Verdicts and Settlements for Injury Victims
High School Sports Injury - Paralysis - $2.75 Million Settlement
Our attorneys obtained a combination cash and annuity settlement on behalf of a Central Valley 13-year-old who suffered permanent paralysis as a result of unsupervised horseplay before football practice for his sophomore football team. In the course of roughhousing, one team member jumped on our injured client, severing his spine. The school district claimed that fault for the incident rested with the child and his schoolmates. The settlement included a cash payment of $2,750,000, with the balance directed to multiple annuities providing for increased levels of support and assistance throughout the child's life as his needs increase. Our attorneys demonstrated that the conduct of school officials in failing to properly supervise the children during a school-sponsored activity violated the California Education Code.
Police Misconduct - Wrongful Death - $1.5 Million Settlement
Our wrongful death specialists negotiated a settlement in the amount of $1,500,000 against a local police department for the wrongful death of a bank executive who was mistakenly arrested for being drunk in public. In fact, the decedent had fallen and suffered from a subdural hematoma. Under the police department's then-existing policy, "suspected drunks" were placed in holding cells until they sobered up. When the deceased could not be roused after five hours in a district station, medical personnel were summoned, but it was too late to prevent his death from global brain damage. Our attorneys recovered pre-death medical specials of $300,000, plus an amount to compensate the surviving heirs for the decedent's lost future earnings in his occupation as a bank vice president at a national financial institution.
Residential Fire - Wrongful Death - $1.5 Million Settlement
Our premises liability team represented the mother and father of a 23-year-old college student who needlessly and tragically died when the rented apartment in which he slept, owned by a Bay Area landlord, burned because the landlord negligently left a sofa over a floor furnace and failed to equip the home with functioning smoke detectors. Our attorneys proved that the landlord, who owned more than 60 properties, had failed to make required and proper inspections and to make certain that smoke detectors were in working order. After the fire, our attorneys, through investigators, demonstrated that not a single operational smoke detector was present on the second floor of the dwelling unit where our clients' son perished. The settlement, in the amount of $1,500,000, was paid by the insurance company for the property owner.
Failure to Supervise Resident - Burns - $900,000 Settlement
Our abuse and neglect attorneys obtained a settlement in the amount of $900,000 on behalf of a 79-year-old woman who was burned by scalding coffee at a Bay Area senior assisted care living center. Our client, who was having dinner in the facility dining room, was injured when a deranged co-resident poured coffee over her head, resulting in second- and third-degree burns, skin grafting and inpatient hospitalization. Our attorneys brought suit under the provisions of California Welfare & Institutions Code §15610.35, California's elder abuse statute. The recovery, against the residential care facility, alleged that the owners and operators were negligent in their supervision of residents and had negligently failed to segregate dangerous residents, as well as those suffering from dementia, from the general population of the facility. The recovery included compensation for past medical expenses, pain and suffering, and the cost of future treatment for burn-related cosmetic surgery.
Amusement Park Injury - Shoulder Injury - $425,000 Settlement
Our team of attorneys negotiated a settlement in the amount of $425,000 on behalf of a high school student who was injured in the collapse of a water slide in Concord, California. The child was attending her senior class picnic at the facility when the slide broke. Out attorneys demonstrated that the manager of the water park was negligent in understaffing the park and permitting teenagers to overload and "clog" the slide. The on-duty attendant was undertrained and inexperienced. Our client, who was an accomplished amateur tennis player, sustained a permanent injury to her shoulder when the slide collapsed. Her medical expenses totaled $50,000.
School Abuse - Emotional and Physical Injuries - $250,000 Settlement
Walkup attorneys negotiated a cash and annuity settlement having a total cash value of $250,000 on behalf of a 9-year-old boy who was physically and verbally abused by his teacher over a six-month period. The mistreatment culminated in the teacher's throwing the child across the room into a wall. Shortly thereafter, the teacher was terminated. The defendants included the day care facility and the teacher. Our attorneys demonstrated that the facility had received numerous complaints from other parents regarding this very same teacher mistreating other children during the same period of time and before our minor client was abused. Our client sustained significant emotional distress as a result of the teacher's actions.
Falling Store Merchandise - Lacerations/Scarring - $200,000 Settlement
Our premises liability team negotiated a settlement with a value in excess of $200,000 on behalf of a 3-year-old child who was seriously injured when a display fell on her at the defendant's home center. The child was at the store shopping with her parents when the accident occurred. The managers of the store attempted to claim that the display collapse was the fault of the child or her parents for not supervising the youngster. Our team was able to successfully argue that in California, a child under the age of 5 is incapable of contributory fault. The display, which incorporated a door jamb and advertised the availability of replacement home doors, weighed more than 100 pounds. The child's injuries included severe lacerations that resulted in permanent scarring notwithstanding plastic surgery.
Defective Restaurant Chair - Back Injury - $125,000+ Settlement
Our premises team obtained a settlement exceeding $125,000 on behalf of a 36-year-old woman injured at a Lyon's Restaurant when the seat she was sitting on failed, causing her to spill forward onto the floor. As a result of the fall, our client developed chronic back pain that was ultimately diagnosed as a herniated disk. The herniation was treated with minimally invasive surgery. The defendant restaurant claimed, originally, that the accident had never occurred because it had not been reported. After extensive investigation, our team was able to identify a former waitress who confirmed that the bench from which our client fell had been broken for an extended period of time before the injury. Our client's medical bills exceeded $12,000.
