MICHAEL. FLAKE

Michael is a litigation partner in the Insurance Defense practice group handling matters in state and federal courts. He attended Brooklyn Law School and earned Law Review honors.

For 18 years, Michael has been an experienced litigator and appellate advocate with a stellar record of success in defending cases at each stage of litigation from pre-trial motions, settlement, mediation, and trial and appellate wins. He has defended individuals, co-ops, homeowners, business owners and major retail corporations against personal injury claims. Michael focuses his practice on premises liability, construction and Labor Law claims, motor vehicle and various other negligence actions. Michael’s experience also includes the defense of insurance companies in first-party and third-party claims and coverage issues.

Prior to joining the firm, Michael was the lead partner in the White Plains satellite office for Smith Sovik Kendrick & Sugnet P.C.

Recent Wins:

A Premises Liability Win for Flake in Queens County Supreme Court
Michael Flake won summary judgment in Queens County in a premises liability case on behalf of a major university. The plaintiff was walking with her husband on campus when plaintiff stepped down from a curb drop of seven inches and they both fell to the ground, causing several injuries, including a hip fracture, necessitating surgery. The defendant relied on the report of its expert engineer, who opined that the curb area was designed and constructed in accordance with industry standards. The Court ruled that notwithstanding the claims that the Plaintiffs were distracted and unfamiliar with the area, there was no evidence in the record sufficient to demonstrate that the walkway or curb area was, in and of itself, inherently dangerous.

A Big Labor Law Win for Michael Flake in New York County
Michael Flake won summary judgment in New York County in a difficult Labor Law case. While on a skyscraper rooftop, plaintiff, a commercial window washer, was walking on the building roof at ground level when he allegedly slipped on moisture present on a metal grated platform cover, causing several injuries, including multiple lumbar surgeries. The court ruled that the evidence presented revealed no such gravity-related elevation hazard necessitating any safety devices of the kind required under Labor Law §240(1). As to Labor Law §241(6), plaintiff was engaged in routine window washing preparation and maintenance, which is not a protected construction activity under the statute. The Court also dismissed the negligence claim for lack of actual or constructive notice in that Plaintiff himself testified that he did not observe any moisture or foreign substances on the grated metal cover during his inspection minutes before his accident. Plaintiff also had walked over the metal grille without issue just moments prior to the incident. Plaintiff did not oppose Flake’s argument that the window cleaning regulation Labor Law §202 did not apply to this case.

Representative Matters:

• Represented a general contractor and won summary judgment in Westchester County on a Labor Law case where the plaintiff, a painter, was unable to identify the source of the materials on his boot, and the debris present on the subject construction site was an open and obvious condition that was readily observable and not inherently dangerous.

• Represented a contractor and obtained summary judgment in defense of a shoulder injury case where Plaintiff alleged the defendant failed to install temporary safety railings on the deck it constructed.

• Represented a snowplow contractor and obtained summary judgment in King County Supreme Court where the plaintiff, a pedestrian, argued that the defendant snow removal contractor was liable for her slip and fall on an icy sidewalk adjacent to co-defendant landowner’s property. Michael successfully argued that the contractor owed no duty of care to the plaintiff and otherwise did not launch a force or instrument of harm in its snow removal efforts a week prior to the accident.

• Represented the ramp contractor inside a medical office building and obtained a summary judgment award in the Bronx County Supreme Court. The plaintiff alleged that he tripped and fell while wheeling a filing cabinet on a hand truck, up a ramp at the defendant/third-party plaintiff’s premises. The Court determined that there was no evidence that our client created or had actual or constructive notice of a dangerous condition.

• Represented a restaurant in a sidewalk slip and fall action and obtained an award of summary judgment in Westchester County Supreme Court and successfully defeated plaintiff’s appeal to the Appellate Division, Second Department. Plaintiff, claims to have slipped and fallen from the presence of accumulated snow and ice. Argued that the Village Code did not impose tort liability on landowners for failure to maintain the adjacent sidewalk.