The Second Department determined plaintiff was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law 240 (1) cause of action stemming from a fall from a ladder which moved for no apparent reason. The court determined that the defendant, Arrow, which had contracted with plaintiff’s employer, was liable as an agent of the owner or general contractor because of its supervisory control and authority to enforce safety standards:
Labor Law § 240(1) applies to “contractors and owners and their agents”… . “A party is deemed to be an agent of an owner or general contractor under the Labor Law when it has supervisory control and authority over the work being done where a plaintiff is injured” … . “To impose such liability, the defendant must have the authority to control the activity bringing about the injury so as to enable it to avoid or correct the unsafe condition” … . The determinative factor is whether the defendant had “the right to exercise control over the work, not whether it actually exercised that right” … . Here, Arrow Steel had the authority to enforce safety standards and choose the subcontractor who did the asbestos work. Additionally, Arrow Steel directly entered into a contract with [plaintiff’s employer], and had the authority to exercise control over the work, even if it did not actually do so … . Cabrera v Arrow Steel Window Corp., 2018 NY Slip Op 05275, Second Dept 7-18-18
LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW (PLAINTIFF PROPERLY GRANTED SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS LABOR LAW 240 (1) ACTION STEMMING FROM A FALL FROM A LADDER, DEFENDANT WAS APPARENTLY LIABLE AS AN AGENT OF THE OWNER WITH AUTHORITY OVER SAFETY MEASURES (SECOND DEPT))/LADDERS (LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW, PLAINTIFF PROPERLY GRANTED SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS LABOR LAW 240 (1) ACTION STEMMING FROM A FALL FROM A LADDER, DEFENDANT WAS APPARENTLY LIABLE AS AN AGENT OF THE OWNER WITH AUTHORITY OVER SAFETY MEASURES (SECOND DEPT))