Result: $4.2 Million Settlement for Construction Worker Injured in Fall From Sidewalk Bridge

The Perecman Firm secured a $4,200,000 settlement for a construction worker who suffered injuries after falling from a sidewalk bridge.

The Perecman Firm, P.L.L.C. represented a client who suffered leg, back, knee, neck, and neurological injuries requiring physical therapy, an arthroscopy, knee surgery, and a meniscectomy.

On Aug. 11, 2010, plaintiff, a 23-year-old laborer, worked at a renovation site in the Bronx. The plaintiff was removing debris that had accumulated on the roof of a scaffold, which had been erected to shield pedestrians utilizing a nearby sidewalk. He fell while he was climbing on the scaffold's frame. He fell a distance of about four feet, and he landed on the sidewalk. He claimed that he suffered injuries of his back and a knee.

The plaintiff sued the premises' owner, the city of New York; the premises' operator, the New York City Housing Authority; and the renovation project's general contractor. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants negligently failed to provide a safe workplace. He further alleged that the defendants' failure constituted a violation of the New York State Labor Law.

The plaintiff claimed that he was climbing the scaffold's frame because he had not been provided a ladder or any other safe means of moving to or from the scaffold's roof. Plaintiff's counsel contended that the accident stemmed from an elevation-related hazard, as defined by Labor Law § 240(1), and that the plaintiff was not provided the proper, safe equipment that is a requirement of the statute.

Defense counsel contended that the plaintiff had been assigned the task of removing debris from the ground – rather than from the scaffold – and that the plaintiff ignored instructions to avoid the scaffold.

Plaintiff's counsel moved for summary judgment of liability, and the motion was granted. The matter proceeded to damages.