The following excerpt is from Golden v. Gray, 327 N.Y.S.2d 458, 68 Misc.2d 679 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1971):
Cullings v. Goetz was an action against the lessee and owners of a building for personal injuries when a defective garage door fell on the plaintiff. The lease was an oral one and ran from month to month. The court held that the failure of the owners to keep the promise to repair did not make them liable in tort, as such liability was confined to the lessee. 'The doctrine, wise or unwise in its origin, has worked itself by common acquiescence into the tissues of our law. It is too deeply inbedded to be superseded or ignored. * * * (p. 291, 176 N.E. p. 398) Countless tenants, suing for personal injuries and proving nothing more than the breach of an agreement, have been dismissed without a remedy. * * * If there is no remedy for the tenant,
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