How Flaws in Temporary Structures Can Allow You to Win Your New York Construction Injury Lawsuit

In construction, any type of structure that you must build yourself to complete the duties of your job can present a possibility for danger and serious injury. This can be especially true of or temporary systems rigged for workers. These structures may sometimes be erected hastily, with a reduced or non-existent focus on safety. When a temporary structure leads to a construction injury, the injured worker may have a legal claim for compensation. If you’re injured at your construction job, contact a skilled New York City construction injury attorney.

For M.K., it was a temporary truss system that was the source of his workplace accident and injury lawsuit. M.K. was working as an ironworker in Manhattan. That temporary system contained a steel column and a metal shim plate that was attached to the column. Unfortunately for the ironworker, the steel plate was not attached well enough, and came free suddenly, fell roughly 10 feet and then struck M.K. in the head. The impact caused the ironworker to suffer numerous facial fractures, in addition to neck and back fractures and a brain bleed.

As that graphic and harrowing description makes clear, construction work can be incredibly dangerous and the injuries construction workers suffer can be massive and sometimes permanent. You may never again have the same level of physical ability to earn a living or live your life as you had before. For those reasons and others, you should definitely avail yourself to the legal avenues for compensation that New York law creates.

M.K. filed a lawsuit seeking compensation based upon the site owner’s violation of Section 240(1) of the Labor Law. That statute protects workers who are injured by “gravity-related” harms that arose due to a failure to provide the injured worker with proper safety protections.

For some workers injured by a gravity-related danger, there may be an option that makes seeking compensation even more efficient. If you have strong enough evidence, and if your opponent lacks certain proof, you may be entitled to summary judgment on liability. Summary judgment means that the judge was able to determine, based on the information you and the other side submitted, that your opponent was liable and that a full trial on liability is not needed.

M.K. won such a summary judgment in his case. As the Appellate Division court explained in ruling for the ironworker, an injured construction worker seeking compensation under this law needs two primary types of proof: evidence that he was injured a result of a gravity-related danger (which usually means the worker falling or something falling on the worker) and that the injury was caused by the worker’s failure to receive proper safety protections.

M.K. had proof that he was hit in the head by a dislodged shim plate that fell 10 feet. That clearly was enough to show harm caused by a gravity-related danger. Additionally, M.K. had proof that the shim plate came free because it was improperly welded. These tack welds qualified, in the opinion of the court, as “safety devices” and the fact that they failed to hold the shim plate in place was clear proof that they were inadequate safety devices in place, which meant that M.K. was entitled to an award of damages.

If you have been injured at your construction job, put a powerful advocate on your side. Call the New York City construction injury attorneys at Arcia & Associates. Our team has many years of experience helping injured workers to get the positive results they deserve.

More Blog Posts:

Proof of a Lack of Fall Protection Allows an Injured Demolition Man to Win His New York Construction Injury Case, Blog de Abogado en la Ciudad de Nueva York, 9 de Julio de 2018

New York Court Says a Worker Hurt While Cutting Down a Tree Was Permitted to Pursue His Construction Injury Case, Blog de Abogado en la Ciudad de Nueva York, 20 de Abril de 2018