Entries Tagged 'Personal Injury' ↓

3/20/08

Plaintiff and representing personal injury attorneys at Becker, Kellogg and Berry settled a case against a property management company, Kimco Realty Corporation, for $52,000 for a trip and fall that occurred when she stubbed her toe on a protruding portion of an uneven sidewalk located outside a Safeway store in Fairfax County, VA.

Plaintiff fractured her right elbow and left knee and had surgery on both and a follow-up surgery on her right elbow. These cases are very difficult for Plaintiffs to prevail in Virginia courts due to notice requirements and other legal hurdles.

While the 61-year old plaintiff was driving down Route 123 in Virginia at 45mph, the defendant driving 55mph behind him lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the defendant.  The plaintiffs car became airborne and finally stopped after rolling down an embankment. The plaintiff suffered scalp lacerations and complained of pains along his right side.

For his injuries and his totaled car, the plaintiff’s original demand was for a quarter million dollars, and the insurance company, Hartford Insurance, countered with an offer of $40,000.  In a case such as this, it is important to consider the details of the case when determine why and how the plaintiff via his Springfield VA auto accident attorneys and defendant came to agree on the final $140,000 settlement.

Had the plaintiff shown he was suffering enough to cancel or reschedule his upcoming five week long Honeymoon vacation overseas, the panel of jurors may have found much more sympathy for the victim, resulting in a much more substantial award. Ultimately, good fortune in avoid serious injury may have worked against his favor in settlement court.

An additional unfortunate situation that also played against him and in favor of the defendant was that the defendant was not administered a breath test for over three hours after the accident.  When finally tested, he had a recorded Blood Alchohol Content was .19% (under VA law the legal limit for blood alcohol content is .08%) . Had the police immediately performed a breathalyzer test, the plaintiff may have been awarded a larger settlement due to a higher BAC.

For more information about this Virginia DUI accident visit Becker, Kellogg & Berry, P.C.

A jury has awarded two men in Austin Texas a total of $1.5 million in a lawsuit for injuries and medical bill reimbursement. Back in 2006, Ronny Martinez and Kenneth O’Neal were driving on 35E in Waxahachie, when an 18 wheel tractor trailer veered into their lane and connected with their car. The trucking accident caused the car flipped several times, with Martinez suffering a fractured vertebra, while O’Neal suffered serious injury to his right knee and suffered mild traumatic brain injury from the crash.

The two men sued Celadon Trucking Services Inc for negligence for hiring the driver Michael Wade, whose negligence in turn caused the accident. The jury found the trucking company guilty after only four hours of deliberation and issued $750,000 to pay off the medical bills and an additional $750,000 for pain, suffering and physical impairment.

Over five years after a fire started by the pyrotechnics of 80’s metal band Great White in a small Rhode Island concert venue killed 100 people and injured over 200 others, it appears that some closure is coming for the victims and survivors. Great White’s insurer has agreed to a settlement payout of $1 million dollars, which will be paid out to members of class action lawsuit as determined by an as-yet-undetermined formula to be written by a Duke University law professor.

This $1 million settlement is on top of roughly $175 million that defendants of multiple lawsuits stemming from the fire back in February 2003 have offered to pay to settle out of court. This includes both the state of Rhode Island and the town of West Warwick, where the club is located, who have agreed just last month to each pay $10 million. In addition to the lawsuits, tour manager Daniel Biechele pled guilty to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter back in 2006.

With the class action lawsuit being settled out of court, it appears that some questions that could have been raised in a trial may never be answered. Among the plaintiffs is Chris Fontaine, whose son was killed in the fire and daughter was badly injured, and expressed “I just feel that we’re never going to get the answers we need that would put some of this to rest for us.” While Great White’s insurance policy had a maximum payout of $1 million, it is unclear just how much a guilty verdict in court may have been worth.

A lawsuit brought against three men in the Lambda Phi Epsilon fraternity at the University of Texas for the wrongful death of 18-year old freshman Jack Phoummarath has been settled with the Phoummarath family for a sum of $4.2 million dollars. Phoummarath died in the fall of 2005 from acute alcohol poisoning after a binge drinking hazing while pledging with the fraternity. He had a blood alcohol content level of .50 at the time of death.

As part of the plea deal with the defendants, who were indicted for hazing, they took part in an educational video that warns of the dangers that come with fraternity and sorority hazing. Phoummarath’s family is also working with the University of Texas to set up an annual $8,000 - $10,000 scholarship in Jack’s name that will be granted to a student in exchange for promoting an educational program warning against hazing and binge drinking. The Phoummarath family have emphasized that these programs are not anti-Greek, but merely tools to educate students.