Morato–rodriguez v. Riva Constr. Group Inc.

• Decision Date: 20 October 2011
• Citation: 931 N.Y.S.2d 282,2011 N.Y. Slip Op. 07349,88 A.D.3d 549
• Parties: KARLO MORATO–RODRIGUEZ, Plaintiff–Appellant,v.RIVA CONSTRUCTION GROUP, INC., Defendant–Respondent,1412 Broadway, LLC, Defendant–Appellant,Admit One, LLC, Corp., Defendant.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

88 A.D.3d 549
931 N.Y.S.2d 282
2011 N.Y. Slip Op. 07349

KARLO MORATO–RODRIGUEZ, Plaintiff–Appellant,
v.
RIVA CONSTRUCTION GROUP, INC., Defendant–Respondent,1412 Broadway, LLC, Defendant–Appellant,Admit One, LLC, Corp., Defendant.

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, New York.

Oct. 20, 2011.

[931 N.Y.S.2d 283]

Kagan & Gertel, Esqs., Brooklyn (Irving Gertel of counsel), for Karlo Morato–Rodriguez, appellant.McGaw, Alventosa & Zajac, Jericho (Dawn C. DeSimone of counsel), for 1412 Broadway, LLC, appellant.Karl Clerkin Redmond Ryan Perry & Van Etten, LLP, Melville (James V. Derenze of counsel), for respondent.GONZALEZ, P.J., MAZZARELLI, SWEENY, ABDUS–SALAAM, ROMÁN, JJ.

Order, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Mary Ann Brigantti–Hughes, J.), entered February 14, 2011, which granted defendant Riva Construction Group's motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint against it, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

The motion court correctly determined that plaintiff's claims against defendant Riva are barred by Workers' Compensation Law § 11. Riva demonstrated that it and nonparty WTS Contracting Corp. are alter egos by establishing that they share a president and chief executive, an office manager and an office address, and were insured by the same liability and Workers' Compensation policies ( see Carty v. East 175th St. Hous. Dev. Fund Corp., 83 A.D.3d 529, 921 N.Y.S.2d 237 [2011] ). Although plaintiff was paid with a WTS check and WTS was identified as his employer in the report regarding his accident as well as in the Workers' Compensation notice of award, these facts are consistent with the averment by the president of both Riva and WTS that WTS was merely the payroll entity for all Riva employees ( cf. Vera v. NYC Partnership Hous. Dev. Fund Co., Inc., 40 A.D.3d 472, 837 N.Y.S.2d 47 [2007] ). Additionally, plaintiff testified that his supervisor, a Riva employee, was the only person who instructed him...