Crane Accident Attorney in Dallas

Engineering & Nursing Credentials Applied to High-Stakes Construction Claims

Crane accident claims turn on technical fault analysis and accurate injury assessment. At Marchand Law, David V. Marchand (MS in Engineering, JD) and Leanna Marchand (BSN, RN, JD) bring credentials that apply directly to both sides of that equation. David analyzes load capacity violations, rigging failures, maintenance deficiencies, and OSHA compliance without waiting for outside consultants to frame the core liability theory. Leanna independently reviews medical records, evaluates long-term care needs, and anticipates how defense teams will challenge injury severity. Together, they bring over 60 combined years of experience across law, engineering, and nursing to every case they personally handle.

No associates, no hand-offs. If you or a family member was injured in a crane accident in Dallas or anywhere in the DFW Metro area, we’re available for a confidential consultation.

Contact Marchand Law at (903) 345-1807 to schedule your confidential consultation. We represent crane accident victims and their families throughout Dallas and the DFW Metro area.

How Engineering & Nursing Credentials Change a Crane Accident Case

Corporate defendants and their insurers routinely dispute liability and push to minimize payouts. Cases often come down to competing expert opinions: what the equipment should have done, what the operator was trained to do, and how severe the injuries actually are. A firm that can analyze both questions independently is harder to challenge on cross-examination.

Technical Fault Analysis

David’s engineering background applies directly to the technical questions that determine fault. OSHA 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC establishes federal crane safety standards covering operator certification, pre-shift inspections, load chart compliance, and ground conditions requirements. Whether a crane was overloaded, whether rigging met rated specifications, whether inspection records reveal deferred maintenance: these are questions David is trained to answer. His lead counsel experience in aviation software defect cases involved the same kind of technical systems analysis that complex equipment failure litigation demands.

Medical Evidence & Injury Assessment

Leanna’s nursing background addresses the other side of every crane accident claim. Defense teams routinely challenge the scope of injuries and dispute long-term care projections. An attorney who can read medical records, assess treatment plans, and identify gaps in the defense’s medical argument before expert depositions is a structural advantage in high-stakes construction injury litigation.

Common Causes of Crane Accidents & Liable Parties

DFW’s active high-rise and infrastructure development keeps tower and mobile cranes operating across the region year-round. Multiple contractors and subcontractors routinely share a single site, which means liability analysis is rarely straightforward.

Common technical and operational failure points include:

• Overloading beyond the crane’s rated capacity
• Rigging failures, including broken ropes, chains, or slings
• Improper crane assembly or setup on unstable ground
• Contact with overhead power lines causing electrocution
• Operator error, including abrupt movements or miscommunication with ground crew
• Inadequate maintenance and deferred inspection cycles
• Failure to weathervane tower cranes before high-wind events

Potentially liable parties in a Dallas crane accident case include:

• General contractors responsible for overall site safety
• Crane owners and rental companies
• Crane operators and their direct employers
• Crane manufacturers when a design or production defect contributed to the failure
• Property owners who failed to address known site hazards
• Subcontractors whose actions created the dangerous condition

Dallas County Civil District Courts handle construction injury cases on their own procedures and timelines, distinct from other Texas counties. Local familiarity with how these courts operate shapes case strategy from the outset.

Compensation Available to Crane Accident Victims in Texas

A crane accident claim can pursue both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include all medical expenses and projected future treatment costs, lost wages, diminished earning capacity, rehabilitation costs, and assistive device expenses. In wrongful death cases, surviving family members may recover for lost financial support and loss of companionship.

Non-economic damages cover pain and suffering, mental anguish, permanent disability or disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life. In cases involving gross negligence, such as knowingly ignoring repeated OSHA violations, falsifying inspection records, or directing workers into demonstrably unsafe conditions, punitive damages may also be available.

Texas uses a modified comparative negligence rule. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 33.001, an injured worker can recover damages as long as their share of fault is 50% or less, with the award reduced proportionally by their percentage of fault. A claimant found 51% or more at fault is barred from recovery entirely. Defense teams frequently attempt to shift fault onto the injured worker early in a case, which is one reason early legal involvement matters.

Workers’ Compensation vs. Civil Lawsuits in Texas Crane Cases

Texas is the only state that allows employers to opt out of the workers’ compensation system entirely. Non-subscriber employers lose many of the statutory defenses available to subscriber employers and can be sued directly in civil court for the full range of damages. Many construction employers in Dallas and across North Texas, including both general contractors and subcontractors, choose not to subscribe, which significantly affects what legal options are available after an injury.

Even when an employer does carry workers’ compensation, those benefits cover only medical care and partial wage replacement. They don’t compensate for pain and suffering, full loss of earning capacity, or permanent disability. When a party other than the direct employer contributed to the accident, a separate third-party civil lawsuit remains available regardless of the employer’s workers’ compensation status. Crane owners, rental companies, and manufacturers are common third-party defendants in construction site crane cases.

Talk to a Dallas Crane Accident Lawyer Before Evidence Disappears

Evidence in crane accident cases moves fast. Maintenance logs, OSHA inspection records, operator training certifications, and site surveillance footage can be lost or overwritten once a site is cleaned up and equipment is repaired or removed. Contacting a crane accident attorney promptly allows counsel to issue preservation letters and begin securing documentation before that window closes.

Marchand Law represents crane accident victims and their families throughout Dallas and the DFW Metro area. David and Leanna personally handle every case, applying their engineering and nursing backgrounds from the first consultation through resolution.

Call (903) 345-1807 to speak with a crane accident lawyer at Marchand Law. Consultations are confidential and there is no obligation to proceed.