Top Individual Workplace Injury Verdicts and Settlements

$411.69 Million Verdict for Refinery Worker, 25, Struck on the Head by a Dropped Scaffold Bar

Jose Valdivia, 25, was building scaffolding at the Phillips 66 refinery in Lake Charles when a co-worker above him lost his grip on a steel scaffold bar. It struck him on the head and spine through a hard hat and full protective equipment. He is in a wheelchair with limited speech. Brock never reported the accident to OSHA.

After trial: On appeal. The $411.69 million verdict is the largest single-plaintiff personal-injury verdict in Louisiana history as entered. See more

Houston Jury Awards $209.2 Million in Terra Energy Hantavirus Death

A Harris County jury awarded Laura Schneider and her three children $209.2 million after finding that Terra Energy Partners hid a known hantavirus danger that killed her husband, Karl.

Denver Jury Awards $145.26 Million to Brain-Injured Painter Over Workers' Comp Carrier's Denial of Rehab Care

A 20-year-old painter suffered a traumatic brain injury in a 2021 ladder fall in Utah. A Denver jury found his workers' compensation carrier, NorGUARD Insurance, knowingly and unreasonably delayed and denied his care, including inpatient rehabilitation. It awarded $145.26 million, made up of $85.26 million in compensatory and $60 million in punitive damages.

After trial: NorGUARD has appealed to the Colorado Court of Appeals (2025CA1304), where the award is under review. We found no ruling or reduction and could not confirm whether any of the judgment has been paid. See more

Valdez v. Hajoca: A Record $101 Million Verdict for a Hendersonville Wall Collapse

A Henderson County jury awarded $101 million to two masonry workers and one worker's wife after a 12-foot retaining wall, rebuilt under Hajoca's direction without an engineer or a permit, collapsed onto their crew.

After trial: The case settled for a confidential sum while the jury was still deliberating punitive damages, so the $101 million figure reflects the compensatory verdict reached before that settlement, not a final collected judgment.

Insurer's Six-Year Stonewalling Triggers $91 Million Bad-Faith Judgment in Longfellow Bridge Case

After winning a $26.6 million jury verdict for a union mason who fell through defective scaffolding on the Longfellow Bridge, Andrew Abraham of Keches Law Group returned to court and proved that Liberty Mutual's insurers willfully refused to investigate or settle a clear liability case, prompting a judge to double the compensatory judgment to over $91 million under Chapter 93A and 176D.

$95.5 Million Illinois Record Verdict for Truck Driver Who Lost Both Legs

A Cook County jury awarded $95.5 million to a truck driver who lost both legs when improperly loaded carbon steel bundles fell from a crane during unloading, with a 10% comparative fault reduction bringing the net award to $85.9 million, the highest double-amputation verdict in Illinois history.

After trial: The jury returned $95.5 million; comparative fault reduced the judgment to $85.9 million.

$85 Million Verdict for Oregon National Guard Soldiers Poisoned by KBR in Iraq

A federal jury in Portland awarded $85 million to 12 Oregon Army National Guard soldiers after finding that contractor KBR knowingly exposed them to a carcinogenic chemical at an Iraqi water treatment plant and then lied about the danger.

Family Awarded $82.5 Million After Fatal Hood County Gas Plant Explosion

A Harris County jury found Hanover Compression L.P. (later Exterran Energy Solutions L.P.) grossly negligent in the 2007 explosion of a hot oil heater at a Quicksilver Resources natural gas plant in Hood County, Texas, that killed 27-year-old plant worker Joshua Wade Petrie. The jury assigned Hanover 90 percent of the responsibility and Quicksilver 10 percent, and in June 2010 awarded Petrie's widow, his three young children and his father a combined $82.5 million, a total that included $25 million in punitive damages against Hanover. Rob Ammons and Bennett Midlo of The Ammons Law Firm represented the family. Quicksilver, as Petrie's employer, carried workers' compensation coverage and was not itself on the hook for the damages award.

After trial: Hanover, found 90 percent at fault, is liable for all compensatory damages under Texas law, but $25 million of the award is exemplary and Texas caps exemplary damages; the signed judgment is not public.

$75.6 Million Verdict for Paralyzed Highway Flagman Struck by Drunk Ivyland Cafe Manager

A Philadelphia jury awarded $75.6 million to Joseph Tuski, a highway construction flagman left quadriplegic when a drunk driver who had just served himself alcohol at the bar he managed struck him at 40 mph and fled the scene.

$64 Million Verdict for Ironworker Left Quadriplegic After 15-Foot Fall at Panduit Warehouse

A Cook County jury awarded $64 million to Ronald Bayer, a union ironworker paralyzed from the neck down after falling 15 feet at a Panduit Corp. warehouse construction site in DeKalb, Illinois, at the time the largest verdict ever returned for a quadriplegic in Illinois.

Queens Jury's $62 Million Fall Verdict Settles for $6 Million During Appeal

A Queens County jury awarded Zeng Guang Lin, an immigrant construction worker who was 20 when he fell 20 feet from a roof at a Bronx job site, $62,060,086.27 on December 17, 2014 after finding property owner Hutch Realty Partners LLC and contractor Gamut Consulting Inc. liable under New York Labor Law for failing to provide him fall protection. Lin suffered a traumatic brain injury along with spinal fractures, rib fractures, a lacerated spleen, a renal hematoma, and lung contusions. Hutch Realty filed post-trial motions and appealed, and while both were pending the case settled for $6,000,000, against a judgment the defense firm on the appeal puts at $68 million. Benedict Morelli tried the case for Lin; trade-press coverage at the time identified his firm as the Morelli, Alters and Ratner Law Firm, the practice known today as Morelli Law Firm PLLC.

After trial: Reduced by settlement. Hutch Realty Partners appealed, and the case settled for $6,000,000 before the appeal was resolved, according to a defense-firm case summary. See more

Brooklyn Jury Awards $53.5 Million to Construction Worker Paralyzed in Rooftop Fall

A Brooklyn jury found general contractor Mecca Contracting failed to protect Alan Moonsammy from a fall that left him paralyzed and awarded him $53.5 million.

Mason Falls Five Feet Through Scaffold Gap on Longfellow Bridge, Wins $26.6 Million Verdict

A Middlesex County jury awarded $26.6 million to union mason John Rooney, Jr. after he fell through a two-foot scaffold gap during the Longfellow Bridge rehabilitation and suffered seven spinal operations and permanent disability, with pre-judgment interest bringing the total compensatory judgment to roughly $45.5 million.

Construction Worker Left Without Oxygen for 20 Minutes After Debris Chute Collapse Wins $44 Million Settlement

Arian Hila, 48, suffered catastrophic traumatic brain injury at a Tappan, New York demolition site in February 2018 when a debris chute broke free and crushed him, leaving him without oxygen for nearly 20 minutes; a $44 million settlement was reached seven days into a 2024 jury trial.

$41 Million Maritime Verdict for Seaman Who Died from Spider Bite Aboard Ship

A Starr County, Texas jury awarded $41.1 million to the family of seaman Jose Flores, who died after being bitten by a brown recluse spider while working aboard a dredging vessel, on maritime claims of unseaworthiness and negligence against the vessel operator. The case later settled for $10 million.

After trial: The case later settled for $10 million.

Local 1 Ironworker Receives $40 Million Settlement After 23-Foot Fall at Fermilab Particle Accelerator Site

James Daniels, a Local 1 ironworker, fell about 23 feet from a form wall on the $978 million Fermilab PIP-II particle accelerator project in May 2023, suffering catastrophic injuries including a traumatic brain injury, rib fractures, and nerve damage; GWC Injury Lawyers recovered a $40 million settlement in 2026.

$37.5 Million Verdict for Family of Worker Killed in 50-Foot Fall at Fitler Square Townhouse Project

Jeffrey P. Goodman and Aidan B. Carickhoff won a $68.5 million verdict for the widow and young son of Siarhei Marhunou, a 38-year-old Belarusian immigrant who fell nearly 50 feet to his death when a temporary wooden guardrail failed at a Philadelphia townhouse construction site. The Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed the judgment in February 2026.

After trial: Affirmed by the Pennsylvania Superior Court in February 2026. The jury awarded $68.5 million and put 50 percent of the fault on OCF Construction, with the rest on companies that settled before trial and a small subcontractor, so under Pennsylvania's Fair Share Act the judgment against OCF is its share, reported at $37.5 million.

Libby Asbestos Worker Wins $36.5 Million Verdict Against Mill's Insurer

Ralph Hutt worked 18 months at W.R. Grace's asbestos-contaminated vermiculite mill in Libby, Montana in the late 1960s and developed asbestosis decades later. A Cascade County jury found the mill's workers' compensation insurer, Maryland Casualty Company, breached an independent duty to warn him about hazards it tracked through undisclosed chest X-rays, and awarded $36.5 million in February 2022. The trial judge completed Montana's mandatory review of the punitive portion in January 2023 and declined to reduce it, calling the insurer's conduct reprehensible. Maryland Casualty appealed, but the appeal ended in a confidential settlement in 2024, so the verdict itself, not any later court reduction, is what stood.

After trial: Maryland Casualty appealed the judgment to the Montana Supreme Court (DA 23-0151). The parties reached a confidential settlement in mediation, and the appeal was dismissed with prejudice by stipulation on July 17, 2024, so no appellate court ever ruled on the verdict or the punitive award. See more

$102.1 Million Verdict Against Live Nation for a Worker Hit by a Forklift at Jones Beach

A Manhattan jury awarded Mark Perez approximately $102.1 million against Live Nation Worldwide for the traumatic brain injury he suffered when a forklift struck the vendor booth he was building at the Jones Beach Theater, though the courts later cut the award sharply: the Appellate Division reduced pain and suffering to $20 million (still the largest such award ever sustained on appeal in New York), and court records show the case ultimately resolved for about $55 million including interest.

After trial: Reduced on appeal: in 2021 the First Department cut past and future pain and suffering to $20 million, leaving about $33.1 million in compensatory damages, which is the figure ranked. With prejudgment interest the recovery came to roughly $55 million, and it was paid.

Brooklyn Carpenter Left Quadriplegic by Staircase Collapse Wins $48 Million

A Kings County jury awarded about $48 million to a Polish immigrant carpenter who was rendered quadriplegic when a temporary wooden staircase gave way at a Brooklyn renovation site, finding the building owner and general contractor liable under New York Labor Law. In March 2024 the trial court cut the $35 million pain and suffering award to about $19.5 million unless the plaintiff chose a new damages trial, bringing the award to about $32.46 million.

After trial: Reduced by the trial court: in March 2024 Justice Saitta set aside the $35 million pain and suffering award unless the plaintiff accepted about $19.5 million, bringing the total to about $32.46 million. Whether the plaintiff accepted, and the outcome of any appeal or settlement, has not been reported.