The New York City law firm of The Law Office of Richard M. Kenny has a successful and proud history of helping construction workers injured on the job. Often, these injured workers ask some very thoughtful questions about how to proceed with their case and what comes next after deciding to file suit. One of the most common questions comes when a worker is injured when the ladder or scaffold that they worked on falls or collapses. This ladder or scaffold they were using belongs to their place of work or employer. This leads to the question: how does the fact that the ladder or scaffold belonged to my boss impact my ability to pursue a lawsuit?
Everywhere you go in New York City, there is scaffolding and construction sites filled with workers on a daily basis. With this much construction going on day in and day out, construction site accidents are bound to happen and pose serious threats to workers, especially those that are working at elevated heights while on a ladder or scaffold. It is true that when a worker is injured while on the job, they may be entitled to worker’s compensation benefits. A fact that many construction workers do not often realize is also true is that they may also have the right to bring a lawsuit to recover for their pain and suffering, loss of earnings and medical bills after a New York ladder or scaffold accident. An injured construction worker may also sue even if he or she was injured using equipment or tools provided by their employer such as ladders and scaffolds. The reason behind this is that a worker is entitled to a safe place to work no matter what, and that included having safe, non-faulty equipment.
In 1914, the New York State Legislature passed The Workers’ Compensation Laws in New York as a compromise between employee and employer interests. As part of the compromise, employees in most instances lost the right to sue their employers for negligence resulting in injury, illness or disability. In return, employees generally receive some payment from workers’ compensation without regard to fault as long as the injury, illness or disability was related to work. Any time a serious injury occurs while at work, it is advisable to talk to a lawyer to understand what further options are available. Some workplace accidents may permit the injured party to sue a third party, such as a product manufacturer, general contractor, property owner or someone other than the employer who contributed to the injury, in addition to their worker compensation benefits. There are also special laws in New York that offer additional protection to certain workers such as workers at a construction sites, and a personal injury lawyer can help the injured understand and take advantage of these laws.
You may have the ability to bring an action against another party if you have been involved in a fall from a ladder or scaffold.
The Law Office of Richard M. Kenny has a long history of success handling construction and on the job accidents. Any personal injury lawyer can take on a construction accident case, but none go above and beyond like the Law Office of Richard M. Kenny. Our firm has been widely known throughout the New York area for our expertise in handling construction accident lawsuits and getting the best results possible for our clients.
Contact New York’s leading personal injury attorneys, the Law Office of Richard M. Kenny, today to secure expert legal representation in your construction accident case. At The Law Offices of Richard M. Kenny, the attorneys have a cumulative 50 years of experience with many successful construction accident cases. The attorneys at this firm have more than $250 million in insurance settlements, over a century of experience, and jury verdicts to prove that they are able to litigate and get the results that plaintiffs are looking for. Call the Law Office of Richard M. Kenny to handle your construction accident case.