NYLE - New York Law Exam NY Torts & Tort Damages 1

Question 1

Under CPLR 214(5), what is the statute of limitations for a personal injury action based on negligence in New York?

Accepted Answer

Three years from the date of injury

Answer

CPLR 214(5) establishes a three-year statute of limitations for personal injury claims. The period generally begins to run on the date the injury is sustained, not when the plaintiff discovers it (absent a discovery exception such as latent disease under CPLR 214-c).

Question 2

Under New York law, when is a dog owner strictly liable for injuries inflicted by their dog?

Accepted Answer

Only when the owner knew or should have known of the dog's vicious propensities

Answer

New York does not impose automatic strict liability for all dog bites. Under Collier v. Zambito, strict liability attaches only when the owner had prior knowledge—actual or constructive—of the dog's vicious propensities. A single prior act of aggression (not necessarily a bite) can be sufficient to establish that knowledge.

Question 3

Under CPLR 1602, how is a defendant whose equitable share of fault is 50% or less treated with respect to non-economic damages?

Accepted Answer

Severally liable only for their proportionate share of non-economic damages

Answer

CPLR 1602 limits joint and several liability for non-economic damages. A defendant whose share of fault does not exceed 50% is severally liable only—meaning they pay only their own proportionate share of non-economic damages, not the full amount. Defendants whose fault exceeds 50% remain jointly and severally liable.

Question 4

Under New York's Alcoholic Beverage Control Law § 11-101 (the Dram Shop Act), a licensed vendor may be held liable for injuries caused by an intoxicated patron when the vendor:

Accepted Answer

Sold or provided alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person who then caused injury to a third party

Answer

ABC Law § 11-101 imposes civil liability on vendors who unlawfully sell or provide alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person, and that intoxication is a proximate cause of injury to a third party. Visible intoxication at the time of service is the critical element; the statute does not impose liability for serving any patron who later causes harm.

Question 5

To invoke the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur in a New York negligence action, the plaintiff must establish that:

Accepted Answer

The accident is of a type that ordinarily does not occur absent negligence and was caused by an instrumentality in the defendant's exclusive control

Answer

Res ipsa loquitur allows a jury to infer negligence when: (1) the occurrence is of a kind that would not ordinarily happen without negligence; (2) it was caused by an agency or instrumentality within the defendant's exclusive control; and (3) the injury was not due to the plaintiff's own voluntary action. The doctrine shifts the burden of going forward to the defendant to offer an explanation.

NYLE - New York Law Exam Practice Test

NYLE - New York Law Exam Practice Test

NYLE - New York Law Exam NY Torts & Tort Damages 1