Truck Nuts [ON] a Volkswagen apparently-Plant worker awarded $411 Million in lawsuit

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A Baton Rouge jury recently awarded $411 million to a Texas scaffolding contractor hit on the head by a heavy metal pipe in a work accident at a Lake Charles refinery, a verdict believed by his lawyers to be the largest of its kind ever handed down in Louisiana.

The case has also led to accusations of a coverup by Jose Valdivia's former employer, Brock Services, since the accident was never reported to the nation's worker safety agency, OSHA. While jurors found the company's work practices contributed to the man's debilitating 2022 accident, OSHA will not be able to investigate because the statute of limitations has long passed.

Brock officials disputed the findings and argued the Feb. 28 verdict is improper under Louisiana's worker compensation system. The company said it remains "confident in our position" and upcoming appeal, adding that such unfortunate work accidents can never be completely preventable.

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Valdivia's lawyers accused the company of downplaying his injuries and incorrectly attributing his subsequent hospital stay to a pre-existing medical condition the then 25-year-old had. That meant the accident would be deemed minor and not require OSHA reporting.

OSHA officials said they didn't know about the incident until contacted by a reporter on April 2.

"OSHA cannot investigate because the incident is past its six-month statute of limitations," the agency said in a statement.

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Among the damages the jury awarded, $109 million was for future care, pain and emotional distress, and another $154 million for future loss of enjoyment of life. Valdivia's lawyers say they believe it's the largest single-plaintiff verdict ever handed down in Louisiana.

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To make that argument, attorneys accused Brock of violating worker safety procedures, including Phillips 66's policy to minimize manually passing and handling scaffolding materials. Brock workers said they had not been trained on the policy.

Brock also failed to cordon off the area underneath where the piping was being passed and Valdivia, despite airing concerns, was in the fall zone, court papers say.

The other Brock worker had been known for risky behavior in the past and made coworkers nervous, other employees testified. He also was previously the cause of "stop work" orders by worried supervisors.

One of his nicknames was "Walking Hazard Man" and one worker testified his presence endangered other workers, court papers say. At trial, Brock officials disputed the nickname or that having the worker to continue to be on the job was a problem.

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