In the case of Sarasky v. Law Enforcement Training and Consulting Service, the plaintiff, an ASPCA “special agent” (and the quotations are ours), was injured during a recertification class that the defendant was conducting. Specifically, the plaintiff was hurt when she was pretending to be the “arrestee” who was being subdued by an arresting officer. Rather than correctly subdue the plaintiff, however, the defendant’s employee fell on top of her. The instant negligence lawsuit resulted.

The trial court dismissed the complaint on the basis that the plaintiff did not establish a prima facie case of negligence and an appeal resulted. The First Department affirmed the dismissal. It held that the plaintiff’s reliance on an unqualified expert failed to raise a triable issue of fact.

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