Archive for the ‘ Construction Accidents ’ Category

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9
Feb

Pennsylvania State House Ready To Vote On Unconstitutional Corporate Venue Law

Contact Your Pennsylvania State House Representative Immediately!

Ask He or She to “Vote NO on House Bill 1976– The Corporation Venue Protection Act”

February 9, 2012 — The Pennsylvania state house may soon vote on what will be known as the the Corporation Venue Protection Act, HB 1976, which gives corporations special rights and protections in all civil cases.  The bill’s supporters spin there argument and call it a “venue shopping” bill, but the bill is really designed to protect corporations that are responsbile for injuring or killing people through reckless, intentional or reckless conduct because it applies only to venue in “actions against corporations and similar entities.”

If passed, this bill will usurp the Supreme Court’s exclusive rulemaking power on venue and all but abolish the ‘minimum contacts’ jurisdiction test.   Emboldened by their win on joint and several liability, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business & Industry admits it wants to “continue the momentum.”   The Chamber is actively pushing HB 1976.  

For the sake of the preserving your rights and the rights of a loved one who may be injured or killed by such conduct, it is time to push back now.

Contact your state representative to vote “no” on the HB 1976. HB 1976 is unconstitutional, departs radically from longstanding legal doctrine, and unfairly singles out corporations for protection against accountability for harms they cause to Pennsylvania families.

If this legislation becomes law it will have a dramatic impact on those injured or killed as a result of corporate misconduct  in a car wreck or accident, impacted by a defective product, or any other personal injury claim (excluding medical malpractice) in not only Harrisburg, Central Pennsylvania but the entire Commonwealth.

Scott B. Cooper
Schmidt Kramer PC
209 State Street
Harrisburg, PA 17101
(717) 232-6300 – Telephone
(717) 232-6467 – Facsimile
scooper@schmidtkramer.com
Facebook.com/SchmidtKramer
Twitter.com/TalkToALawyer

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26
Jan

Pennsylvania Man Sentenced in Death of PennDOT Worker

January 26, 2012

A 26-year-old man from Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, was sentenced Wednesday for his part in the death of a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) worker. According to reports from WGAL 8 News, the man was sentenced to three months in prison and six months of electronic monitoring for hitting a killing a 57-year-old flagger.

The accident happened on a spring day in May of last year when the 26-year-old driver was nearing a construction zone on Gravel Hill Road in East Hanover Township, Pennsylvania. He was driving too fast and swerved to avoid hitting a stopped vehicle. Unfortunately, in the process of swerving, he hit and killed the construction worker directing traffic.

The driver later pled guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter and recklessly endangering the lives of others.

Road workers face a tremendous amount of risk on-the-job and are categorized as being in the single most dangerous industry in America today. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that 844 workers were killed over a seven-year-period at road construction sites. Over that time period, the number of fatalities steadily rose each year from 94 deaths in 1995 to 118 deaths in 2001.

The Pennsylvania construction accident lawyers with Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers are here to help if you have been injured in a construction accident while on the job site that was caused at no fault of your own. Contact an experienced attorney today.

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27
Jan

Company investigated after fatal Pennsylvania construction accident

January 27, 2011

A local construction company is being investigated following a fatal Pennsylvania construction accident, WFMZ reports.

The Pennsylvania construction accident occurred when a trench collapsed. One person’s life was lost, and another person was injured as a result of the Pennsylvania construction accident.

The company has had more than 20 safety violations in the past 5 years before this Pennsylvania construction accident occurred.

Read more.

Do you think the company should have lost its license to operate before this Pennsylvania construction accident because it consistently got safety violations?

If you have been the victim of a Pennsylvania construction accident, the Pennsylvania construction accident lawyers at Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers can help you.

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30
Dec

Man dies in Pennsylvania construction accident

December 30, 2010

The Associated Press reports that a man died in a Lancaster construction accident at a central Pennsylvania power plant.

The Lancaster construction accident victim was an employee of a Chicago-based construction company.

The worker was doing excavation work for an expansion at the power plant when he was involved in the Lancaster construction accident with a large piece of construction equipment. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the Lancaster construction accident.

The Occupational Health and Safety Administration is investigating the Lancaster construction accident.

Read more.

Do you think companies do enough to ensure work site safety for their employees?

If you have been injured in a Pennsylvania construction accident, the Pennsylvania construction accident attorneys at Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers can help you.

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20
May

Man killed in Lebanon construction accident

ABC 27 News reports that a 57-year-old man was killed in a Lebanon auto accident that took place in a Lebanon County construction zone. The Lebanon auto accident happened on Gravel Hill Road.

The Lebanon auto accident occurred when the driver of a vehicle crested a hill and then swerved to avoid stopped traffic in a construction area. The Lebanon auto accident victim was working on the side of the road when he was struck by the car as it served. The man was working as PennDot flagger at the time of the Lebanon auto accident.

Read more.

Do you think there are any extra precautions the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation can take to protect its Pennsylvania construction workers?

If you have been injured in a Lebanon auto accident, the Pennsylvania construction accident lawyers at SchmidtKramer Injury Lawyers can help you.

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11
May

PennDOT flag man hit by car, dies at construction zone in East Hanover Township, Lebanon County

By BARBARA MILLER, The Patriot-News
May 11, 2010, 1:24PM

A PennDOT flag man was killed this morning after being struck by a vehicle on Gravel Hill Road a mile south of Route 22 in East Hanover Twp., Lebanon County, said Greg Penny, PennDOT spokesman. Thomas R. Allen, 57, of the 300 block of Acorn Circle, Lebanon, died of injuries in the 9:40 a.m. accident, Penny said.

The accident occurred when a northbound Isuzu Amigo driven by Jared C. Geibe, 24, of Palmyra, came over the crest of a hill and veered to avoid a vehicle Allen had already stopped. Geibe swerved right to avoid hitting the stopped vehicle, and ran onto the right berm and partially up an embankment before hitting Allen, state police said.

Allen had worked for PennDOT since September 2007, Penny said, and was an equipment operator and flagger.

Traffic was being stopped for a PennDOT work crew that was cutting back ground along the shoulder of the road, Penny said.

This story has been updated from an earlier version.

© 2010 PennLive.com. All rights reserved.

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4
Feb

Man killed in Pennsylvania construction accident

WNEP reports that a man was killed in a Pennsylvania construction accident. The accident happened during demolition work at Saint George Catholic Church.

It is believed that a piece of granite tipped the bucket of the lift the man was working on. The victim’s safety harness was not hooked to the machine he was on and he fell 50 feet. Another man who was working on the machine when the Pennsylvania construction accident occurred was saved because his safety harness was secured.

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The Pennsylvania construction accident lawyers at SchmidtKramer can help if you were injured in an accident.

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4
Feb

Man killed in Pennsylvania construction accident

WNEP reports that a man was killed in a Pennsylvania construction accident. The accident happened during demolition work at Saint George Catholic Church.

It is believed that a piece of granite tipped the bucket of the lift the man was working on. The victim’s safety harness was not hooked to the machine he was on and he fell 50 feet. Another man who was working on the machine when the Pennsylvania construction accident occurred was saved because his safety harness was secured.

Read More

The Pennsylvania construction accident lawyers at SchmidtKramer can help if you were injured in an accident.

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25
Nov

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Limits Effect Of Release In Vicarious Liability

Below is the link to the majority opinion from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on November 24, 2009 in Maloney v. Valley Medical Facilities where the Court (opinion by Justice Saylor) holds that a plaintiff’s release of a principal whose potential liability is vicarious does not necessarily discharge the plaintiff’s claims against the agent, especially when their has been an express reservation of rights. The Court holds that parties to a settlement should be afforded latitude to effectuate their express intentions. The Court indicates that its decision in Mamalis v. Atlas Van Lines, 560 A.2d 1380 (Pa. 1989) is limited to a simple fact pattern involving a single principal, a single agent, a single event and consequences of the release of the party bearing primary liability upon settlement” and that is should not be read to apply to a situation with multiple agents, events, tortfeasors, etc.

The case at hand is a medical malpractice case but the Court is specific that its holding is not limited to medical negligence actions. Obviously, it would now be applied in an auto case. Justice Greenspan wrote a dissent and would enforce the release to the principal, even if their has been an express reservation of rights. Justice Saylor’s opinion also has a detailed explanation of the difference between joint tortfeasors and vicarious liability which is worth reading.

http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Supreme/out/J-16-2009mo.pdf

Scott B. Cooper

scooper@schmidtkramer.com

717-232-6300

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12
Nov

Two men hurt in Pennsylvania construction accident

The Morning Call reports that two men were injured in a Pennsylvania construction accident when the steel structure they were preparing collapsed.

The men were constructing the steel framework for a column to support a replacement bridge when the Pennsylvania construction accident happened. Several circles of steel tipped over and hit the men.

The men were transported to the hospital to be treated for injuries following the Pennsylvania construction accident.

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The Pennsylvania construction accident attorneys at SchmidtKramer can help if you were injured in an accident.