Larry Lum (Partner-New York, NY) and Stacey Seltzer (Of Counsel, New York, NY) obtained a unanimous defense verdict after a liability trial in Nassau County Supreme Court involving a slip and fall at a semi-enclosed parking garage at our client’s casino. The plaintiff claimed she fractured her knee and the settlement demand was $250,000. The fall was captured on surveillance at multiple angles and played for the jury several times, along with photographs submitted as evidence of the location at the time of the accident seemingly depicting wet areas throughout the garage. Our defense expert was able to show that he tested the area in several locations while wet and found each area to be sufficiently slip-resistant. On cross examination of plaintiff’s expert, Larry and Stacey were able to poke holes in their testing, including methods used to arrive at the findings. Prior to the charge conference, plaintiff’s counsel requested a spoliation charge be given to the jury due to the fact that only 30 seconds of surveillance had been preserved prior to the accident, and the judge refused their request. Despite an uphill battle due to the fall being captured on surveillance, a clearly wet parking garage with what appeared to be obvious grime/grease, and a likable and sympathetic plaintiff, Larry and Stacey argued that any theories as to how the wet/grimy condition arrived in the garage were merely speculative on the plaintiff’s end, and there simply was no dangerous condition that could be pinpointed.