HILLEN v. QUEENS LONG ISLAND MEDICAL GROUP (2008)

In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, the plaintiff appeals from an order of the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (R. Doyle, J.), dated September 4, 2007, which granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.

ORDERED that the order is affirmed, with costs.

 A property owner has a duty to take reasonable measures to control the foreseeable conduct of third parties on the property to prevent them from intentionally harming or creating an unreasonable risk of harm to others (see DeRyss v. New York Cent. R.R. Co., 275 N.Y. 85, 9 N.E.2d 788;  Jaume v. Ry Mgt. Co., 2 A.D.3d 590, 591, 769 N.Y.S.2d 303;  Murphy v. Turian House, 232 A.D.2d 535, 649 N.Y.S.2d 38).   This duty arises when there is an ability and opportunity to control such conduct, and an awareness of the need to do so (see D'Amico v. Christie, 71 N.Y.2d 76, 85, 524 N.Y.S.2d 1, 518 N.E.2d 896;  DeRyss v. New York Cent. R.R. Co., 275 N.Y. 85, 9 N.E.2d 788;   Jaume v. Ry Mgt. Co., 2 A.D.3d at 591, 769 N.Y.S.2d 303).

 Here, the defendant medical facility made a prima facie showing of its entitlement to judgment as a matter of law by submitting evidence demonstrating that it did not have the ability and opportunity to control the conduct of the unidentified child who suddenly ran ahead of his mother and accidentally bumped into the elderly plaintiff, and that it had no awareness of the need to control the conduct of the child, who was under his mother's supervision (see Jaume v. Ry Mgt. Co., 2 A.D.3d at 591, 769 N.Y.S.2d 303;  Lazar v. TJX Cos., 1 A.D.3d 319, 767 N.Y.S.2d 52;  Lee v. Durow's Rest., 238 A.D.2d 384, 385, 656 N.Y.S.2d 321). In opposition to the motion, the plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact (see Troiano v. DeMarco, 50 A.D.3d 1020, 1021, 858 N.Y.S.2d 189;  Jaume v. Ry Mgt. Co., 2 A.D.3d at 591, 769 N.Y.S.2d 303;  Lazar v. TJX Cos., 1 A.D.3d 319, 319, 767 N.Y.S.2d 52).   Accordingly, the Supreme Court properly granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.