Opinion
177
Decided January 21, 2003.
Appeal from an order of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the First Judicial Department, entered August 15, 2002, which, with two Justices dissenting, modified, on the law and, as modified, affirmed an order an judgment of the Supreme Court (Sheila Abdus-Salaam, J.), entered in New York County upon a jury verdict in favor of plaintiffs in the total sum of $1,367,440, apportioning liability as 75% against defendand Archer Elevator Co., Inc., 10% against premises owner Grinnell Housing Development Fund Corporation, 0% against D D Elevator, Inc., and 15% against plaintiff employee Michael Wagner, and entering judgment in favor of D D, and in favor of Grinnell as against Archer in an amount equal to 88.24% of all payments made to plaintiffs. The modification consisted of apportioning liability as 85% jointly against Grinnell and Archer and granting Grinnell's posttrial motion for full common-law indemnification as against Archer.
Submitted by Nancy Ledy-Gurren, for appellants.
Submitted by Robert J. Giuffra, for respondent.
MEMORANDUM:
The order of the Appellate Division insofar as appealed from should be affirmed, with costs.
In this action seeking damages for injuries plaintiff suffered while repairing an elevator, proof was adduced at trial from which a reasonable jury could infer that plaintiff's decision to position himself on a crosshead rather than on the elevator car roof was a contributing factor in the severity of his injuries. Accordingly, there were triable issues of fact relating to plaintiff's comparative negligence which were properly submitted to the jury and the Appellate Division did not err in declining to disturb the verdict attributing 15 percent of the fault to plaintiff.
On review of submissions pursuant to section 500.4 of the Rules, order, insofar as appealed from, affirmed, with costs, in a memorandum. Chief Judge Kaye and Judges Smith, Ciparick, Wesley, Rosenblatt, Graffeo and Read concur.