Smalls sought to recover for non-economic loss and other damages under New York's No-Fault Law, and alleged that AJI "negligently maintained and unlawfully situated the dumpster on public roadways … without any reflection tape, cones, triangles, or other safety devices."
When the Bronx County Supreme Court denied AJI's motion to dismiss the case, the company appealed to the Appellate Division, First Department, which threw the case out.
Upon review, the New York State Court of Appeals reversed the AD1, since AJI hadn't definitively shown where the dumpster was situated.
According to our state's highest court, because the dumpster's precise location wasn't clear, there were unresolved questions that needed to be addressed at a formal hearing or trial.
In other words, Smalls' case got dumped right back onto the Supreme Court.
To download a copy of the Court of Appeal's decision, please click on the following link: Smalls v. AJI Industries, Inc.