BRITT v. LLC (2024)

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Lucindo Suarez, J.), entered January 26, 2023, which granted defendants Levgar Equities Corporation and NB Net Solutions 41 Inc.’s motion to vacate the court's prior order entered November 22, 2002, and upon such vacatur, adhered to its prior order granting plaintiff partial summary judgment as to liability on his Labor Law §§ 240(1) and 241(6) claims, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

Plaintiff was injured while attempting to install an air conditioning coil unit at defendants’ premises.  As plaintiff was so engaged, he received an electric shock, and was unable to let go of the unit.  When the power was cut, the unit fell on his knees.  He then tried to pull the unit back up in order to prevent it from striking his coworker, who was working below, sustaining injuries to his arm and back.

The record establishes that plaintiff was entitled to partial summary judgment as to liability on his Labor Law § 240(1) claim, notwithstanding that he neither fell from a height nor was struck by a falling object.  His injuries were caused by his effort to prevent the unit from falling on his coworker (see Skow v Jones, Lang & Wooton Corp., 240 A.D.2d 194, 195 [1st Dept 1997], lv denied 94 N.Y.2d 758 [1999]).

Plaintiff is also entitled to partial summary judgment as to liability on his Labor Law § 241(6) claim predicated on violations of Industrial Code (12 NYCRR) § 23–1.13(b)(3) and (4), since defendants did not ascertain whether there were live wires in the vicinity of plaintiff's work location, and failed to protect plaintiff against an electrical shock (see Higgins v. TST 375 Hudson, L.L.C., 179 AD3d 508, 510 [1st Dept 2020]).