Mark & Galusha, Work Place Injury Attorneys - Newark, Essex County, New Jersey

The federal district court in New Jersey recently decided a complex issue of work place injuries by illegal immigrants.  The court found that work place injuries suffered by illegal immigrants are not barred and the personal injury claim against an employer may be pursued. The court said that the work place injury is not barred simply because they were not authorized to work in the United States.

In Kalyta, et al. v. Versa Products, Inc., et al., the plaintiff, an illegal immigrant, fell from a ladder at work and suffered from personal injuries.  He sued his employer, among others, for lost wages.  The employer and other defendants moved for summary judgment, asking the court to bar the plaintiff’s personal injury claim on the basis that the federal immigration law known as IRCA (Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986) prevents illegal immigrants to make such claims.  The specific issue addressed by the federal court was whether an illegal immigrant can recover economic damages from an employer in the form of lost wages for a personal injury claim.  The court determined that the federal courts are in disagreement on this issue and that New Jersey law does not prohibit an illegal immigrant from recovering economic damages in a personal injury tort context. 

Mark & Galusha, Lawyers handling work place injuries in Millburn and Livingston, Essex County, New Jersey

If you would like more information about employment rights and personal injury at work, please contact Mark & Galusha, your personal injury attorneys in Newark, Millburn, and Livingston New Jersey.  For your free consultation, contact us at 908-626-1001 or 973-440-2311, or tell us your story by clicking the "contact us" page.