin’s action targeted Hermann Larose and Brothers Mobility, LLC, alleging that Larose, the operator of the rearmost vehicle in the chain-reaction accident, was responsible for her injuries.

In her motion, Zeldin argued that Larose’s failure to stop his vehicle in time caused the collision. However, the court found her evidence, including an uncertified police accident report and her own affidavit, insufficient to establish a prima facie case of liability.

The court’s decision to deny the motion was based on the criteria that a plaintiff must conclusively demonstrate that the defendant’s negligence was a proximate cause of the alleged injuries, which Zeldin failed to do with her submissions.