Paul Callaghan Obtains Successful Jury Verdict for Major Construction Company

HCC partner Paul S. Callaghan successfully completed a jury trial in Providence County Superior Court recently – resulting in a verdict in favor of the defendant, a major national and international construction company with headquarters in New England.

The plaintiff in the case had requested that the jury award in excess of $3 million for personal injuries he allegedly sustained as the result of a slip-and-fall on ice at a construction site at a college in Worcester, Massachusetts.  The plaintiff alleged that the defendant, which was the general contractor on the construction project, had been negligent in its maintenance of the site.

At the time of the incident, plaintiff was a union carpenter employed by a subcontractor of the defendant.  The plaintiff claimed that he slipped and fell on a thin layer of ice covered by a dusting of snow on a concrete walkway at the ongoing construction project. In addition, the plaintiff maintained that the defendant should have removed or treated the ice and snow.

The defendant argued that the condition did not constitute a danger in the context of an ongoing wintertime construction project, that it had no actual or constructive notice of the existence of the condition, and that plaintiff’s own negligence was the cause of his fall.

At trial, the plaintiff claimed that he had sustained in excess of approximately $1,400,000 in damages resulting from about $1.3 million in lost earnings and $100,000 in medical expenses. He claimed to be totally and permanently disabled as a result of the incident and never returned to any form of employment.  He subsequently underwent three unsuccessful surgical procedures to his left shoulder, resulting in “frozen shoulder syndrome.” The plaintiff also sought compensation for pain and suffering and his wife sought damages for loss of consortium.

The jury deliberated for several hours over the course of two days before returning a verdict finding that the defendant was not negligent. The plaintiff moved for a new trial and the court denied the motion.

Although the case was tried in Rhode Island, Massachusetts law was applied throughout since the site of the incident was in Worcester.

Paul Callaghan maintains an extensive construction litigation practice in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island.