The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York addressed the scope of insurance coverage for workplace injuries on a Brooklyn, New York, construction project, holding that the project owner’s insurer had no duty to defend or indemnify the owner in a personal injury lawsuit stemming from a construction accident.

The property owner hired a general contractor for a condominium project. In March 2020, an employee of one of the GC’s subcontractors was injured when a scaffold collapsed. The employee sued both the property owner at the general contractor in state court. The owner sought coverage and a defense from its commercial general liability insurer, but the insurer denied coverage, citing three exclusions: Contracted Persons, Independent Contractors, and Condominium.