Butte, MontanaButte Construction Accident
Butte Construction Accident Lawyers: Falls, Trench Collapses, Remediation and Highway Work Zone Injuries in Butte-Silver Bow
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If you were hurt on a construction site in Butte, workers’ compensation is usually your only claim against your own employer, but it is often not your only claim. A general contractor, a property owner, another subcontractor or an equipment maker may be responsible, and a lawsuit against them can recover the damages workers’ compensation does not pay. Most such claims must be filed within three years.
Hurt on a Butte job site, or lost someone in a construction accident? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
What construction work carries the most risk in Butte?
Butte’s construction work is shaped by its mining past, its old buildings and its highways.
- Trenching and utility work. Water, sewer and utility lines run under old streets and through ground disturbed by more than a century of mining. Excavation in that ground can be unpredictable, and a trench that is not shored or sloped can collapse in seconds.
- Remediation and reclamation. The Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund site has been under EPA-directed cleanup since the 1980s (EPA). That work puts earthmoving, hauling and construction crews on residential yards, slopes, waste areas and stream corridors, often with several contractors on the same site.
- Highway and interchange work. I-90 and I-15 share about eight miles of highway through Butte, with close-set interchanges at Montana Street and Harrison Avenue. Work zones on the interstates and on the passes put crews next to fast-moving truck traffic.
- Renovation of historic buildings. Uptown Butte’s multistory brick buildings are being restored and converted. Old floors, unprotected openings, roof work, scaffolds and demolition create serious fall and collapse hazards.
- A short season. With winter lasting from fall into spring, much outdoor work is compressed into a few months. Schedule pressure is a common thread in accidents.
Has a Butte case shaped Montana construction law?
Yes. In Beckman v. Butte-Silver Bow County, a worker was injured when the trench he was working in collapsed on a county water-pipeline project. The Montana Supreme Court held that trenching is inherently dangerous work, because workers risk being buried unless it is done safely, and it reversed summary judgment for the county (2000 MT 112).
That holding matters to every trench and excavation case in Montana. It is one of the three exceptions that let an injured subcontractor’s employee sue the owner or general contractor, not just the direct employer. The other two are a safety duty the owner or general contractor took on by contract, and control over the work that it kept and exercised negligently (Fabich v. PPL Montana, 2007 MT 258).
What happens after a construction accident in Butte?
- Get care. St. James Healthcare in Butte is an ACS Level III / State Area Trauma Hospital (DPHHS, Nov. 2025). Serious falls and crush injuries may be transferred to Providence St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula or to Billings.
- Report the injury to your employer in writing and file your workers’ compensation claim on time. We do not handle the workers’ compensation claim, but you should not let it lapse.
- Know who investigates. Private construction sites fall under federal OSHA, because Montana has no state plan for private employers (OSHA State Plans). Mine property falls under MSHA instead. Work zones on state highways involve the Montana Department of Transportation’s Butte District, and a crash into a work zone brings in the Montana Highway Patrol or the Butte-Silver Bow Law Enforcement Department.
- List every company on the site: the general contractor, the subcontractors, the equipment rental companies and the engineer. On a remediation or public project, also note the agency that owns it.
- Preserve the equipment. A failed scaffold, trench box, harness or lift should not be repaired or discarded before inspection.
Which court? A third-party construction case from Butte is usually filed in the Second Judicial District Court, Silver Bow County (§ 3-5-101(2), MCA), at the Silver Bow County Courthouse, 155 West Granite Street. Out-of-state contractors and equipment makers often remove cases to the U.S. District Court, Butte Division, at the Mike Mansfield Federal Courthouse, 400 North Main Street (mtd.uscourts.gov). A claim against Butte-Silver Bow or the State must be presented in writing first (§ 2-9-301, MCA).
Montana law that applies
Briefly. Our Montana construction accident lawyer page covers the law in more depth.
- Workers’ compensation is generally the exclusive remedy against your employer (§ 39-71-411, MCA), but it does not bar claims against third parties (§ 39-71-412, MCA).
- The workers’ compensation insurer has a lien on a third-party recovery, with protections for the worker (§ 39-71-414, MCA).
- OSHA requires fall protection at 6 feet (29 C.F.R. § 1926.501) and cave-in protection in most excavations 5 feet or deeper (29 C.F.R. § 1926.652).
- A defective tool or machine may support a strict product liability claim (§ 27-1-719, MCA).
- Most third-party injury and wrongful-death claims must be filed within 3 years (§ 27-2-204, MCA).
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Butte case?
Because a third-party construction case is a full civil lawsuit against contractors and insurers who will point at each other, and it is won with contracts, safety plans, daily logs and experts gathered early. We are based in Great Falls and handle cases throughout Montana. Our attorneys travel to Butte to meet with you, visit the site with experts when access is allowed, take depositions and appear for hearings and trial. We have no Butte office, and our jury trials have been in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We hold public bodies accountable: a $115,000 net jury verdict in a municipal negligence case (Jack v. City of White Sulphur Springs).
- We know federal court: more than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years.
- We try cases: more than a dozen jury trials and more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
- You work with the lawyers, Caitlin Boland Aarab and Samir Aarab, from the first call.
We also handle workplace injury cases in Butte and spinal cord injury cases in Butte. See our Butte personal injury page.
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Frequently Asked Questions
I work for a subcontractor and was hurt on a Butte project. Can I sue the general contractor? Often, yes, if the general contractor took on safety duties by contract, the work was inherently dangerous, or it kept control of the work and used it negligently.
Is a trench collapse in Butte treated differently? Trenching is inherently dangerous work under Montana law, a rule the Montana Supreme Court announced in a Butte-Silver Bow case, Beckman (2000 MT 112).
I was hurt on a Superfund cleanup or reclamation job. Who could be responsible? Possibly the site owner, the general contractor, another contractor or an equipment maker, depending on who controlled the work. Contracts and site safety plans usually answer the question.
Who investigates a construction accident in Butte? Federal OSHA for most private construction sites, and MSHA for work on mine property. Work-zone crashes are also investigated by the Highway Patrol or Butte-Silver Bow law enforcement.
Can I get workers’ comp and also sue? Yes. Workers’ compensation does not bar a claim against a third party, although the comp insurer generally has a lien on the recovery.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
