Opinion
2003-08987.
Decided June 7, 2004.
In an action, inter alia, to recover damages for personal injuries, etc., the defendant third-party plaintiff appeals from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Kings County (G. Aronin, J.), dated September 2, 2003, as denied its motion for conditional summary judgment on its third-party cause of action for contractual indemnification against the third-party defendant.
Michael F.X. Manning (Carol R. Finocchio, New York, N.Y. [Lisa M. Comeau] of counsel), for defendant third-party plaintiff-appellant.
Katz Stanton (DiJoseph Portegello, P.C., New York, N.Y. [Arnold E. DiJoseph III] of counsel), for plaintiffs-respondents.
Michael Pressman, New York, N.Y. (Michael J. Lenoff of counsel), for third-party defendant-respondent.
Before: FRED T. SANTUCCI, J.P., NANCY E. SMITH, STEPHEN G. CRANE, STEVEN W. FISHER, JJ.
DECISION ORDER
ORDERED that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with one bill of costs to the respondents appearing separately and filing separate briefs.
In support of its motion for conditional summary judgment on its third-party cause of action for contractual indemnification, the defendant third-party plaintiff Modern Continental Construction Co., Inc. (hereinafter Modern), failed to establish its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law ( see Alvarez v. Prospect Hosp., 68 N.Y.2d 320). Since an issue of fact exists as to whether Modern was negligent, its motion was properly denied ( see Patterson v. New York City Tr. Auth., 5 A.D.3d 454; Stevenson v. Alfredo, 277 A.D.2d 218, 220).
Furthermore, we decline Modern's invitation to search the record and grant summary judgment in its favor dismissing the plaintiffs' Labor Law § 240(1) claim. A question of fact exists regarding whether the object which struck the plaintiff Vincent Daquaro fell " because of the absence or inadequacy of a safety device of the kind enumerated in the statute" ( Narducci v. Manhasset Bay Assocs., 96 N.Y.2d 259, 268 [emphasis in original]; cf. Quintavalle v. Mitchell Backhoe Serv., 306 A.D.2d 454; Orner v. Port Auth. of N.Y. N.J., 293 A.D.2d 517). Therefore, summary judgment with respect to the Labor Law § 240(1) claim is inappropriate ( see Zuckerman v. City of New York, 49 N.Y.2d 557, 562).
Modern's remaining contentions are without merit.
SANTUCCI, J.P., SMITH, CRANE and FISHER, JJ., concur.