The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined there was a question of fact whether defendant was entitled to the homeowner’s exemption from liability under Labor Law 240(1) and 241(6). Homeowners who renovate property for commercial purposes cannot assert the exemption. Here there was a question of fact about the homeowner’s intention at the time of the injury:
Although the Labor Law generally imposes liability for worker safety on property owners and contractors, it exempts from liability “owners of one and two-family dwellings who contract for but do not direct or control the work” … . The exemption “was not intended to insulate from liability owners who use their one- or two-family houses purely for commercial purposes” … .
“[R]enovating a residence for resale or rental plainly qualifies as work being performed for a commercial purpose” … . However, where a one- or two-family property serves both residential and commercial purposes, “[a] determination as to whether the exemption applies in a particular case turns on the nature of the site and the purpose of the work being performed, and must be based on the owner’s intentions at the time of the injury” … . Batzin v Ferrone, 2016 NY Slip Op 05108, 2nd Dept 6-29-16
LABOR-CONSTRUCTION LAW (RENOVATION OF PROPERTY FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES DISQUALIFIES HOMEOWNER FROM HOMEOWNERS’ EXEMPTION FROM LIABILITY UNDER LABOR LAW 240(1) AND 241(6); QUESTION OF FACT ABOUT HOMEOWNER’S INTENTION AT TIME OF INJURY)/HOMEOWNERS’ EXEMPTION (LABOR LAW, RENOVATION OF PROPERTY FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES DISQUALIFIES HOMEOWNER FROM HOMEOWNERS’ EXEMPTION FROM LIABILITY UNDER LABOR LAW 240(1) AND 241(6); QUESTION OF FACT ABOUT HOMEOWNER’S INTENTION AT TIME OF INJURY)