The First Department ruled for a construction worker who fell on a defective permanent staircase at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, holding that Labor Law § 240(1) applied because the stairway was his only realistic way to reach the work area during the pandemic. The court also conditionally granted the general contractor indemnification from the electrical subcontractor, underscoring that permanent stairs can trigger height-related worker protections when they are the sole practical access route.

The First Department reinstated a construction manager’s pass-through claim against a subcontractor to the extent it seeks the project owner’s direct damages from a Times Square renovation project. It held that the subcontract’s $3.6 million cap applied only to delay damages, while consequential damages were still barred, so the owner’s other direct damages could still be pursued.