$101 Million Settlement in Tropicana Casino Garage Collapse That Killed Four Workers

On October 30, 2003, the top five decks of a 10-story parking garage under construction at the Tropicana Casino Resort in Atlantic City gave way without warning, killing four workers immediately and injuring more than 30 others. The structure was part of a $265 million expansion project called The Quarter. Among those who died were Michael Wittland, 53, an ironworker from Pleasantville with 35 years of experience and six months from retirement; James Bigelow, 29, an ironworker from Egg Harbor Township; Robert Tartaglio Jr., 42, a laborer from Galloway Township; and Scott Pietrosante, 21, a laborer from Buena Vista Township. A fifth worker, Dennis Butler, died the following year from medical complications linked to the trauma he suffered in the collapse.

A federal OSHA investigation completed in 2004 identified the root cause: basic construction principles had been violated throughout the project. Rebar had not been properly installed in the concrete, leaving the floors structurally disconnected from the walls. The investigation also found inadequate support for the completed floor levels in the upper portion of the structure. The collapse happened less than an hour after a city inspector had visited the site and found no problems.

Litigation named 16 defendants, including Tropicana Casino Resort, its parent company Aztar Corp., general contractor Keating Building Corporation, concrete subcontractor Fabi Construction, structural fabricator Midstate Filigree Systems, and engineering firms DeSimone Consulting Engineers and Site-Blauvelt Engineers. The case was assigned to Atlantic County Superior Court, with Judge William E. Nugent overseeing discovery and Judge Stephen P. Perskie serving as settlement judge.

Michael Maggiano of Maggiano, DiGirolamo & Lizzi joined the plaintiffs' trial team alongside lead attorneys Robert J. Mongeluzzi and Paul D'Amato. Retained by the families of three injured workers, Maggiano became one of seven lawyers on the trial team and was assigned to the engineering defendants; reviewing the structural drawings, he identified the core design flaw that doomed the garage. Counsel collectively represented 36 claimants, a mix of families of the deceased and workers who survived with serious injuries. One survivor, Hassan Ali, fell five floors and underwent 25 operations. Michael Wittland's son Edward, also an ironworker on the site, broke his neck in the collapse.

In April 2007, roughly two months before the case was scheduled for jury trial, the parties reached a settlement of $101 million, comprising approximately $82.5 million in cash, $2 million from previously resolved claims, $8.2 million in workers' compensation payments that victims were not required to repay, and more than $8.3 million earmarked for future medical expenses. Plaintiffs' counsel described it at the time as the largest settlement ever reached in a construction-accident case in the United States. The 36 claimants' shares were to be allocated through arbitration within 90 days of approval.