Washington Construction Law Blog

By a 5-4 vote with three separate dissents, the Supreme Court last week upheld a WISHA repeat violation penalty against a roofing contractor in a case that attracted significant industry amicus activity.  The gist of the issue was whether a repeat violation could be based on the more lenient test of demonstrating that the prior violation related to the same general type of harm (i.e., fall protection) or the more stringent test of demonstrating the prior violation was based on the same underlying conduct.  The majority opted for the more lenient test, citing the language of the statute and WISHA's remedial purpose.