{
  "id": "prop_ny_trivial_defect_defendant_burden",
  "version": 2,
  "jurisdiction": "us-ny",
  "domain": "torts.sidewalk",
  "title": "A defendant claiming a trivial defect must show it first",
  "valid_from": null,
  "valid_to": null,
  "temporal_notes": [],
  "topics": [
    "trivial_defect",
    "sidewalk_defect"
  ],
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  "verification": {
    "verified_on": "2026-09-29",
    "methods": [
      "Statement drafted by the editor to restate only what the quoted passages say; each passage was checked against its source as recorded on the linked authority or case.",
      "Checked that every authority and case linked below says what the relationship note claims."
    ],
    "human_review_status": "reviewed",
    "reviewer": null
  },
  "revisions": [
    {
      "version": 2,
      "date": "2026-10-25",
      "summary": "Reviewed for source and accuracy."
    }
  ],
  "statement": "A defendant seeking dismissal because a defect is trivial must first show that the defect is physically insignificant under the circumstances and that neither its characteristics nor its surroundings increase the risk it poses; only then must the plaintiff raise an issue of fact.",
  "scope_notes": [],
  "passages": [
    {
      "source": "src_nycourts_hutchinson_v_sheridan_hill_house",
      "locator": "26 NY3d at 79",
      "text": "A defendant seeking dismissal of a complaint on the basis that the alleged defect is trivial must make a prima facie showing that the defect is, under the circumstances, physically insignificant and that the characteristics of the defect or the surrounding circumstances do not increase the risks it poses. Only then does the burden shift to the plaintiff to establish an issue of fact."
    }
  ],
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  "trust": {
    "authority_level": "court_of_last_resort",
    "source_type": "official_reporter",
    "primary_source": true,
    "verified": true,
    "verification_date": "2026-09-29",
    "source_freshness": "2026-09-29",
    "temporal_status": "timeless",
    "conflict_status": "none_known",
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  "applicability": {
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    "temporal_status": "timeless",
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    "status": "VERIFIED"
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  "graph": {
    "authorities": [],
    "cases": [
      {
        "id": "case_ny_hutchinson_v_sheridan_hill_house",
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        "relationship": "rel_hutchinson_supports_defendant_burden"
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    "incoming": [
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  "provenance": {
    "passages": [
      {
        "source": "src_nycourts_hutchinson_v_sheridan_hill_house",
        "locator": "26 NY3d at 79",
        "sha256": "sha256:f12ff1f7d69f8c3df133df5f435c62ab737f6dfd486a5c1032085e44b129febb",
        "source_url": "http://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2015/2015_07578.htm",
        "retrieved": "2026-09-29"
      }
    ]
  },
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