Padron v. Granite Broadway Dev. LLC
Plaintiff Carlos Padron sustained injuries after slipping on a watery stairwell at a construction site while employed by Transcontinental Contracting, Inc. Granite Broadway Development LLC (property owner) and CNY Builders 1717 LLC (construction manager) were initially granted summary judgment on contractual indemnification against Transcontinental and dismissal of Transcontinental's counterclaims by the Supreme Court. The Appellate Division affirmed the dismissal of Transcontinental's counterclaims, finding Granite free from negligence due to lack of onsite workers or safety-related visits. However, the Appellate Division modified the Supreme Court's order, denying Granite's motion for summary judgment on its contractual indemnification claim against Transcontinental. This was because Granite was not explicitly named as 'Owner' in the relevant contract's definition section, and an un-dated, unsigned exhibit purporting to identify Granite as 'Owner' created a factual dispute regarding the parties' intent to be bound.