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PREMISES LIABILITY

PALM BEACH CIRCUIT COURT

A subcontractor's employee who claimed disc injuries and bilateral rotator cuff tears following an on-the-job accident was awarded $1.88 million.

Kenya Harvey was repairing a boiler at the Loxahatchee power plant owned and operated by Florida Power & Light Co. when a 70-pound spring hanger fell on him in 2015. He claimed the equipment fell due to a failure of a fastening system and argued FPL employees failed to routinely inspect and maintain the fastening system.

FPL said it was unaware maintenance had to be performed on the spring hanger and blamed the accident on the design and construction of the plant itself. The builder was listed as a Fabre defendant, but the jury found it was not negligent.

Case: Harvey v. Florida Power & Light

Case No.: 50-2017-CA-005568-XXXX-MB

Plaintiffs attorneys: Daniel C. Jensen and Lake H. “Trey” Lytal, Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath, West Palm Beach

Defense attorneys: Michael J. Carney and Blake Fiery, Kubicki Draper, Fort Lauderdale