The negligence lawyers at Grimes & Fertitta help clients who were hurt on the job and suspect that their employer’s negligence caused the accident/injuries to occur. Negligence refers to the failure to use reasonable standards of care, resulting in injury or harm to someone else. In this case, it is an employer’s responsibility to ensure that employees are prepared and safe while on the worksite. In the state of Texas, workplace and industrial accidents are, unfortunately, incredibly common. If you were injured on the job, you may be entitled to financial compensation.
A negligence lawyer can help you understand your rights in regard to workers’ compensation insurance and, if necessary, represent you when you file a negligence lawsuit. If you believe that you were injured on the job due to your employer’s negligence and would like to file a negligence lawsuit, contact the negligence lawyers at Grimes & Fertitta at 713-224-7644 to learn your legal options.
Types of negligence found in negligence lawsuits
Gross Negligence
When an individual has little to no concern for anyone’s safety to a point where the negligent acts appear to be purposeful. An example of gross negligence would be reckless driving. Gross negligence can often result in severe harm, injuries, or even wrongful death of an employee.
Comparative Negligence
When the injured party is responsible for a fraction of the injuries they have sustained. In this scenario, both parties, employer and employee, are at partial fault. For example, if an employee slips and falls on a wet floor where there was no signage and hits their head, but the employee is not wearing a hard hat on the floor, they are also responsible for that head injury for violating those safety regulations. If there are damages to be recovered, they may be partially compensated.
Vicarious Liability
When an employer is responsible for the actions of their employees as a form of secondary liability. For example, if an employer fails to properly train employee A in handling equipment and employee A injures employee B in an equipment accident, the employer is responsible for their injuries.
Based on the specifics, your attorney can decide which of the following types of negligence applies to your case and decide how to move forward with your legal options.
What needs to be proven in a negligence lawsuit?
In order to prove that your employer’s negligence was the cause of your injuries, all of the following elements of a negligence claim must be present.
1. You were owed a duty
Employers must comply with the standards of care set out by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all employees. That is their duty to you by law. These standards of care can include:
- Proper equipment management and usage
- Proper training of employees
- Proper safety equipment
- Properly maintained workspaces
- And more.
2. Your employer breached that duty
A breach of duty is when someone of responsibility — in this case, an employer — fails to uphold or apply the standards of care that are owed. As employers are obligated to provide employees with safe working conditions, many of the situations that lead to harmful or fatal accidents in the workplace can be considered a result of negligent actions.
For example, if an employer fails to properly train a forklift operator and that operator injures a worker on the job site, that employer’s actions would be seen as negligent in a lawsuit. Your employer did not uplift their duty to you, the employee, by providing a safe work environment with competent workers.
3. Damages occurred as a result of that breach of duty
In order to prove that your employer breached their duty of care and damages occurred as a result, you must provide proof of injury and/or proof of financial damages.
For proof of injuries, keep a record of any expenses including:
- Hospital costs/medical bills
- Any administered treatments or procedures
- Any notes or write-ups made by your doctor
- Medications or prescriptions
- Physical therapy (if necessary)
Financial damages can include:
- Lost wages: past and future
- Medical bills or long-term care bills
- Funeral expenses (burial benefits): Burial benefits are meant to provide partial coverage of a deceased worker’s funeral costs. If you lost a loved one as a result of wrongful death, contact a Houston wrongful death attorney from Grimes & Fertitta ASAP.
If you can prove that your employer committed a breach of duty against you and their negligence caused you harm, you may have grounds for a negligence lawsuit. Contact a negligence lawyer that you can trust to discuss your legal options.
Keep reading: Top 5 workplace injuries
What a negligence lawyer can do for you
Being injured on a job site can be a stressful and scary experience. You may face both physical and mental anguish while recovering from your injuries and may be burdened with heavy medical fines. At Grimes & Fertitta, we believe that no one should have to bear any financial burden due to someone else’s negligence. A negligence lawyer can help you through this tough time.
There are many reasons why you should hire a negligence lawyer to represent you. First, an attorney can help you to gather the necessary evidence and information to prove your employer’s negligence. Second, your attorney can help you fight for the full amount of compensation that you are owed in damages via worker’s compensation or through the lawsuit of a third party. Lastly, an attorney can lift the stressful weight of legal matters off of your shoulders so that you can focus on healing physically and mentally. The laws surrounding negligence in the workplace can be complex — it’s better to have an expert handle it so that you can obtain the best possible outcome.
