(AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court says the family of an 18-year-old man who died because of the willful negligence of a western Nebraska grain elevator company can’t sue the company.

Joseph Teague was suffocated in an avalanche of grain in 2007 after being ordered into a grain bin at Lorenzo, just north of the state line with Colorado. The owner of the elevator, Crossroads Cooperative Association, later was found guilty of violating federal safety standards and ordered to pay a $100,000 fine.

Teague’s estate sued Crossroads, but a Cheyenne County District judge threw out the lawsuit, saying state law makes workers’ compensation the only recourse for recovering damages.

On Friday, the Nebraska Supreme Court agreed, saying regardless of the egregiousness of the company’s actions, Workers’ Compensation Court has jurisdiction.