You may be entitled to far more than workers’ compensation
A liability case can be far more valuable.
A liability lawsuit is brought in district court, as contrasted to a claim for workers’ compensation (WC). The WC system provides limited remedies, and is separate from the court system.
For a serious personal injury, a liability lawsuit may yield 25 times more compensation than paid by the workers’ compensation (WC) system. For example, the WC system may pay $25,000 for a partial amputation, for “permanent partial liability”, but the worker may be entitled to $500,000 or more if is proven that a third party caused the workplace injury. Examples of third parties include subcontractors working on site where the worker was injured, or the driver of a truck who is employed by a different company than the employer of the injured employee.
Construction is the most dangerous occupation in the United States, and yet these cases are among the most challenging to unravel. One must have knowledge of intricate workplace safety rules enacted by OSHA, contracts between the general contractor, owner, and subcontractors, and one must know experienced expert witnesses, who are generally contractors and tradesmen themselves.
If you need a Colorado construction accident lawyer, or Denver construction accident lawyer, or are looking for a Wyoming construction accident lawyer, look no further.
There are complicated insurance and workers compensation questions that must be mastered to protect the rights of the injured employee. Some parties may be immune from suit (generally, the employer, owner or general contractor, with exceptions), others, such as subcontractors, may be subjected to a civil complaint. Only an experienced lawyer knows how to choose the defendant who can be held liable.
Only stringent safety practices, advanced fall protection programs, and excellent management on the jobsite prevent devastating construction accidents from injuring, disabling, and killing large numbers of workers. Unfortunately, not every jobsite benefits from such safety practices and management. When Colorado or Wyoming construction workers suffer an accident, lawyer Jim Gigax is pared to carry out construction accident litigation against those liable for lapses in on-the-job safety. Choosing the right lawyers can change your life, so choose wisely – choose Jim Gigax.
Although workers’ compensation aids employees while injured on the job, it is usually not sufficient to fully compensate injured workers for all damages sustained as a result of their work-related accident.
Under Colorado and Wyoming, employees cannot sue their employers for damages sustained as a result of a work-related accident. In order to receive reasonable compensation for their injuries, workers must commence third-party lawsuits against parties other than their employer. Owners of property, general contractors, sub-contractors, architects, even equipment manufactures may be held responsible when a construction site accident occurs. In addition to workers’ compensation benefits, additional damages that can be recovered in third-party lawsuits include pain and suffering, additional wage loss benefits, additional medical benefits and loss of consortium.
Falls from Heights at Construction Sites
A construction site is filled with conditions for fall from heights accident. We can help you conduct a lawsuit against jobsite managers, property owners, other subcontractors, equipment maintenance and manufacturing professionals, and others responsible for dangerous working conditions. The law of liability in this area is quite complex and requires the assistance of an experienced lawyer in this field.
The failure to provide a fall-protection system for a construction site can be the responsibility of the owner, the general contractor, or a sub-contractor. The failure to use OSHA-compliant scaffolding with required guard railing or the failure to properly erect scaffolding results in many injuries each year. Many jobs require workers to work at considerable height, which may require the use of fall protection harnesses to prevent free fall. The use of barricades and warning signs where there are openings in roofs or other elevated walking surfaces is necessary to prevent severe injuries on construction sites. Many other products or conditions give rise to construction claims including tools such as saws and nail guns. When serious injuries occur, your rights under workers compensation and potential third party claims should be evaluated and pursued with an experienced lawyer.
Crane Accidents
Crane accident cases are complex. Figuring out a crane accident requires an attorney how has handled a crane case and who knows basic crane principles of rigging, hardware, and OSHA standards and applicable law.
If you need a Colorado crane accident lawyer, or Denver crane accident lawyer, or are looking for a Wyoming crane accident lawyer, look no further.
OSHA has identified the major causes of crane accidents to include:
- boom or crane contact with energized power lines (nearly 45% of the cases)
- under the hook lifting device
- overturned cranes
- dropped loads
- boom collapse
- crushing by the counter weight
- outrigger use
- falls
- rigging failures
- Crane Fatalities