Truck Collision - Personal Injury
Our clients were on the way to a concert when traffic backed up on the interstate. A truck hauling large timbers was traveling too fast and was unable to stop causing an 8-10 car pile-up. All four occupants in our client's car were injured, with the most severe injury being a fractured shoulder requiring surgery. All four cases were settled for a total of $290,000.
A woman was sideswiped by a tractor trailer sustaining a shoulder injury. The truck company denied responsibility, but a Federal Court jury awarded $135,000.
Truck Collision - Wrongful Death
A 22-year old was killed while lawfully operating his motorcycle when a tractor trailer driver exited the I-71/I-75 South, ran a red light and struck our client's son. During the police investigation it was discovered that the truck driver had failed to keep his tractor trailer properly maintained and actually knowingly drove his 80,000 ton vehicle on the highway with 8 of the 12 brakes either not working or below federal motor carrier requirements. The case settled for the truck driver's $1,000,000 policy limits. In the separate Criminal action, the truck driver was convicted and sentenced to 9 year in prison.
A college-aged woman was killed when the vehicle in which she was a passenger struck a stalled truck on the bridge. During our investigation, it was discovered that a warning light went off inside the truck miles before it reached the bridge, but the driver ignored the warning and chose to continue driving until it ultimately stalled on the bridge. Although confidential, this case resulted in a significant mid-seven-figure settlement.
A husband was lawfully operating his vehicle with his wife as his passenger. As traffic stopped on I-275, so did he. However, the commercial van driving behind him did not as the driver had fallen asleep at the wheel after working a 15-hour day out of town. This resulted in a horrific crash killing the husband. This case settled for over $1,000,000.
Automobile Collision Cases
A woman had neck surgery after being injured when the family vehicle was struck by another car. Although the striking car ricocheted off the concrete median into our client's vehicle, he denied responsibility claiming an unknown pick-up truck cut him off. Our investigation found a 911 call where someone reported the license plate number of a pick-up truck which cut-off another car causing it to swerve, ricochet off the concrete median and strike another vehicle (our client's vehicle). We located the pick-up truck owner, who had insurance. The case settled for $150,000, which was all the available insurance.
A college student was struck in a crosswalk resulting in catastrophic and life-altering losses for her and her family. We recovered the policy limits from the driver of the car, in excess of $1,000,000. We then proceeded against the bus company who had dropped her off at an unauthorized drop spot thereby putting her in a position of peril. The bus company paid a high seven-figure settlement resulting in a combined recovery in excess of $10,000,000.
A college student lost control of her car on a narrow and windy road striking our client head-on. This resulted in a herniated cervical disc necessitating surgery. The case settled for $292,000.
Two young teens were passengers in a car driven by another speeding teenager. One was injured, while the other was killed. This happened in a rural farming community where the largest verdict at the time had been $100,000. We discovered damaging previous driving evidence which led to a $2,000,000 settlement.
A woman was rear-ended by a teenager who claimed his foot got caught between the brake and the accelerator preventing him from stopping. Our client sustained significant injuries. The case settled for $246,838.
A man was hit head-on when a motorist traveling in the opposite direction slid on ice, crossed the center line and hit him head-on. While it first appeared that his injuries were minimal, we discovered evidence of a mild traumatic head injury (like a concussion in football players). The case settled for $75,000.
Drunk Driving
A Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati Airport executive got drunk at a private airport club, continued to drink at another and then drove home. He either passed out or fell asleep at the wheel, crossed the median on I-75 and hit our clients car traveling in the opposite direction. Sadly, our client's 8-year old child was killed. We settled with the driver for his $300,000 policy limits and proceeded to trial against the two airlines who operated the private clubs. This resulted in a verdict of $2,600,000. This was one of the first Dram Shop (liquor server liability) cases in Kentucky.
Motorcycle Injury
A woman turned in front of a motorcyclist who was lawfully operating his motorcycle. The motorcyclist sustained a broken leg resulting in a settlement in excess of $300,000.
Road Edge Drop-Off
A portion of U.S. 42 was being resurfaced by a road contractor. The warning signs regarding the construction area were inadequate and the road contractor had created a 6" road edge drop-off. A teenage driver was killed when the right side of a teenage driver's car got over the drop-off causing him to lose control. The jury returned with a seven-figure verdict. The construction company appealed all the way to the Kentucky Supreme Court, which upheld the verdict. 3 ½ years after the verdict, we finally collected $1,394,000.
Nursing Home Neglect
A middle-aged woman was at a nursing home recovering from a stroke. The nursing home rated her as being at a very high risk for falls and ordered that she be transported by two staff members at all time. After being transported to a certain area, the staff members left her unattended for a long period of time. The resident ended up falling, hitting her head on the wall and then fell to the ground breaking her hip, which required surgery. While visiting his wife for lunch, her husband found her on the ground and called for help. This resulted in a confidential six-figure settlement.
An elderly woman was at a nursing home for long-term care and had recently suffered a stroke. She was found dead in her bed with her body wedged between the mattress and bedrails. It was discovered that a licensed practical nurse switched the resident's type of mattress, without obtaining the required physician order, and failed to adjust the bedrails leaving a large gap. We were able resolve this case a confidential six-figure settlement.
An elderly woman was receiving short-term care from a nursing home while recovering from a stroke and brain aneurysm. Upon admission, she was noted to have good, clean skin, but the nursing home rated her as being at high risk for skin breakdown and pressure ulcers due to her medical condition. Within weeks she developed Stage IV pressure ulcers (also known as bed sores or decubitus ulcers) so severe that they exposed the bone with a large open wound. Although the nursing home denied they did anything wrong and offered no money for over 2 years of litigation, the case settled for a six-figure award the 2nd day of trial.
An elderly woman was known for wandering throughout the nursing home. Electrical work was being performed causing the smoke alarms to go off. The woman opened a nearby stairwell door, while in her merry walker, falling down the stairs to her death. The smoke alarm disengaged the locks on the stairwell door and staff failed to secure the residents. We were able to obtain a confidential six-figure settlement for the resident's family.
Medical Malpractice
A little boy was taken to the hospital with what the doctors initially thought was a mild case of viral meningitis. The mother was insistent that the symptoms suggested something far worse, but the doctors disagreed. The mother took the child to another hospital where a rare and potentially fatal condition was discovered by a resident. While the delay resulted in permanent problems, the child did survive and make a remarkable recovery. Had the initial doctors ordered a routine test, which was immediately run by the resident, the condition would have been discovered earlier and consequences would have been less severe. The case settled for a confidential seven-figure amount.
A nurse misread a doctor's order and a cancer patient, who was in remission, was given the wrong mixture of chemotherapy drugs causing a stroke. We were successful in obtaining a confidential seven-figure settlement.
Wrongful Death
In a business deal gone bad, an angry doctor shot and killed his business partner's fiancée. A Kentucky jury awarded $55,000,000.
Dog Bite
A big dog broke loose from its leash attacking and killing a small dog in its own front yard. The small dog's owner was bitten while she was trying to save her pet. The case settled for $57,000.
Railroad Crossing Death
Five teenagers were killed after being struck by a train on Thanksgiving Eve. We represented the family of one of the deceased teenagers. We uncovered strong evidence that the railroad company knew of the danger this crossing posed to the community. The case resulted in a confidential high six-figure settlement.
Insurance Bad Faith
A state employee, who had recently purchased life insurance, unexpectedly died leaving a wife and son. The widow made a claim for his life insurance benefits, but was denied when a company executive visited her claiming her husband lied on his application. Rather than receiving a check for the life insurance proceeds of $56,273, the company handed her a premium refund check of $86.66. We were able to uncover fraud by the agent in completing the application and forging her husband's signature. This bad faith case settled for $800,000.
