Jury verdict for worker who fell through unguarded opening at construction site

A Middlesex County jury returned a 7-figure verdict on behalf of worker injured after falling more than 20 feet through an unguarded opening on a construction project at the Natick Mall. The defendant general contractor had claimed that the opening had been guarded and that the plaintiff had somehow gained access through it without the general contractor’s knowledge. Through painstaking investigation and work immediately following the accident, Sugarman’s attorneys were able to prove to the jury at trial that the general contractor had made up the story and had added guarding after the accident. The case was one of 10 largest jury verdicts reported in Massachusetts in 2011.