More On Second-Hand Smoke

Cooperative and Condominium Directors and Managers:

There was a collective sigh of relief last week when the Appellate Division, First Department – the New York appellate court whose jurisdiction includes Manhattan and the Bronx – unanimously reversed the lower court's decision in Reinhard v. Connaught Tower Corp. and vacated an award of substantial damages to a cooperative's shareholder who claimed that the use of her apartment had been impeded by the infiltration of second-hand cigarette smoke. The Appellate Division did not eliminate the liability of a cooperative or a condominium for second-hand smoke; however, it did indicate that such liability may be subject to reasonable limitations.