Jonathan Cooper, Esq.:Why the NY Lawsuit Against LIPA is a Mere Publicity Stunt

From Betsy Combier:

It seems to me that Attorney Cooper is addressing the Courts' interest in not opening up "Pandora's Box" when wrong-doing occurs. If stealing, plundering, and negligence have been overlooked by the Court in the past, why not keep overlooking it?

This has to change.

Betsy Combier 

LINK

I hope I'm wrong about this. But I highly doubt it.

I just had my power restored on Sunday morning, and my phones and internet were just restored two days ago in the aftermath of Sandy. I heard over the radio that a class action lawsuit charging LIPA with negligence has been filed. Since, at least in theory, I would be a member of that class, I certainly hope it succeeds. But I don't think it will.

Here's why:

In the aftermath of another blackout, New York State's highest court issued a decision issued in 1994 and went to the unusual step of acknowledging publicly their reluctance to impose liability for negligence on a public utility because of broader policy concerns, including potentially devastating financial damages, stating:

"This Court has from time to time addressed the scope of the duty of a utility, or a similarly situated entity, arising from negligence in the performance of contractual obligations ( see, e.g., Eaves Brooks Costume Co. v. Y.B.H. Realty Corp., 76 N.Y.2d 220, 557 N.Y.S.2d 286, 556 N.E.2d 1093; Strauss v. Belle Realty Co., 65 N.Y.2d 399, 492 N.Y.S.2d 555, 482 N.E.2d 34, supra; Moch Co. v. Rensselaer Water Co., 247 N.Y. 160, 159 N.E. 896). Consistently, this Court has emphasized that determining the scope of the duty and the consequent sphere of potential liability is fundamentally a policy question, with the objective being to " 'fix[ ] the [entity's] orbit of duty' " so as to " ' "limit the legal consequences of wrongs to a controllable degree" ' " ( Eaves Brooks Costume Co. v. Y.B.H. Realty Corp., supra, 76 N.Y.2d at 226-227, 557 N.Y.S.2d 286, 556 N.E.2d 1093; Strauss v. Belle Realty Co., supra, 65 N.Y.2d at 402, 492 N.Y.S.2d 555, 482 N.E.2d 34; Moch Co. v. Rensselaer Water Co., supra, 247 N.Y. at 164-168, 159 N.E. 896; cf., ***689 **271 Palka v. Servicemaster Mgt. Servs. Corp., 83 N.Y.2d 579, 585-587, 611 N.Y.S.2d 817, 634 N.E.2d 189). We noted in Palka that the existence and scope of an alleged tortfeasor's duty, at the threshold, is a legal, policy-laden determination dependent on consideration of different forces, including logic, science, competing socioeconomic policies, and contractual assumptions of responsibility."

Simply put, even if the plaintiffs could prove that LIPA was grossly negligent and incompetent, I don't see a New York court opening Pandora's box and allowing them to recover consequential damages.

In fact, I would be quite surprised if LIPA doesn't move to dismiss the lawsuit from the get-go on these grounds.

Best regards,

New York State's Corruption Risk Report Card: It Aint Good

NYS Overall grade:

D

Click a category to see detailed scores and notes.

Public Access to Information D+ view	Political Financing D- view
Executive Accountability D view	Legislative Accountability D+ view
Judicial Accountability D view	State Budget Processes F view
State Civil Service Management D- view	Procurement D view
Internal Auditing B+ view	Lobbying Disclosure B- view
State Pension Fund Management F view	Ethics Enforcement Agencies F view
State Insurance Commissions D- view	Redistricting F view

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The story behind the score

New York’s newly created ethics commission has its work cut out for it in a state government that’s often defined by dysfunction and corruption. Read more from SII State Reporter David King.

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Wisconsin received a grade of 'C-' from the State Integrity Investigation for its political financing laws and practices, with reporter Kate Golden finding proper measures on limits, enforcement, and transparency, while also documenting numerous exemptions and back-channels, including the recall election loophole. But in other states, the potentially polluting influence of unlimited, and sometimes unsupervised campaign financing is constant and permanent, borne out of state laws and practices -- or their absence.

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Frustrated with Albany’s tepid reaction to the idea of publicly financed elections, the Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes and his fiancé are financing a new campaign to press the issue in coordination with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.

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Read the rest of of the story at the New York Times.

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The law allows the disclosure of the names and pensions of retired public workers. But it exempts disclosure of the name of a “beneficiary” — which has long been interpreted to mean a person receiving the benefits after a retiree dies.

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Read the rest of the story at the New York Times.

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New York launches new open government website

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