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Film Allman, LLC v. Secretary of Labor

11th CircuitMarch 20, 2017No. 15-15720
Defendant WinFilm Allman, LLC$70,000 at issue
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Case Details

Judge(s)
Rosenbaum, Carnes, Schlesinger
Status — whether other courts must follow this ruling
Unpublished
Procedural Posture — the stage the case had reached
appeal

Related Laws

No specific laws identified for this ruling.

Outcome

The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission's decision upholding a willful OSHA violation against Film Allman LLC for failing to implement safety procedures during filming on active railroad tracks, resulting in a fatal accident that killed a camera assistant.

What This Ruling Means

**Film Production Company Loses Safety Case After Fatal Workplace Accident** This case involved a tragic workplace accident during a film shoot. Film Allman, LLC was producing a movie that required filming on active railroad tracks. During filming, a camera assistant was killed when struck by a train. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigated and found that the company had failed to put proper safety procedures in place to protect workers from the obvious dangers of filming on active train tracks. OSHA cited Film Allman for a "willful" safety violation, meaning the company knowingly ignored safety requirements. The company challenged this citation, but both the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals sided with OSHA. The court upheld the violation and $70,000 in penalties against the company. This ruling reinforces that employers cannot cut corners on worker safety, even in creative industries like film production. Workers have the right to a safe workplace regardless of their job, and employers must take reasonable steps to protect employees from known hazards. When companies deliberately ignore safety rules, they can face serious legal and financial consequences.

This summary was generated to explain the ruling in plain English and is not legal advice.

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