Billings Construction Accident Lawyer

Montana’s Trial Lawyers for Seriously Injured Construction Workers Since 1980

Construction accidents in Billings and across Montana leave workers and their families facing serious injuries, lost income, and a claims process that can work against them. Edwards & Culver has represented injured construction workers and third parties in these claims since 1980, applying the same trial-level preparation to every case whether it settles or goes to verdict. Our legal team has secured two of Montana’s four largest judgments and recovered over $150 million for clients over the past decade. With more than 145 years of combined experience across personal injury and workplace accident litigation, we understand what these claims require and what it takes to seek full compensation.

A. Clifford Edwards has been named Montana Trial Lawyer of the Year from 1996 to present and is listed in Best Lawyers in America from 1987 to present. Our attorneys represent clients in both workers’ compensation matters and third-party personal injury actions arising from construction accidents throughout Yellowstone County and the rest of the state.

Our Billings construction accident attorneys can help you determine whether you’re eligible for workers’ compensation, damages in a personal injury action, or both. Call (406) 747-4851 today.

Common Types of Construction Accidents

Our attorneys represent construction workers and third parties injured in a wide range of accidents on Montana job sites. OSHA identifies four leading causes of construction fatalities, known as the Fatal Four: Falls, Struck-By Object, Electrocutions, and Caught-In/Between accidents, which together account for more than half of all construction worker deaths nationally. Beyond those four categories, construction sites carry additional risks, including toxic substance exposure, fire and explosion, structural collapse, and transportation accidents within or adjacent to active work zones.

We handle claims arising from accidents involving:

• Safety violations and OSHA non-compliance
• Falling or insecure scaffolding
• Trenching and excavation cave-ins
• Slip, trip, and fall incidents
• Defective equipment or products
• Poorly maintained or negligently operated machinery
• Workplace accidents involving cranes, forklifts, and heavy equipment

What Causes Serious Construction Accidents in Billings

Montana private-sector construction workers fall under federal OSHA jurisdiction, as Montana doesn’t operate a state-plan OSHA program. When employers and site managers fail to meet those federal standards, workers can get hurt. The most frequent conditions leading to serious injuries on Billings construction sites include:

• Unsafe working conditions: Inadequate training, missing personal protective equipment, or failure to follow federally mandated OSHA safety protocols each contribute to preventable accidents.
• Falls from heights: Falls from ladders, scaffolding, rooftops, and floor openings are the leading cause of fatal construction injuries and among the most common claims we handle.
• Electrocutions: Contact with overhead power lines, exposed wiring, or faulty electrical systems can cause severe burns, cardiac arrest, and death.
• Struck-by-object injuries: Falling tools, unsecured materials, and swinging crane loads create serious injury risk when proper precautions aren’t followed.
• Machinery accidents: Cranes, forklifts, bulldozers, and excavators cause severe or fatal injuries when equipment malfunctions or is operated improperly.
• Caught-in/between accidents: Workers trapped by collapsing structures, trench cave-ins, or moving heavy equipment suffer some of the most catastrophic injuries seen on construction sites.

Who May Be Held Liable for a Construction Accident

In many construction accident claims, more than one party bears responsibility for what happened. Identifying every liable party matters because it directly affects the total compensation available to an injured worker or third party. Depending on the facts of the accident, liability may extend to:

• General contractors, who bear overall responsibility for site safety and the conduct of subcontractors working on the project
• Subcontractors and third-party contractors who created or failed to address the hazardous condition that caused the injury
• Property and land owners with a duty to maintain the site in a reasonably safe condition and to warn of known hazards
• Equipment manufacturers when a defective tool, machine, or safety device contributes to an injury
• Architects and engineers when a design flaw or structural error is a contributing cause of the accident

A thorough investigation of the accident, the site, and the contractual relationships among all parties on the project can allow us to identify every viable claim and the full compensation available.

Who Can File a Construction Accident Claim in Billings

The right to seek compensation after a construction accident isn’t limited to full-time employees of the primary contractor. A broader range of people present on or near a Montana construction site may have grounds for a claim:

• Full-time and part-time construction workers employed by a company on the site
• Independent contractors and subcontractors working on the project, including through third-party claims against other parties
• Vendors, suppliers, and delivery drivers visiting the site for business purposes
• Authorized site visitors such as inspectors injured due to site negligence
• Bystanders or passersby injured by hazards extending into public areas adjacent to the site