Justice Robert Torres
Williams sought to sever his action from that involving co-plaintiffs Ford and Cintron in this negligence suit for recovery of damages for personal injuries arising from an automobile accident. He contended Cintron was deceased and severance was necessary so that he may proceed with outstanding discovery. The court stated joint trial was appropriate where the several lawsuits presented common questions of fact or law, the interests of judicial economy and consistency of verdicts would best be served by having a single trial. It further concluded it lacked jurisdiction to consider Williams' motion to sever, as there was no evidence that any party sought, or obtained, a legal representative for Cintron's estate. Thus, the court ruled Williams could not seek to sever the two actions as there was no effective substitution for Cintron as required by CPLR 1015. It also stated Williams' argument for severance was unconvincing, stating the papers presented confirm the two cases were essentially one case arising from the same accident, and involved a shared nucleus of facts and issues. Further, as Williams did not argue he would suffer any prejudice beyond the need to complete outstanding discovery, the motion to sever must be denied.