Workers Compensation

1. In the case of a mechanic who suffered a low back injury and would never be able to return to that position a settlement of the claim for $176,000 was obtained. The worker also qualified for Social Security Disability which continued to be paid after the settlement.
2. In the case of a worker at the airport who suffered low back problems and underwent surgery, a settlement of $90,000 was obtained.
3. A worker in the field of law enforcement suffered multiple injuries causing limitations, which disallowed some but not all forms of work. The wage loss part of the case settled for $95,000. The medical expense part was left open.
4. A package delivery worker suffered injury to the low back but was able to avoid surgery. A physician provided a release to work at medium duty. The case settled for $156,000.

Motor Vehicle Accident

Liability was admitted in this motor vehicle accident which occurred in June of 2005 as Plaintiff was rear-ended while stopped in traffic. Plaintiff age 47 at the time of the accident, had undergone a complete hip replacement at age 18, and then had the replacement surgically revised in 1994 due to wear of the original prosthesis. Plaintiff developed hip and back pain after the car accident and was required to have the hip revised again. The defendant contended that the hip would have required a revision at some point irrespective of the motor vehicle accident. Plaintiff’s treating physician stated that the motor vehicle accident caused a loosening/fracture of the prosthesis requiring immediate revision. Out of pocket damages were lost wages of $6,500.00; the remaining claim was for pain and suffering. The case settled for $75,000.00 prior to trial.

Insurance Litigation

Homeowners insurance coverage was denied to a husband and wife where evidence established that wife had intentionally burned down the marital residence. Wife, who suffered from mental illness, set her husband’s clothes on fire inside the house because she believed he was a clone and/or an alien. The burning clothes ultimately set the house on fire. The Homeowners Insurance Company called two experts to testify that the wife intentionally caused the loss. Our lawyers argued that although wife intended to burn the clothes, in light of her mental illness she did not intend to burn and destroy the house. This case was tried and won by our litigation attorneys in Beaver County and affirmed on appeal before the Pennsylvania Superior Court. The Homeowners Insurance Company was required to pay in excess of $120,000.00 in damages.

Personal Injury

Plaintiff, who was invited to an off-campus fraternity party at Slippery Rock, was injured when the Defendant guest threw a flattened beer can into the room in which Plaintiff was standing. The Defendant had been engaged in a game with others by throwing flattened cans back and forth as a form of tag. One can struck Plaintiff in the eye. Plaintiff was nineteen years old at the time of the incident. Her injuries were entirely to one eye resulting in the inability of that eye to dilate. As a result, that eye was hyper sensitive to light and Plaintiff lost a slight amount of her peripheral vision. She was required to wear a special lens in that eye to force it to dilate. The injury also caused the possibility of developing glaucoma in that eye in the future. The Defendant challenged the seriousness of the injury. Plaintiff’s medical bills were nominal and she sustained no loss of wages or impairment of future earnings so that her damages were primarily pain and suffering. Our lawyers were able to secure a gross structured settlement, without having to file a lawsuit, in the amount of $165,000.00.