DI RIE v. AUTOMOTIVE REALTY CORP

Under the circumstances of this case, Workers' Compensation, which plaintiff has recovered from third-party defendant, is plaintiffs' exclusive remedy. Both defendant and third-party defendant are owned by one individual. Though defendant and third-party defendant are separate legal entities, that is not a basis for not limiting plaintiff to Workers' Compensation. Defendant, which has no employees, is controlled by the individual that controls plaintiff's employer (Heritage v Van Patten, 59 N.Y.2d 1017).

Concur — Carro, J.P., Ellerin, Kupferman and Rubin, JJ.