Donohue v. CJAM Associates, LLC

In Donohue v. CJAM Associates, LLC, 22 AD3d 710, 803 NYS2d 132 (2nd Dept 2005), the Second Department addressed the distinction between when a ramp is used to access work area and when it is part of a work site. In Donohue, the plaintiff fell from a ramp which provided workers access to the work site. The Court held that Labor Law 240(1) did not apply, reasoning the ramp "was not being utilized as a ladder, scaffold, hoist or other safety device for the benefit of the injured plaintiff in his work. Rather, it was used as a passageway for laborers at the work site and, as such, did not come within the purview of Labor Law 240(1)."