Villanueva v. O'Mara Org., Inc.
Pedro Villanueva, a freight elevator operator, was injured when electrical metallic tubes (EMTs) stacked by an Armor Electrical Corp. employee fell and struck him. The accident occurred at a construction site where The O'Mara Organization, Inc. was the general contractor and Armor was a subcontractor. The Supreme Court initially granted Villanueva partial summary judgment on liability against both O'Mara and Armor for common-law negligence. However, the Appellate Division, First Department, modified this decision. While affirming liability against Armor for creating the dangerous condition, the appellate court denied partial summary judgment against O'Mara, citing Villanueva's failure to demonstrate that O'Mara had actual or constructive notice of the improperly stacked materials, a prerequisite for general contractor liability when an injury stems from a dangerous condition rather than the method of work. The case was therefore modified to reflect O'Mara's lack of established notice regarding the hazard.