BXP and CBRE are among the defendants in a wrongful-death lawsuit involving an accident that led to the death of an 88-year-old outside St. Peter’s Church in Midtown Manhattan.
The daughter of Toni Cohen filed a lawsuit last week in New York State Supreme Court over the accident, Crain’s reported. The lawsuit alleges the church at 619 Lexington Avenue and its contractors were negligent in Cohen’s death, failing to correct “recurrent” issues with an elevator.
In December, Cohen was using the elevator that provides access to the church at the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 54th Street. When the latch of the elevator allegedly failed, according to the lawsuit, Cohen fell backwards and the door opened up. Cohen allegedly suffered “severe and permanent injuries” that led to her death later that day.
Victoria Cohen, Toni’s daughter, is seeking damages, expenses for her mother’s funeral and compensation for mental and emotional anguish. Her eligibility for the latter could depend on whether or not Toni was consciously suffering between the time of the accident and the time of her death.
Other defendants in the case include the church itself and Otis Elevator. BXP and CBRE, tasked with managing the property, did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit from Crain’s.
For three consecutive years, the New York State Legislature passed the New York Grieving Families Act, which would enable families the opportunity to seek damages for emotional suffering in wrongful death cases. Gov. Kathy Hochul repeatedly vetoed the bill, citing concerns over how the bill could drive up insurance costs and destabilize the healthcare system.
Hochul is reviewing the latest iteration of this legislation, which passed both the state Assembly and the state Senate.
BXP is behind one of the more notable planned office developments in Manhattan, on the site of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s former headquarters at 343 Madison Avenue.
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