National Broadcasting Co., Inc. v Fire Craft Servs., Inc.

National Broadcasting Co., Inc. v Fire Craft Servs., Inc. 2007 NY Slip Op 03013 [39 AD3d 287] April 10, 2007 Appellate Division, First Department Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. As corrected through Wednesday, June 6, 2007

National Broadcasting Company, Inc., Respondent,
v
Fire Craft Services, Inc., et al., Defendants, and Summit Security Services, Inc., Appellant.

—[*1] Lester Schwab Katz & Dwyer, LLP, New York (Paul M. Tarr of counsel), for appellant.

London Fischer LLP, New York (Gregg D. Minkin of counsel), for respondent.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Walter B. Tolub, J.), entered November 6, 2006, which, to the extent appealed from as limited by the brief, denied that part of the motion of defendant Summit Security Services, Inc. (Summit) requesting that all issues in the case be adjudicated at a unified trial, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

On a prior appeal we upheld the motion court's determination to adjudicate this case by means of a bifurcated trial, and, in so doing, rejected the contention that "the question of whether and to what extent losses would have been avoided by the use of a fire watch or equivalent safety equipment by one or more of the parties raises issues of liability and damages that are so interrelated and so pervasive as to necessitate a unitary trial" (292 AD2d 192, 193 [2002]). While three of the four consolidated actions have since settled, we are not persuaded that the motion court's rationale for bifurcation (see id.) is no longer valid.

We have considered Summit's remaining contention and find it unavailing. Concur—Saxe, J.P., Williams, Buckley, Catterson and Malone, JJ.