So you were driving along and hit a cow.....

May 6, 2013

Hastings v. Sauve

Docket: 78	Opinion Date: May 2, 2013
Judge: Smith
Areas of Law: Animal / Dog Law, Injury Law

Plaintiff was injured when the van she was driving hit a cow on a public road. Plaintiff brought a personal injury action against the owner of the property where the cow was kept and the two men who may have owned the cow. Supreme Court granted summary judgment for two of the defendants. The Appellate Division affirmed as to those defendants and also granted summary judgment as to the third defendant, concluding that, pursuant to Bard v. Jahnke, injuries inflicted by domestic animals "may only proceed under strict liability based on the owner's knowledge of the animal's vicious propensities, not on theories of common-law negligence." The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that the rule of Bard does not bar a suit for negligence when a farm animal has been allowed to stray from the property where it is kept.

Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Animal Law

No Damages for Cyclist Who Collided with Dog in Central Park

April 18, 2013

Well, now this is an interesting case -- I would have sided with the lower court who believed the dog's owner should be responsible for the cyclist's injuries -- but the statue regarding animals and strict liability was interpreted by the Appellate Division First Department differently. The Appellate Division found that the woman responsible for calling the dog into the cyclist's path was not liable because she did not know that her dog had a "propensity to interfere with traffic."

Now wha...

Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Animal Law

Real Property NY - Revised TP-584 form in effect April 15, 2013

April 16, 2013

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance (DTF) has put a revised TP-584 form into effect April 15, 2013. Access the form at the link below:

http://www.tax.ny.gov/pdf/current_forms/property/tp584_fill_in.pdf

Most counties outside of New York City will continue to accept the current form until June 15, 2013. Westchester County anticipates that the new form will be incorporated within its PREP system April 16, 2013. The New York City Register expects that the new form will be incorp...

Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Real Estate

Building Gutted For Repairs Forfeits Grandfathered Nonconforming Use - NJ

March 5, 2013

In New Jersey, beware of repairs of storm ravaged homes because their zoning use may change. This was the sad lesson learned by homeowners who needed to strip their home due to the damage. Doing so, caused the grandfathered non-conforming use of their home to be lost.

The Appellate Division yesterday released a decision, Motley v. Borough of Seaside Park, No. A03214-11, which strictly construed the statute that if a structure is partially destroyed and repaired, the non-conforming use would ...
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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Real Estate

Jan. 17, 2013 - New Rules Implemented Intended to Help Distressed Homeowners

January 18, 2013

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the "CFPB") in a rule made final on January 17, 2013, established new protections for homeowners facing foreclosure, imposing new restrictions on the conduct of mortgage servicers.

When a homeowner has missed two consecutive mortgage payments, the servicer must let the homeowner know about alternatives to foreclosure. The information must be provided in writing, and describe all the options available from the loan owner—not just the ones that are...
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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Foreclosure Prevention

Pending Copyright Application Held Insufficient To Sue For Infringement

January 8, 2013

The Jan. 4 Third Circuit ruling in North Jersey Media Group v. Sasson, 12-cv-3568, where the owner of The Record of Hackensack alleged a former reporter infringed on its copyrights in an article and three photographs, the court ruled that a pending copyright application is insufficient to sue. Registration is necessary. At issue was the use of certain photographs which the defendant published on his blog and the newspaper sued for unauthorized use.

This is a cautionary tale -- copyrigh...
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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Intellectual Property

Website to Assist New Yorkers Suffering Aftermath of "Sandy"

January 2, 2013

For New York homeowners suffering with the aftermath of storm Sandy, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has established a website specifically to impart relief information to assist.

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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Consumer Law

NJ Residents - The Scoop on Home Insurance and Appeals - Sandy Fallout

January 2, 2013

Our office has been receiving calls regarding homeowners' insurance in the days that have followed Sandy. The information given here is to assist.

Most of the damage will generally be covered by your homeowners' insurance except flooding which is most often specifically excluded from the policy.

You need to read your policy carefully. But that bad news doesn't leave you without alternatives.

Many people have asked about Gov. Christie's mandate regarding insurance denials. The order pertains...
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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Insurance

BRIEF Summary of the 2013 Tax Changes - The Deal Today

January 2, 2013

The deal restores the top 39.6 percent rate for high-income households in effect during the 1990s. That rate would apply to single taxpayers with incomes above $400,000 and married couples with incomes above $450,000, up from 35 percent.

The agreement provides a permanent and retroactive patch for the alternative minimum tax. The bill indexes the exemption amounts to adjust them for inflation.

The capital gains tax rate would return to what it was under President Clinton, 20 percent, up from ...
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Posted by Michele A Peters. Posted In : Consumer Law

Bank of America reducing Principal as Part of Settlement

December 27, 2012

The news today is that apparently for any of the thousands of Bank of America homeowners who managed to still "hang in there" -- BofA may reduce principal amounts in excess of $100,000. For what it's worth, I have seen in my foreclosure mediation work some principal reductions being done. Perhaps this latest news of the recent law suit settlement will help a few more homeowners.