Employers Face Increase In COVID-19 Wrongful Death Lawsuits
Author: Fisher Phillips Legal Alert
…Throughout the country, employers are starting to be served with wrongful death lawsuits alleging an employee’s exposure to COVID-19 at work should lead to employer liability…
…Accordingly, the timing of any COVID-19-related precautionary safety measures, including policies and procedures, implemented in any given case will be critical evidence…
Despite early articles proclaiming a dearth of COVID-19 related lawsuits, the first waves have hit the courts. I was disappointed that a law firm article focused on recommendations that were outdated before it hit the digital presses instead of clear litigation preparedness guidelines. Back in July I outlined some better practices for corporate litigation defense preparations as businesses reopened. My point here is that the CDC Employer guidance site changes EVERY DAY. The CDC only keeps a list of ‘recent’ changes on its site. Your best safety and compliance decisions are based on CDC/OSHA/WHO moving targets. Do you want to pay to reconstruct the timeline of evolving guidance from the Wayback machine snapshots? With 180,000+ US dead and counting, large corporations WILL lose employees or their family members to the pandemic. Others will have long term disabilities from this terrible disease. Corporate legal teams should be prepared to defend the company’s decisions, policies and best safety practices against the inevitable lawsuits by grieving, desperate surviving family members.