Trial Magazine

Juan Cuevas and Jose Jimenez, both 40, were installing windows for a subcontractor on a construction job. They were standing on a scaffold when the base plates that supported the davit suspending the scaffold failed, causing it to collapse. Cuevas, a husband and father of three, fell seven stories to the ground, sustaining a traumatic brain injury. He died eight months later. Jimenez suffered lumbar disk injuries that necessitated surgery and other treatment at a cost of several hundred thousand dollars. Both men had earned approximately $45,000 annually plus overtime. Jimenez now earns a reduced salary assisting with window installation.

Cuevas’s wife, on behalf of his estate and the couple’s two minor children, Cuevas’s adult child, and Jimenez sued Burton Construction Co., the general contractor; MEI-McCrory, Inc., which installed, designed, and fabricated the base plates; and LMN Safety Solutions, Inc., which was responsible for safety monitoring at the job site. Among other things, the plaintiffs alleged that the davit and base plates were improperly installed, the general contractor failed to adhere to the construction plan, and the safety monitor failed to test the strength of the base plates.

The defendants blamed one another for the incident.

The parties reached an undisclosed settlement.

Citation: Cuevas v. LMN Safety Solutions, Inc., No. 2015-62037 (Tex. Dist. Ct. Harris Cnty. Jan. 2018).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Benny Agosto Jr. and Jay Jackson, both of Houston.