In a classic case of an employee pursuing a third-party lawsuit to make himself whole for his work injuries—rather than collecting workers’ compensation payments from the company he works for—a Texas maintenance worker has filed suit against DuPont.
According to the Southeast Texas Record, Richard Gipson Jr., an employee of Qualitech Maintenance, was seriously injured at a DuPont facility in February 2011 while cutting rubber bales. To quote from the story, “The suit accuses DuPont of negligently failing to provide safety equipment, supervise him, warn him of the dangers and remedy the dangerous condition. The plaintiff is suing for his alleged past and future medical expenses, mental anguish, pain, impairment and lost wages.”
Because he was working as a subcontractor at the time of his injury, Gipson's lawyer will no doubt maintain, he has the right to file a third-party lawsuit against DuPont for his injuries, rather than collecting workers’ compensation from Qualitech Maintenance. It can't hurt, of course, that DuPont (as a multinational corporation) no doubt has much deeper pockets than Qualitech, and may be on the hook for more in cash damages than Gipson could ever hope to obtain from Texas's less lavish workers’ comp system.
Are you a Texas employee who was injured on the job, and you believe that a third party caused your accident? Contact Jim Zadeh today at 888-713-5418 to explore your legal options! You may be entitled to file a lawsuit for a Texas workplace injury or occupational disease if your employer has opted out of the state workers’ compensation program or if a third party is responsible for your injuries.
