New York Court of Appeals Will Hear Duty of Care Oral Argument

Can a mechanic that performed a negligent inspection on an automobile be liable to a third-party who gets into an accident with the automobile that the mechanic inspected?  The New York Court of Appeals will address this duty of care issue this Thursday in an appeal entitled Stivers v. Good & Fair Carting & Moving,  Inc.

In Stivers, a mechanic employed by the defendant performed a New York State motor vehicle inspection of an automobile owned by Stephen Corbett, the defendant in a related action, and the vehicle passed the Inspection.   A vehicle driven by  Stiver (the plaintiff) struck Corbett's vehicle from behind when Corbett's vehicle abruptly stopped in the middle of a highway, causing the plaintiff to sustain personal injuries. The plaintiffs alleged that transmission components in Corbett's vehicle malfunctioned, rendering the vehicle inoperable and causing the collision.  The plaintiffs commenced this negligence action alleging that the defendant failed to use reasonable care when performing the inspection of Corbett's vehicle.   The Appellate Division, Fourth Department held that the defendant owed no duty of care to the plaintiffs.