Motor Vehicle Accident Cases in Florida
$9,800,000.00
40 year old mother of two was rendered a quadriplegic after her car was struck by another driver who ran a neighborhood stop sign at 30 mph. The defense argued that the plaintiff was speeding and not wearing her seatbelt at the time of the crash. Extensive biomechanical expert testimony regarding the mechanics of the crash and the injuries resulted in a settlement nearly 100 times more than the available insurance coverage of the offending driver.
$6,500,000
The plaintiff was standing behind his armored truck preparing a delivery when a tourist driving a rental car suddenly struck him, pinning him to the back of the truck and causing his left leg to be amputated above-the-knee. The settlement was obtained that was far in excess of the $600,000 cap created by the Florida Legislature to protect auto rental companies, because of bad faith allegations against the carrier which covered both the rental company and the driver.
$4,000,000
A wrongful death action was brought by the family of a 63-year-old man who was killed in an auto accident caused by an employee of an electric company. The employee, who was driving his own car but in the scope of work at the time, ran a red light, causing this fatal accident. Witnesses at the scene claim that the employee of the electric company was too distracted and made no attempt to brake when he saw the light turn red.
$3,500,000
A 20-year-old motorcyclist was killed when he struck a car which was making an illegal left turn in his path. Under the law, his parents were able to recover for the pain and suffering of his loss.
$1,775,000
The plaintiff, a veterinarian, was jogging at night along a rural road when she was hit by a passing car. The defendant driver claimed she never saw the plaintiff, even after striking her. The defense argued that state law required the plaintiff to have been jogging against traffic rather than with it, and therefore the plaintiff was partially at fault. As a result of the impact, the plaintiff suffered an injury to her ulnar nerve which left her hand partially paralyzed and in need of future surgery. Due to the bad faith claims handling practices of the defendant's insurance company, the company settled the case for one hundred and fifty times more than the defendant's $10,000 insurance policy limits.
Prescription Drug Error / Medical Malpractice Cases in Florida
$2,225,000
The plaintiff sued a team of doctors and a pharmaceutical company when his regimen of prescriptions for a heart condition and high cholesterol, was modified by his treating physician to include two drugs that were specifically contraindicated by the drug manufacturer. Soon after taking the medications, the 76-year-old plaintiff was hospitalized with classic symptoms associated with the drug combination. None of the plaintiff’s physicians recognized this drug error. The plaintiff suffered multiple organ failure and died.
$1,500,000
A 71 year old mentally retarded woman was given an inadequate dosage of an anti-viral medication which allowed the virus to migrate to her brain, severely disabling her. In this egregious case, the pharmacist disarmed a computer alarm warning her of her impending error.
$1,050,000
A 54-year-old woman was admitted to a rehabilitation facility following a stroke that had left her temporarily paralyzed on her left side. Despite her partial paralysis, a nursing aide negligently left the plaintiff unattended in the bathroom. The plaintiff fell, and later died of injuries she sustained as a result of the fall. She was survived by her husband and adult children.
Confidential Settlement
A local pharmacy misfiled a patient’s high blood pressure prescription and gave him an anti-seizure drug instead. Within days his blood pressure spiked causing a brain bleed and death.
Premises Liability Cases in Florida
$1,175,000
The plaintiff was killed while playing golf at a local country club, when he was struck by a runaway golf cart and suffered fatal injuries. Country club employees had parked the cart with the ignition running as they were unloading some bags. As they did, one set of clubs slipped, dropping on to the accelerator of the cart and causing it to take off across the grounds toward the unsuspecting victim.
$1,175,000
The plaintiffs were severely burned while attending a fondue dinner at the defendant’s home. The fondue burner caught fire because the defendant homeowner had poured the denatured alcohol into the fuel burner of the fondue pot unit without first extinguishing any flame that existed. As a result a huge flame shot up from the burner, causing second and third degree burns to over 14% of the plaintiffs' bodies.
