Landlord Not Responsible for Bite by Dog Owned by Tenant's Guest

Tenant sued landlord and others after a dog bit her infant child while inside another tenant's apartment. Landlord asked the court to dismiss the case without trial. The court ruled against landlord, finding that it failed to show that it didn't know about the dog or have reason to know of the dog's claimed vicious propensities.

appealed and won. To recover against landlord for injuries caused by a tenant's dog, tenant had to show that landlord had notice that a dog was being harbored on the premises, knew or should have known that the dog had vicious propensities, and had sufficient control of the premises to allow the landlord to confine or remove the dog. In this case, the dog wasn't owned by a tenant at the building and wasn't regularly kept in the other tenant's apartment. The dog was owned by a guest of the other tenant's and landlord had no notice of the dog's presence. The case against landlord was dismissed.

J.R. v. Poonam Apts., LLC: Index No. 2019-02788, 2020 NY Slip Op 04980 (App. Div. 2 Dept.; 9/16/20; Rivera, JP, Austin, Hinds-Radix, Christopher, JJ)