A tragic construction accident has led to a lawsuit filed by the parents of the deceased worker, alleging negligence and wrongful death. On August 20, 2024, Frank Eugene Aubert and Monica Marie Smith filed a complaint in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara, against PAOC LLC.
The case revolves around the death of Christopher Paul Smith, who fell from scaffolding at a construction site on August 24, 2022. The plaintiffs allege that PAOC LLC and other unnamed defendants were negligent in ensuring the safety of the scaffolding at the site located at 525 University Avenue, Palo Alto. According to the complaint, "Defendants were under a duty to ensure that the subject location and scaffolding were safe." The plaintiffs argue that the defendants failed in this duty by allowing unsafe scaffolding conditions to persist.
The complaint details multiple failures on part of PAOC LLC and others, including not providing proper safety measures such as guardrails or harnesses. The document states that "Defendants negligently created, permitted, or allowed a defective and dangerous condition to exist on the premises." Furthermore, it alleges that Christopher Paul Smith was working without any safety measures when he fell from approximately eight floors high. This incident is described as "the subject incident" throughout the filing.
Frank Eugene Aubert and Monica Marie Smith are seeking various forms of relief from the court. They are asking for general and special damages exceeding $35,000 for economic losses such as lost wages and funeral expenses. Additionally, they seek non-economic damages for loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, moral support from their son. They also request punitive damages due to what they describe as "fraud, malice, oppression," on part of PAOC LLC.
The plaintiffs' legal team includes Olivier A. Taillieu (SBN 206546), Martin J. Kanarek (SBN 261982), Tyler D. Miles (SBN 349104) from BD&J PC law firm based in Beverly Hills. The case is presided over by Judge M. Bui under Case ID: 24CV445537.