A construction accident happened out on the Garden State Parkway, back in 2012, and seriously injured a man. That man was a pile driver who was connected to Local Union 454.
While he was working close to mile marker 39.3, which is in Galloway Township, N.J., a steel pipe apparently fell off of a truck. The pipe was 50 feet long and weighed around 4,000 pounds. It was being transported on a tractor-trailer, but it rolled off and crushed the man.
The accident happened on the seventh of August, 2012.
That man survived the accident, but he is now suing, saying that the company responsible for the pipe—KMK Enterprises—was negligent. He claims they did not inspect the equipment properly, and that he was hurt as a result. He’s asking for more an $50,000 in compensation, among other things.
However, issues with jurisdiction have now arisen. The problem is that KMK Enterprises is not based out of Pennsylvania, but out of New Jersey. The legal proceeding were set to take place in Philadelphia City Hall. Another company involved in the suit, Jacobs Engineering Group, is based out of Pennsylvania. As noted above, the incident happened in New Jersey.
The problem with the case is that arguments have been made that courts in Pennsylvania can’t have jurisdiction to rule on companies in New Jersey, regarding incidents that happened in New Jersey.
As this case shows, delays can come up in injury cases, even those that seem very straightforward, when legal questions have to be answered. When this happens, those who have been hurt have to know what legal action they should take.
Source: Penn Record, “Plaintiff fighting summary judgment ruling in case over construction accident,” Nicholas Malfitano, Dec. 28, 2015