Contractor Was a Statutory Agent for the Owner for Purposes of the Labor Law Causes of Action

The First Department explained that a contractor (Bovis) with the authority to direct plaintiff’s work became a statutory agent for the city with respect to the Labor Law 240(1) and 241(6) causes of action:

…[T]he undisputed evidence established that Bovis was a statutory agent for the City since it possessed and exercised supervisory control and authority over the work being done … . ” When the work giving rise to [the duty to conform to the requirements of section 240(1)] has been delegated to a third party, that third party then obtains the concomitant authority to supervise and control that work and becomes a statutory “agent” of the owner or general contractor'” … . Bovis’s own superintendent testified that Bovis functioned as the “eyes and ears” of the City for the subject construction project, and it had broad responsibility under its contract to coordinate and supervise the work of the four prime contractors, including plaintiff’s employer … . Johnson v City of New York, 2014 NY Slip Op 05698, 1st Dept 8-7-14