Veliu v Verizon N.Y. Inc.

Holding The court reversed the grant of summary judgment on the plaintiff’s Labor Law § 240(1) claim, finding that triable issues of fact existed regarding how the injury occurred and whether the plaintiff was the sole proximate cause by failing to use available safety devices. The majority determined that the conflicting accounts of the accident and the plaintiff’s potential knowledge of available lumber braces precluded summary judgment.

The court’s words

The conflicting accounts raise a credibility determination which is the province of the factfinder

2026 NY Slip Op 05374, at the official text

an injured worker's failure to use safety devices will not constitute the sole proximate cause of the accident unless the worker knew that he or she 'was expected to use them but for no good reason chose not to do so'

2026 NY Slip Op 05374, at the official text

there remain issues of fact as to whether plaintiff knew or should have known that the area of the trench where the accident occurred also needed to be braced

2026 NY Slip Op 05374, at the official text