Car/Truck/Train Accidents

Because the results obtained in specific cases depend on a variety of factors unique to each case, past case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in future cases undertaken by a lawyer or law firm.

$2.33 Million to Victim Run Over at ATM

A 60-year-old woman stopped at her local bank to get some cash following a weekly session with her personal trainer. As she stood facing the ATM, a car from the parking lot behind her pulled out of the space and ran over her, as the driver mistakenly hit the gas pedal instead of the brake. The woman suffered a crushed pelvis, leaving her with lasting disabilities, medical expenses, and, understandably, diminished quality of life. While liability in the case was clear, partner Gary B. Mims undertook a deep analysis of legal remedies and all avenues of potential insurance. In the process, he uncovered an employer’s umbrella insurance policy — about which the plaintiff was unfamiliar – that opened up substantial opportunities for compensation. Mims then successfully settled the case in the aggregate for over $2.3 million. The settlement is not subject to income tax. A condition of the settlement was that the names of the parties would be confidential.

Train Derailment/Wrongful Death Suit Wins $4.6 Million and New Safety Regulations

An 80-car, 10,000-ton CSX coal train en route to Washington, DC lost braking control while descending a seventeen mile grade. Due to excessive speed, the train lost its brakes and reached a curve at nearly 60 mph and derailed. Several fully-loaded, 100-ton coal cars smashed into a house, killing a 15 year old boy asleep on the couch and injuring several others. The plaintiff successfully argued that CSX should have set the track speed limit lower (as it did the day after the crash); that they lacked a corporate policy for checking dynamic brakes and that the engineer was poorly trained. The case was filed in West Virginia to pursue maximum benefits to the injured, as the state of Maryland caps recovery at $2 million. The case settled for $4.577 million.

Jury Awards $1.5 Million for Brain Injury from Collision; Defense Claimed Victim was “Faking”

A research scientist and his wife were driving towards Harper’s Ferry when they were struck from behind by a man driving a truck hauling a trailer. The scientist sustained a serious brain injury in the collision, suffered memory loss, poor executive function and could no longer work. The defendant claimed that the scientist was faking and offered just $200,000 as compensation, which we declined. At trial, partner Steve Frei entered into evidence a PET CT scan showing objective evidence of the victim’s organic brain injury. The jury deliberated two hours before returning a verdict for $1.5 million.

$1.5 Million for Hit-and-Run Victim

A man riding a motorcycle was hit by a car which fled the scene of the accident; the victim suffered a fractured pelvis, mild brain injury and no recollection of the accident. A favorable settlement of $1.5 million was reached through the victim’s uninsured motorist’s coverage.

$3.05 Million for I-95 Crash Victim

While sitting in traffic on I-95, the plaintiff was struck from behind by a pickup truck and died. The driver was on her way to a job site of the defendant company. While the driver’s liability was apparent, the employer denied that she was acting as an employee at the time of the collision. It was the company’s defense that all employees had been transferred to another company; the driver was unaware of her ‘transfer.’ The case generated a request by the insurance carrier for a declaratory judgment in Stafford asking the court to determine whether the driver was an employee at the time. Partner Gary Mims successfully argued a lack of subject matter jurisdiction as there was no justicable controversy. The Stafford judge agreed and dismissed the motion. The case then settled for the plaintiff for the insurance policy limits.

Tow Truck Leaves Man Wheelchair Bound

Car trouble. It’s something every driver encounters sooner or later. Our client did what we all would do and called a towing service to tow his car to a repair shop. What happened next is not something everyone encounters. In extracting the car from the parking spot, the tow truck crushed the car owner between his car and the one next to it. The impact was so great that his leg was severely fractured. Sadly, it has left him unable to ever walk independently again. What made this case challenging is that, due to the injury, our client had no memory of the accident at all, and there were no eyewitnesses. Further, the tow truck driver testified that the incident was not his fault and that they way was clear when he began to tow the car. It was through our use of an accident reconstructionist and an expert in the operation of tow trucks that we could prove that the tow truck driver was negligent because he did not secure the car wheels prior to starting the two. As a result, the defendant agreed to resolve the case and a confidential settlement was reached.

$1.5 Million for Dump Truck Crash Victim

A dump truck carrying 15 tons of asphalt, going 55 mph, ran a red light at Rte. 28 and Westfields Blvd. The truck struck a Ford Explorer that was attempting a left-hand turn and the driver was killed. Frei, Mims and Perushek filed a wrongful death suit against the driver and her employer. The case was complicated by witness accounts that the decedent was turning against a red light as well. Frei, Mims and Perushek successfully argued that the truck driver’s conduct was “willful and wanton” which negated any negligence of the plaintiff. The case settled 2 weeks before trial.

Motorcycle Car Collision Plaintiff Awarded $1.7 Million

A 50-year male was sitting on his Harley Davidson motorcycle when struck from behind by the defendant, driving a car owned by a car dealership after hours. The defendant had a BAC of .18. The defense admitted negligence but argued that the BAC was not a proximate cause of the accident. The defense also argued that the plaintiff’s injuries were pre-existing. Partner Gary Mims successfully established that the accident was caused by the defendant’s intoxication and caused the plaintiff’s injuries to become symptomatic. The jury awarded $1.7 million.

Accident Victim Successfully Fights Contributory Negligence Defense to Win $1.3 Million

A 44-year old female pedestrian was struck by an oncoming car as she crossed a residential road in Springfield. She suffered a traumatic brain injury with permanent cognitive deficits, rendering her unable to return to work as an occupational therapist. The driver’s attorneys put up several defenses: that her injuries were not as severe as claimed, that she may have had previous cognitive deficits, that her loss of earnings was overstated, and, that the woman was “contributory negligent.”

In Virginia, if a plaintiff is contributory negligent – that is, that his or her action or behavior in some way contributed to the injury or damages – then the plaintiff cannot recover anything. The defense claimed the pedestrian was contributory negligent because she had seen the defendant’s vehicle at a distance when she began to cross the road and that she did not look back again to see the approaching car.

At issue for both sides was where on the road the accident occurred. A bystander GoPro video captured the accident and showed that the oncoming car veered just over the center of the road just 1-2 seconds before impact. Under Virginia law, the plaintiff had the right to be on her side of the road and to reasonably expect the oncoming vehicle to stay in lane. Attorneys Steve Frei and Matt Roberson successfully argued that the pedestrian was not contributory negligent because she could not have gotten out of the way in the 1-2 seconds that the car veered into her lane.

The parties agreed to resolve the case through arbitration. Our firm successfully established the legitimacy of her lost future earnings, medical damages, and pain and suffering. The arbitrator found in favor of the plaintiff and returned an award of $1,373,689.09.

Crossing Guard Struck by SUV Case Settles for Victim

Plaintiff was a crossing guard at a local high school when he was struck by an SUV. Although liability was clear, the essential issue in the case was how to distinguish plaintiff’s physical condition post-collision from his pre-existing condition. Plaintiff had been treated for multiple physical injuries prior to the collision as a result of neurological damage he sustained from an electrical accident. Frei, Mims and Perushek was able to successfully convince the defense that there was exacerbation to plaintiff’s condition as a result of the collision. Case settled for $400K.

Victim’s Own Insurance Company was not “On Her Side” in Uninsured Drunk Driver, Head-on Collison

Frei, Mims and Perushek tried to help this client avoid legal costs, but the client’s insurance company refused to negotiate in good faith in this case of clear liability and extensive injuries. A woman was driving on a single-lane road when a drunk driver crossed the double yellow line and struck her head on. The woman sustained numerous, serious injuries requiring surgery and other treatment. Partner Gary Mims advised the woman that she should be able to settle with her own insurance company, without a lawyer, and that he would help her through the process without charging her a fee. However, her insurance company refused to make an offer, leaving her no choice but to retain us to file suit. Shortly before trial, after we identified as witnesses her seven treating doctors, the insurance company finally offered $475,000 (of her $500,00 policy.)