LUNDY v. LLATIN (2008)

In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, the defendants appeal from an order of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Schneier, J.), dated June 15, 2007, which granted the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability.

ORDERED that the order is affirmed, with costs.

 This action arose when the defendants' vehicle struck the plaintiffs' vehicle in the rear.   The plaintiffs made a prima facie showing of entitlement to summary judgment by submitting the deposition testimony of the plaintiff driver.   It then became incumbent upon the defendants to come forward with a nonnegligent explanation for the collision (see Rainford v. Sung S. Han, 18 A.D.3d 638, 639, 795 N.Y.S.2d 645;  Niyazov v. Bradford, 13 A.D.3d 501, 786 N.Y.S.2d 582;  Russ v. Investech Sec., 6 A.D.3d 602, 775 N.Y.S.2d 867), which they failed to do.   The defendants' bare claim that the plaintiffs' vehicle abruptly slowed down or stopped, without more, under the circumstances of this case, was insufficient to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether the plaintiff driver was negligent, and, if so, whether such negligence was a proximate cause of the accident (see Reed v. New York City Tr. Auth., 299 A.D.2d 330, 749 N.Y.S.2d 91;  see also Belitsis v. Airborne Express Frgt. Corp., 306 A.D.2d 507, 508, 761 N.Y.S.2d 329;  Vecchio v. Hildebrand, 304 A.D.2d 749, 750, 758 N.Y.S.2d 666;  Barberena v. Budd Enters., 299 A.D.2d 305, 749 N.Y.S.2d 147;  McGregor v. Manzo, 295 A.D.2d 487, 744 N.Y.S.2d 467).