Court of Appeals Watch

Ortiz v. Varsity Holdings: In this Labor Law 240 (1) action, the Second Department affirmed summary judgment for the defendant, but in a rare move sua sponte granted leave to appeal to the Court of Appeals. The plaintiff claimed he was standing "on or near the ledge of a six-foot high dumpster" and that he injured himself after falling onto the sidewalk. No safety device was in place while the plaintiff was "rearranging debris from an apartment renovation project." Justices Skelos, Eng, Belen, and Austin concurred in the Decision that noted "[w]e are constrained to affirm the Supreme Court" based on prior Second Department cases which held that Labor Law 240(1) did not apply to accidents involving dumpsters.