| DeVito v City of New York |
| 2009 NY Slip Op 04184 [62 AD3d 934] |
| May 26, 2009 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
| Joseph DeVito, Appellant, v City of New York et al.,Respondents. |
—[*1] Michael A. Cardozo, Corporation Counsel, New York, N.Y. (Kristin M. Helmers and AlanG. Krams of counsel), for respondents.
In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, the plaintiff appeals from a judgmentof the Supreme Court, Queens County (Kitzes, J.), entered July 28, 2008, which, after a jurytrial, and upon granting the defendants' motion for judgment as a matter of law pursuant to CPLR4401, made after the close of the evidence, is in favor of the defendants and against him,dismissing the complaint.
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed, with costs.
A motion for judgment as a matter of law pursuant to CPLR 4401 may be granted only whenthe trial court determines that, upon the evidence presented, there is no rational process by whichthe jury could find in favor of the nonmoving party (see Szczerbiak v Pilat, 90 NY2d553, 556 [1997]; Bryan v Staten Is.Univ. Hosp., 54 AD3d 793 [2008]). In considering such a motion, "the trial court mustafford the party opposing the motion every inference which may properly be drawn from thefacts presented, and the facts must be considered in a light most favorable to the nonmovant"(Szczerbiak v Pilat, 90 NY2d at 556; see Cathey v Gartner, 15 AD3d 435, 436 [2005]). Under thecircumstances presented here, the Supreme Court properly determined that there was no rationalprocess by which the jury could find in favor of the plaintiff. Rivera, J.P., Dillon, Belen and Hall,JJ., concur.