STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A decade-long battle in state and federal courts surrounding a Staten Island man seriously injured at a job site has ended in a settlement favoring the plaintiff, court records show.
Michael Cutaia, 39, of New Springville, will receive $7.2 million in connection with the 2012 incident. The defendants in the case — a realty company, construction company and electrical company — are not identified in public records as part of a limited confidentiality provision. Nor is the insurance company that is signing the check.
As a result of the incident, Cutaia suffered injuries to his spine and shoulders requiring multiple surgeries and rendering him unable to work as a plumber since, according to his attorneys, who initially filed the civil complaint 11 years ago in state Supreme Court, St. George.
VICTIM ‘BLAMED IN ACCIDENT’
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff was standing on a ladder performing work on copper pipes in the ceiling of a new bathroom when he received an electrical shock, sending both he and the ladder to the ground.
The legal battle that followed proved arduous for both sides in the case.
“All throughout the litigation, the defendants blamed him for the accident, and took the position it was completely his fault,” said Staten Island-based injury attorney Louis Grandelli, whose firm represented the plaintiff. “Although Mr. Cutaia cannot return to work as a plumber due to his injuries, we were able to obtain a significant sum of money which will provide for his future medical needs, and the financial support he needs to provide for his family.”
The claim was the subject of extensive litigation heard in the Appellate Division, First Department, and then twice in the New York State Court of Appeals in Albany, which is the highest court in New York.
Lawyers for Cutaia maintained the defendants failed to de-activate the electrical system in the ceiling, properly insulate the wires or provide any warning of an electrical…
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