Barton Ridley and Erin West recently secured a favorable jury verdict in a personal injury suit arising from a motor vehicle collision in Dallas County, Texas.
The Defendant was visiting Dallas when she was involved in a motor vehicle collision with another vehicle occupied by the Plaintiffs. One Plaintiff was taken from the scene via ambulance for emergency room treatment. She was later diagnosed with fractured ribs as a result of the collision. The other Plaintiff, who initially denied any injury and declined emergency medical treatment, later claimed that he suffered a herniated disc caused by the collision and claimed future surgery was necessary as a result of such injury.
Complicating matters for the defense was that the Defendant now lives overseas and was not able to attend trial in person. However, with the permission of the Court, the Defendant attended the trial via Zoom. Liability for the collision was not disputed, but the nature and extent of Plaintiffs’ claimed injuries as a result of the collision were the focus of the trial. The Plaintiff with the herniated disc claimed future medical expenses of $300,000. Medical experts were called to testify on behalf of the Plaintiffs. The Defendant countered with expert testimony from an Orthopedic Surgeon and a Medical Billing Expert. After three days of evidence, the parties returned for a fourth day of trial where closing arguments included Plaintiffs’ attorneys asking the jury to award a combined $2,279,091 for their clients’ damages.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys never made a settlement demand for less than a combined $1 Million for their clients. The jury awarded the Plaintiff with the fractured ribs a total of $18,890 for her personal injuries. The jury awarded the Plaintiff with the herniated disc a total of $107,548 for his personal injuries, of which $80,000 was awarded for future medical expenses based upon the opinion testimony of Defendant’s Medical Billing expert as to the amount Plaintiff's medical providers could reasonably expect to be paid for their services. The combined amount awarded to Plaintiffs for their personal injuries was $126,438, representing approximately 5.5% of the amounts they asked for from the jury. Settlement offers were extended to the Plaintiffs before and during trial which far exceeded the amounts awarded by the jury.
Congratulations to Bart and Erin on this successful outcome.