Corporate Liability Questioned Following Factory Accident

Case Overview

A large manufacturing company of jewelry with gemstones in Pennsylvania was sued for the resulting injuries and deaths of five of its employees after a deadly factory fire. The factory had acted as a subsidy of the larger company, employing many of the local town’s residents in their manufacturing plant to work their electroforming machines. The lawsuit quickly became a debate on corporate structure, as the jewelry company maintained that its subsidy, and not the company at large, would have to bear liability for the accident. An expert familiar with corporate structures, liability, and human resource labor was needed to opine on the business structure of the jewelry manufacturing company, as well as their accounting practices and cost allocation.