Suit filed in death of Horicon worker dismissed
A wrongful death lawsuit stemming from a 2006 incident at a Portage construction site was dismissed in Columbia County Circuit Court on Monday because of a law that prevents employees from filing lawsuits against employers in such cases.
Nickolas Schanen, 46, of Horicon, died Nov. 1, 2006, of severe head injuries after he fell through a hole on the third floor of an addition to the Appleton Papers plant under construction on West Wisconsin Street. Schanen, who was working for Gunderson Construction Co. of Portage, landed on concrete at the ground level and died at the scene.
The lawsuit for damages on behalf of his estate against Appleton Papers Inc. of Appleton was filed in November 2007 and was headed for a jury trial in early 2009 until its dismissal.
Judge James O. Miller dismissed the case "with prejudice," which bars further claims in the matter.
Schanen's family members received no settlement from Appleton Papers or Gunderson Construction, said Schanen's mother, Genevieve Schanen of Beaver Dam. Workers' compensation paid for the funeral, she said.
A spokesman for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Chris Marschman, said that state workers' compensation law allows for payment of funeral expenses and death benefits to dependents as the exclusive remedy against an employer in such cases. Dependents can get up to four times the annual pay of the worker or $241,500, an amount set by the state.
Dependents are defined as a spouse or children.
The lawsuit filed by Schanen's estate did not seek a specific amount in damages, according to court records, but accused Appleton Papers of negligence in providing for a safe working environment and asked for compensation for Schanen's "fright and terror" during the fall and for the loss of companionship on behalf of his mother and his son, Joseph N. Schanen.