How to Sue for a Workplace Accident

Work is most people’s main source of income; lots of people would like to work but are unable to do so because of an injury or chronic illness and are suffering financial hardship as a result of this. Some of the injuries that keep working-aged adults out of the workplace happen at the injured person’s place of employment. While the workers’ compensation system provides some relief for people who get injured on the job, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and filing a workers’ compensation claim is not the best option for everyone. Even though the commercials you see on TV for personal injury law firms might leave you with the impression that personal injury lawyers only represent clients who got injured in car accidents or when they were customers at a place of business, personal injury negligence laws can also protect people who got injured on the job. If you suffered a serious injury at work, contact a Dallas construction and workplace injuries lawyer.

Common Types of Workplace Accidents

There are as many different types of workplace accidents as there are occupations. Some jobs naturally involve proximity to physical danger; for example, construction workers and roofers are naturally at risk of falling from heights during their work. Many construction and manufacturing jobs place workers near heavy machinery with sharp blades and high voltage electricity. These are some of the most common types of injuries associated with workplace injury lawsuits:

• Spinal cord injuries
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Burn injuries
• Body parts being crushed or amputated by work equipment
• Electrocution
• Injuries resulting from motor vehicle accidents on the job
• Bone fractures resulting from falls

These are not necessarily the most common types of workplace injuries. When all industries are considered together, the most common types of workplace injuries resulting in medical treatment are repetitive strain injuries from long hours of typing or sewing at work and relatively minor injuries resulting in falls. Since the treatment of these lesser injuries is not especially expensive, and because workers can easily get the treatments paid for through workers’ compensation claims, they usually do not result in workplace accident lawsuits.

Did the Accident at Your Workplace Also Put Other People at Risk?

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is in charge of setting and enforcing workplace safety standards for all industries. These standards relate to, among other things, the posting of safety warnings in the workplace, proper storage of dangerous materials, which protective gear workers must wear for which work tasks, and what kind of training is required before workers can undertake certain activities. Many, but not all, workplace accidents that result in severe injuries, occur at work sites that were not in compliance with one or more OSHA standards.

If you notice an OSHA violation at your workplace before or after it causes an accident, you should report it to OSHA. Reporting OSHA violations is a legally protected activity; this means that your employer does not have the right to fire you or otherwise take adverse action against you in retaliation for reporting the violation.

Should You File a Lawsuit or Submit a Workers’ Compensation Claim?

Filing a workers’ compensation claim is also a legally protected activity. Workers’ compensation laws require employers to pay for the treatment of injuries that employees sustain at work while doing their jobs. Unlike in a personal injury lawsuit, there is no need to prove negligence on the part of your employer to get the employer to pay the claim. Employers assume responsibility for their employees’ safety by the very act of operating a business. If your injuries are minor and, by the time you complete your treatment, you will be able to go back to doing the same job you did before the accident, then filing a workers’ compensation claim is the right choice.

Things get more complicated when your injuries are severe. If you suffer a serious injury at work, you should report the injury to your employer immediately and go to a hospital emergency room to be examined. This way, your employer will have a record of when and how the accident happened, and your medical records will describe the injuries you sustained as a result of the accident. You should consult with a lawyer about the process of filing a personal injury lawsuit against your employer, filing a workers’ compensation claim, or both. Going through the workers’ compensation claim process may be a prerequisite to filing a lawsuit against your employer. You always have the right to sue your employer if the employer denies your workers’ compensation claim or does not carry workers’ compensation insurance.

How Workplace Accident Lawsuits Work

In a workplace accident lawsuit, as in any personal injury lawsuit, you must prove the following claims:

• The defendant (your employer) had a duty of care toward you (in this case, maintaining a safe work environment)
• The defendant breached the duty of care by enabling dangerous conditions to persist or violating legal safety regulations
• You got injured because of the defendant’s negligence
• You suffered financial losses because of your injuries

In some cases, more than one party might be legally responsible for the work or the job site, so you might be able to name more than one company as a defendant. For example, if your employer rented the warehouse or factory where you got injured in an industrial accident, then your employer and the landlord might both be legally responsible. Likewise, if the company that issues your paychecks is a subcontractor or staffing firm, then you might be able to sue your employer and the company that hired your employer as a subcontractor.

In personal injury lawsuits, you can request damages for your accident-related medical expenses and lost income. You may also be able to request noneconomic damages for pain and suffering.

Contact Marchand Law, LLP About Workplace Accidents

A personal injury lawyer can help you if you have suffered serious injuries at work. Contact Marchand Law, LLP in Dallas, Texas, to discuss your case.