Scaffolding Fall - Construction Accident
WRSMH attorney, Frank J. Lombardo, and Noah Katz, Of Counsel, obtained a $1,460,000.00 settlement prior to jury selection. Plaintiff, 35 years old, was a laborer and fell from a baker-style scaffold while taking down a plaster ceiling during renovations of the defendants’ cooperative apartment.
The plaintiff sustained herniated discs at C5-6, L3-4 and L5-S1 whereby he underwent a discectomy of the herniations and a fusion at the L5-S1 levels. In addition, the plaintiff underwent a right knee meniscectomy.
Defense counsel contended that an eyewitness provided a statement that the plaintiff’s fall was caused by his jumping on the scaffold platform and therefore his actions were the sole proximate cause of the accident. They also contended that it was unlikely that the fall could have caused such serious injuries since the scaffold was only one foot off the ground. The defense medical experts were prepared to testify that the plaintiff’s herniations were pre-existing and caused by prior motor vehicle accidents.
We were able to counter these arguments and obtain a considerable settlement by establishing that the defendant’s expert’s conclusions were faulty and would have been exposed during cross-examination at trial.