Practice point: Plaintiff was injured in a fall from an unsecured ladder while
working in a warehouse, where his job required the removal of heavy machinery and shelves that ran from floor to
ceiling across three second-floor walls, each 50 feet long and 8 feet
high, and were bolted to the floors and walls. Heavy tools were required to cut the bolts in order to break down and remove the shelves. The removed materials, including the shelving, were so heavy that they had to be loaded in cages, which were then lifted by a pallet jack,
moved to the edge of the second floor, and lowered to the first floor
with a forklift.
The Appellate Division determined that the dismantling of the shelves was a sufficiently
complex and difficult task to render the shelving a "structure" within
the meaning of §§ 240(1) and 241(6). In addition, dismantling the shelving was "demolition" for the purposes of the statute.
Student note: In opposition to plaintiff's prima facie showing, defendants failed
to raise an issue of fact as to whether plaintiff was the sole cause of his
accident. There is no evidence that plaintiff received any immediate and active direction not to use the ladder, as is necessary in order to
establish a recalcitrant worker defense.
Case: Phillips v. Powercrat Corp., NY Slip Op 02407 (1st Dept. 2015)
Here is the decision.
Tomorrow's issue: The justifiable reliance element of a fraud claim.
