Laborer, two others die in fall at construction site

Amount of settlement: $2.63 million

A laborer was working on a mast-climber-type scaffold at a high-rise building construction project approximately 130 feet above the ground. The foreman removed the ties from the building once the scaffold was  no longer required believing that the cantilevered beam would hold without the scaffold, although the scaffold manufacturer states in its manual that the ties should not be removed without a crane in place to hold the scaffold steady. Once the ties were removed, the scaffold and platform fell to the street below, killing the worker, his foreman and a bystander on the ground. The worker’s family brought suit against the general contractor, the scaffold manufacturer and the company that erected the cantilevered beam.