No matter what line of work you are in, there is always the potential for a workplace injury. Whether you do your job sitting at a desk or on a construction site, no worksite is completely safe. While in Colorado, you do not need to prove that your employer was negligent in causing your injuries, a large percentage of workplace injuries could have been prevented by a more safety-minded employer. It is not always the conditions of the work site alone that lead to injuries. The true causes of workplace injuries are often much more difficult to spot than a stray live wire. If you were injured in the workplace, Workers’ Compensation is most likely available to you. An attorney can help you determine how best to pursue compensation. 

Common Safety Concerns in the Workplace

Some of the greatest dangers in the workplace are the hardest to notice. A few safety concerns you may be faced with in your workplace include: 

• Lack of training - If you are using any kind of potentially risky equipment or working in a hazardous environment, adequate training is everything. You should be taught how to safely use every piece of equipment you work with, as should your coworkers. Something as simple as a mechanical floor cleaner can become hazardous if you are not given clear instructions on how to control it or shut it off in case of an emergency. 

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Getting hurt at work can create a serious interruption in your life. Making sure that you get the medical care you need to return to work - if that is possible for you - can be challenging in some cases. Not all employers are as cooperative with the process as they should be. When you are injured and trying to recover, you could probably benefit from having a professional with in-depth knowledge of workers’ compensation law to advocate for you. While not every workers’ compensation claim requires assistance from an attorney, if your injury is on the more serious or impactful side, then having quality legal representation can be invaluable. If you are in doubt, calling an attorney for a complimentary consultation may be the best course of action.

When Might I Need Legal Representation for My Workers’ Compensation Claim?

If your injury is fairly minor, you did not miss much work, and your employer is cooperative about covering your medical costs and required missed wages, you might be alright handling the claim on your own. However, if your injury is more serious, then having an attorney who knows your legal rights to advocate for you could result in a more favorable outcome. If any of the following factors is present in your case, it might be worth it to contact an attorney:

• Unable to return - If you are not going to be able to go back to the same job you had, period, then you will almost certainly benefit from a lawyer’s help. If you will need to change to a different job due to your injuries - for example, if you can no longer perform construction work and will have to move to a more sedentary position - then you are in this category.
• Total disability - If your injury has left you with any type of disability that will prevent you from working entirely, like a traumatic brain injury, then you will want a lawyer who understands the full scope of compensation you could be entitled to.
• Long-term care - For severe injuries that will require a long course of medical treatment such as extensive rehabilitation, or if you will require professional care on a day-to-day basis permanently or for an extended period of time, an attorney should almost certainly be involved.
• Fair compensation denied - If your employer decided to deny your claim entirely, or made an unfair decision that does not fully compensate you, a lawyer can help you through the appeals process.

In general, if your injury is very serious or will have a long-term impact, a lawyer may be able to help you obtain full compensation.

You may often hear about careless truck drivers who injure careful drivers of smaller vehicles. It may even seem like when there is an accident involving a truck, the truck driver is at-fault 100% of the time. This simply is not true. Truck drivers can get hurt in accidents they did not cause, just like every other driver on the road. Even in truck verses car accidents, the truck driver is not always to blame. Truck drivers sometimes find themselves facing lawsuits after a crash, even when a more detailed investigation would reveal that they did nothing wrong - and the other driver did.

If you are a truck driver and you were injured in your line of work during a crash, you may want to speak to an attorney of your own. A qualified lawyer can take a closer look into your accident and identify your options for pursuing financial compensation.

Who Might Actually be Liable When a Truck Driver is Injured?

Truck drivers can sometimes be automatically and unfairly blamed for any accident they are involved in. Workers’ compensation may be difficult to get if you, like many other drivers, are considered an independent contractor. There are ways to correct this situation, but it will take a skilled attorney’s help. The party who is actually responsible could be:

Electrocution injuries can be extremely serious, or even fatal. Electrical burns can cause permanent disfigurement and lead to long hospitalizations. Cardiac complications can result. Most workplace accidents are avoidable when reasonable precautions are taken. Employer negligence is often the cause of electrocution accidents on job sites. If you were electrocuted at work, you should speak to a workplace accidents lawyer immediately. Your attorney will want to conduct a complete investigation aimed at proving the cause of your accident so that you can recover compensation for your injuries, whether through workers’ compensation or another legal recourse.

What Types of Employer Negligence Cause Workplace Electrocutions?

Employers have a duty to keep their workplaces reasonably safe. Although certain industries, like construction, come with an increased level of risk, the employer must still take reasonable precautions to reduce the risk of injuries. Your workplace electrocution could have been caused by:

• Lack of safety gear - If you are working around any exposed wiring or electrical dangers, your employer should provide you with appropriate safety equipment.
• Improper insulation - Improperly insulated electrical wiring is extremely dangerous. Naked wires can cause serious injuries to anyone who comes in contact with them.
• Damaged equipment - Employers should have procedures in place for securing damaged and dangerous equipment until it can be restored to a safe condition in a timely fashion. Broken or worn-out electrical equipment may behave unpredictably and shock unsuspecting employees.
• Overloads - Overloading a single source of power can cause anyone using it to get electrocuted or can spark electrical fires. Extension cords, outlets, and other gear is only built to handle a certain amount of electrical current - beyond that, it becomes dangerous and can cause serious harm to workers.
• Negligent training - If you are going to be working around exposed electrical currents or other electrocution hazards, your employer must have ensured that you are adequately trained to perform the job safely. Allowing untrained employees around exposed wiring may put them at an unreasonable risk of harm.

If you got electrocuted at work, you will need to contact a qualified workplace accidents lawyer promptly. A thorough investigation may need to be undertaken promptly, while the accident scene is still largely untouched and the evidence is well-preserved. Waiting too long to call a lawyer can result in critical evidence being lost, hurting your odds of receiving compensation.

On October 21, tragedy struck the set of actor Alec Baldwin's movie “Rust” when a prop gun went off, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Negligence-based lawsuits are expected to be filed on behalf of the victims, and Santa Fe County Prosecutors are investigating to determine whether criminal charges should be filed. The incident took place in New Mexico, and so will any resulting lawsuit. This blog will consider how the lawsuit may play out if the incident had occurred in Colorado.

How Did the Shooting Happen and How Does Colorado Law Apply?

Facts and details about how a live round found its way into what was supposed to be a “cold” prop gun are still emerging. Clearly, a lot of important industry safety protocols were missed somewhere along the line. Ammunition is generally forbidden on movie sets for this exact reason. Attorneys for the film’s armorer have stated that she did not know where the bullet came from, however, veteran armorers have stated in multiple interviews since the tragic event that the ultimate responsibility for all firearms and ammunition on a film set lies with the armorer.

There is also the issue of the assistant director admitting he failed to check the gun for ammunition when he called "cold gun" and handed the weapon to Baldwin during rehearsal because the armorer was nowhere to be found on set. According to production protocols, no one, including the assistant director, except for the armorer should ever pass a gun to an actor.