National Metal & Steel Corp. v. Colby Crane & Manufacturing Co.

*1114 Opinion

Colby Crane and Manufacturing Company and Bonneville Equipment, Inc., appeal from judgment against them and in favor of National Metal & Steel Corporation on its complaint in intervention.

Facts

John Branstetter worked as a crane operator for National Metal & Steel Corporation (National Metal) at its Terminal Island scrap yard in Wilmington. On January 7, 1981, he was operating a large crane in an attempt to lift a heavy ship rudder. The crane toppled over into the water, resulting in Branstetter’s drowning death.

Branstetter’s widow Millicent promptly began to receive compensation benefits from his employer, National Metal, under the federal Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA; 33 U.S.C. § 901 et seq.). John’s three nondependent adult children were not eligible for such benefits.

Millicent Branstetter and the three adult children filed a complaint for wrongful death in superior court. Named as defendants were Colby Crane and Manufacturing Company (Colby Crane), manufacturer of the crane involved in the accident, Bonneville Equipment, Inc. (Bonneville Equipment), a company which had inspected the crane some months before the accident, and…