Landlord Not Responsible for Boiling Water Spill in Apartment

Tenant sued landlord for negligence after her 2-1/2 year-old child was injured by boiling water spilled in the kitchen of tenant's apartment. While she went to the bathroom, tenant had left her three children in the kitchen while water was boiling in a pot on the stove. One of the other children spilled the water on the injured child. But tenant claimed that landlord was responsible because there was inadequate lighting in the kitchen, that landlord was negligent in failing to fix a light fixture, and that this caused the child's injury. Landlord asked the court to dismiss the case without a trial. The court ruled against landlord, who appealed and won. The child's injuries were not foreseeable or caused by any failure by landlord to fix the lighting in the kitchen. 

Dia v. Fieldbridge Associates, LLC: 2015 NY Slip Op 00329, 2015 WL 161626 (App. Div. 2 Dept.; 1/14/15; Eng, PJ, Mastro, Roman, Miller, JJ)