LIEB BLOG

Legal Analysts

Monday, October 29, 2012

Commercial Landlord Liability - Hurricane Sandy

Commercial Landlord Liability - Hurricane Sandy
Commercial landlords secure your property as soon as the storm passes. While a property owner is not liable for injuries occurring on their premises during a storm in progress, the landlord only has an objective reasonable time to remedy the situation or face liability thereafter.

So, landlords, its your job tomorrow, following the storm, to inspect your properties and immediately institute corrective measures. If the dangerous condition existing on your premises will take time to remedy, you are charged with providing adequate warnings and barriers to protect those who are to be rightfully in and on the premises. 

Good luck and be safe. 
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Homeowners Insurance Storm Tip

Homeowners Insurance Storm Tip
Back on August 28, 2011 I blogged about homeowners insurance in the wake of Hurricane Irene. Click here to read that article as its still applicable.

TIP: If you have an opportunity, take your cell phone out & take pictures of your home before damage occurs, both inside and out. Therefore, if you do have coverage, you can prove the damage.

More legal tips will be posted throughout the day, so stay tuned.
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Trees are down - stay safe - Hurricane Sandy

Trees are down - stay safe - Hurricane Sandy

I originally blogged about tree law back in 2010, but will provide you with a refresher in the face of Hurricane Sandy. Here is the law on trees in NY:

  • If a property owner has no knowledge that a tree is decaying or unsafe and it simply falls from wind or storm onto his neighbors’ property, he has no liability & the neighbor where it fell is responsible for removal for the portion on his property.
  • If a property owner knows of a tree's dangerous condition; that the tree is unsound and/or decaying, regardless if wind contributes to its fall onto his neighbors' property, he is liable. 

The issue is if the tree was sound before it fell. 
  • If so, removal is charged to the property owner in which it lies after it falls. 
  • If not, removal & liability for damage is charged to the property owner from which it fell.


To be clear, there is no duty to inspect your trees to determine if they are sound, instead only where there are indicia of decay or disease does such a burden fall upon a homeowner. The standard is if a defect in the tree is "readily observable" to an ordinary landowner upon reasonable inspection.

However, if your tree falls on a highway, the law is as follows: (see Highway Law 325)
If any tree shall fall, or be fallen by any person from any inclosed land into any highway, any person may give notice to the occupant of the land from which the tree shall have fallen, to remove the same within two days; if such tree shall not be removed within that time, but shall continue in the highway, the occupant of the land shall forfeit the sum of fifty cents for every day thereafter, until the tree shall be removed. 

Stay safe. 
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