Kalispell, MontanaKalispell Construction Accident
Kalispell Construction Accident Lawyers: Falls, Trench Collapses, Crane and Work-Zone Injuries in Flathead County
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If you were hurt on a construction site in Kalispell, workers’ compensation is usually your only claim against your own employer. But a general contractor, a developer, another subcontractor or an equipment maker may also be responsible. A claim against them can recover the full damages that workers’ comp does not pay. Most of these claims must be filed within three years.
Hurt on a Flathead Valley job site, or lost a family member? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
What is driving construction injuries around Kalispell?
Flathead County has grown to about 115,400 residents, according to the Census Bureau’s July 1, 2025 estimate cited by the county. Growth on that scale means crews working year-round on subdivisions, apartments, commercial buildings, roads and utilities.
- Road and utility projects. The Montana Department of Transportation and the City of Kalispell are widening West Reserve Drive between Hutton Ranch Road and Whitefish Stage Road from three lanes to five. The work includes new signals, turn lanes and a shared-use path, with completion expected in November 2026. Projects like this put flaggers, paving crews and utility workers a few feet from traffic.
- Trenching for new subdivisions. Water, sewer and storm lines for new housing on the edges of Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls mean deep trenches in glacial soils. Cave-ins happen fast, and the Montana Supreme Court has held trenching to be inherently dangerous work.
- Building through the winter. Roofers, framers and ironworkers work on snow-covered decks and icy steel. Short daylight and cold hands make falls from roofs, ladders and scaffolds more likely.
- Cranes and heavy equipment. Commercial and multi-story residential buildings bring tower and mobile cranes, telehandlers and concrete pumps. Rigging failures, swinging loads and overhead power lines are common causes of catastrophic injury.
- Many employers, one site. A typical valley project has a general contractor and a string of subcontractors, some from Spokane, Idaho or elsewhere. When a worker for one company is hurt by another company’s hazard, the other company can be responsible.
What happens after a construction accident in Kalispell?
Two claims run side by side. Workers’ compensation is a separate system with its own deadlines, and we do not handle it. Report your injury to your employer in writing right away and get advice on the comp claim. We handle the third-party claim against companies other than your employer. We coordinate with your comp claim so the insurer’s lien is handled correctly.
OSHA and the scene. Federal OSHA covers private construction in Montana. The employer must report a work-related death to OSHA within 8 hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours (29 C.F.R. § 1904.39). OSHA’s inspection file, photographs and interview notes can be key evidence, but a citation takes months. Meanwhile the site changes every day. Scaffolds come down, trenches are backfilled and equipment is repaired. We send preservation letters to the general contractor, the subcontractors and any equipment rental company. We also ask for daily logs, safety plans and site-meeting minutes.
Medical care. Serious construction injuries in the valley are treated at Logan Health Medical Center in Kalispell, and some patients are transferred on to Missoula or out of state. Keep a record of every provider and every missed day of work.
Court. A third-party case is filed in the Eleventh Judicial District Court at the Flathead County Justice Center, 920 South Main Street, Kalispell, and a Flathead County jury decides it. If the general contractor or equipment maker is from out of state, the case may be removed to the U.S. District Court’s Missoula Division. A public project raises extra steps. A claim against the City of Kalispell, Flathead County or the State must first be presented in writing (§ 2-9-301, MCA).
Montana law that applies
In brief; see our Montana construction accident lawyer page for the full treatment.
- Exclusive remedy, with third-party claims preserved. Workers’ comp is generally the only remedy against your employer (§ 39-71-411, MCA). It does not bar claims against others (§ 39-71-412, MCA).
- General contractors and owners. They can be liable to a subcontractor’s worker in three situations: when they took on safety duties by contract, when the work is inherently dangerous, or when they kept control over the work and used it carelessly (Fabich v. PPL Montana, 2007 MT 258).
- Trenching is inherently dangerous (Beckman v. Butte-Silver Bow County, 2000 MT 112).
- OSHA standards require fall protection at 6 feet (29 C.F.R. § 1926.501), scaffold fall protection above 10 feet (§ 1926.451), and cave-in protection in most excavations 5 feet or deeper (§ 1926.652).
- Defective equipment. Makers of defective ladders, lifts, harnesses and tools can be strictly liable (§ 27-1-719, MCA).
- The lien. The comp insurer has a lien on a third-party recovery, with limits that protect the worker (§ 39-71-414, MCA).
- Deadline. Generally 3 years (§ 27-2-204, MCA).
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Kalispell case?
Construction cases turn on contracts, safety records and expert testimony about what should have been done. We are based in Great Falls and handle construction injury cases statewide. Our attorneys travel to Kalispell for site inspections, depositions, hearings and trial. We do not have a Kalispell office.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We build cases for trial. Our attorneys have spent more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom and have tried more than a dozen jury trials.
- We know federal court. More than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years.
- We protect verdicts. The Montana Supreme Court reinstated a $168,500 jury verdict for our client (Voegel v. Salsbery, 2023 MT 137).
- We are part of the trial bar. AAJ and MTLA members. Samir Aarab is also a Public Justice member.
We also handle workplace injury cases in Kalispell and spinal cord injury cases in Kalispell. See our Kalispell personal injury page.
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Frequently Asked Questions
I work for a subcontractor on a Kalispell housing project. Can I sue the general contractor? Often, yes, if it took on safety duties by contract, controlled the work and handled it carelessly, or the work was inherently dangerous, such as trenching.
I was hit by a car while flagging on a road project near Kalispell. Who is responsible? The driver, and possibly another contractor that set up the traffic control. Your employer is generally covered by workers’ comp. A claim against the driver or another company can proceed separately.
The trench I was in collapsed. What should my family do first? Get the names of every company on the site and ask a lawyer to send preservation letters right away. Trenches are backfilled quickly, and the Montana Supreme Court treats trenching as inherently dangerous.
Where will my Flathead County construction case be filed? In the Eleventh Judicial District Court in Kalispell, or in federal court in Missoula if an out-of-state company removes it.
Do you handle my workers’ comp claim too? No. We handle the third-party injury case and coordinate with your comp claim so the lien is handled correctly.
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.
