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Allen v. Farrell
Citations: 266 A.D.2d 857; 698 N.Y.S.2d 186; 1999 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 11702
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; November 11, 1999; New York; State Appellate Court
Judgment affirmed unanimously without costs. The Supreme Court correctly declared that the defendant possesses a prescriptive easement for the driveway along the eastern boundary of the plaintiffs’ property. However, the court improperly admitted testimony from plaintiff Gerald Elmont Allen regarding a 1982 conversation with Marian Gray about his rights to the driveway, which was barred by the Dead Man’s Statute (CPLR 4519). Despite this error, the court appropriately determined that Gray's use of the driveway from 1974 to 1992 was adverse, open, notorious, continuous, and uninterrupted, allowing the defendant, as Gray’s grantee, to acquire a prescriptive easement. The plaintiffs' arguments that Gray's use was common with the public and that the damages awarded were insufficient were also rejected. The appeal originated from a judgment of the Supreme Court in Livingston County, presided over by Judge Cicoria.