Summary Judgment Dismissal

HPM&B recently obtained summary judgment dismissal of all claims against a defendant property owner and general contractor in a Labor Law case venued in the Supreme Court, New York County. The laborer-plaintiff claimed to have sustained injury when he tripped and fell over an unguarded wooden cleat at a construction site in Manhattan. In support of the motion, HPM&B submitted affidavits from the owner, general contractor, and subcontractor and successfully argued that Labor Law §§ 200, 240(1), and 241(6) did not apply to the facts of the case since the wooden cleat was “integral” to the construction even though it was not integral to the work being performed by the plaintiff. Justice Shlomo Hagler agreed and adhered to the broad scope of the “integral to the work” defense as per recent Appellate Division, First Department case law and dismissed all claims against the owner and general contractor.