On February 1, 2017 an appeals court that covers Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island upheld a jury verdict against New York City for excavating a hole in a street and failing to properly restore it. In November 2005 the plaintiff exited a cab and immediately tripped and fell into a hole 4-5 feet long and 4 feet wide in the street near her home. She suffered a fractured pelvis. The NYC Department of Environmental Protection had excavated the are 6 weeks before the plaintiff's accident. The City filled the hole with a cold patch and put in an order for a hot patch (hot asphalt) to seal the patch and complete the restoration. Plaintiff's roadway expert testified that the cold patch was temporary and unstable. The restoration with hot patch was not completed allowing a dangerous condition to continue.

The jury found against the City--awarded plaintiff approximately $775,000 to plaintiff for pain and suffering and $2,025,600 for future medical expenses. On appeal the liability verdict was upheld - as were the damages for pain and suffering. But the award for future medical expenses was reduced to $681,000 because there was evidence that most of the medical costs presented to the jury were attributable to unrelated medical conditions. 2017 WL 424699