Case Notes - Recent Cases of Interest
35 Year Old Woman
A 35-year-old woman and her husband were killed when their car was hit head-on by
an oncoming pickup truck. The other driver, who was drunk, was returning home from a bachelor party at his hunting lodge. After a lawsuit was filed in the rural county where the crash took place, a substantial settlement was reached with the drunk driver’s insurance company. The settlement proceeds will be used to fund a trust for the woman’s three teenage sons. The drunk driver is serving 6 to 12 years in the state penitentiary. 76 Year Old Man
A 76-year-old retired parochial schoolteacher tripped and fell on a broken sidewalk
outside of a local shopping mall. She struck her face and needed dental reconstruction. Rather than fix the broken sidewalk, the mall had painted it yellow along with the curbing on the edge of the sidewalk. Witnesses to the fall included a seminary student who was studying to be a monk and the schoolteacher’s son, a priest, who came to the scene to take photographs. The case settled after an award was entered by a Board of Arbitrators. 50 Year Old Woman
A 50-year-old woman, her son, and some friends were returning in her car from a trip to an amusement park in Ohio. Almost immediately after she exited the interstate, a construction vehicle traveling in the opposite direction suddenly turned in her path, causing a terrible impact. She shattered her heel bone and missed several months of work. She was a single mother raising her teenage son. The case settled on the eve of trial after extensive negotiations during a private mediation hearing. 18 Year Old Woman
An 18-year-old pregnant woman was mistakenly given narcotic medication instead of antibiotics by a local pharmacy. The young woman took two doses of the medication before realizing the pharmacy’s mistake. She became ill and was rushed to the emergency room. She recovered soon after, but was worried about the possible side effects with regard to her unborn child. Fortunately, she had a normal, healthy baby. Her case against the pharmacy settled out of court. 44 Year Old Woman
A 44-year-old woman rented a limousine for her daughter’s wedding. As she was stepping out of the limousine after buckling in her godchild, the step attached to the door collapsed, and she fell forward but was caught by one of the groomsmen. She severely injured the tendons in her ankle. When the lawsuit was filed, the limousine company was out of business, and the owner was in jail for fraud involving an unrelated business. After extensive investigation and several depositions, the insurance company settled with the woman. 18 Year Old Boy
An 18-y ear-old boy who lived at a reform school developed a brain abscess after his sinus infection went untreated for several days.. The reform school’s staff ignored a doctor’s recommendation that the boy be taken to the local emergency room. The parties agreed to mediate this dispute, and a settlement was reached after extensive negotiations. The settlement proceeds will be placed in a special trust to preserve the young man’s eligibility for much-needed governmental benefits. 45 Year Old Golf Course Owner
A 45-year-old golf course owner shattered bones in his right leg and left foot after a careless driver crossed the center line, striking the man’s car head-on. The careless driver had minimal automobile liability insurance. The golf course owner presented a claim to his own insurance company for under-insured motorist benefits. After a series of hearings, three arbitrators directed the insurance company to pay the man and his wife the full amount of his benefits. 17 Year Old Boy
A 17 year-old boy was driving home one evening when a drunk driver crossed the road, smashing into his car. Two bones in the young man’s foot were broken, requiring extensive reconstructive surgery. The drunk driver had been conducting company business at a bar earlier that evening. His company knew that he had a habit of drinking extensively while entertaining clients. After trial, a jury found that the drunk driver, the bar, and the drunk driver’s employer were all responsible for the young man’s injuries. 40 Year Old Supply Clerk
A 40-year-old supply clerk slipped and fell in an icy parking lot next to the building where he worked. He injured his shoulder and needed two surgeries. Although the building owner had been notified that winter that it’s parking lot was icy and others had fallen, it never took care of this dangerous condition. This case settled on the eve of trial. 34 Year Old Sales Manager
A 34-year-old finance company sales manager injured her neck in a car wreck on her way to a business appointment. After a doctor hired by her employer’s workers’ compensation insurance company said that she could return to work, her employer filed a petition to terminate her workers’’ compensation benefits. . After a series of hearings, the judge ruled that the sales manager had not yet recovered from her work injury. The judge also found that the insurance company had violated the “Workers’ Compensation Act by failing to pay her partial benefits when she returned to work at light duty and less pay The insurance company was ordered to pay a 50 percent penalty on all past-due benefits. 62 Year Old Woman
A 62-year-old woman was in surgery to have three vertebrae in her neck fused. During the procedure, the surgeon’s assistant unknowingly punctured a nearby artery. Because the surgeon and his operating team couldn’t locate the source of the bleeding, she died on the operating table. The case settled on the eve of’ trial. 37 Year Old Man
A 37-year-old bartender was helping his friend lay pipe for the renovation of a store in a strip mall. Because the work schedules were not properly coordinated, other workers were removing a plaster ceiling as the two men worked below. A large section of the ceiling collapsed, fracturing the man’s ankle. The general contractor claimed that the man was his friend’s “employee.” An employee cannot sue for injuries because of Pennsylvania’s workers’ compensation laws. After extensive investigation and several depositions, the case settled.
22 Year Old Man
A 22-year-old college student and his friends were drinking at a local night club. After the club closed, they were waiting in the parking lot for a taxicab to take them home. An unidentified employee of the club, irritated by the student’s antics in the parking lot, shoved him headfirst into a parked car. The young man sustained bleeding in his brain. The club denied that its employee committed this act. The club’s security consultant, however, was the leader of a notorious motorcycle gang. After investigation and depositions, the case settled.
9 Year Old Girl
A 9-year-old girl was on a day-camp field trip to the zoo. While she was climbing over a large, unsecured metal barrier in the children’s play area, it fell on her, fracturing her wrist. A special bank account was established with a settlement for the young girl.
55 Year Old Woman
A 55-year-old building custodian was waiting in her car at a traffic light. A driverless car rolled out of a nearby parking lot, over a hill, and crashed into the custodian’s stopped car. The crash triggered a prior seizure disorder. The owner of the driverless car claimed that she put it in park before leaving to do some shopping. Investigation showed that this model of car had problems with its parking gear, permitting the key to be removed from the ignition even when the car was not in park. After investigation and depositions, the car manufacturer settled the claim. 55 Year Old Woman
A 55 year-old woman had neck surgery after the car in which she as riding was rear—ended. The pre-existing arthritis in her neck was aggravated by the ear crash, causing severe pain and endangering her spinal cord. A settlement s as made with the other driver’s insurance company for the limits of his insurance policy . When the woman's own insurance company refused to make a fair settlement of her underinsured motorist claim, three arbitrators awarded her substantially more than she had requested 76 Year Old Woman
A 76—year—old woman in poor health was a resident of a local nursing home. She was mistakenly given five times the prescribed dose of morphine, causing her to die within two hours due to breathing failure. The nursing home settled out of court. 42 Year Old Man
A 42—year—old commercial painter slipped and fell to the ground when a gas station owner spilled gasoline and then left the area unguarded while he went to find some rags to clean up his mess. The man tore the rotator cuff in his shoulder and needed surgery. He missed almost five months of work. The case settled on the eve of trial. 76 Year Old Man
A 76—year-old man resigned several years ago from his job as a supervisor of a county juvenile-detention facility. He was still receiving workers’ compensation benefits because he had been injured breaking up fights among the youths. The county filed a petition asking that his benefits be stopped. After several hearings and depositions. the workers’ compensation judge denied the county’s request. The judge ruled that the man had resigned due to his work injury, not due to his age. The county has appealed 44 Year Old Man
A 44-year-old appliance delivery man injured his back when a wooden deck collapsed from the weight of a refrigerator. A contractor had attached the deck to the house with small metal screws rather than large lag bolts. A couple who had recently bought the house had ignored a warning about this dangerous condition in a home-inspection report. The case settled after depositions were taken.
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