Lathes are extremely common, very useful tools used in applications for things like woodworking, metalwork, pottery, glass, and more. They have the potential to be extremely dangerous in addition to their usefulness, and it is important that anyone who uses a lathe has the proper training, safety equipment, and is able to perform their duties in a safe environment with a machine that is in good condition. While every day across the country countless craftspeople use lathes without incident, there are unfortunate situations where someone is injured, either due to their own actions, or because they were not provided with the right environment and equipment to safely perform their duties.
There are many different ways that someone can be injured by a lathe, but a tort has occurred only when the injury is the result of someone else’s behaviors or actions. In order to be able to seek compensation through a personal injury claim or lawsuit, we must be able to prove that someone else had a duty of care that they owed you, that they failed to uphold this duty, and that their failure directly led to an accident that caused measurable damages.
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After an injury, whether or not you are covered under workers’ compensation or not, working with a personal injury attorney is one of the best ways to learn about your options and get professional support throughout the entire process. Following an accident with a lathe, you should be able to focus on your recovery without taking on the additional burdens of navigating your legal issues, and in fact, stress can have a serious negative impact on your recovery process. Hiring an attorney will give you the emotional space you need to focus your energy on getting better, and getting your life back on track.
Read more below about lathe accidents and how they may qualify for a personal injury or workers’ compensation claim, and contact our law firm as soon as possible for a free initial consultation. During our consultation, we will be able to provide you with insight into our process, our past results, and specific advice about how to move forward with your own situation.
When Is a Lathe Accident a Tort?
In order for an accident to be considered a tort, there are a few facts that must be present: the defendant had a duty of care to keep you safe, they failed to uphold this duty, and the duty led to an accident that caused you measurable injuries. Contact a lathe accident attorney to discuss your claim.
Duty of Care
Depending on the circumstances surrounding your lathe usage, there is a number of individuals or groups that may owe you a duty of care. For example, the manufacturer of the lathe owes a duty of care to provide you with a functional, safe machine, and to provide you with ample warnings for the risks inherent with proper use. Your employer owes you a duty of care that includes things like providing you with access to a safe machine in a safe environment, as well as the proper safety equipment to perform your duties.
Depending on your relationship with the person or party responsible for your accident, the duty of care will change.
A Breached Duty of Care
If the manufacturer of a lathe provided you with a defective product or failed to warn you of the inherent dangers of this machine, then we will work to prove that they failed their duty of care to you as a consumer. If alternately, your boss had you running a lathe without proper safety guards, broken parts, or other safety hazards that your employer is responsible for addressing, then you will be able to file a workers’ compensation claim.
There are many types of failed duties of care, and we will be able to examine your unique situation during our initial consultation to give you a better idea of how we can help you seek compensation.
Measurable Damages Following an Accident
Damages include things like your actual injuries, as well as all of the financial impacts of your accident, your emotions, and more. Simply put, if you were working with a lathe that malfunctioned and you suffered no injuries, then no tort has occurred. If, however, you are using a lathe and it caused any sort of injuries or impacts that we can connect to this incident, then we may likely be able to move forward with seeking compensation.
Damages are divided into economic and non-economic. Economic damages seek compensation for all financially-measurable impacts, such as your medical bills and lost wages. Non-economic damages seek compensation for things like emotional impacts, pain and suffering, and other impacts that do not have set dollar values.
