Chutes and Ladders: Recent Cases Involving New York's 'Scaffold Law'
The number of new cases in this area of law is constant. The cases discussed herein are representative highlights of some of the recent opinions regarding litigation of Labor Law §240(1) claims by workers injured in the performance of their jobs where "elevation" and "force of gravity" provide added risks to their assigned tasks.
May 31, 2022 at 10:00 AM
23 minute read
NY Labor Law §240(1), commonly referred to as the Scaffold Law, was established to protect workers in the performance of elevation-related jobs. This statute contains two separate criteria—the first delineates the specific nature of the work to be performed and the second the type of protection required by the contractor, and his or her agents, to the worker(s) when the work is, in fact, being performed. For a worker to successfully prosecute a case under this statute it is necessary that both elements be proven. If it cannot be shown that the task carried out by the worker was covered by the statute, the Scaffold Law is inapplicable. If, however, the task is among the enumerated items set forth therein, the plaintiff must then prove that the failure of the contractor to provide adequate protection during the time the work was performed was the proximate cause of the accident and resulting injury. Generally, at the outset of their case, plaintiffs move for summary judgment on the issue of liability, which, if successful, leaves the amount of damages as the only issue to be resolved.
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