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EVIDENCE THAT THE A-FRAME LADDER WAS NOT SECURED AND WAS “IMPROPERLY PLACED” WARRANTED SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS LADDER-FALL CASE ON THE LABOR LAW 240(1) CAUSE OF ACTION; THERE IS NO NEED TO DEMONSTRATE THE LADDER WAS DEFECTIVE (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing Supreme Court, over a two-justice dissent which argued there are triable issues of fact, determined plaintiff was entitled to summary judgment on the Labor Law 240(1) cause of action in this A-frame ladder-fall case. The court noted that plaintiff need not demonstrate the ladder was defective. It is sufficient to demonstrate the ladder was not secured and was “improperly placed:”

To establish a prima facie case of liability under Labor Law § 240 (1), a plaintiff must ” ‘show that the statute was violated and that the violation proximately caused [the] injury’ ” … . “Where a ladder is offered as a work-site safety device, it must be sufficient to provide proper protection. It is well settled that [the] failure to properly secure a ladder, to ensure that it remain[s] steady and erect while being used, constitutes a violation of Labor Law § 240 (1)” … . “[T]he fact that the ladder failed and [that the] plaintiff fell to the ground demonstrates that it was not so placed . . . as to give proper protection to [the plaintiff]” ( … “Evidence that the ladder was structurally sound and not defective is not relevant on the issue of whether it was properly placed” … ).

Here, plaintiff met his initial burden on the motion by submitting his deposition testimony wherein he testified that [an] … employee [of the lessor of the property] covered the ladder’s feet with socks [to protect the tile floor], that [the employee] instructed plaintiff to use the modified ladder, and that the socks caused the ladder to slide and plaintiff to fall. Plaintiff’s unrebutted testimony established that “the statute was violated and that the violation proximately caused his injury” … . Delisle v FBBT/US Props., LLC, 2026 NY Slip Op 03529, Fourth Dept 6-5-26

Practice Point: In this ladder-fall case, the unsecured ladder was not defective. Rather it was deemed “improperly placed” warranting summary judgment. It was alleged that socks placed over the feet of the ladder to protect the tile floor caused the ladder to slide.

 

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