Rappaport, Glass, Greene, & Levine Blog

Next time you are walking down a tree-lined street on a blustery day, be aware of the possibility of falling tree limbs. RGG&L partners Michael Glass and Jim Forde recently obtained a settlement of $1.33 million for the family of a 38-year-old man who was crushed by a huge tree branch that broke and fell off a decaying tree in high winds. The case, which involved multiple defendants and is continuing to trial against several of them, involved a large dying tree on a community lot in a Queens, N.Y., enclave.  The tree had a history of falling limbs and branches that had caused property damage to parked cars and near-misses with pedestrians, and there were documented resident complaints. The case was settled against the homeowners who had use of the lot, but is continuing against the owner of the lot and other parties.