Cammon v. City of New YorkCammon v. City of New York
Lead Opinion
OPINION OF THE COURT
The central issue here is whether Federal maritime law preempts New York Labor Law §§ 200, 240 (1) and § 241 (6).
Plaintiff Willie Gammon, a foreman dock builder, was injured while repairing a wood fender system
Plaintiff commenced this action in Supreme Court, alleging violations of State Labor Law §§ 200, 240 (1) and § 241 (6) against the City of New York and the general contractor, Anjac. Specifically, paragraph 16 of the complaint alleges:
“The injury to plaintiff was caused by the negligence of the defendant and by its breach of the various provisions of Labor Law §§ 200, 240 and 241 and other federal, state and local statutes, ordinances and regulations.”
Anjac asserted a third-party complaint against plaintiff’s employer Macro, seeking contribution and indemnification.
The City and Anjac moved for summary judgment dismissing the complaint upon the ground that Federal maritime law preempts New York Labor Law. In the alternative, defendants moved for summary judgment on their contractual and common-law indemnification claims against third-party defendant Macro. Plaintiff cross-moved for partial summary judgment on liability on his Labor Law § 240 (1) and § 241 (6) claims. Supreme Court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment to the extent of dismissing the complaint and denied plaintiff’s cross motion.
The Appellate Division reversed and reinstated the complaint, holding that plaintiff’s Labor Law causes of action were
Initially, the parties agree that there is admiralty subject matter jurisdiction over plaintiffs claims. The existence of admiralty jurisdiction, however, does not resolve the question of which substantive law to apрly.
Defendants and third-party defendant (hereafter defendants) maintain that Federal maritime law should apply to the exclusion of plaintiffs Labor Law claims because maritime law does not generally impose liability without actual proof of negligence. New York State Labor Law § 240 (1), however, imposes strict liability upon an owner or contractor (see, Zimmer v Chemung County Performing Arts,
In response, plaintiff argues that Federal maritime law does not preempt his Labor Law claims because there is no Federal law or interest directly impacted by their implementation. Consequently, plaintiff contends, uniformity of maritime law would not be affected by allowing State law claims here. Plaintiff also maintains that New York has an important interest in regulating safe construction practices within its borders and that therе is a presumption against restricting exercise of its police powers to protect the health and safety of its citizens.
The fact that Federal maritime law is involved does not necessarily mean that State law is superseded. “The exercise of admiralty jurisdiction * * * ‘does not result in automatic
Federal maritime law often encompasses State law (Yamaha Motor Corp., U. S. A. v Calhoun,
“The subject is maritime and local in character and the specified modification of or supplement to the rule applied in admiralty courts when following the common law, will not work material prejudice to the characteristic features of the general maritime law, nor interfere with the proper harmony and uniformity of that law in its international and interstate relations” (id., at 242).
Just a month later, in Grant Smith-Porter Ship Co. v Rohde (
Plaintiffs theory of liability arises under New York Labor Law § 240 (1) and § 241 (6). Given that protection of workers engaged in maritime activities is an objective of Federal maritime law (Yamaha v Calhoun,
Nor is the concept of strict liability necessarily antithetical to Federal maritime law. States may have important interests justifying the application of a strict liability statute. Most significantly, recognizing the importance of State police powers to protect the health and safety of its citizens in Askew v American Waterways (
Strict liability causes of action exist for personal injury claims based upon violations of statutory duty (see, Kernan v American Dredging Co.,
New York’s Labor Law is a local regulation enacted to protect the health and safety of its workers. As the Appellate Division
We conclude our analysis with the following observation. Choice of law in the admiralty context, generally, is not an easy inquiry. That is particularly true in this case: plaintiff was injured while on a floating raft on navigable waters, but at the same time the raft was anchored to a land-based transfer station, and the work at issue was repair to a land structure. In a case such as this, our decision to affirm is influenced by the Labor Law’s strong State interest in protecting workers (see, e.g., Melber v 6333 Main St.,
Finally, we underscore that we reach only the preemption issue, the only question decided by the Appellate Division, and we reach no other issue regarding the validity of plaintiffs claims under the Labor Law.
Accordingly, the order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed, with costs, and the certified question answered in the affirmаtive.
Notes
. A fender system is a series of pilings and wooden cross pieces within the pier at the water’s edge, designed to protect the pier from impact of other vessels leaving and entering the pier.
. Seaworthiness is a strict liability doctrine applicable to seamen (see, Mahnich v Southern S. S. Co.,
Dissenting Opinion
(dissenting in part). We concur with the majority insofar as it holds that maritime law does nоt preempt
As a threshold matter, admiralty jurisdiction exists in this case (see, Jerome B. Grubart, Inc. v Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co.,
The conflict between Labor Law § 240 (1) and maritime law could not be plainer: Under Labor Law § 240 (1), an injured worker’s contributory negligence does not reduce a defendant’s liability.
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The United States Supreme Court has explained that “admiralty has developed and now follows its own * * * more flexible rule which allows * * * consideration of contributory negligence in mitigation of damages as justice requires” (see, Pope & Talbot v Hawn, supra,
As the majority has repeatedly emphasized, States have important interests that must be recognized in any preemption analysis. In keeping with the “savings to suitors” clause,
The Supreme Court has held that a State may “ ‘adopt such remedies, and * * * attach to them such incidents, as it sees fit’ so long as it does not attempt to make changes in the ‘substantive maritime law’ ” (Madruga v Superior Ct. of Cal.,
In American Dredging Co. v Miller (
Over the years, the Supreme Court has employed various formulations for identifying characteristic fеatures of maritime law (see, e.g., Madruga, supra,
Although its origins are shrouded,
The United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Pope & Talbot (
Moreover, Labor Law § 240 (1) would materially prejudice the maritime doctrine of comparative fault. In a single cause of action, strict liability and comparative negligence cannot occupy the same ground. Applying strict liability would not only “materially prejudice” the comparative fault doctrine, it would eviscerate it. In this respect, Labor Law § 240 (1) differs from Labor Law §§ 200 and 241 (6). The latter create a statutory standard of care that would not otherwise exist in maritime law, but nevertheless do not invade maritime law’s bedrock principles as to fault allocation. In our view, the first prong of American Dredging Co. is fully satisfied.
So is the second. Preemption is required under that prong if application of State law interferes with the “ ‘proper harmony and uniformity’ ” of maritime law in its “ ‘international and interstate relations’” (see, American Dredging Co.,
This all makes good sense. Considering that the desired goals are uniformity and harmony, it is difficult to see how these objectives can be unimpaired (or left with even a semblance of harmony) if the rules vary with the locale. One State may opt for strict liability, another for contributory negligence as a bar to recovery, another may interpose assumption of risk, while others would be free to fashion even more variants or different rules. The uniformity prong is important so that predictability will prevail over happenstance.
IL
We disagree with the unpublished decision of the United States District Court in Gravatt v City of New York (
Grant Smith-Porter Ship Co. v Rohde (
None of the other cases upon which the majority relies involved the displacement of a maritime law feature as
Closer in point is State of Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources v Kellum (
We would modify the order of the Appellate Division and hold that Federal admiralty law preempts Labor Law § 240 (1).
Chief Judge Kaye and Judges Ciparick and Wesley concur with Judge Smith; Judge Rosenblatt dissents in part and votes to modify in a separate opinion in which Judge Levine concurs.
Order affirmed, etc.
. See, Gordon v Eastern Ry. Supply,
. See, United States v Reliable Transfer Co.,
. See, 28 USC § 1333 (1). The “savings to suitors” clause underlies a venerable doctrine, which has been with us since the beginnings of our Republic. It found early expression in the Judiciary Act of 1789 (§ 9, 1 US Stat 73, 76-77) and preserves the jurisdiction of State courts to entertain in personam maritime causes of action (see, Madruga v Superior Ct. of Cal.,
. Scholars have found comparative fault principles as far back as the Digest of Justiniаn — completed in 533 A.D. (see, Mole and Wilson, A Study of Comparative Negligence, 17 Cornell L Quarterly 333, 337 [1932]; see also, Leibman et al., The Effect of Lifting the Blindfold From Civil Juries Charged with Apportioning Damages in Modified Comparative Fault Cases: An Empirical Study of the Alternatives, 35 Am Bus LJ 349, 355-356 [1998]).
. See, Turk, Comparative Negligence on the March, 28 Chi-Kent L Rev 189, 220-225 [1950]; Mole and Wilson, supra, at 339 [considering that contributory negligence worked a complete bar to recovery, the courts of admiralty “early showed their displeasure over the practical working of the common-law rule * * * and, desiring to overcome the obvious hardships that arose from its application, formulated more just rules for determining who should bear the loss”]; see generally, Wood and Deere, Comparative Fault § 1:10, at 14, 19 [3d ed 1996],