MORGAN v. HACHMANN (2004)

In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, etc., the plaintiffs appeal from an order of the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (Werner, J.), dated February 11, 2004, which denied their motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability.

ORDERED that the order is reversed, on the law, with costs, and the motion is granted.

 The plaintiffs established their prima facie entitlement to summary judgment on the issue of liability by demonstrating that the defendant Brian P. Hachmann (hereinafter Hachmann) failed to yield the right-of-way to a vehicle driven by the plaintiff Troy Morgan (hereinafter Morgan) as Morgan's vehicle approached an intersection controlled by a stop sign in Hachmann's direction (see Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1142(a);  1172(a);  Lieberman v. Miller, 305 A.D.2d 640, 641, 760 N.Y.S.2d 522;  Yusupov v. Lugo, 305 A.D.2d 496, 758 N.Y.S.2d 822;  Disher v. Ahern, 294 A.D.2d 393, 741 N.Y.S.2d 739;  Szczotka v. Adler, 291 A.D.2d 444, 737 N.Y.S.2d 121).   Morgan was entitled to assume that Hachmann would obey the traffic laws requiring him to yield (see Wilkins v. Davis, 305 A.D.2d 584, 759 N.Y.S.2d 358;  Stiles v. County of Dutchess, 278 A.D.2d 304, 717 N.Y.S.2d 325).   The question of whether Hachmann stopped at the stop sign is not dispositive, since the evidence established that he failed to yield even if he did stop (see Klein v. Byalik, 1 A.D.3d 399, 400, 766 N.Y.S.2d 687;  Bolta v. Lohan, 242 A.D.2d 356, 661 N.Y.S.2d 286).

In opposition to the plaintiffs' prima facie showing, the defendants failed to submit sufficient admissible evidence to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether Morgan was negligent (see Ali v. Tip Top Tows, 304 A.D.2d 683, 757 N.Y.S.2d 757).   Hachmann's contention that his accident report was admissible is without merit (see Hegy v. Coller, 262 A.D.2d 606, 692 N.Y.S.2d 463;  Daliendo v. Johnson, 147 A.D.2d 312, 321, 543 N.Y.S.2d 987), and in any event, the accident report contradicted his examination before trial.   Therefore, the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability should have been granted.