DAMEN v. NORTH SHORE UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL

ORDERED that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.

The now-deceased defendant, Dr. Roger A. Hyman, established his entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, thus shifting the burden to the plaintiffs to demonstrate the existence of a triable issue of fact ( see, Alvarez v. Prospect Hosp., 68 N.Y.2d 320, 326-327). The plaintiffs failed to submit an affidavit from a medical expert to demonstrate that Dr. Hyman departed from accepted medical practice and that such departure was a proximate cause of the plaintiff Roberta Damen's injuries. Counsel's unsubstantiated assertions of malpractice were insufficient to raise a triable issue of fact ( see, Alvarez v. Prospect Hosp., supra; Fileccia v. Massapequa Gen. Hosp., 99 A.D.2d 796, affd 63 N.Y.2d 639).