A Fort Worth, Texas, law firm recently announced a $3.1 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of an El Paso, Texas, family against crane rental giant Maxim Crane following a 2000 accident near Bridgeport, Texas, that resulted in the death of a construction worker.

Attorneys John Cummings and Steven Laird represented the wife and four surviving adult children of Emilio Talavera, who pushed a co-worker to safety before being himself struck in the head by a falling crane boom. Talavera pushed the co-worker to safety in response to a shouted warning from the crane operator, the attorneys, who claimed the boom malfunction was a direct result of modifications made by Maxim, said.

The suit alleged that Maxim, then known as Anthony Crane Rental, failed to properly maintain and inspect the equipment and improperly modified the machine prior to the accident. The allegations were confirmed in a 2001 report issued by OSHA investigators.

Bridgeville, Pa.-based Maxim Crane is No. 8 on the RER 100.