Landlord's Employee Left Paint Thinner in Apartment

September 30, 1995

LVT Number: 10027

Tenant sued landlord for negligence after her child swallowed paint thinner. Tenant claimed landlord's employee left the bottle of paint thinner in her apartment after painting it. She couldn't read and claimed she didn't know it could be dangerous. She stored it under her kitchen sink. More than a year later, her child opened the bottle and drank the thinner when she was in another room. The court ruled against tenant without a trial and dismissed the case. Even if all of tenant's claims were true, what happened wasn't reasonably foreseeable by landlord.

Tenant sued landlord for negligence after her child swallowed paint thinner. Tenant claimed landlord's employee left the bottle of paint thinner in her apartment after painting it. She couldn't read and claimed she didn't know it could be dangerous. She stored it under her kitchen sink. More than a year later, her child opened the bottle and drank the thinner when she was in another room. The court ruled against tenant without a trial and dismissed the case. Even if all of tenant's claims were true, what happened wasn't reasonably foreseeable by landlord. Leaving the paint thinner behind was very far removed from the accident. Tenant had taken the unknown chemical and stored it where a child could get it.

Grajales v. NYC Housing Authority: NYLJ, p. 29, col. 4 (9/12/95) (Sup. Ct. Queens; Lonschein, J)

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