Partner, Patrick W. Kenny Obtains Successful Risk Transfer on behalf of the Firm’s Property Client

Partner, Patrick W. Kenny, Esq., was successful in obtaining a tender acceptance from a tenant and their insurer for a client that owned the property on which plaintiff alleges he fell. Given the lease agreement between our client and the tenant, it was clear that sidewalk maintenance and snow and ice removal are the responsibility of the tenant. This formed the basis for Patrick to push the contractual risk transfer to the tenant. After months of back and forth with counsel for the tenant, and insurers for the parties at issue, an agreement was finally reached. This means that our client and its carrier are now protected by a further layer of coverage and the carrier does not need to continue paying defense costs to defend the suit. This successful risk transfer was accomplished against a set of facts that contain allegations of severe injuries. Plaintiff was 68 years old on the date of the alleged accident when he slipped and fell due to snow and ice on a sidewalk with an alleged defect, and as a result of falling on his side, broke numerous ribs resulting in hospitalization. While in the hospital the plaintiff experienced cardiogenic shock, a hemothorax, and underwent a heart valve replacement surgery. In addition, plaintiff is a medical doctor and claims he missed significant time from his vocation resulting in lost wages. Both liability and damages would have been costly to the client and its insurer to defend this matter, which makes this a noteworthy victory for our client and its carrier.