Superior Court
Civil Action Number 052227
Delivery- Man Negligence:
Compensation for Back and Shoulder Injuries
Our
client bought a washing
machine. The delivery man arrived without a helper. He asked
our client to "just guide it" around a corner step. Unfortunately, the
delivery man failed to secure the machine onto the dolly and while
going around the step the machine fell off the dolly and onto our
client. Our client suffered a back injury and underwent microsurgery at
the New England Baptist Hospital. However, he still had to undergo the
surgery, so we felt he was deserving of compensation. At this point we
started running into obstacles -- the appliance company went into
bankruptcy, the delivery man testified that he did not remember the
incident, and the insurance company considered denying coverage as the
vehicle used for delivery was not a company vehicle. Determined
to advocate successfully for our client we took depositions
of everyone who worked at the store and the president of the company. As
a result of the strong evidence secured, the case was
settled, for $173,000.00 at mediation three months before trial.
See Folly v. Appliance Outlet, Norfolk Superior Court Docket Number
2001-01942.
Trolley
Accident: Reimbursement for Back and Shoulder Injuries
Ms. Guerrier was a passenger
on an MBTA trolly traveling from Ashmont to Mattapan Station. The trolley became dysfunctional. A second trolley came along. The
driver of the second trolley, a student driver and his instructor,
attempted to hook up the two trolleys, to push the first trolley into
Mattapan. A third trolley came along, struck the second trolley,
jolting the third trolley, knocking Ms. Guerrier onto the floor.
She was taken to the hospital by
ambulance and treated for cervical and lower back pain, and contusions
to the right shoulder and pelvis. She was released that night but went
back to the hospital two days later with an acute urinary tract
infection. Her injuries were compounded by a subsequent pregnancy. In a
report certified by her doctor and entered into evidence at trial, Ms.
Guerrier suffered a back sprain as a result of the trauma and required
the use of a back brace.
The MBTA denied responsibility. They
said they were not certain Ms. Guerrier was on the trolley. The driver
of the first trolley testified that the jolt was nominal, however, on
cross examination admitted that others were taken to the hospital -
including the driver of the third trolley.
We won the trial for Ms.
Guerrier before a District Court judge. The MBTA appealed the case to
the Superior Court for a trial by jury. The jury doubled the
judge's findings.
See Suffolk Superior Court Civil Action Number 886725.
See Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, July 23, 1990.
Mall Accident: Compensation for
Shoulder Injury due to fall
Ms. Neves was shopping with
her daughter at the North Dartmouth Mall. She tripped on an
incline in the floor inside the mall, in front of Victoria Secrets,
tearing the rotator cuff in her shoulder, requiring surgery. The owners
of the mall refused to negotiate with her first attorney. Her second
attorney filed suit but did not pursue the case. We were retained and aggressively
prosecuted the case: we immediately brought in an expert. The
expert, an engineer, went to the mall and measured the inclines at the
locus where Ms. Neves fell. The engineer, through testing, determined
that the mall floor pitched in multiple directions and was dangerous.
Next, we spent days searched through all of the mall records for
accidents. As a result of our focused research, we
were prepared to introduce into evidence other similar incidents. The
opposing attorney knew we had built a strong case,
and settled on the courthouse steps on the day of trial.
See Bristol Superior Court Civil Action Number B98-0658.
Accident due to Dangerous Product:
Compensation for Burn Injuries
A man in his 60's went to a
neighborhood auto mechanic to have a thermostat put in his van. It was so cold the proprietor invited him in to warm up. A negligently
maintained gas heater caused our client's pants to catch on fire,
resulting in burns on his legs and hands. We knew that obtaining
photographs of the heater was critical to the case. However,
most people don't let people take photographs of their premises when
they know there has been an accident. Determined to win,
we aggressively sent an investigator to photograph
the heater and the photographs prompted the insurance company to
compensate our client within 18 months.
See Wormley v. Robinson, Suffolk Superior Court Civil Action Number
2000-03282.
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