Personal injury attorney Melissa Wischerath obtained a $3.65 million settlement on behalf of her client, who was a construction worker injured in an on-the-job accident.
The victim in this accident was a heavy equipment operator who was working on a construction project for the Niagara Falls Water Board.
Melissa Wischerath successfully argued that New York State Labor Laws were violated and established that the Niagara Falls Water Board failed to comply with their duty to provide proper protection to the heavy equipment operator who was injured on their construction project.
Construction Accident and Injury
The injury victim in this accident was a union worker. He was working as a heavy equipment operator for a Niagara Falls Water Board construction project, which involved sewer lines in the City of Niagara Falls.
The injured worker was operating an excavator on this jobsite. At the time of the accident, the excavator was being used to dismantle a manhole shield that was being used to prevent underground walls from collapsing during the installation of sewer lines.
While operating the excavator to separate the manhole shield, a piece of the shield called a spreader bar fell onto the cab of the excavator and crushed the worker’s legs. A supervisor on the jobsite had previously removed a device that secures the spreader bar and failed to install a new device to keep the spreader bar in place.
Construction Accidents Involving Municipalities
The owner responsible for the safety of the construction site in this case was a municipality. Personal injury victims that intend to file a lawsuit against a municipality or government entity are required to first file a Notice of Claim. A Notice of Claim must be filed within 90 days of the accident. It is essential that an injury victim’s attorney meets the 90-day deadline for the Notice of Claim.
New York State Labor Laws
New York State has special provisions put in place to address the dangers that construction workers face on the job. New York State Labor Law sections 200, 240 and 241 exist to safeguard construction workers by holding building owners and general contractors responsible for accidents and injuries sustained on their sites.
Labor Law §240(1) is a particularly unique New York State workplace safety law designed to provide protection to all workers performing construction, demolition or repair work involving any building or structure. This safety law requires that owners and contractors give all the employees performing work on a project proper protection from hazards and injuries.
While New York State Labor Laws exist to protect construction workers, the laws are complex and often challenging to apply to an accident. It is critical that injured construction workers have an experienced lawyer working for them who has deep familiarity with the intricacies of jobsites and the legal skills necessary to successfully establish that labor law violations have occurred.
$3.65 Million Result
The circumstances of this construction accident were not straightforward and made for a complex case. The details of the matter required technical and nuanced legal arguments to successfully prove that labor law violations occurred.
As the case moved to trial, a settlement was reached during jury selection. Melissa Wischerath crafted a unique application of New York Labor Laws to this accident and successfully held the Niagara Falls Water Board accountable for her client’s injuries.
Melissa Wischerath obtained a $3.65 million settlement for her client. The result included compensation for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, past and future wagers, and spousal derivative claim.
For More Information
If you would like more information regarding New York State Labor Laws or have a question regarding a specific construction accident injury, please click here to contact attorney Melissa Wischerath.
