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NJ Supreme Court Issues Important Ruling in Elevator Negligence Case

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On July 17, 2018, the New Jersey Supreme Court issued an important ruling on an elevator negligence case that is likely to impact similar cases involving elevator accidents and complex issues of negligence and liability.

In the case, NJ Supreme Court justices cited a previous case, Jerista v. Murray, in which the court ruled that a doctrine allowing a permissive interference of negligence against parties who exercise exclusive control of devices that malfunction and cause injuries applied to a supermarket’s automatic door that failed to function properly, and struck and injured a customer entering the store.

In relation to that previous ruling, the court held that the same principles also applied to a case involving a condominium building’s elevator doors which opened and closed on a resident as she attempted to exit the elevator, causing serious injuries. After the accident, officials found that the elevator’s malfunctioning electric eye caused the elevator doors to unexpectedly and repeatedly close on the victim. The doctrine applied to the elevator accident case, justices ruled, because any person would not expect that elevator doors would strike someone entering or exiting an elevator.

New Jersey Elevator Accident Attorneys

While the facts and legal issues involving in the latest NJ Supreme Court case may be complex, the ruling can have a major impact on future elevator accident cases throughout the state, especially when victims suffer harm due to defects and malfunctioning instrumentalities which property owners knew or should have known about, but did not fix.

Over the years, our legal team has gained experienced handling elevator cases and cases involving defective products. In fact, our very own Partner Ronald Grayzel of our firm’s Edison office handled a notable case on behalf of a woman who was injured by a defective elector. The case was tried in the U.S. District Court before a federal Magistrate and, following a three-week trial, resulted in a $1.9 million verdict for our client.

At Levinson Axelrod, P.A., our legal team stays up to date on important laws, legislative changes, and important decisions like the recent ruling handed down by the NJ Supreme Court in order to provide the highest quality representation possible for our clients. If you have questions about an elevator accident and your rights anywhere in New Jersey, contact us for a free consultation.

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