BENEFITS AVAILABLE TO INJURED OHIO WORKERS PART 4 | Swanton, OH Work Injury Attorneys.

Workplace Intentional Tort

Sometimes an employer's conduct that results in a workplace injury can be so egregious that an additional claim can be made outside the workers' compensation system. This type of claim is made through a lawsuit filed in court that alleges a workplace intentional tort, which means the conduct was so bad that the courts view it as if the employer acted intentionally to cause the harm.

These cases have always been difficult to win because the standard that must be met in order to prevail is extremely high. In recent years, it's gotten even tougher. The Ohio General Assembly passed legislation that raised the standard of proof so high that an injured worker can only prevail on this type of claim in very limited circumstances. The Ohio Supreme Court has not considered whether this standard is constitutional, so an attorney would need to be consulted to determine whether this type of claim is viable.

In our practice, we handled a major workplace injury case that arose prior to the date the new statute took effect. The injured employee initially approached us about filing a workers' compensation claim for him after he suffered horrific injuries from an electrical shock. After looking at the facts of the situation, we determined that the employer acted with such complete disregard to numerous safety rules and regulations that we filed a lawsuit for workplace intentional tort. Eventually, a confidential settlement was reached for nearly $2 million.

The lesson here is that if your injuries were caused because your employer failed to follow the proper safety rules, you may be able to pursue a remedy that exceeds a workers' compensation claim.

If you or someone you know has suffered injury at the workplace contact our Toledo, Ohio work injury attorneys to order your FREE copy of The Ohio Work Injury Book.