At approximately 11:55 a.m. on Oct. 1, 2010, plaintiff’s decedent Byron Modica, 40, a mason tender, fell from a scaffolding at 15620 W. Joshua Road, in Adelanto, while building a public school in Victor Valley. Modica sustained fatal . The decedent’s minor son sued the construction management company, Cal K-12 Construction Inc. Cal K-12 Construction was not a general contractor, as all services were contracted directly with the landowner. However, the decedent’s son retained counsel after the government claims period expired thereby precluding any action against the public entity landowner. In addition, the decedent’s employer was protected under workers’ compensation exclusivity. Thus, the matter continued against Cal K-12 Construction. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that Cal K-12 Construction negligently retained control of the worksite and affirmatively contributed to the decedent’s fatal by failing to inspect the work of Nibblelink Masonry’s scaffolding installation. Counsel also contended that the various governing contracts for the work performed on the worksite mandated that the construction management company ensure the safety of certain aspects of the worksite and the workers. Plaintiff’s counsel noted that Cal-OSHA cited the mason contractor for failing to provide fall protection and scaffolding access. Defense counsel denied that Cal K-12 Construction was liable for the accident, pursuant to the Privette-Toland doctrine, and contended that neither an affirmative act nor an omission contributed to the accident. Thus, counsel asserted that workers’ compensation was the exclusive remedy. Cal K-12 Construction claimed that its contract with the school district to serve as a construction manager excluded responsibility for workplace safety and that the prime contract with the district assigned Nibblelink Masonry exclusive duty to comply with Cal-OSHA and all other safety requirements. Thus, it claimed that it was purely acting as a coordinator of schedules and that each contractor contracted directly with the landowner. As such, Cal K-12 Construction claimed that it did not owe the decedent any duty. Defense counsel moved for summary judgment on the issue of “duty,” but the motion was denied., Modica sustained multiple traumatic as a result of the fall from the scaffold. He was subsequently taken to a hospital, where he died later that day. Plaintiff’s counsel noted that any non-economic damages awarded would be apportioned in relation to fault, pursuant to Proposition 51, and that the decedent’s son only sought minimal economic loss. Defense counsel noted that the decedent was in and out of jail and drug rehabilitation facilities his whole life, until two years before his death, when he took the job as a mason tender. Thus, defense counsel contended that the decedent’s son did not form any real relationship with his father until he was 12 years old, which was two years before his father’s death.