Derdiarian v. Felix Contracting Corp.
Court of Appeals of New York
414 N.E.2d 666, 51 N.Y.2d 308 (1980)
- Written by Michael Beverly, JD
Facts
Felix Contracting Corp. (Felix) (defendant) contracted to install a gas main. The worksite Felix excavated for the project was in the street. Harold Derdiarian (plaintiff), a subcontractor, was sealing a gas main using a kettle of 400-degree liquid enamel. James Dickens was driving near the worksite when he had an epileptic seizure, which caused him to lose control of his vehicle and crash into the worksite. Derdiarian was hit, and the kettle of enamel spilled all over him. Derdiarian burst into flames but survived. Derdiarian sued Felix, alleging that Felix negligently failed to ensure a safe worksite. At trial, Derdiarian’s expert in traffic safety testified that Felix should have built a barrier and taken other steps to protect workers from oncoming traffic. The trial court found in favor of Derdiarian. The Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division affirmed. Felix appealed to the Court of Appeals of New York.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Cooke, C.J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
