Page 19 - Verdicts and Settlements Hall of Fame

#7(Tie)
Case: Lemon v. N.Y.C.T.A
Attorney: Joshua D. Pollack & Scott H Seskin Firm: Kramer & Pollack, LLP/Frank & Seskin, LLP Date: 4/23/2013
Verdict: $12,000,000
By Phil Albinus
Attorneys don’t always have to like their clients but hearing Scott Seskin of Frank & Seskin LLP tell it, he found a winner in Dorothy Lemon.
On Aug. 19, 2008, Plaintiff Dorothy Lemon, then 41, was riding as a passenger in the car of her home health aide patient, Dorothy Dunnigan, who was then 79. The two ladies were at the intersection of Bruckner Boulevard on White Plains Road in the Bronx when a NY City bus hit the passenger side of Dunnigan’s vehicle.
As the driver, Dunnigan claimed that she was injured in the accident and she subsequently died, though her death was not related to the traf c crash. But for Lemon, who worked two jobs to provide for family which also include a mentally disabled son and her mentally disabled brother, her nightmares were just beginning.
Lemon sustained a fracture of her right leg’s femur, a tear of her right knee’s anterior cruciate ligament and a tear of the lateral meniscus. She was sent via ambulance to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx. Her fracture was addressed via open reduction and the internal xation of a rod and nails. Her hospitalization lasted about four weeks, but a series of procedures would await.
Lemon can no longer work and provide for her family, said her attorney. “She lives on the top oor of a four story walk up. She walks with a cane and she has terrible back problems and psychi- atric injuries that stem from the accident. The hospital recognized her for psychiatric care and has been under that care ever since,” said Seskin.
In December 2012, Lemon underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair injuries of her right knee. She has also undergone extensive physical therapy and still has an antalgic gait -- an alteration to her posture -- and she requires the use of a cane. Lemon’s expert neurolo- gist and orthopedist agreed that the former home health aide suffers permanent residual effects and can no longer help her patients.
“She was a gainfully employed individual. She actually worked two jobs. She worked one job during the full year and part time for the
City of New York cleaning up parks, doing what she could do to support her family,” said Seskin.
The bus that was being driven by Annie Canty, who was traveling on the southbound side of White Plains Road. In the trial the defen- dant was the New York City Transit Authority, Canty’s employer.
The jury sided with Lemon because of the severity of her injuries and the struggles she deals with each day, said Seskin. “She had a great life before this. She was happy and really worked hard to support her family. She wasn’t destitute -- she was working to help her son. What a sweet woman.”
Perhaps too sweet. During a recess in her trial Lemon reportedly approached a juror and asked her to “Vote for me.” The defendants’ attorneys moved for a mistrial but the Judge offered a replacement juror to take the juror’s place. The defense counsel declined.
The jury determined that damages totaled $12 million. Lemon’s share totaled $10 million, and Dunnigan’s estate won $2 million. Lemon’s case was recently under appeal at press time. Interest- ingly, the “Vote for me” incident was not one of the issues for the appeal, said Seskin. He and Lemon are awaiting the ruling of the appellate court.
When asked if having a sympathetic client makes his job easier, Seskin was emphatic. “Absolutely, it makes it easier. You want to make things good for good people.”
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