On March 15, 2024, the Fourth Department issued a decision in Vial v. Velocity Servers, Inc., 2024 NY Slip Op. 01464, holding that a trial court erred in granting summary judgment on a claim that was not the subject of a motion to summary judgment, explaining:
We agree with plaintiff that Supreme Court erred in determining as a matter of law that plaintiff voluntarily resigned from defendant after the sale of assets to Deluxe and we therefore conclude that the court further erred in sua sponte dismissing that part of plaintiff’s cause of action for breach of contract with respect to the sale bonus. The role of the courts in resolving summary judgment motions is issue finding, not issue determination, and the court’s authority to search the record upon a summary judgment motion pursuant to CPLR 3212 (b) is limited to the issues that are the subject of the motions before the court. Defendant did not contend on the motion that the evidence established as a matter of law that plaintiff voluntarily resigned and, indeed, the evidence in the record demonstrates that the sale to Deluxe could have resulted in potentially significant changes to plaintiff’s employment duties and compensation, including his annual bonuses, thus establishing that there is an issue of fact whether plaintiff’s resignation was voluntary or was a constructive discharge as a result of the sale. We therefore modify the order accordingly.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).