Seattle construction accident involved two Seattle construction companies that erected and operated a construction crane, which collapsed in Bellevue in 2006 killing a Microsoft lawyer, have settled with the victim's parents, the Seattle Times reports. The giant Bellevue crane collapsed and killed Matthew Ammon when it toppled onto his Bellevue apartment. Ammon's parents will receive an undisclosed sum in an agreement made with Seattle personal injury attorneys for Lease Crutcher Lewis and Magnusson Klemencic Associated (MKA). The case had been scheduled to go to trial this month.

Personal injury attorneys for Ammon's parents, Kathleen Gaberson and Larry Ammon, alleged that the companies were negligent in their roles in the installation, design and operation of the 210-foot crane, which was being used to build the Tower 333 building in downtown Bellevue. Apparently, the turning point in this case happened on the eve of the trial when MKA admitted some liability in the crane accident though it continued to blame Lease Crutcher Lewis for its role.

I'm glad for the parents of Matthew Ammon that this case has been settled without going to a trial. As Seattle personal injury attorneys who have represented clients in wrongful death lawsuits, we know that there is no way you can put a price tag on a person's life. Ammon's parents will never get back the time they have lost with their son. What does this settlement mean to them? It is a way for them to move on with their lives knowing that the people or entities, whose negligence caused the death of their son, have been penalized for their wrongdoing.

According to the Web site CraneAccidents.com (www.craneaccidents.com), the U.S. Department of Labor in May estimated that there are as many as 82 fatalities annually that are associated with cranes in construction. Most construction crane accidents are due to wind or operator error, experts say. Crane accidents can be devastating and cause catastrophic injuries or deaths, as in this Washington construction accident case, because of their size and the potential for damage and personal injuries. It is for the best that at least one of two companies involved in this incident admitted liability and stepped up to the plate on the eve of the trial. It was the right thing to do.

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