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$1 Million Pre-Trial Settlement Policy limits were obtained in Queens County pre-trial settlement for 2 Middle Eastern immigrants, where Defendants ar- gued that all injuries were degenerative and pre-existed the accident.
$877,000 Jury Verdict for a 32 year old man in a 2 vehicle accident case with no complaints of pain at the scene, no ER. He first went to a doctor approxi- mately 1 week after the accident. He had 2 months of therapy following the accident, and then a few sporadic dates of treatment, arthroscopic surgery 2 years after the accident, with large, unexplained gaps in treatment. Defen- dants’ doctor opined that he did not suffer any injuries in the accident and that he was completely fine. Defendants introduced evidence regarding a prior accident where he treated for injuries to the same body parts in order to impeach client’s testimony. Defendants disputed any liability in the case. State Farm’s offer was $30,000; The other carrier, GEICO, maintained a no pay position. However after a liability verdict, GEICO tendered its $25,000 policy. (After verdict, State Farm not only tendered their $100,000 policy, but actually offered $225,000, so that the client would end up with a total of $250,000.)
$600,000 Jury Verdict for unemployed convicted felon, in disputed liability and damages case. No complaints of pain at the scene, did not go to ER, and returned to physical work following this accident (no lost wage claim). Defendants’ experts opined that he did not suffer any injuries in the accident. He also had large, unexplained gaps in treatment. Defendants established that Plaintiff lied on the stand, proved that the doctor he had initially been to (prior to retaining our office) had been accused of misconduct, and brought his current employer in to testify that he did heavy duty labor, without any complaints. Defense showed photos confirming minimal property damage, no cars were towed from the scene, and it was a minor impact. Original of- fer: $3,000; offer after arthroscopic surgery: $50,000; offer right before trial: $125,000. Case tried against head partner of large defense firm.
NON-SURGICAL SOFTTISSUE/DISPUTED LIABILITY CASES
$1.3 Million Jury Verdict A 35-year-old, in a soft tissue, non-surgical herniated disc MVA, where Defendants denied liability, plaintiff had minimal treatment, no lost wages. Defendants’ doctors testified that their exams were normal. Defendants argued he had the same injury from a prior MVA, which he failed to reveal to his doctors. State Farm valued case at $50,000. Amount asked of the Jury was $1 million.
$1.2 Million Jury Verdict A 43-year-old driver, in a soft tissue, non-sur- gical herniated disc MVA case, where Defendants denied liability, cli- ent’s treatment was primarily with a chiropractor. No lost wages and minimal treatment. Defendants’ doctors testified that Plaintiff’s exam and films were normal. Amount suggested to Jury was $1 million. The award was one of the highest ever for pain and suffering only for a single, non-surgical disc. App. Div. sustained $700,000, one of the largest amounts sustained ever for such injury. NJ Manufacturers valued case at $7,500. 100K policy tender during trial rejected as untimely. Bad faith lawsuit successfully settled for amount significantly above policy limits.
$960,000 Judicial Award A 37-year-old driver with non-surgical bulging discs, minimal property damage.
$850,000 Jury Verdict A 49-year-old unemployed man in a soft tissue, non- surgical herniated disc MVA case, with minimal property damage, no ER, no lost wages. Plaintiff first sought care with a chiropractor 9 days after the accident. Treatment thereafter was sporadic and minimal. Defendant’s doc- tors testified that plaintiff’s back condition was pre-existing and degenera- tive, that he was not injured and his exam was completely normal. American Transit valued the case at $6,000.
NEW YORK’S
VERDICTS & SETTLEMENTS TM
$500,000 New York County Pre-Trial Settlement A 43-year-old immigrant residing in Suffolk who claimed non-surgical bulging and herniated disc, and was never recommended for any surgery. Defendant’s doctors stated Plain- tiff’s exams were completely normal, that he was capable of working without any restrictions, his soft tissue injuries were minor, degenerative, and were completely resolved.
$425,000 Pre-Trial Settlement in MVA case where Defendants argued that Plaintiff sustained soft tissue injuries from which she had resolved, her medi- cal exams were normal and she was working full time without any restric- tions. Our client’s recovery was nearly 30 times greater than that of another passenger in her vehicle, with similar soft tissue injuries, but who was repre- sented by another attorney.
$300,000 Arbitration Award (full available policy limits) in non-surgical, minimal property damage case, no complaints at scene, no ambulance, no lost wages, large unexplained gaps in treatment, and normal ex- ams by insurance doctors. She claimed a herniated disc (disputed by the insurance co. doctors) for which no surgery was recommended. The vehicle that struck her had minimal $25,000 coverage with Progressive, who initially only offered only $2,500. We nevertheless persuaded them to pay the $25,000 and then pursued an underinsurance (SUM) claim against GEICO. GEICO argued that our client had already received too much from Progressive, and that, at most, they would offer an additional $7,500. We nevertheless obtained the entire available SUM policy limits at arbitration. Case featured in NYLJ’s Top Settlements 2013.
DISPUTED ON-THE-JOB CASES
$900,000 Settlement in a case involving an employee injured on the job (or- dinarily barred from suing the employer), wherein we successfully held the tenant (a separate but related corporate entity from the employer) liable for the client’s injuries. St. Paul had previously maintained a no-pay position.
$600,000 Settlement following liability jury verdict in disputed liability case, where our client was injured while working.The tenant who operated the store was her employer. We sued the landlord, who denied any liability, and argued that he was an absentee landlord who had nothing to do with the store. Jury awarded 100% liability against the landlord, who settled immediately thereafter. Greater NewYork had no-pay position until liability ve dict reached.
$450,000 Settlement Hand injury in a case involving an employee injured on the job (ordinarily barred from suing the employer), wherein we successfully sued related, but separate corporate entities, despite the fact that they were owned by the same parent corporation and owners. Zurich had previously maintained a no-pay position.
COURT DECISIONS INTHE NEWS
$11 million lawsuit against Madison Square Garden given go-ahead to proceed by New York State Supreme Court in widely publicized case where spectator was struck by a hockey puck at MSG. (Precedent-setting case in NY)
Appeals Court Triples Award After we obtained an award of $168,000 for Plaintiff’s soft tissue injuries in a minor impact accident (one of the top motor vehicle verdicts in New York in 2011), we appealed, requesting an increase in the amount awarded for future pain and suffering. The Appellate Court agreed with us and added an additional $300,000 to the verdict. The total recovered, with interest and costs, exceeded $550,000. GEICO originally valued the case at $7,500. Highest offer was $50,000. Defendant disputed that Plaintiff suffered a “serious injury” under the law, and any causality between the accident and the injuries.
TOP VERDICTS NY
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