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Aaron Halpern represented a 52-year-old man who, while he was working in a warehouse, was run over by a forklift that was negligently and unsafely operated by an unlicensed employee of a warehouse company.
The forklift operator’s recklessness and negligence were all but confirmed by surveillance video and various OSHA violations that were issued. As a result, our client, Mr. Middleton suffered serious injuries which have permanently changed his life.
Although Mr. Middleton was not hired or employed by the warehouse company, the warehouse company attempted to argue that they were a "special employer" of Mr. Middleton to try to escape responsibility for his injuries under New York’s workers compensation exclusion.
They cited New York State law which recognizes that a non-employer can under certain circumstances where they demonstrate sufficient control over the work environment be considered a “special employer” and avoid liability for work-related injuries.
However, after hard-fought litigation, Aaron Halpern successfully argued through extensive factually and expert driven testimony that Mr. Middleton's employment was through an outside employer, and therefore the warehouse was not his "special employer" in this situation.
The Jacob Fuchsberg Law Firm successfully resolved the case and obtained a significant settlement for their client, in case that without sophisticated representation might have been barred under the workers compensation exemption.
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