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In 2019, a construction worker was working on the 8th floor of a high-rise building in New Brunswick, New Jersey installing 1 5/8 tracks on the walls to secure sheetrock. After completing this work, he proceeded to the 9th floor to continue his job. The client rolled his cart onto the construction site elevator and rode up one floor without issue. At which time he realized he had left behind scaffolding equipment and needed to retrieve it. Without any warnings, signage, or notifications, the worker was unaware that the elevator car was misaligned 3 to 5 inches with the floor and stepped into the uneven elevator, causing him to trip and fall shoulder-first onto the scaffolding and hard metal floor.
After suffering a painful job-related injury, he was examined by his workers’ compensation doctors who determined that he had suffered a complete rotator cuff tear, requiring extensive treatment and right shoulder surgery.
Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. partner Marc C. Saperstein, a New Jersey personal injury attorney and expert in on-the-job work-related injuries, especially at construction sites, collaborated with the client’s physicians and vocational experts to determine the full extent of the client’s injuries and financial losses. The vocational expert witness hired, who specializes in evaluating workplace disabilities, determined that despite corrective shoulder surgery, the shoulder injuries were permanent, and so the client’s future ability to work as a carpenter was lost. The expert determined that because of his injuries from the accident and the client’s previous high-paying union job, his loss of potential earnings exceeded half a million dollars.
Beyond the financial losses, the on-the-job injuries severely affected the client’s home life. He struggled with daily tasks and even found it difficult to assist his wife and child as he did before his construction site injury. The vocational expert concluded that the injury left the client’s functional capacity at only 60% of what it was before.
Attorney Marc C. Saperstein conducted a construction site investigation, where he gathered critical evidence and sued the general contractors in a third-party lawsuit proving the client’s injuries were caused by negligence and could have been prevented if the construction company and site managers had taken the necessary safety precautions. Their failure to post warning signs or notifications about maintenance the elevator created a serious safety hazard which ultimately led to the worker’s severe injuries and long-term losses.
Normally, an injured worker can only receive workers’ compensation benefits by filing a claim against their employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. That is because, in New Jersey and New York, workers can not sue their employer absent gross negligence. However, if the injury was caused by the negligence of another contractor on the job, then in addition to workers’ compensation benefits, the injured individual can sue the negligent contractor in what is known as a “third-party lawsuit”.
Through his effective legal representation, Marc C. Saperstein successfully won a $455,000 construction accident settlement for the client, guaranteeing that the injured construction worker received proper compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
