What’s it Worth? January 25, 2022

What a game! How can the game end without giving Josh Allen the ball? Change the rule!! If you don’t know what I am talking about, I apologize but you missed an epic battle between 2 exceptional talents. As one of my daughters said immediately following the game, “I would love to be that good at literally anything in my life.” Football aside, let’s move on to this week’s cases

 

DE LA ROSA V. NELSON AVENUE HOLDINGS (302047/14)

AFFIRMATION: November 18, 2021, Appellate Division, First Department

VENUE: Premises Liability

TYPE OF CASE:

FACTS: A 46-year-old woman was stepping out of a shower when the bathroom ceiling tile in her apartment collapsed and sheetrock debris fell, striking her on the head.

INJURIES:

• The plaintiff suffered herniated C5-C6 disc which required discectomy and fusion surgery with plates and screws.
• The plaintiff sustained adjacent segment disease and nerve damage.
• The plaintiff received physical therapy and trigger point injections before and after surgery.
• The plaintiff suffered lumbar radiculopathy, headaches, and shoulder pain.
• The plaintiff claimed that she continued to experience progressive and radiating neck and back pain and a 50% loss of range of motion.
• The plaintiff claimed that she had trouble sleeping and walking.
• The plaintiff claimed that she was unable to lift her grandson or resume dancing.
• Defense counsel argued that the plaintiff had pre-existing lifelong headaches and radiating neck pain.

AFFIRMED: The jury awarded $137,000 for the past five years and $2,400,000 for the future 31 years of pain and suffering. The Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the jury’s $2,537,000 pain and suffering damages.

 

FRATELLO V. COUNTY OF SUFFOLK (20536/06)

AFFIRMED: November 10, 2021, Appellate Division, Second Department

VENUE: Supreme Suffolk

TYPE OF CASE: Automobile Liability

FACTS: A 29-year-old electrician was making a turn into a parking lot when a bus collided with his van.

INJURIES:

• The plaintiff suffered a torn labrum in his hip.
• The plaintiff sustained a tear of the right dominant wrist’s triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC)
• The plaintiff underwent five months of physical therapy.
• The plaintiff claimed continuing pain and limited ranges of motion.
• The plaintiff claimed that his injuries prevented him from taking part in golfing, kayaking, and surfing.
• The defense counsel noted that the plaintiff did not miss any work, and that he was able to use tools, lift sheets of plywood, and climb a ladder.
• The defense counsel noted that the plaintiff had congenital hip dysplasia.
• The defense counsel argued that the tear’s to the plaintiff’s TFCC joint could be attributed to the right arm fracture he suffered when he was six-years-old.

AFFIRMATION: The jury awarded $50,000 for the past 14 years and $100,000 for the future 33 years. The Appellate Division, Second Department affirmed the jury’s $150,000 pain and suffering damages.

 

JENNY ROMAN V. MAN K. RAI (504955/18)

DECIDED: 2021

VENUE: Supreme Kings

TYPE OF CASE: Automobile Liability

FACTS: A 38-year-old livery vehicle driver was driving when her car was involved in a sideswipe collision.

INJURIES:

• The plaintiff claimed that she suffered a full thickness tear of her right, dominant shoulder’s supraspinatus tendon and a tear of her glenoid labrum.
• The plaintiff claimed she suffered a tear of her right knee’s medial meniscus.
• The plaintiff claimed that she suffered trauma that produced a bulge of her C5-C6 intervertebral disc.
• The day after the accident, the plaintiff went to her primary care provider where her doctor recommended the use of an over-the-counter painkiller.
• The plaintiff claimed that her right shoulder developed bursitis, adhesive capsulitis (“frozen shoulder”), and synovitis, involving inflammation of joint-lining membrane.
• The plaintiff underwent two months of physical therapy.
• Five months after the accident, the plaintiff underwent right shoulder arthroscopic surgery.
• The plaintiff claimed that her right shoulder remains painful, that she suffers residual diminution of the shoulder’s range of motion, and that her residual side effects are permanent.
• The defense counsel argued that the plaintiff did not suffer a “serious injury” as defined by Section 5102 of the Insurance Law of the State of New York.
• The defense’s expert radiologist opined that the plaintiff’s injuries were not related to the instant accident.
• The defense’s expert orthopedist opined that the plaintiff’s surgery was unnecessary.

VERDICT: The parties negotiated a high/low stipulation prior to trial which stated that damages could not exceed $90,000 but they had to equal or exceed $10,000. The jury awarded the plaintiff $300,000 in pain and suffering but the plaintiff recovered $90,000 as per the stipulated limit.