Seth J. Schwartz, Construction Attorney in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A shareholder in the firm’s Casualty Department and recipient of Martindale-Hubbell’s highest AV Preeminent rating, Seth represents construction companies and contractors, trucking companies, bars, commercial property owners and managers, and amusement parks and insurers throughout Pennsylvania. His practice focuses on high-exposure matters involving catastrophic injury or death in the areas of construction accidents and defects, trucking, liquor liability, premises liability, and sports and amusement. An accomplished trial lawyer, Seth has tried numerous jury cases in Philadelphia and across eastern Pennsylvania, securing multiple defense verdicts.

Prior to joining Marshall Dennehey, Seth was a staff trial attorney for seven years at Nationwide Insurance. He handled general defense litigation including automobile liability, construction matters, and premises liability. Before joining Nationwide Insurance, Seth entered private practice at a small civil litigation firm in Philadelphia, where he handled a range of civil litigation from premises liability to complex product liability matters.

Seth was appointed to judge pro tem for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and to the Investigative Division of the Philadelphia Bar Association's Commission on Judicial Selection and Retention.

Seth graduated from Temple University School of Law in 1992. He attended college at The American University where he graduated in 1988 with honors.

Honors & Awards

•AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell
•BTI Client Service All-Star (2024)

Classes/Seminars Taught

•An Overview of Construction Defect Litigation in Pennsylvania, Nationwide Insurance Company, December 16, 2014
•Commercial Defense Practice in New York, New Jersey & Pennsylvania, Nationwide Insurance Company, December 5, 2014
•Commercial Defense Practice in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, Nationwide Insurance Company, December 2013
•Brief Overview of Pennsylvania Contractual Indemnity and Additional Insured Issues, Nationwide insurance Company, April 2012
•Numerous presentations to property managers and insurance companies regarding effective claims handling and tender issues
•Pennsylvania Amusement Park Association Annual Conference, 2007

Pro Bono

•Christian Legal Clinics of Philadelphia

Results

Consolidated Cases Successfully Transferred to Correct Venue

We successfully transferred two consolidated cases involving alleged falls by construction workers from Philadelphia to Cumberland County. Our clients were located in Lancaster County, and the only codefendant was located in Philadelphia County. We filed preliminary objections as to venue, arguing that the codefendant was a “phantom” defendant named to obtain venue in Philadelphia County. The court was convinced by our arguments. This ruling cuts against the current trend of giving broad deference to plaintiffs on venue issues.

Thought Leadership

Defense Digest

On the Pulse...Construction Injury Litigation Practice Group

December 1, 2023

Recent data released from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals that construction laborers accounted for 11.9% of all reported fatal falls, slips, or trips in 2020 across all occupations. Sixty percent of all construction laborers perform their work near or around moving mechanical parts or in close proximity to large moving objects. Fifty percent of these workers reportedly make use of PPE. Construction sites are among the most dangerous places to work in the United States. Indeed, in 2020 alone, construction laborers accounted for 8.9% of all workplace deaths due to exposure to harmful substances or environments. With millions of accidents reported each year, injuries to construction workers are often serious or even catastrophic. This type of litigation is fraught with difficulty since it tends to involve sophisticated legal issues, multiple parties, multiple causes of action, complex relationships, and problematic factual situations. The law in this area continues to evolve as existing rules and precedent are continually challenged, overturned, replaced, or modified. Marshall Dennehey’s Construction Injury Litigation Practice Group understands these complex relationships and issues. Our firm has a significant presence in the construction industry in the representation of construction companies/prime contractors, commercial property owners/ managers, developers, design professionals, and demolition, electrical, roofing, and various other trade subcontractors in a wide array of serious loss cases where there is often catastrophic injury or death. With decades of experience, our diverse team of attorneys regularly defends our clients in a multitude of personal injury matters arising out of the construction process. We handle everything from catastrophic injury or death due to contact with objects or equipment, fatal or catastrophic transportation incidents, roofing incidents, and scaffolding/ladder incidents, to the more routine worksite slip and fall incidents. Our defense approach is aimed at the early identification of key issues and is predicated on developing the earliest possible defense strategies tailored to the individual case and client. Our involvement often begins with pre-litigation accident investigation, claims analysis, best practices related to client document and evidence retention, and early assessment of risk/liability transfer opportunities to shift liability and exposure under the terms of a construction contract, including indemnification and additional insured coverage issues. Our diverse team of trial attorneys have significant experience in handling some of the most high-profile and complex construction litigation matters taking place across the United States, and we have proven time and again, that we are ready and able to try even the most challenging construction injury matters to verdict with the skills needed to prevail. The depth of our experience is the key to our legal defense in construction injury matters. Our professionals have considerable breadth of experience in this domain. They understand the evolving and complex laws surrounding this volatile area of practice, including issues relating to insurance coverage and claims disputes, additional insured coverage, product liability, workers’ compensation, the statutory employer doctrine, contractor licensing issues, Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) compliance and workplace safety issues, and the peculiar risk doctrine. Through the use of cutting-edge technology and aggressive claim investigation, we are able to assess liability exposure and potential damages issues early on in a case so, together with the client and insurer, we can effectively resolve the case. Our unique strategy and team approach consists of experienced partners, associates, and paralegals capable of handling the basic, as well as the highly-sophisticated and complex, construction injury litigation matters throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Ohio, Florida, New York, and Connecticut. We look forward to your inquiries and remain at your disposal for presentations or seminars your company may desire. Defense Digest, Vol. 29, No. 4, December 2023, is prepared by Marshall Dennehey to provide information on recent legal developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. ATTORNEY ADVERTISING pursuant to New York RPC 7.1. 2023 Marshall Dennehey. All Rights Reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm. For reprints, contact tamontemuro@mdwcg.com.

News

Seth J. Schwartz Named a BTI Consulting Group 2024 Client Service All-Star

June 4, 2024