Accident Lawyer Accident Prevention And Reporting 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An employee is fired shortly after reporting a serious safety hazard to OSHA. Which claim does this scenario most directly raise?
- Retaliation under Section 11(c) of the OSH Act (Correct answer)
- Violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act
- Tortious interference with contract
- Breach of fiduciary duty
Correct answer: Retaliation under Section 11(c) of the OSH Act
Section 11(c) prohibits employers from retaliating against workers who report safety concerns.
Question 2: Under OSHA's anti-retaliation rules, an employee generally must file a Section 11(c) retaliation complaint within how many days of the adverse action?
- 180 days
- 1 year
- 300 days
- 30 days (Correct answer)
Correct answer: 30 days
OSH Act Section 11(c) complaints must be filed within 30 days of the retaliatory act.
Question 3: Why should an accident lawyer send a spoliation (evidence preservation) letter promptly after a trucking accident?
- Because it is required before filing any lawsuit
- To extend the statute of limitations
- To prevent destruction of logs, ECM data, and maintenance records the carrier may lawfully purge (Correct answer)
- To trigger an automatic settlement offer
Correct answer: To prevent destruction of logs, ECM data, and maintenance records the carrier may lawfully purge
Carriers may destroy logs and electronic data under normal retention schedules unless put on notice to preserve them.
Question 4: A dashcam video contradicts the driver's account in the police report. How do courts generally treat the police report's narrative from a non-witness officer?
- Both are automatically inadmissible
- It may face hearsay objections, while the video is strong direct evidence (Correct answer)
- The report always overrides video evidence
- The video is excluded as prejudicial
Correct answer: It may face hearsay objections, while the video is strong direct evidence
An officer's secondhand narrative can be challenged as hearsay, whereas authenticated video is powerful direct proof.
Question 5: In a construction accident case, evidence that the general contractor skipped required toolbox talks and site safety meetings primarily supports what argument?
- The subcontractor's exclusive liability
- That the worker was an independent contractor
- Breach of industry standard of care in accident prevention (Correct answer)
- Federal preemption of state tort law
Correct answer: Breach of industry standard of care in accident prevention
Skipping standard safety meetings shows the contractor fell below the industry standard of care.
Question 6: A client's employer pressures them not to file an injury report and offers to pay medical bills 'off the books.' What should the lawyer advise?
- Wait one year to see if symptoms worsen
- Report only if the injury requires surgery
- Accept the offer since it avoids paperwork
- File the report anyway, as unreported injuries can forfeit workers' comp rights and hide safety violations (Correct answer)
Correct answer: File the report anyway, as unreported injuries can forfeit workers' comp rights and hide safety violations
Failing to report can jeopardize workers' comp benefits and conceals violations, so formal reporting protects the client.
Question 7: Which data source is most useful for showing a driver's speed and braking in the seconds before a collision?
- The driver's fuel receipts
- The DMV registration record
- The vehicle's event data recorder (black box) (Correct answer)
- The vehicle title history
Correct answer: The vehicle's event data recorder (black box)
Event data recorders capture pre-crash speed, braking, and throttle data.
Accident Lawyer Accident Prevention And Reporting 5
An employee is fired shortly after reporting a serious safety hazard to OSHA.
Which claim does this scenario most directly raise?