Murphy-Clagett v A.O. Smith Water Prods.

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Murphy-Clagett v A.O. Smith Water Prods. 2017 NY Slip Op 32311(U) October 23, 2017 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 190311/2015 Judge: Lucy Billings Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip Op 30001(U), are republished from various state and local government websites. These include the New York State Unified Court System's E-Courts Service, and the Bronx County Clerk's office. This opinion is uncorrected and not selected for official publication. l [*FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 11/01/2017 10:07 AM 1] NYSCEF DOC. NO. 263 INDEX NO. 190311/2015 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 11/01/2017 I I SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF~N~~ YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK: p:AR~ ·46 .:..:.~~.:.: __ :,;._:..x ----------------~~~-~---- .. IN RE: NEW YORK CITY. ASBESTOS LITIGATIC?N_l. . - . . - - - - - - - - .... -. -- - -------~~~-~-~-~~--~~-~--x This Document Relates to: MARY MURPHY-CLAGETT, as Temporary Administrator for. the Estate of .· · PIETRO MACALUSO,.· .,, ~· . ·. .·Index.No: 190311/2015 Plaintiff .. - ag~inst ,.,·:.· .·.:; ·DECISION AND ORDER A. 0. SMITH WATER. PRODUCTS I .. et .. al. i : Defendarit·s . . . ----------------~--~----~------~~--7--X . LUCY BILLINGS I . J. . s . c. : . For the reasons ~ore·. ful"iy expl~irie~.; ~n the record October 23, 2017, the court d~nies defendant A.O. ?mith Water. Pr.oducts Company's motion for summary judgment dismissing all claims • ' '"'.> . • ' ... against A.O. Smith Water Pro.ducts .. ·C.P:·L.R~ ' - § ' 3,212{b). · First, it has failed to establish that' the .decede:rJ:t:·· Pietro Macaluso was .. . . . . not exposed to asbestos'by"breathing dust from-the insulation and . . rope gaskets on boilers manufactured by A.a: Smith·water ?roducts while he worked for Bruno Frustaci in Kings C9unty. during 197282. Berensmahn v. 3M Co., 122 A.D:3d·520, .521' (1st Dep't 2014) . . When engaged in work for.Frustaci, Macaluso identified •• .. > approximately· 50 boilers that ·were covered by ··asbestos insulation, with· ga.sket's .that conta·ine'd asbestos; .. that were manufactured by. A.O.· .Smith Water Products;. and that he removed from residences. 2 of 5 [*FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 11/01/2017 10:07 AM 2] NYSCEF DOC. NO. 263 INDEX NO. 190311/2015 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 11/01/2017 .. . - Smith Water Products relfes .on the affidavit' by its.employee Bradley Plank, .which the court may·riot consid~r._ He demonstrates no personal ~no~ledg~· ~of·'.~j_~--.e~~lbye~; ~·: b~:iie:~~-~~ore .th~n a· decade before his· employment. ·:.··I~sofa:-r as he'· relies on documents, his attestation to their cohten"i:s l.'S. hearsay. and "not an. .. . ' acceptable substitute'·' f6r 'the: documents themsel ve~, People v. Joseph, 86 N .Y. 2d 565; .- 570 · ~ 1995) , ac_compani~d by their authentication and a foundation f~r. their ad~issibility on personal kno.wledge·> ·BP~ A. c-.~ Corp; v> o.:ie Bea'cori Ins. Group, 8 N.Y.3d 708, 716 (2007)'·; Williams v~ ·Esor·Rea.ltyCo., 117 A.D.3d . . 480, 480-81 (1st Dep' t 2014); Cole ·v·:· Home$ for the Homeless Inst.,. Inc., 93 A.D.3d 593,. S94 _(1st:Dep'i't 2·ai2)'; Mastroddi v. WDG Dutchess Assoc. Ltd.· Partnership, 52_·A.D.3d 341·, 342 (1st " "' Dep't 2008). See Shanmugam·v.·SCI Eng'g, P.C., 122 A.D.3d 437, 438 (1st Dep' t 2014) ; Lapin v. Atlantic Realty Apts .. co. , LLC, 48 A.D.3d 337, 338 (1st Dep't. 2008)); Biondo v: ·world Comp Communications, 306 A.D.2d.·2~2,_·2i3 (1st .bep't 2003). Moreover; in Plank's ·p~ior·testlrii'ony·presented: by plaintiff, Plank admitted (1) that A.O.· Smith Water.Products has discont:i.nued products :and ~estro"yed: the· doc.umen~·s . relating to those products. pursuant to· a ciocumen~ _refention policy and (2) that he did riot kriow whether·A.O.· ·Smith Water Produc.ts' older products used asbestos: . ·These ~dmi~sions c;:tre ·particularly significant given M_acaluso;~ -~~po.sure durihg-'·1972-82.. In fC!-ct, A.O. Smith Water Products' verified :i;-esponses .to interrogatories macaluso.189 2 3 of 5 [*FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 11/01/2017 10:07 AM 3] INDEX NO. 190311/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 263 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 11/01/2017 .. ,~ - . .... ·~ ' admit that residential boi·lers ma':r'rufact~red~:by A·.~o. Smith Water Products I like . th.e boilers that. Mac~luso removed; :used asbestos ' "'~· • to insulate· their:· • • -, ~:" • •, '- •r ~omp~nent~:-~ntif·apprbximately i'~ao .: . .A.o. Smith Water Produc'ts pres.e.rits' no ·evicierice; on .the other -hand, . . ~ ~ .· " . - ,·, that A~O. ·smith water. :Produc-ts' :boilers·.tised insulat~on that did '. not c~nt'ain asbe~t-os during :.or before 197·2--BCf; second,_ A. o ... srliit:h ·w~t:~r P~od{icts has · t51i'l_ed -to establish that Macalusa'·s· ~~mov~T-~of :'·its 1:i'oil~r~ 'by. 's'E?para'ti~g them ·into sections with.a crowbar arid 's_iedge:iamme:i;_-· to;dismantle and them and carry them out ·of the.residences.was.not a reasonably . . foreseeable ·:u.se:. . the·.l?oiiE=rs ~., un~ik.e.,~~he~_-s·a~vagiD:~r-of valves Of· . . ~ as scrap metal in Hockle:i:- v .. williarii· Powell co., .129 A.D.3d 463, ,. 465 (1st Dep't 2015), it was :for-eseeable to A.O. - smith water Products that its boilers :would be_.: removed_· f:tom residences at the end of the boiler$' ~s~fl:i-1. li~e '_to.-in~t~ll- riew ~boflers in the old boilers' place for continued-heating: ;Although Plank attests, without personal -knowledge· of. A.o.'. smith.Water~_Produc~s' boilers during 1972_:-82 >th~t~it- was-ynnece~sary··.to br~ak the ._bbilers down into pieces; _Plank was ·not ·in the . res idenc~s ··to observe·· the. _Vias. ne~e~saiy· spaces through· "which . it t.6. rem~ve 'tlie· boilers I and Macaluso, who' .·was' ,ther'e', test.i·f-ied 'thci:t. ,it· wa~ necessary to break apart the boilers. .,· . : ~~ Finally, A.O. 'Smith Water Produc"ts .has failed to.meet its burden, upon its inotic)n .for s1,linma:ty judgment; to e~tablish that Macaluso would not h~ye. hee_d_ed • "'•' a· warnin~ ·regard{ng ' •. ,n • the hazards of "<I;• exposure to asbestos when worki:q.g :.near.~· 0 :·''smith Water Products . . . ~ ":· ';> .-3 macaluso.189 . ..... . ~ 4 of 5 .. I [*FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 11/01/2017 10:07 AM 4] INDEX NO. 190311/2015 .. . NYSCEF DOC. NO. 263 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 11/01/2017 "" . - .,. ' boilers. . A. 0 .. Smith Water Pr9ducts of N. Am., Inc·., 73· ' ~· .. . '"~· r.eiies ..on Reis .v. Vol VO Cars A.D.~d.·420!· 423 -(1st Dep't 2010), where the . \ ... plaintiff, iri .opposing" the _qeferidants '- · motion: for· summ~ry: . . ... . ' • • • - '; .. '.; • :. • • ~-· ~ ·" :. : • _11.' • • • • '"' • judgment dismissirtg the claim· of failure .. to ;warn about the absence of a"" starter interlock on· their: motor.vehic"le, did not rebut their evidenc"e. froin his· P.e:rosition ·t:t:-at· he;_did-.. no.t· consider it necessary to re'ad· tpe. v~hicle· manual_ because he understood how . .. . the vehicle operated.· . . Thus the ·a.e'fei;idan:ts. presented affirmative evidence that, had .. they proVi_ded a:_ warnipg abbut the risks without the device·, the .plaintiff would rfot· have. heeded such a warning. Here, no.party inquired of .Macaluso cit·his deposition about .- -· . . . . . . . . . I . ~- ./ . whether, had he been·. provided a· warning': about the risks of the products he worked.with, he-would have heeO.ed them. Thus A.O. Smith Water. Produci_s: i~_-.witpout ·a_:r{y prima ·f~cie eyidence of _/ . ' Macaluso' s failure. . . to ·heed plaintiff's claim of A.a: a w~fni:hg essent:ial. to this defense to' Smitll's failu~e tci~~arn.about the·risks of exposure to asbes.tos_. whl:l~~W~rking ~.l,:t:h '.it~· ~bo.ilers. ot,.•i • See Voss ',•·"', v. Netherlands Ins. Co:, 22· N".Y :3d. 72s,. '?34 _(2014} ;.· Vega v. . . Restani Const:i:. Corp. 18 N. Y.3d 499,. - 5~3 (2012); Smalls v. AJI 1: Indus. , Inc., 1·0 ·.N·. Y. 3d: 733 ;. 735: {2008 ).. ; JMD Holdi~g Corp. v. Congress Fin. Corp.; 4 N.Y.3d:373; 384 (2005) .· Therefore A.O. Smith Water Products has failed to meet 'its prima ·facie. burden, upon its motion for_ summary judg~ent, _to"es.ta:bl.isI:i>-any of its three grounds for ·dismiss.al. C.P~L;R. ··~ DATED: . '. . . L..;~ ("')'....•~ .s LUCY BILLINGS, J.S~C. October 23,·· 2017 macaluso.189 ~ j~12(b) :. 4 .... · LUCY BILLINGS . ........ 5 of 5 . . J.S.C.

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