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Construction Accident Lawyers

Because of the dangers they face daily, construction workers are afforded extra protections under New York law. Those protections only help if the case is pleaded correctly — and that is where most construction claims are lost.

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Labor Law 240 and 241: why New York is different

These protections exist to deter general contractors and land owners from saving money by jeopardizing the safety of the site worker. In the case of a scaffold collapse or a safety-harness failure, the general contractor and the land owner will in most instances be held strictly liable to the injured worker.

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Labor Law § 240(1) — the "Scaffold Law." It covers elevation-related risks: falls from scaffolds, ladders, roofs and platforms, and objects that fall on a worker below. Where it applies, liability is absolute. The owner and general contractor cannot escape by arguing the worker was careless, and comparative fault does not reduce the recovery. Very few areas of American law work this way.
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Labor Law § 241(6). This one requires a violation of a specific, concrete provision of the New York State Industrial Code — not a general safety standard. Debris left in a walkway, an unguarded opening, inadequate lighting, a missing guardrail. The failure to allege the right Industrial Code sections can be fatal to the outcome of the case, and a general allegation is not enough.
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On top of that sits Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence, and the OSHA regulations, which do not create a private right of action but do prove what the standard of care was. When litigating a construction accident it is vital that the attorney be familiar with both the federal OSHA regulations and the New York State Industrial Code, because violations often make the contractor and the land owner liable to the injured worker.
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And one more thing every injured construction worker should know:

workers' compensation is not the end of it. Comp covers your medical treatment and part of your lost income, and you cannot sue your own employer. But the owner, the general contractor, another trade's subcontractor or an equipment manufacturer are not your employer — and the Labor Law claim against them sits on top of the comp claim.

Construction cases we handle

These absorbed the old site's separate thin pages — they are all the same statute at work.

Scaffold collapses and falls

The core § 240(1) case. Missing planking, no guardrail, an unsecured baker's scaffold, a harness with nothing to tie off to. The firm has recovered $800,000 for a worker whose scaffold collapsed and $3,090,000 for a worker who fell from a mobile crane platform.

Ladder falls

An unsecured or defective ladder that shifts is a classic elevation-risk case, and "you should have held it steady" is not a defense under § 240(1).

Falling debris and objects

Material that falls while being hoisted or that was inadequately secured. This is § 240(1) too, even though the worker was standing on the ground.

Trips and slips on the site

Debris in a walkway, an oily surface, an unlit passage. These are § 241(6) cases and live or die on which Industrial Code section is pleaded. The firm recovered $1,000,000 for a rebar latherer who slipped on an oily surface carrying rebar across an open site.

Machinery and equipment injuries

Unguarded machines, defective tools and hoists. Often a product liability claim against the manufacturer runs alongside the Labor Law claim.

Electrocution and excavation

Live wires that were never de-energized, unshored trenches, cave-ins. Both have their own specific Industrial Code provisions.

Verdicts and settlements

Construction recoveries obtained by this firm

$7,500,000

Verdict for wrongful death, against landlord, caused by fire that spread through apartment that was without smoke detectors.
$4,400,000

Verdict for motor vehicle accident causing spinal injuries requiring surgery.
$4,000,000

For a truck driver struck in the rear by a bus sustaining a brain injury.
$3,090,000

For a construction worker that fell from a mobile crane platform and sustained a pilon fracture.
$1,000,000

For a rebar latherer who was carrying rebar across an open worksite when he slipped and fell on an oily surface causing injury to his shoulder and bicep.
$800,000

For a construction worker that was working on a scaffold that collapsed causing him to fracture his ankle which required surgery.

All results

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different, and the result in any case depends on its own facts.

If you were hurt on a site

What protects your case in the first week

Report the accident to your employer in writing — and keep a copy for yourself
Photograph the scaffold, ladder, opening or machine before it is moved or repaired
Get the names of the general contractor and the site safety manager, not just your own foreman
File the workers' compensation claim; it does not replace the Labor Law case, it runs alongside it
Do not sign anything from an insurance company or a site investigator without a lawyer reading it
Call quickly — sites change fast, and the condition that hurt you may be gone within days

Construction accident questions

Not answered here? A lawyer will answer it, free and at any hour.

Ask us directly

I am getting workers' compensation. Can I still sue?

You cannot sue your own employer, but you can sue the owner, the general contractor and other subcontractors on the site. Most serious construction cases have both a comp claim and a Labor Law case. The comp lien gets repaid from the recovery, and how that lien is negotiated makes a real difference to what you keep.

Does it matter that I am undocumented?

No. New York courts have held that immigration status does not bar an injured worker from recovering for a construction injury. The Labor Law protects the worker on the site, not a citizenship category.

I was told the accident was my own fault.

Under § 240(1) that argument mostly does not work: where the statute applies, liability is absolute and comparative fault does not reduce the recovery. The exception is a worker who was the sole proximate cause of his own accident, which is a much narrower defense than site investigators suggest.

How long do I have?

Generally three years for the Labor Law claim, but the workers' compensation claim has its own much shorter notice requirements — 30 days' notice to the employer and two years to file. If the site is owned by a public authority, a 90-day Notice of Claim may also apply.

What is the Industrial Code and why does it keep coming up?

It is 12 NYCRR Part 23, the state's detailed construction safety regulations. A § 241(6) claim only survives if it identifies a specific provision that was violated — for example the one requiring passageways to be kept free of debris. Pleading it generally is one of the most common ways these cases are lost.

Where we handle these cases