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Geiser v. Harbour Pt., Northport Homeowners

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Mar 9, 1998
248 A.D.2d 505 (N.Y. App. Div. 1998)

Opinion

March 9, 1998

Appeal from the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (Seidell, J.).


Ordered that the appeal from the order dated October 12, 1994, is dismissed, as that order was superseded by the order dated April 15, 1997, made upon reargument; and it is further,

Ordered that the order dated April 15, 1997, is reversed insofar as appealed and cross-appealed from, on the law, the respective cross motions of the defendant third-party plaintiff and the third-party defendant for summary judgment are granted, and the complaint and the third-party complaint are dismissed; and it is further,

Ordered that the order dated October 12, 1994, is vacated; and it is further,

Ordered that one bill of costs is awarded to the defendant third-party plaintiff and the third-party defendant.

The plaintiff was hired to activate an electric buzzer which would automatically open a gate located on a fixed dock owned by the defendant Harbour Point at Northport Homeowners Association, Inc. (hereinafter Harbour Point). To complete the project, the plaintiff had to first install piping underneath the fixed dock. In order to install the piping at that part of the dock closest to the shore, the plaintiff had to climb onto the rocks at low tide. After installing the last clamp, the plaintiff slipped on the algae-covered rocks, reached up to grab a beam on the underside of the dock, and injured his right shoulder.

The plaintiff's contention that Harbour Point is strictly liable for his injury pursuant to Labor Law § 240 (1) is without merit. Labor Law § 240 (1) is directed at elevation-related hazards only, and recovery under the statute is unavailable where the injury results from other types of hazards "even if proximately caused by the absence of an adequate scaffold or other required safety device" ( Ross v. Curtis-Palmer Hydro-Elec. Co., 81 N.Y.2d 494, 500; see, Amirr v. Calcagno Constr. Co., 244 A.D.2d 302). Accordingly, that branch of the motion of Harbour Point which was for summary judgment dismissing this cause of action should have been granted.

The plaintiff's Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence causes of action also are without merit. Once Harbour Point established its entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, the plaintiff was required to "produce evidentiary proof in admissible form sufficient to require a trial of material questions of fact on which he rests his claim" ( Zuckerman v. City of New York, 49 N.Y.2d 557, 562). Here, the plaintiff did not even attempt to raise any material issue of fact with respect to negligence. Accordingly, those branches of the cross motion of Harbour Point which were for summary judgment dismissing those branches of the complaint which were to recover damages pursuant to Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence should have been granted.

The plaintiff has failed to set forth a valid claim under Labor Law § 241 (6). The plaintiff has not alleged in the complaint or the bill of particulars a violation of any concrete specification of the Industrial Code ( see, 12 N.Y.CRR part 23), and therefore has not made the requisite showing to maintain a claim under Labor Law § 241 (6) ( see, Ross v. Curtis-Palmer Hydro-Elec. Co., 81 N.Y.2d 494, 500, supra).

The parties' remaining contentions are academic in light of our determination.

Thompson, J. P., Sullivan, Florio and McGinity, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Geiser v. Harbour Pt., Northport Homeowners

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Mar 9, 1998
248 A.D.2d 505 (N.Y. App. Div. 1998)
Case details for

Geiser v. Harbour Pt., Northport Homeowners

Case Details

Full title:CHARLES GEISER, Respondent, v. HARBOUR POINT AT NORTHPORT HOMEOWNERS…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department

Date published: Mar 9, 1998

Citations

248 A.D.2d 505 (N.Y. App. Div. 1998)
670 N.Y.S.2d 214

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