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THERE WAS CONFLICTING EVIDENCE WHETHER PLAINTIFF, WHO HAD NO MEMORY OF THE ACCIDENT, FELL FROM AN A-FRAME LADDER OR A SCAFFOLD, BOTH WERE DEEMED INADEQUATE SAFETY DEVICES AND PLAINTIFF WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON HIS LABOR LAW 240 (1) CAUSE OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, determined that the conflicting evidence, indicating plaintiff either fell from an A-frame ladder or from a scaffold, did not preclude summary judgment in plaintiff’s favor on his Labor Law 240 (1) cause of action. Plaintiff had no memory of the accident. The court reasoned that both the step ladder and the scaffold constituted an inadequate safety device under the circumstances:

As to the “ladder version,” although plaintiff has no specific recollection of the ladder moving, he also testified that, immediately before the fall, he was standing on the second to the last rung up, with his hands over his head toward the duct, which he could barely reach. Such testimony establishes prima facie that the ladder did not provide proper protection for plaintiff … . Because the record is clear that the ladder did not prevent him from falling, his inability to identify the precise manner in which he fell is immaterial … . As to the “scaffold version,” it is undisputed fact that the scaffold from which plaintiff purportedly fell had no guardrails. This fact establishes prima facie that it was an inadequate safety device  … . Under either version, defendants have not raised a triable issue of fact as to whether plaintiff’s negligence was the sole proximate cause of his accident … . Ajche v Park Ave. Plaza Owner, LLC, 2019 NY Slip Op 02456, First Dept 4-2-19

 

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