Ladder Fall - Maintenance Accident
WRSMH attorney Kenneth Halperin obtained a settlement in the amount of $700,000 for a 64-year-old painter who fell from a ladder.
The accident in question occurred while the plaintiff was doing painting work inside the staircase of a residential building that he worked at daily. As he was painting, the A-frame ladder slipped out from under him, causing him to fall down the adjacent steps. Defendants argued that he was the cause of the accident because he failed to ask for a second worker to assist him and hold the ladder. Additionally, they argued that he was a "special employee" of the building because he worked there every day pursuant to a contract his actual employer had with the building, and therefore was barred from bringing a lawsuit pursuant to workers’ compensation law. We were able to overcome this defense by establishing that the building did not set his schedule, pay his salary, supervise him, and perform other tasks as a traditional employer would.
As a result of the accident, plaintiff sustained an injury to his wrist and elbow, each of which required surgical procedures.