PHILADELPHIA – A New Jersey man who worked on a Billy Joel concert no longer wishes to sue the Piano Man, though claims he was injured by scaffolding remain pending against other defendants.
Carl Anderson of Lakewood, N.J. filed an amended complaint in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas on April 18 versus Live Nation Worldwide, Inc. of Beverly Hills, Calif., G2 Structures, LLC of Winston-Salem, N.C., plus Phillies Ballpark, LLC and Phillies, L.P., both of Philadelphia.
On Sept. 9, 2017, singer Billy Joel performed a concert at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. In preparing for the show, the suit says the Phillies defendants controlled set equipment, storage facilities, stage equipment, scaffolding, cables, truck sections and a set/stage being used for the concert.
On that day, Anderson was working at Citizens Bank Park as a road crew member of defendant G2, when an overhead scaffolding pipe was disconnected, causing it to fall and strike him on the head. As a result, Anderson suffered a closed-head injury, cervical disc herniation, status post-spinal surgery, cervical facet syndrome, cervical radiculopathy, together with damage to his nerves and nervous system, the suit says.
Anderson alleged a variety of negligent acts on the part of the defendants led to his accident, including permitting a defective and dangerous condition to exist on the grounds, failing to inspect the scaffolding, stage equipment and structures and failing to assess the condition of the stage and scaffolding, among many others.
The original version of the lawsuit, filed Jan. 31, included Artist Group International, LLC, Y Entertainment Group, LLC and Joel himself (listed as “William Joel”, c/o Artist Group International) as defendants, but after preliminary objections were submitted on Feb. 26, an amended complaint was filed on April 18 and Joel was not listed in it.
As a result of Joel’s removal from the second version of the lawsuit, the singer’s previously filed preliminary objections were declared moot by Judge Arnold L. New on April 22.
For multiple counts of negligence, the plaintiff is seeking damages, jointly, severally and/or individually, in excess of the prevailing jurisdictional limits governing mandatory arbitration in Philadelphia, plus interest and costs of suit.
The plaintiff is represented by Richard A. Wolfe of Tabakin Wolfe and Stuart A. Carpey of Carpey Law, both in Plymouth Meeting.
The defendants are represented by John P. Lock and Roman T. Galas of Ansa Assuncao, plus Patrick C. Lamb and Amanda R. Hammar of Post & Schell, all also in Philadelphia.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 190102996
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com