$7.875 Million Settlement for Injuries Sustained From an Industrial Machine

Larry Bendesky, Robert Zimmerman, and Scott Fellmeth secured a $7.875 million settlement for their 39-year-old client who suffered permanent injuries to his left hand when it was crushed by an industrial machine, resulting in the partial amputation of his hand.

The accident occurred in 2018. The injured worker was employed by a manufacturing company where he was a machine operator in training. The injury occurred when the worker accessed an area of the machine that had an in-running nip point and, due to a lack of guarding and interlock, his hand was pulled into the machine and crushed.

A product liability and negligence lawsuit was filed against the manufacturer of the machine as well as the sister company of the worker’s employer who the plaintiff alleged had safety responsibilities at the facility where the injury occurred.

Plaintiff alleged the product had a defective design and that the machine should have been manufactured with a safety interlock guarding system. The plaintiff also alleged that critical safety guards were missing when the product was installed at the facility by the manufacturer.

The attorneys also claimed the plaintiff was not properly trained to use the machine and that the facility lacked appropriate safety oversight.