Julio Gomez v. 56th and Park (NY) Owner, LLC and Lend Lease (US) Construction LMB Inc.

Julio Gomez v. 56th and Park (NY) Owner, LLC and Lend Lease (US) Construction LMB Inc.

SHOULDER AND ELBOW INJURIES

Laborer

Bronx, New York

The parties negotiated a pretrial settlement. The defendants’ insurer agreed to pay $2 million, from a policy that provided a substantially greater amount of coverage. The negotiations were mediated by Robert Adams, of National Arbitration and Mediation Inc.

$2,000,000

On April 24, 2013, plaintiff Julio Gomez, a laborer in his late 30s, worked at a construction site that was located at 432 Park Ave., in Manhattan. Gomez was struck by lumber that had fallen out of a hoist while being lowered from an overhead location. He claimed that he suffered injuries of a shoulder.

Gomez sued the construction project’s general contractor, Lend Lease (US) Construction LMB Inc., and the premises’ owner, 56th and Park (NY) Owner, LLC. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants negligently failed to provide a safe workplace. The lawsuit further alleged that the defendants’ failure constituted a violation of the New York State Labor Law.

Gomez claimed that the accident was a result of the hoisted load having not been properly secured. He also claimed that the work site’s supervisor should have ensured that workers did not enter the area below the hoist.

Plaintiff’s counsel contended that the accident stemmed from an elevation-related hazard, as defined by Labor Law § 240(1), and that Gomez was not provided the proper, safe equipment that is a requirement of the statute.

The defense’s expert engineer submitted a report in which he opined that the work site was adequately safeguarded.