FINDLAW: Daily Opinion Summaries for New York Court of Appeals – 06/24/09

BANKRUPTCY LAW, COMMERCIAL LAW, TRANSPORTATION

Reiber v. GMAC, LLC, No. 109
The Court of Appeals answered a certified question from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit as follows: The portion of an automobile retail installment sale attributable to a trade-in vehicle’s ‘negative equity’ is a part of the ‘purchase money obligation’ arising from the purchase of a new car, as defined under New York’s Uniform Commercial Code.

BANKRUPTCY LAW, CONTRACTS

MHR Capital Ptnrs. LP v. Presstek, Inc., No. 114
In a breach of contract action, judgment for Defendant is affirmed where Defendant’s obligation to perform under the stock purchase agreement at issue did not arise because an express condition precedent was not fulfilled.

CIVIL PROCEDURE, HEALTH LAW, INJURY AND TORT LAW

Bazakos v. Lewis, No. 112
In a medical negligence action, the dismissal of the complaint is reversed, where the applicable statute of limitations was two and one-half years, because a claim for negligently performing an independent medical examination is a claim for malpractice and thus governed by CPLR section 214-a.

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE

People v. Almeter, No. 84
Defendant’s trespass conviction is reversed where Defendant was unaware that each of his charged offenses was being tried to a separate fact finder until the trial was nearly over, and a defendant should not be required to guess who the fact finder is at his or her trial.

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