A plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant actions, demands an equitable remedy. Defendants must respond to the plaintiff’s complaint. If the plaintiff is successful, judgment will be given in the plaintiff’s favor, and a variety of court orders may be issued to enforce a right, award damages, or impose a temporary or permanent injunction to prevent an act or compel an act. A declaratory judgment may be issued to prevent future legal disputes.
Although a third party law suit could arise in many situations, it is typical at work.
Example of a Third Party Law Suit
You are traveling to a job site for your employer and are involved in a car accident when another driver runs a red light. Since you were injured during the course of your employment when the accident happened, you will probably be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for your injuries and you may also sue the other driver, a third party, for damages because of their negligence for running the red light.
While working on a construction job, you fall off the top of the building. You work for a sub-contractor and the general contractor is in charge of job site safety. At the time of the fall, you were not furnished any safety fall protection such as a harness and lanyard. You may file a third party lawsuit against the general contractor.
You work in a plant, like an airplane parts assembly line. Your hand is crushed by a machine. The machine did not have a properly designed machine guard. You may file a lawsuit against the company responsible for designing the machine.
