DEFENDANT HOMEOWNER DID NOT DIRECT OR EXERCISE SUPERVISORY CONTROL OVER PLAINTIFF’S WORK; THE LABOR LAW 240(1) AND 241(6) CAUSES OF ACTION SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISMISSED PURSUANT TO THE STATUTORY HOMEOWNER’S EXEMPTION; THE LABOR LAW 200 AND COMMON LAW NEGLIGENCE CAUSES OF ACTION, TO WHICH THE HOMEOWNER’S EXEMPTION DOES NOT APPLY, SHOULD ALSO HAVE BEEN DISMISSED BECAUSE THE DEFENDANT DID NOT CONTROL PLAINTIFF’S WORK (THIRD DEPT).
The Third Department, reversing Supreme Court determined the Labor Law 240(1), 241(6), 200 and common law negligence causes of action against the homeowner should have been dismissed. Plaintiff alleged he fell 14 feet attempting to install floor joists across the foundation. The Labor Law 240(1) and 241(6) causes of action should have been dismissed pursuant to the statutory homeowner’s exemption, which was deemed applicable because defendant did not direct the plaintiff’s installation of the joists. The Labor Law 200 and common law negligence causes of action should have been dismissed for essentially the same reason (there is no statutory homeowner’s exemption for those causes of action):
… [P]laintiff averred that he and defendant had discussions about work orders, logistics, materials and the architectural drawings, that defendant checked in with him on a daily basis, that defendant told him where to park during work hours and to lock a gate at the conclusion of the workday, that defendant changed the stairs and windows to be used for the house and changed the placement of a fireplace and that defendant moved rocks and applied tape to plywood at the construction site. Even when viewed in the light most favorable to plaintiff, however, this evidence does not indicate that defendant directed or controlled the manner of plaintiff’s work … . Capuzzi v Fuller, 2021 NY Slip Op 07335, Third Dept 12-23-21