Plain language
Roof fall claim glossary
Roof-fall cases combine workplace benefits, safety rules, construction contracts, and sometimes claims against companies other than the employer. These definitions explain the terms used throughout this site without replacing advice about a particular state or case.
Published August 23, 2026 · Last reviewed August 23, 2026
- Causation
- The connection between the defendant's conduct or product and the injury. A case can fail even when conduct was careless if the available evidence does not connect that conduct to the harm claimed.
- Competent person
- An OSHA term for someone capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards and authorized to correct them promptly.
- Damages
- The losses a claim seeks to recover. Depending on the facts and governing law, these can include medical costs, lost income, future care, pain, disability, disfigurement, or loss of support.
- Defendant
- The person or organization against whom a civil claim is made. One incident can involve several possible defendants with different duties and insurance policies.
- Fall-arrest system
- A system designed to stop a fall after it begins, commonly using a full-body harness, connector, and suitable anchorage.
- General contractor
- The company coordinating the project. Its duties and potential liability depend on contracts, site control, governing law, and what it actually did.
- Liability
- Legal responsibility for an injury. Liability depends on the applicable law and provable facts, not simply on whether someone was hurt.
- New York Labor Law 240
- A New York statute concerning certain elevation-related construction risks. Whether it applies depends on the work, parties, device, and accident facts. Read the related guide.
- OSHA investigation
- A workplace-safety inspection that can produce interviews, photographs, measurements, citations, and records. A citation is evidence, not automatic proof of civil liability.
- Statute of limitations
- A law that limits the time for filing a claim. The deadline varies by state, claim type, defendant, and sometimes the date the injury was or could reasonably have been discovered.
- Third-party claim
- A civil claim against someone other than the injured worker's employer, such as an owner, general contractor, equipment company, or another subcontractor. Read the related guide.
- Workers' compensation
- A state benefit system that generally provides medical and wage-loss benefits for job injuries without requiring proof of employer negligence. It often limits lawsuits against the employer.
Terms are not conclusions
A definition explains a concept; it does not establish that the concept applies to a particular event. State law, contracts, medical records, product identity, insurance language, and other facts can change the analysis.
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