Electrocution

Seasoned Chicago Lawyers for Electrocution Injuries Sustained at Construction Sites

OSHA reports that a significant percentage of the construction accidents that occur around the country involve electrocution. These accidents happen when somebody is exposed to a lethal amount of electrical energy such that they are exposed to burns, shocks, fire, and explosions. If you were electrocuted at a construction site, you should call the seasoned Chicago electrocution accident lawyers of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca. We have the experience and skill to bring not only a third party lawsuit in connection with your accident when appropriate, but also to pursue workers’ compensation benefits.

Lawyers to File a Lawsuit for Damages After Electrocution

Electrocution accidents can be caused by improper use of equipment, contact with power lines, missing paths to ground, inappropriate use of extension cords or equipment, and lack of ground-fault protection. Multiple parties at a construction may bear some responsibility for an electrocution accident. You cannot bring a lawsuit for damages against your employer in connection with your injuries after this type of workplace accident. However, we can evaluate whether other parties may bear responsibility for the accident and your injuries. For example, we may be able to bring suit against another subcontractor whose improper handling of extension cords caused you to be electrocuted on site. Or, for another example, we may be able to sue a property owner who maintained responsibility for ground-fault protection during the construction work and failed to honor that obligation, such that you were electrocuted.

In order to establish liability for a defendant’s negligence, we will need to prove it’s more likely than not: (1) the defendant owed you a duty of reasonable care, (2) the defendant breached the duty of reasonable care, (3) causation, and (4) actual damages. When a visitor sustains electrocution injuries at a construction site, it may also be appropriate to consider whether there are grounds to bring a premises liability lawsuit.

In a third party lawsuit, your damages can be reduced under the doctrine of comparative negligence where your own negligence contributed to your injuries. They can be barred if the defendant is able to show you were 50% or more at fault. However, if you choose an attorney who has experience in personal injury, workers’ compensation, and SSDI claims, he or she can make sure that all your bases for potential compensation are covered.

Joint and Several Liability

Importantly, an electrocution accident may be the fault of multiple people or parties at a construction site. In Illinois, any defendant whose fault is found to be 25% or more of the total fault that is attributable to the plaintiffs, the codefendants, and any third party defendants other than the plaintiff’s employer can be held jointly and severally liable for all other damages. This means that if our attorneys can show any one party was 25% or more at fault, and a jury agrees, the total damages may be collected from that party. This can prove to be important in cases where some defendants are uninsured but the losses you suffered are tremendous.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits

Workers’ compensation benefits are no-fault benefits. This means we will not need to establish fault to obtain these benefits from your employer workers’ compensation insurer. However, the benefits will not address the full scope of your losses; for instance, it won’t address, at all, your emotional losses such as pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium. Subrogation issues may arise and it’s important to retain attorneys who understand these issues.

Consult a Chicago Lawyer About Injuries from Electrocution

If you were injured by electrocution on a construction site, you need knowledgeable legal representation. Call the effective Chicago electrocution attorneys of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca to handle your personal injury lawsuit, workers’ compensation claim, or SSDI claim arising out of the accident. Call us at 312-724-5846 or complete this online form.