Cornell Grace Wins Summary Declaratory Judgment Of Additional Insured Status For Major General Contractor In Catastrophic Labor Law Claim December 2, 2012

One of Cornell Grace’s specialties is insurance coverage litigation. Due to the vicarious and absolute liability implications of the New York State Labor Law in construction accident cases, general contractors and owners routinely require their subcontractors to procure and provide additional insured coverage to them under the subcontractor’s own general liability policy. When claims arise, however, carriers often disclaim coverage to these entities. Our firm aggressively litigates these claims on behalf of our clients, forcing carriers to defend and indemnify their additional insureds under well-settled New York law.

In one particularly complicated case, various subcontractors’ carriers had disclaimed their additional insured coverage obligations to Cornell Grace’s client, a major general contractor managing a large scale industrial site construction in Rockland County. A worker employed by the masonry subcontractor was struck and killed on site by a vehicle – owned by a leasing company and leased to a steel subcontractor. To complicate matters even further, the driver of the vehicle was a steel worker who was employed by yet another steel company. Thus, the various carriers disputed whether they should provide additional insured coverage to the general contractor since the claim could be argued to “arise out of” a variety of different subcontractors’ work. Furthermore, this was, in essence, an automobile accident that also implicated the Labor Law. The general liability carriers – some of which had explicit automobile exclusions in their policies – argued that the automobile carrier covering the vehicle should provide the sole or at least primary coverage.

Navigating these complicating factors, Cornell Grace moved for summary judgment and obtained a declaratory judgment that the general contractor was entitled to primary additional insured coverage under the masonry subcontractor’s general liability carrier, and that the vehicle’s auto carrier must also indemnify the general contractor for any vicarious liability due to the negligence of the driver. This decision was then used to facilitate a global settlement of the underlying claim, with contribution by the various carriers – and none by Cornell Grace’s client or its own carrier. Furthermore, the masonry contractor’s carrier reimbursed them for all defense costs incurred in the underlying litigation.

CORNELL GRACE OBTAINS SUMMARY DISMISSAL OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK BASED ON IMMUNITY DEFENSE March 25, 2024

Cornell Grace is pleased to report a summary judgment and appellate win for its longtime client, the City of New York, in a high-value personal injury lawsuit. The case involved a plaintiff who, while training for a marathon, disregarded a “Don’t Walk” sign and was struck by a vehicle in the intersection of 9th Avenue […]

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CORNELL GRACE DEFEATS SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON LABOR LAW 241(6) CLAIM IN NOTABLE DECISION FOR LABOR LAW PRACTITIONERS August 11, 2023

A worker sued Cornell Grace’s client, a construction manager, claiming he was injured in an unwitnessed accident in which he says he slipped on a patch of ice on the project site.  Discovery revealed no other evidence of the alleged ice.  The worker alleged violations under the New York Labor Law and moved for partial […]

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CORNELL GRACE WINS SUMMARY JUDGMENT BASED ON ESPINAL AND CLIENT’S LACK OF DUTY TO PLAINTIFF IN 40-CAR PILE-UP April 11, 2023

Since 2017, Cornell Grace has been defending a subcontractor that was involved in a 40-car accident on the LIE as it was working to assist in cleanup after Hurricane Sandy.  Multiple plaintiffs included the subcontractor as a defendant in their actions, even though it did not cause the accident and did not have any direct […]

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CORNELL GRACE WINS ADDITIONAL INSURED COVERAGE AND IMMEDIATE DEFENSE FOR CONSTRUCTION CLIENTS September 16, 2022

In 2016, Cornell Grace was retained to defend two of its construction clients, an owner and construction manager/general contractor, in a personal injury action brought by the employee of a subcontractor who claimed to have been seriously injured.  The worker claimed to have tripped on a piece of electrical wire that appeared to have been […]

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CORNELL GRACE WINS SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN ELEVEN-YEAR MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR INJURY CLAIM BY UNION ELEVATOR MECHANIC August 3, 2022

In a case filed in 2011, Plaintiff, a union elevator installation mechanic, claimed he was severely injured when he slipped on oil while unloading a thousand-pound jack from a delivery truck.  Among other defendants, Plaintiff sued the elevator company that had loaded the heavy components onto the truck.  After fighting for its client for ten […]

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CORNELL GRACE ACHIEVES HIGHLY FAVORABLE PRE-TRIAL RESULT FOR CONSTRUCTION DEVELOPER CLIENT IN FIRST PARTY INSURANCE DISPUTE WITH CARRIER July 6, 2022

In mid-2021, Cornell Grace, P.C. was retained by a New Jersey-based developer (“Developer”) that had just received a coverage disclaimer from its insurer, a large, well-known general liability carrier.  The carrier had been defending Developer for more than two years in a high-value personal injury action arising out of a worksite injury to a subcontractor’s […]

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CORNELL GRACE WINS SUMMARY DISMISSAL OF TWO SUBROGATION ACTIONS THAT IMPROPERLY TARGETED CCIP/OCIP COVERED SUBCONTRACTORS May 19, 2016

The law firm of Cornell Grace, P.C. often represents owners, developers and prime/general contractors.

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Cornell Grace Wins Summary Judgment For City In Case With Important Implications To Limiting Labor Law In Street Repairs, Prior Written Notice, And Notice Of Claim Requirements March 21, 2013

This decision has major implications in limiting Labor Law claims in street defect cases. 

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Cornell Grace Wins Appeal In Case Implicating Workers Compensation Bar To Suing Employer, And Summary Judgment Dismissal Of Labor Law Claims Since Plaintiff Was Not A Construction Worker February 13, 2013

Plaintiff claimed injury from an alleged trip over construction materials.

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Cornell Grace Wins Summary Declaratory Judgment Of Additional Insured Status For Major General Contractor In Catastrophic Labor Law Claim December 2, 2012

One of Cornell Grace’s specialties is insurance coverage litigation.

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Cornell Grace Wins Summary Judgment In $2.9 Million Interference With Contract Case Against Educational Services Provider January 17, 2012

The law firm of Cornell Grace, P.C. won summary judgment on behalf of its client.

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Cornell Grace Wins Defense Verdict In Multi-million Dollar Kings County Labor Law Claim June 10, 2010

Firm founder Janet O’Connor Cornell served as lead counsel throughout the five-year litigation.

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Cornell Grace, P.C. is committed to providing clients with the highest quality legal representation while maintaining the hands-on personal service of a boutique law firm. We handle cases vigorously, with painstaking attention to detail at every phase, always working in pursuit of the best resolution for our clients.