Coque v. Wildflower Estates Developers, Inc.

31 A.D.3d 484, 818 N.Y.S.2d 546
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedJuly 11, 2006
StatusPublished
Cited by41 cases

This text of 31 A.D.3d 484 (Coque v. Wildflower Estates Developers, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Coque v. Wildflower Estates Developers, Inc., 31 A.D.3d 484, 818 N.Y.S.2d 546 (N.Y. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

[485]*485In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, (1) the defendant Classic Construction appeals (a), as limited by its notice of appeal and brief, from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Queens County (Dye, J.), dated October 9, 2003, as granted that branch of the plaintiffs motion which was for summary judgment on the issue of liability pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1) insofar as asserted against it and granted those branches of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which were for summary judgment on that party’s cross claims for contractual and common-law indemnification insofar as asserted against it and (b), as limited by its brief, from so much of an order of the same court (Schulman, J.) dated April 30, 2004, as denied its cross motion for leave to reargue those branches of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which were for summary judgment on that party’s cross claims for contractual and common-law indemnification insofar as asserted against it; (2) the third-party defendant appeals (a), as limited by its brief, from so much of the order dated October 9, 2003, as granted the plaintiffs motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1) and granted that branch of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which was for summary judgment on the third-party cause of action for contractual indemnification and (b) from so much of the order dated April 30, 2004, as denied its cross motion for leave to reargue that branch of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which was for summary judgment on the third-party cause of action for contractual indemnification; and (3) the defendant third-party plaintiff cross-appeals (a), as limited by its brief, from so much of the order dated October 9, 2003, as granted that branch of the plaintiffs motion which was for summary judgment on the issue of liability pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1) insofar as asserted against it, in effect, denied that branch of its cross motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as it seeks recovery for lost wages, and denied that branch of its motion which was for summary judgment on its third-party cause of action for common-law indemnification and [486]*486(b) from so much of the order dated April 30, 2004, as, upon re-argument, in effect, adhered to the original determination denying that branch of its cross motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as it seeks recovery for lost wages and denied that branch of its motion which was for leave to renew that branch of its cross motion which was for summary judgment on its third-party cause of action for common-law indemnification. Justice Howard Miller has been substituted for former Justice Sondra Miller (see 22 NYCRR 670.1 [c]).

Ordered that the cross appeal from so much of the order dated October 9, 2003, as, in effect, denied that branch of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as it seeks recovery for lost wages is dismissed, as that portion of the order was superseded by so much of the order dated April 30, 2004 as was made upon reargument; and it is further,

Ordered that the appeals from the order dated April 30, 2004 are dismissed, as no appeals lie from an order denying reargument; and it is further,

Ordered that the order dated October 9, 2003 is modified, on the law, by (1) deleting the provision thereof granting that branch of the plaintiffs motion which was for summary judgment on the issue of the liability of the defendant Classic Construction pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1) and substituting therefor a provision denying that branch of the motion and (2) deleting the provision thereof granting those branches of the cross motion of the defendant third-party plaintiff which were for summary judgment on its cross claims for contractual and common-law indemnification against the defendant Classic Construction and for summary judgment on its third-party cause of action for contractual indemnification and substituting therefor provisions denying those branches of the cross motion; as so modified, the order is affirmed insofar as reviewed and, upon searching the record, summary judgment is awarded to the defendant Classic Construction dismissing the cause of action based on Labor Law § 240 (1) insofar as asserted against it; and it is further,

Ordered that the order dated April 30, 2004 is affirmed insofar as cross-appealed from; and it is further,

Ordered that one bill of costs is awarded to the plaintiff, the defendant Classic Construction, and the third-party defendant, payable by the defendant third-party plaintiff.

The defendant third-party plaintiff, Wildflower Estates Developers, Inc. (hereinafter Wildflower), owned real property [487]*487where it was building a group of town houses. Wildflower hired the third-party defendant, City Wide Building Corp. (hereinafter City Wide), to perform carpentry work and hired the defendant Classic Construction (hereinafter Classic) to perform roofing work. The plaintiff, an undocumented alien, was an employee of City Wide. While standing on a makeshift scaffold, constructing a staircase between the second and third floors inside one of the new townhouses, the plaintiff was struck by a package of shingles that fell from the roof through an opening created for a skylight. The impact caused the scaffold to collapse, and the plaintiff fell to the basement, resulting in severe and permanent injuries. The plaintiff commenced this action against Wildflower and Classic, asserting causes of action based on common-law negligence and violations of the Labor Law. In a cross claim against Classic, and in a third-party action against City Wide, Wildflower sought contractual and common-law indemnification.

The Supreme Court properly, upon reargument, in effect, adhered to its determination denying that branch of Wildflower’s cross motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as it seeks recovery for lost wages. Contrary to Wildflower’s contention, an award of damages for lost wages is not preempted by federal immigration policy, as expressed in the Immigration Reform and Control Act (8 USC § 1324a et seq.) and in Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v NLRB (535 US 137 [2002]), by virtue of the plaintiff’s status as an undocumented alien (see Balbuena v IDR Realty LLC, 6 NY3d 338 [2006]). While an undocumented alien may be precluded from recovering damages for lost wages if he or she obtained employment by submitting false documentation to the employer (see Balbuena v IDR Realty LLC, supra at 362-363), the evidence submitted by Wildflower in support of its cross motion failed to demonstrate the absence of a triable issue of fact as to whether the plaintiff did so in this case (see Alvarez v Prospect Hosp., 68 NY2d 320, 324 [1986]).

The Supreme Court properly granted that branch of the plaintiffs motion which was for summary judgment on the issue of Wildflower’s liability pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1). A worker at a construction site is entitled to judgment as a matter of law against an owner under Labor Law § 240 (1) where, as here, “the furnished protective devices fail to prevent a foreseeable external force from causing a worker to fall from an elevation” (Cruz v Turner Constr. Co., 279 AD2d 322 [2001]; see Alomia v New York City Tr. Auth., 292 AD2d 403 [2002]; Spaulding v Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 271 AD2d 316 [2000]). More[488]

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Bluebook (online)
31 A.D.3d 484, 818 N.Y.S.2d 546, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/coque-v-wildflower-estates-developers-inc-nyappdiv-2006.