Emily Fernandez (Partner-White Plains) moved for summary judgment in a case in which an elderly hospital patient was exiting the patient pantry at the same time a nurse entered, knocking the patient to the ground due to the impact from the pantry door. The patient was seriously injured. The plaintiff argued that the nurse was negligently trained and the door should have had a see-through panel and that the nurse should have been more careful. Emily used an affirmation from an expert internist and an expert architect to demonstrate the appropriateness of the nurse’s training, explain that any non-negligent impact would have resulted in the same injury given the patient’s underlying medical conditions, and the door was building code compliant. Emily also submitted deposition testimony she obtained from plaintiff, whom she got to admit “unexpected things happen” in characterizing the incident. The trial court granted summary judgment, finding on all counts and found that the plaintiff failed to raise a question of fact in opposition. The plaintiff appealed.
 
Judy Selmeci (Partner-New York) handled the appeal. The appellate panel waived away the plaintiff’s argument that the door was defective, but there was long and intense questioning about the possibility the nurse was not careful enough in opening the door. Judy argued strenuously that under New York's burden-shifting summary judgment standard, the defense satisfied its burden on this issue, and the plaintiff did not offer sufficient evidence to raise a question of fact. Specifically, she argued that when the plaintiff testified that the door opened on her very quickly, that testimony is not enough to raise a triable question of fact about the possibility that the nurse was negligent in rushing into the room. The Appellate Division agreed and affirmed the dismissal.