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Trudeau v. Benway

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Third Department
Nov 19, 1981
84 A.D.2d 868 (N.Y. App. Div. 1981)

Opinion

November 19, 1981


Appeal (1) from an order of the Supreme Court at Special Term (Dier, J.), entered January 16, 1981 in Clinton County, which, inter alia, granted third-party defendant Trudeau's motion for summary judgment dismissing the third-party complaint, and (2) from the judgment entered thereon. Plaintiff commenced this action on behalf of himself and his infant daughter, seeking damages for injuries sustained when the infant was bitten by defendant's dog while on defendant's premises. Defendant served a third-party complaint on plaintiff seeking contribution, alleging that plaintiff had been warned by defendant about the dog and had assured defendant that he (plaintiff) would keep his children and the dog apart. Special Term dismissed the third-party complaint and this appeal ensued. There must be an affirmance (Holodook v Spencer, 36 N.Y.2d 35). Defendant contends that Holodook is not applicable here on the theory that a specific duty owing to defendant was created by plaintiff's alleged assurance that he would keep his children away from defendant's dog. The gist of the third-party complaint, however, is that plaintiff failed to supervise his children, and in our view plaintiff's alleged assurance to defendant was nothing more than an acknowledgement of his existing duty of supervision. Accordingly, no cause of action for contribution or indemnity lies against plaintiff (Smith v. Sapienza, 73 A.D.2d 224, affd 52 N.Y.2d 82). Order and judgment affirmed, with costs. Mahoney, P.J., Sweeney, Kane, Casey and Weiss, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Trudeau v. Benway

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Third Department
Nov 19, 1981
84 A.D.2d 868 (N.Y. App. Div. 1981)
Case details for

Trudeau v. Benway

Case Details

Full title:KEITH TRUDEAU, Individually and as Parent and Natural Guardian of LORI A…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Third Department

Date published: Nov 19, 1981

Citations

84 A.D.2d 868 (N.Y. App. Div. 1981)