Premises and Injury
Electrical injuries do far more damage than the visible burn suggests
Current travels through the body and injures tissue along the entire path. The wound at the skin is often the least of it.
About electrocution and electrical injuries claims
Serious electrical injuries arise from a small number of recurring situations: contact with overhead distribution lines by workers, equipment or ladders where required clearance was not maintained or the line was not de-energized or covered; energized equipment that was never locked out before service; faulty or unpermitted wiring in a residence or commercial building; missing ground fault protection in wet locations; downed conductors after a storm; and consumer products with defective cords, chargers or grounding.
Responsibility depends on who controlled the hazard. A utility owes a heightened duty in the maintenance and operation of high-voltage distribution and in maintaining clearances and warning of hazards. A property owner, landlord or general contractor may be responsible for building systems, permitting and coordination on site. A manufacturer is strictly liable where a product was defectively designed or manufactured or failed to warn. Where the injury happened at work, workers compensation covers the employer while third-party claims against the utility, the contractor or the equipment maker proceed separately.
The medical picture is frequently misjudged early, and that has legal consequences. Current causes deep tissue and muscle destruction, cardiac arrhythmia, and neurological and cognitive injury that may not be apparent in the first days. Compartment syndrome, kidney injury from muscle breakdown and delayed neuropsychiatric effects are well recognized. Documenting the full course of injury matters as much as documenting the electrical failure itself.
Common injuries
Injuries we see most often in these cases. Every claim is different, and this list is not exhaustive.
- Deep thermal and electrical burns requiring grafting and amputation
- Cardiac arrhythmia and cardiac arrest
- Neurological injury, memory and cognitive deficits and chronic pain
- Muscle breakdown with kidney injury and compartment syndrome
- Blast and fall trauma from arc flash and involuntary muscle reaction
- Wrongful death from high-voltage contact
Who can be held liable
Responsibility often extends well beyond the most obvious company. We look at every party in the chain.
- The electric utility responsible for the line, clearance and maintenance
- The property owner, landlord or building manager
- A general contractor or another trade on a shared job site
- An electrical contractor whose work was defective or unpermitted
- The manufacturer of a defective product, cord, charger or component
Evidence that matters
What we work to preserve and obtain early, because this proof tends to disappear with time.
- Scene documentation including line height, clearance and warning signage
- Utility maintenance, inspection, outage and prior complaint records
- Permits, inspection sign-offs and as-built electrical drawings
- Preservation of the product, cord, panel or equipment involved
- Cal-OSHA findings where the injury occurred at work, plus lockout records
Do not wait on the deadline
California generally allows two years to bring a personal injury or product liability claim under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1, and two years from the date of death in a wrongful death case. Shorter deadlines apply when a government entity is involved, and deadlines can be extended for injured children. Exceptions are fact-specific. Talk to us before you assume anything about your own timeline.
Answers
Electrocution and Electrical Injuries: common questions
Injured by electrocution? Let us review it at no cost.
A conversation costs you nothing and there is no obligation. No fee unless we recover compensation for you. In some matters a client may still be responsible for case costs and expenses, and we will explain exactly how that works before you decide to hire us.