Most of BSEE Accident Report Deemed Admissible in Worker Injury Case
Posted on Mar 31, 2014 in Energy/Environmental, Investigations, Workplace Safety | Comments Off on Most of BSEE Accident Report Deemed Admissible in Worker Injury Case
In litigation arising from a worker injury on an offshore platform allegedly caused by the bursting of a bladder of a potable water tank, the tank manufacturer sought a preliminary order declaring the BSEE accident investigation report and all of its attachments admissible pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 803(8), the hearsay exception for public records. The U.S. District Court...
District Judge Considers Proffered Expert Testimony in Air Pollution Case Against Pennsylvania Coal-Fired Electric Generating Facility
Posted on Mar 25, 2014 in Energy/Environmental, Investigations | Comments Off on District Judge Considers Proffered Expert Testimony in Air Pollution Case Against Pennsylvania Coal-Fired Electric Generating Facility
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania considered multiple challenges to proffered expert testimony in its cases dealing with air pollution events from a coal-fired electric generating facility in 2006 and 2007 that allegedly caused property damage and adverse health effects. The judge determined that the plaintiffs’ environmental engineering expert could not...
Trustee Turns to Oil Shipper in Lac-Mégantic Litigation, Highlighting Emerging Trend
Posted on Mar 25, 2014 in Energy/Environmental, Investigations, Transportation | Comments Off on Trustee Turns to Oil Shipper in Lac-Mégantic Litigation, Highlighting Emerging Trend
Earlier this year, the bankruptcy trustee for Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway filed a Complaint in the adversary proceeding in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maine against a crude oil shipper for negligence in allegedly misclassifying the Bakken crude oil it was shipping by rail. According to the Complaint, “Had defendants properly classified, identified and labeled...
Tenth Circuit Affirms Jury Verdict in Negligent Design Case Against Manufacturer of Truck-Mounted Drill Rig
Posted on Mar 18, 2014 in Energy/Environmental, Investigations, Product Liability | Comments Off on Tenth Circuit Affirms Jury Verdict in Negligent Design Case Against Manufacturer of Truck-Mounted Drill Rig
An Oklahoma rig worker brought suit for strict product liability and negligent design against the manufacturer of a truck-mounted drill rig after suffering catastrophic injuries from becoming entwined in the rig’s auger. On the strict product liability claim, Oklahoma law requires a plaintiff to show that a defect 1) caused the injury; 2) existed at the time it left the manufacturer’s...
Sixth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Manufacturer of Custom Overhead-Gantry Milling Machine
Posted on Mar 3, 2014 in Construction, Investigations, Product Liability | Comments Off on Sixth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Manufacturer of Custom Overhead-Gantry Milling Machine
The Sixth Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of a manufacturer of a custom overhead-gantry milling machine that caused the death of a worker at a Michigan machining company. The worker’s estate brought suit against the manufacturer alleging negligent design and failure to warn after the machine’s cutting tool killed the worker. Prior to the lawsuit, the accident was...
Ergonomics Expert Allowed To Testify in Railroad Worker’s Injury Case
A Pennsylvania federal court rejected a railroad’s motion in limine to exclude the testimony of an ergonomics expert proffered to testify about the medical causation between years of walking on uneven surfaces on or near tracks and a worker’s severe arthritis. The fact that the expert was not a doctor did not preclude the expert from being sufficiently qualified to provide opinions...FEATURED
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