Texas,Court,Ruling,Affects,Con law Texas Court Ruling Affects Contract Workers Ability to Sue S

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The Texas Supreme Court recentlyissued a ruling that affects the rights of many Texas contract workers. Thedecision narrows injured contract workers' right to sue site owners fornegligence. Now, if premises owners act as general contractors and pay forworkers' compensation insurance, they cannot be sued for negligence by injuredemployees of subcontractors.TheRights of Injured Contract Workers Previously, Texas did not have aclear rule on whether premises owners who acted as general contractors, ratherthan hiring general contractors, could be sued for compensation outside of theTexas Workers' Compensation Act.This means that it was not clearwhether an employee of a subcontractor could sue the site owner for negligencewhen the site owner contracted directly with the subcontractor, the site ownerpaid workers' compensation insurance and the employee was injured while workingat the site. This is important because workers who are allowed to sue fornegligence may receive greater compensation, in addition to workers'compensation, for their injuries.Workers'Compensation vs. Negligence Workers' compensation is a systemthat covers employees who are injured while they are doing their jobs. It paysfor their medical bills and makes up for part of their lost wages.Workers' compensation, however, is atradeoff. Workers' comp makes it easier for employees to get financial helpwhen they are injured, but it also prohibits them from suing their employerwhen their employer's negligence (the failure to exercise the proper standardof care) contributed to their injuries.Normally, when a contractworker, employed by a subcontractor, is injured on a job site, thatworker can sue the site owner if the injury is due to the owner's negligence.This is because any worker's compensation insurance is provided by the worker'sdirect employer, the subcontractor, or a general contractor. The site owner istypically not the legal employer of the worker. In Entergy v. Summers, theTexas Supreme Court decided whether, when a site owner acts as a generalcontractor and provides workers' compensation, that site owner is immune from anegligence lawsuit.TheFacts of the Case The Entergy Gulf States Inc. v.Summers (Texas Supreme Court case no. 05-0272) case has been moving throughthe Texas court system for several years. John Summers, a contract worker, wasinjured while working in an Entergy plant. Entergy, the premises owner, had acontract with International Maintenance Corporation, Summers' direct employer,to perform tasks such as maintenance and repair.The law in question (Texas LaborCode section 406.123) protects general contractors from negligence lawsuitswhen they provide employees with workers' compensation insurance. But the lawdoes not say whether worksite owners can also be considered generalcontractors. The Texas Supreme Court affirmed its own 2007 ruling, reversingthe court of appeals' judgment in favor of Summers, and held that site ownerscan be considered general contractors in certain situations.Whatthe Court's Decision Means Ultimately, the Texas SupremeCourt's decision means that a worker whose employer contracts directly with asite owner, which pays workers' compensation insurance for the worker, is notallowed to sue the site owner for negligence if it is the site owner's faultthat the worker got hurt. The worker's only source of funds is workers'compensation.TheTexas Legislature's ActionThe Texas Legislature is attemptingto reverse this outcome. Helen Giddings, D-Dallas, and Robert Duncan,R-Lubbock, have each introduced a bill to change the law as it was interpretedby the Texas Supreme Court.The Texas Legislature convenedJanuary 13, 2009, and the session will end June 1, 2009. The legislature willnot meet again until January 2011. The time to pass bills is short. Even when abill is likely to pass, legislators must work to ensure that it does not getlost among other important matters. If the legislature succeeds, however, thelaw on contract workers' right could change very soon.If Texas governor Rick Perry vetoesthe legislation, the legislature will also have to act quickly to override theveto.WhatYou Can Do If you have a strong opinion on thecase or the pending bills, contact your legislator. If you are affected by the Entergyv. Summers decision or the pending legislation, contacta Houston Business Litigation attorney right away.Now is the time to protect yourrights. Article Tags: Texas Supreme Court, Workers Compensation Insurance, Texas Court, Contract Workers, Site Owners, Texas Supreme, Supreme Court, General Contractors, Workers Compensation, Compensation Insurance, Site Owner, Injured While