August 8, 2014

Ortho Prods. & Equip., Inc. v GEICO Gen. Ins. Co. (2014 NY Slip Op 51263(U))

Headnote

The relevant facts of the case were that Ortho Products & Equipment, Inc. was seeking to recover assigned first-party no-fault benefits, and the defendant, GEICO General Ins. Co., had denied the claim based on a lack of medical necessity. Plaintiff moved for summary judgment, and defendant cross-moved for summary judgment dismissing the complaint. The main issue decided was whether there was a triable issue of fact regarding the medical necessity of the supplies at issue. The court held that defendant failed to articulate a sufficient basis to strike the Civil Court's implicit findings in plaintiff's favor, and that there was a triable issue of fact regarding the medical necessity of the supplies at issue. Therefore, the court affirmed the order, with costs.

Reported in New York Official Reports at Ortho Prods. & Equip., Inc. v GEICO Gen. Ins. Co. (2014 NY Slip Op 51263(U))

Ortho Prods. & Equip., Inc. v GEICO Gen. Ins. Co. (2014 NY Slip Op 51263(U)) [*1]

Ortho Prods. & Equip., Inc. v GEICO Gen. Ins. Co.

2014 NY Slip Op 51263(U) [44 Misc 3d 139(A)]

Decided on August 8, 2014

Appellate Term, Second Department

Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.

This opinion is uncorrected and will not be published in the printed Official Reports.

Decided on August 8, 2014

SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE TERM, SECOND DEPARTMENT, 2d, 11th and 13th JUDICIAL DISTRICTS

PRESENT: : PESCE, P.J., WESTON and ALIOTTA, JJ.
2012-1206 K C

Ortho Products & Equipment, Inc. as Assignee of PAUL M. LUCCIONI, Respondent,
against
GEICO General Ins. Co., Appellant.

Appeal from an order of the Civil Court of the City of New York, Kings County (Wavny Toussaint, J.), entered March 16, 2012. The order, insofar as appealed from, upon denying plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, made, in effect, CPLR 3212 (g) findings in plaintiff’s favor, and denied defendant’s cross motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.

ORDERED that the order, insofar as appealed from, is affirmed, with $25 costs.

In this action by a provider to recover assigned first-party no-fault benefits, plaintiff moved for summary judgment, and defendant cross-moved for summary judgment dismissing the complaint on the ground that it had timely and properly denied the claim at issue based on a lack of medical necessity. Insofar as is relevant to this appeal, the Civil Court, upon denying plaintiff’s motion, made, in effect, CPLR 3212 (g) findings in plaintiff’s favor, denied defendant’s cross motion, and held that the only remaining issue for trial was medical necessity.

We find that defendant has failed to articulate a sufficient basis to strike the Civil Court’s implicit CPLR 3212 (g) findings in plaintiff’s favor (see EMC Health Prods., Inc. v Geico Ins. Co., 43 Misc 3d 139[A], 2014 NY Slip Op 50786[U] [App Term, 2d, 11th & 13th Jud Dists 2014]). Moreover, upon a review of the record, we find that there is a triable issue of fact regarding the medical necessity of the supplies at issue (see Zuckerman v City of New York, 49 NY2d 557 [1980]).

Accordingly, the order, insofar as appealed from, is affirmed.

Pesce, P.J., Weston and Aliotta, JJ., concur.

Decision Date: August 08, 2014