Florissant Workplace Injury Lawyer

workplace injury lawyer Florissant, MO

Were you injured on the job in Florissant, MO?

Helping injured clients in Florissant, MO pursue full recovery in workplace injury matters.

Workers’ compensation covers some of what you lose after a workplace injury. However, if someone other than your employer caused the accident, you may be entitled to additional compensation. A subcontractor, equipment manufacturer, or driver on the job site can all create liability separate from the workers’ comp system, and that distinction often gets overlooked by workers who assume workers’ comp is the only avenue available to them. Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols represents injured workers throughout Florissant, MO, and our attorneys know how to identify when a third party, not just your employer, bears responsibility for what happened. A Florissant, MO workplace injury lawyer at our firm can review your accident, determine whether a civil claim exists alongside your workers’ comp benefits, and pursue the full compensation available to you. Contact our office to discuss your situation.

Workplace Injury Lawyer Florissant, MO

A workplace injury lawyer represents workers who were hurt on the job and helps them pursue compensation beyond what workers’ compensation alone provides, typically by identifying a third party whose negligence contributed to the accident. This is different from a workers’ compensation claim itself, since Missouri generally requires injured employees to seek benefits from their employer through the workers’ comp system rather than suing the employer directly. The two processes can run at the same time, and understanding how they interact matters.

Missouri recorded 114 fatal workplace injuries in 2023, with transportation incidents responsible for 38 percent of those deaths, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nonfatal injuries are far more common still; the Missouri Department of Labor tracks tens of thousands of reported workplace injuries and illnesses across the state each year. Behind every one of those numbers is a family dealing with lost income and, often, unanswered questions about who else besides the employer might share responsibility.

Types of Workplace Injury Cases We Handle in Florissant

Workplace injury claims outside the workers’ comp system come in many forms, depending on the job site, the industry, and who else was involved besides the injured worker’s own employer. Below are some of the workplace injury matters we regularly handle for clients in Florissant, MO.

• Construction site accidents. Falls, scaffolding collapses, and equipment accidents on construction sites with multiple employers often involve a subcontractor or general contractor other than the injured worker’s own employer. Federal fall protection standards exist for exactly this reason, and a violation by a contractor other than your employer can support a separate claim.
• Defective equipment and machinery injuries. When a tool or machine fails because of a design or manufacturing defect, the manufacturer may be liable separately from any workers’ comp claim.
• Car accidents. Delivery drivers, sales representatives, and other workers injured by a negligent third-party driver while on the job can often pursue a claim against that driver in addition to any workers’ comp benefits.
• Injuries on a third party’s property. Workers injured due to unsafe conditions on a property owned by someone other than their employer, a client’s job site, for example, may have a premises liability claim against that property owner.
• Toxic exposure and chemical injuries. Exposure in a hazardous work environment that a third party supplied or maintained can create liability separate from an occupational disease claim through workers’ comp.
• Injuries caused by a subcontractor’s negligence. On multi-contractor job sites, a subcontractor’s careless work can injure employees of other companies on the same site.
• Railroad worker injuries. Some railroad employees are covered by a different federal legal framework than most Missouri workers, and identifying which system applies matters early in the case.
• Falls from scaffolding or elevated platforms. Improperly maintained or installed scaffolding, especially on sites with multiple contractors, frequently points to liability beyond the worker’s own employer.

Why Choose Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols as My Workplace Injury Lawyer in Florissant, MO?

Attorney Experience With Workplace Injury and Third-Party Claims

Joe C. Pioletti handles personal injury, wrongful death, and workers’ compensation matters at Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols, along with bankruptcy and criminal defense cases. That combination matters when a job site accident produces both a comp claim and a civil claim, because the two have to be coordinated rather than handled in isolation. Joe earned his law degree from SIU School of Law in 2013, where he worked in the Domestic Violence Advocacy Clinic and received the Charter Class Campaign for Academic Excellence Scholarship three times, and he completed his undergraduate degree at Eureka College in 2010. He is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association and is admitted in the U.S. District Court for the Central, Northern, and Southern Districts of Illinois and the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana. As a personal injury lawyer in Florissant, MO, he applies that same investigative approach to workplace cases.

A Firm That Knows the Line Between Workers’ Comp and a Civil Claim

Determining whether a workplace injury supports a claim outside the workers’ comp system takes a careful look at who was actually responsible for the hazard that caused the accident, not just what job title that person or company held on the site. Our firm has represented injured clients for more than 80 years combined, and we know how to investigate a job site, identify every party who may share fault, and pursue a civil claim alongside a workers’ comp case rather than instead of one. We offer free consultations for workplace injury matters, and our attorneys have secured meaningful recoveries for injured clients throughout the region over the years. There are no upfront fees to retain our personal injury lawyer. Legal costs are taken as a percentage of your settlement or verdict.

What Is Important to Understand About a Workplace Injury Case?

Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Workplace Injury Cases

Under RSMo § 287.120, Missouri’s workers’ compensation law is generally the exclusive remedy against an employer for a workplace injury, meaning an injured worker typically cannot sue their own employer in civil court over an on-the-job accident. That exclusivity doesn’t extend to other parties, however; a worker can pursue a separate civil claim against a negligent third party, such as a subcontractor, property owner, or equipment manufacturer, while a workers’ comp claim proceeds against the employer at the same time. The two claims are evaluated under different standards, and a settlement or verdict in one doesn’t resolve the other.

Compensation available through a third-party workplace injury claim can include:

• Economic damages. Medical bills, lost wages, and lost earning capacity beyond what workers’ comp benefits cover.
• Non-economic damages. Pain, suffering, and permanent impairment, which workers’ comp generally does not compensate for.
• Wrongful death damages. Available to surviving family members when a workplace accident proves fatal and a third party bears responsibility.

The value of your claim in these cases often depends on how the third-party recovery interacts with any workers’ comp lien, which is one more reason it helps to have an attorney coordinate both pieces of the case together.

What Are Important Aspects of a Workplace Injury Case?

Identifying every potentially liable party is often the most important step in a workplace injury case. The employer’s workers’ comp carrier may have a lien on any third-party recovery, which affects how a settlement gets structured. Job site investigations, equipment maintenance records, and contracts between the employer and any subcontractors on site frequently reveal who else was responsible for the conditions that led to the accident, information that isn’t always apparent from the accident report alone. As with any injury claim, it’s worth thinking carefully before accepting an insurance company’s first offer, since that first number rarely accounts for the full extent of a serious injury.

What Is the Workplace Injury Case Timeline?

1. Initial consultation and case evaluation, including a review of your workers’ comp status.
2. Investigation, including job site records, equipment maintenance logs, and witness statements.
3. Continued medical treatment and documentation of the injury.
4. A demand submitted to the responsible third party’s insurer, followed by negotiation.
5. Filing a lawsuit if a fair settlement isn’t offered.

Missouri’s five-year statute of limitations under RSMo § 516.120 generally applies to a third-party civil claim, which runs separately from any deadlines that apply to the workers’ comp portion of your case.

What Should You Bring to Your Workplace Injury Consultation?

Bring any evidence or documents you have pertaining to the workplace accident. During the consultation, we’ll review your workers’ comp status, identify any third parties who may share liability, and explain what a civil claim would look like alongside your existing benefits.

• Any accident or incident report filed with your employer.
• Medical records and bills related to the injury.
• Photos of the job site, equipment involved, or unsafe conditions.
• Contact information for any subcontractors, property owners, or other companies present at the job site.

Reach Out to Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols to Schedule a Consultation

If you were injured on the job in Florissant, MO, our attorneys can review your case at no cost to you and explain whether a claim exists beyond your workers’ compensation benefits. Contact us to schedule your free consultation.