Proof of Indemnification Agreement Insufficient

The Third Department determined the employer did not demonstrate that the contractor hired by the employer had agreed to indemnify the employer for damages related to the injury of the contractor’s employee:

Workers’ Compensation Law § 11 precludes third-party indemnification claims against employers unless the claim is “based upon a provision in a written contract entered into prior to the accident or occurrence by which the employer had expressly agreed to contribution to or indemnification of the . . . person asserting the cause of action for the type of loss suffered” … . “When a party is under no legal duty to indemnify, a contract assuming that obligation must be strictly construed to avoid reading into it a duty which the parties did not intend to be assumed” … .  “Whether the parties did in fact have such an agreement involves a two-part inquiry.  First, we consider whether the parties entered into a written contract containing an indemnity provision applicable to the site or job where the injury giving rise to the indemnity claim took place. Second, if so, we examine whether the indemnity provision was sufficiently particular to meet the requirements of [Workers’ Compensation Law §] 11… . Trombley v Socha…, 516943, 3rd Dept 1-9-14