In Zafir v. Turbo Trans. Corp., 190 Misc.2d 292 (Sup. Queens 2001) the court stated "It is the holding of this Court that, prior to recovering damages, a plaintiff, even at inquest, must first establish that a 'serious injury' was sustained." In Zafir, plaintiff was a passenger in a vehicle that came into contact with a vehicle owned by defendant Turbo Trans. Corp. and operated by defendant Arkadi Kirtichenko. Plaintiff was granted a default judgment on the issue of liability, and an inquest was held to determine damages. Justice Satterfield rejected plaintiffs argument that a determination on liability included a determination of serious injury, and further held that plaintiff failed to present adequate evidence of serious injury.