Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

An Illinois truck accident case was reviewed by the Illinois Appellate Court to determine whether or not the trial court had erred in its delivery of jury instructions and whether the jury had awarded too much damages. However, after reviewing the case facts, the appellate court upheld the trial court proceedings and eventual verdict in Andrzej Chraca v. Steven Miles, 2011 Ill.App. (1st) 100537-U.

The Chraca lawsuit involved a 2004 car crash between Andrzej Chraca and Steven Miles. Chraca was driving an SUV at the time, while Miles was driving an Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) truck. Both Chraca and Miles suffered degrees of paralysis following the Schaumburg truck accident and both drivers filed personal injury lawsuits against each other.

The two cases were consolidated into one personal injury lawsuit by the Circuit Court of Cook County. At the end of the trial, the court ruled in favor of Chraca and against Miles. Chraca was awarded $23.8 million in damages, which was broken down as follows:

-$500,000 for disfigurement;
-$593,335 for past medical expenses;
-$3.5 million for future medical expenses;
-$2.5 million for past and future pain and suffering; and
-$18 million for past and future loss of a normal life.

Continue reading "Illinois Appellate Court Upholds $23.8M in SUV Crash with Illinois Department of Transportation Truck - Chraca v. Miles" »

A Chicago jury awarded a train engineer damages for an injury he sustained while operating a Metra train; Clarence Hatchett v. Metra, 09 L 5185. The award came after a Cook County injury trial in which the railroad attempted to prove the train engineer was at fault for his own injury, a theory that the jury seemed to agree with - it apportioned 70% of the train accident to the engineer.

The train injury took place in January 2009, while the plaintiff, Clarence Hatchett, was employed by Metra Rail. Hatchett was about to depart from Chicago's Union Station on Metra's Milwaukee District North Central Line when he did what many driver's do before departing- he tried to adjust his engineer's seat.

At the Cook County trial Hatchett explained that he determines his seat back position based on his ability to easily reach the automatic break. However, Hatchett was unable to reach his ideal seat position because the seat back was stuck in a forward position, leaving him roughly six inches further forward than he would have liked. However, Hatchett made no further attempts to adjust the stuck train seat and departed from Union Station.

As Hatchett's train approached the line's track crossovers located near Franklin Park, he needed to reach back to apply the automatic break. As he did so, Hatchett heard a loud pop and felt immediate pain in his left shoulder. A later diagnosis revealed that Hatchett had sustained from a torn tendon in his left rotator cuff, for which he would require a total shoulder replacement.

Despite the prior existence of Grade III and Grade IV shoulder injuries, Hatchett attributed the rotator cuff tear to the pop he heard while reaching for the automatic break. He brought a FELA lawsuit against his employer, Metra, for the medical bills related to the injury, his lost time from work, and general pain and suffering.

Continue reading "Train Engineer Receives Jury Verdict for Injury to Shoulder While Applying Train Brake - Hatchett v. Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corp." »

The Illinois Appellate Court recently affirmed a trial court's exclusion of photographs during a Cook County trial. The issue in Sylvester Scales v. Joseph Benne, No. 1-10-2253 (2011), was whether or not the photographs were barred from evidence because the plaintiff's attorney had not produced them to opposing counsel prior to the start of the trial.

The personal injury lawsuit involved a pedestrian accident in which the parties were disputing whether the defendant's car had struck the plaintiff, or whether the plaintiff had walked into the defendant's car. At the time of the car accident, Joseph Benne's car was in the left-turn lane at the intersection of North and Clybourn Avenues and Sylvester Scales was walking in the same area. At trial, Benne testified that he heard a "thud" on the side of his car; the assumption being that this noise represented the impact with Scales.

Benne also testified that the the turn-lane at the North and Clybourn intersection was long enough to accommodate six cars and that at the time of the car accident his vehicle was fourth or fifth in line. This testimony is significant because vehicles only owe pedestrians a duty if they are within the crosswalk. So if the defense can show that the pedestrian accident occurred four or five car lengths southeast of the crosswalk, then it can show that the defendant driver did not owe a duty to the pedestrian.

In order to refute this testimony, Scales's attorneys intended to use two photographs of the intersection taken from GoogleMaps and MapQuest and a photograph depicting the make and model of Benne's car taken from Autotrader.com. However, Benne's attorney moved to have the photographs excluded on the grounds that Scales's attorney had not produced them until that point. The judge granted the defendant's request and the plaintiff was unable to use the three photographs. The Cook County jury went on to enter a verdict in favor of Benne; Scales's attorney appealed this verdict based on argument that the outcome would have been different if the court had allowed the use of the three photographs at trial.

Continue reading "Photographs for Cross-Examination Are Excluded When Not Produced Prior to Trial - Scales v. Benne" »

A McHenry County jury returned the second highest personal injury verdict in the county's history when it entered a $897,000 verdict in the case of David Fuller v. Richmond Burton High School, District 157, et al., 07 L 317 (McHenry County). The case involved a 2007 intersection accident that occurred between the plaintiff, David Fuller, and the defendant school bus driver, Rhonda Fiumetto.

The accident occurred at the intersection of Route 173 and Lakeview Road in Richmond Township. At the time of the bus accident, Fuller was attempting to make a left-hand turn onto Lakeview Road when Fiumetto's bus drove into Fuller's car. Fuller's car had been stopped at the time of impact, but the bus was going in excess of 45 mph. The force of the impact caused Fuller's car to be pushed into oncoming traffic, at which point he was hit head-on by a minivan.

While Fuller suffered some superficial face wounds and cuts, the main outcome of the intersection accident was a compression fracture of the L2 vertebrae in Fuller's upper spine. Within twenty-four hours of the bus accident, Fuller underwent extensive surgery to try to repair his spinal fracture. Since that time, Fuller has undergone an additional two spinal fusion surgeries. In his personal injury complaint, Fuller contended that he is permanently disabled and has lost his prior employment as a sheet metal worker.

Continue reading "Jury Reaches $897,000 Verdict in Head-On Collision After Rear-End Impact From School Bus - Fuller v. Richmond Burton High School" »

As the holiday season approaches, drivers need to be even more aware of their surroundings. This added caution is necessary not only because of worsening road conditions as winter weather sets in, but also because of increasing traffic and distracted drivers. Whether hurrying to the mall to partake in Black Friday deals, or to grandma's to partake in some pumpkin pie, drivers can be preoccupied during the holiday season. Therefore, it is increasingly important to be on the lookout and drive cautiously during the holidays in order to avoid car accidents.

The personal injury case of Alan L. Valdez v. Kevin Claes and Ricky Heidner, No. 09 L 63023, demonstrates what can happen when one or both drivers is not paying attention. The 2007 car accident occurred at the T-intersection of Bonded Parkway and Brandy Parkway in Streamwood, Illinois. The plaintiff, Alan Valdez, was driving south on Bonded Parkway and was then heading left onto Brandy Parkway. At the same time, defendant Kevin Claes was driving westbound on Brandy Parkway when his vehicle struck the driver side door of Valdez's car.

As a result of the car crash, Valdez suffered a strain across his cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine areas. In addition, he sustained a bulging disc in his lower back, which ended up progressing to a herniated disc just two months after the intersection accident.

Continue reading "$349,000 Jury Verdict for Injured Driver at T-Intersection - Valdez v. Claes" »

A Chicago ironworker was unable to convince a Cook County jury that another construction worker was responsible for his construction site accident and injuries. Instead the jury decided in favor of the defendant construction company in Anthony Silva v. O’Sullivan Plumbing, Inc., 06 L 13525, and denied the plaintiff damages for his construction site injury.

Anthony Silva was an ironworker employed by Walsh Construction, a general contracting construction management company. At the time of his 2004 construction injury, Silva was working on the Shoreham Residential project located at 400 E. South Water St. in Chicago. Silva was performing work on a plumbing pipe that was located between two concrete walls that would be used to create the elevator core walls.

At trail, Silva testified that he had followed the required safety protocol by using a tie-wire to tie by the concrete form wall back in order to expose the pipe so that he could work behind the form walls. However, while he was working, the tied-back form wall fell and struck Silva on his back and wrist. He required surgeries for both his cervical disc injury and his wrist injuries.

Continue reading "Jury Finds for Construction Company in Ironworker Injury at Loop High-Rise - Silva v. O'Sullivan Plumbing" »

The Illinois Appellate Court clarified the duty owed to pedestrians who are outside of set crosswalks in the personal injury lawsuit of Amanda Jimolka v. Chicago Transit Authority, et al., No. 1-10-2894 (2011). The court held that motorists only owe a duty to pedestrians who are within the limits of an identified crosswalk. As a result, the Jimolka matter was dismissed based on evidence that the plaintiff was not within a crosswalk at the time of her injury.

The bus accident at issue occurred in August 2001 near the intersection of Belmont Ave. and Clark St. in Chicago. The plaintiff, Beverly Longo, was walking across the street when she was hit by a CTA bus. Although Longo was outside the crosswalk when she was hit, her guardian alleged that the CTA and its bus driver were still at fault in the pedestrian accident.

Longo's attorneys contended that she was not in the crosswalk because of heavy pedestrian traffic and also blamed a bike rider who was making a delivery for a sandwich shop. Longo claimed because of these impediments, she was unable to walk in the crosswalk and was forced to walk in other areas. Longo also accused the bus driver of speeding and claimed that if he had been driving at a normal speed that the bus accident could have been avoided.

Continue reading "Illinois Appellate Court Affirms That Walking Outside of a Crosswalk is Pedestrian Negligence- Longo v. Chicago Transit Authority" »

While most lawsuits are tried in the same state where they occurred, an Indiana construction accident was recently the subject of an Illinois personal injury lawsuit. The Indiana injury was tried in Illinois because one of the defendant's businesses was based out of Illinois. However, to make John Mazzorana v. Berglund Construction Co., et al., No. 06 L 12451, even more unique, although the case was tried in Illinois, the court applied Indiana law.

The personal injury lawsuit was brought by John Mazzorana, an Indiana resident who was working as a bricklayer for Hawk Construction at construction site in Chesterton, Indiana. The 2006 Indiana construction accident occurred after Mazzorana fell 30 feet after stepping on a plank. The Indiana resident ruptured his Achilles tendon and fractured both his heel and a vertebrae.

Berglund Construction Co. was the general contractor for the Indiana construction job and as such was one of the main defendants in the construction accident lawsuit. Bergland Construction was based out of Illinois and so moved to remove the Indiana lawsuit to Illinois courts, a move Mazzorana's attorneys agreed to. However, Berglund then settled its portion of the lawsuit with Mazzorana for $400,000 prior to the start of the Illinois trial. Therefore, the only remaining parties in the Illinois lawsuit were all based out of Indiana.

Continue reading "Bricklayer Who Fell at Construction Site Awarded $8.3 Million; Mazzorana v. Emil Perrotta Co." »

An Illinois jury awarded $1.7 million to the surviving family members of a man who was hit by a semi-tractor trailer; Estate of Edward Kolodzik v. Cesar Castillo, VBD Transport, Inc., MLP Transport, Inc., No. 04 L 3715. While the decedent, Edward Kolodzik, survived the crash, he died five years later, allegedly from complications arising from the Illinois trucking accident.

The Illinois trucking accident occurred on Illinois Interstate 39/90 near Rockford, Illinois. Kolodzik was driving his car when he was struck by a Mack semi-tractor trailer driven by Cesar Castillo. Kolodzik suffered from a traumatic brain injury and right shoulder and lower back musculoskeletal injuries. As a result of these injuries, the 49 year-old Kolodzik became disabled and dependent on pain medication to relieve his severe shoulder and lower back pain.

A personal injury lawsuit was brought against the truck driver and his employers for their liability in Kolodzik's injuries and resulting medical condition. When Kolodzik died five years after the truck accident, his wife and five minor children further alleged that his death was a result of his poor health and medical condition following the highway accident.

Continue reading "$1.7 Million Jury Verdict Awarded to Driver for Injury Suffered After Rear-End by 18-Wheeler Truck - Kolodzik v. Castillo" »

A Missouri judge declared a mistrial in a class action lawsuit against tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris USA because the jurors had still not come to a decision after five days of deliberation. The Missouri lawsuit was first filed in 2000 and included claims that the cigarette company had misled smokers through its claims that "light" cigarettes were safer than regular cigarettes.

While other tobacco companies have employed similarly misleading language by advertising "light" or "low tar" cigarettes, the St. Louis personal injury lawsuit specifically focuses on Philip Morris. It alleges that Philip Morris was in violation of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act due to its false claims that its Marlboro Lights contained less tar and nicotine than its Marlboro Reds.

Since being filed in 2000, the Missouri lawsuit had undergone eleven years and several twists and turns, including an appeal and several trips to the federal court. And while St. Louis Circuit Judge Michael David put an end to the current litigation cycle, the case can still be retried. And according to the plaintiffs' attorney, there are already plans in the works to begin retrying the class action lawsuit.

Continue reading "Judge Declares Mistrial in $700 Million Tobacco Lawsuit" »

The November 2011 issue of the Illinois Bar Journal contains an article entitled “Creditors Are Not Freeloaders: The Common Fund Doctrine Does Not Apply to Hospital Lienholders.” The law article was written by Kreisman Law Office principal Robert D. Kreisman. Kreisman has been representing Illinois plaintiffs in personal injury and medical malpractice lawsuits for over 35 years in the Chicago and Cook County areas.

The Illinois Bar Journal article analyzes a recent Illinois Supreme Court decision in Wendling v. Southern Illinois Hospital Services, 242 Ill.2d 261, 950 N.E.2d 646 (2011). The Wendling case was significant in that the court's decision removed any doubt as to whether or not the common fund doctrine applies to a healthcare services lien; the Supreme Court determined that the common fund doctrine does not apply.

In litigation, the general rule is that each party is responsible for paying his or her own attorney fees and costs. However, the common fund doctrine is an exception to that general rule. Under the common fund doctrine is applied when a common fund is created through the efforts of the litigant's attorney, which in turn ends up benefiting a third party. When this occurs, the attorney who created the common fund can recover reasonable fees and costs from the third party, even though he/she is not technically the attorney's client.

Continue reading "Illinois Bar Journal Publishes Tort Law Article Written by Robert D. Kreisman" »

A Cook County jury entered a $600,000 verdict in the auto accident lawsuit of Joseph Barbin v. United Parcel Service Inc. and Jorge D. Hernandez, No. 07 L 12572. While it is not unusual for a court to rule in favor of the plaintiff in a rear-end accident, what is unique about Barbin is that the accident was caused as a result of the defendant driver's failure to obey emergency vehicle traffic laws.

The plaintiff had been hit by the defendant driver while waiting at an intersection for an ambulance to pass. Joseph Barbin was approaching the intersection of North Ave. and First Ave. in Melrose Park when he noted an ambulance approaching with its siren and lights activated. Barbin joined a line of two other vehicles in waiting for the ambulance to pass. However, it was while Barbin was waiting for the ambulance to pass that he was rear-ended by Jorge Hernandez.

Hernandez was driving a UPS package car at the time of the rear-end accident. The impact of Hernandez's truck with Barbin's vehicle caused not only severe whiplash, but also resulted in a herniated disc in Barbin's cervical spine. Barbin underwent a fusion and discectomy surgery at the C4-5 level, but will need future surgery above and below the C4-5 spine in order to repair his cervical spine.

Continue reading "$600,000 Verdict for Plaintiff Hit by UPS Driver While Stopped in Traffic for Ambulance - Barbin v. United Parcel Service" »

A Chicago jury awarded $850,000 to a Chicago construction employee who suffered severe injuries after falling from his work on elevated train tracks. The personal injury verdict in Raul Luna et al. v. Chicago Transit Authority, Kiewit Western Co., Divane Brothers Electric Co., et al., No. 07 L 12550, came despite evidence that suggested the employee was injured because he violated some of the construction site's safety requirements.

Raul Luna was an industrial painter employed by SCI Coatings, LLC. At the time of his construction site accident, Luna was working on Chicago Transit Authority's (CTA) elevated railroad tracks as part of the CTA's Chicago Loop renovation project. Luna was brought in to help sandblast and paint columns on the Van Buren St. train tracks between State St. and Wabash Ave. Because the train tracks were elevated, workers were using a manlift to reach the above ground areas. This essentially involved workers securing themselves using a harness-like device in order to prevent them from falling in the event that they slipped while working above ground.

In addition to his painting duties, Luna was also responsible of removing the construction site's containment structure, which was constructed of tarps and wood two-by-fours. In order to reach the top of containment structure, Luna used the manlift as required by the job's safety requirements. Luna proceeded to remove the nails from the two-by-fours in order to break down the containment structure. However, at some point Luna untied himself from the manlift, exited its basket area, and began to crawl across the elevated tracks.

It was while crawly unprotected across the tracks that Luna fell; one of the two-by-fours broke as Luna was removing a nail, sending him falling to the street below. Luna sustained an epidural hematoma, a comminuted displaced wrist fracture, and a comminuted fibula fracture. The fibula fracture required an internal fixation surgery so that Luna's bones would heal properly. In addition, Luna suffered from a traumatic brain injury, which left him with cognitive, psychological, and behavioral deficits following his construction site injury.

Continue reading "$850,000 Jury Award for Painter Who Falls From Elevated Train Tracks - Luna v. Chicago Transit Authority" »

In the recent case of Vincent v. Alden-Park Strathmoor, Inc., No. 110406, 2011 WL 1077706 (Ill.Sup.Ct.), the Supreme Court reviewed the nursing home malpractice lawsuit to determine whether or not punitive damages are allowed in the event that the wronged party is deceased. The Vincent case was filed by the family members of Majorie Vincent, an elderly resident of Alden-Park Strathmoor, after Majorie died while living at the long-term nursing facility.

Majorie's family filed a complaint under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, which alleged that Alden-Park had violated the Act through its negligent and abusive treatment of Majorie. The complaint specifically accused Alden-Park of failing to provide Majorie with adequate medical and personal care and was willful and want in its conscious and reckless disregard of her health and safety.

In its complaint, the plaintiffs reserved the right to seek punitive damages, which are damages awarded as punishment for the defendant's willful and wanton behavior. And while the plaintiffs did not seek the damages in their original complaint, they did reserve the right to do so at a later date. However, the defendants brought a motion seeking to bar the plaintiffs from requesting punitive damages at any time. The motion was based on the general assumption because the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act does not specifically state whether or not punitive damages survive a person's death, that they do not.

Continue reading "Illinois Supreme Court Holds Again that Punitive Damage Claims Do Not Survive an Injured Person's Death - Vincent v. Alden-Park Strathmoor" »

While many people suffer from food allergies, the severity of those allergies varies. For example, some people might break out in a rash that is then easily treated with Benadryl, while others may suffer from more serious, life-threatening reactions. Yet whether your food allergy is mild or severe, it is important to make your waiter aware of your allergy when dining out. However, mistakes have been known to happen and an ingredient which you are allergic to might inadvertently end up in your order.

This sort of mix-up was the subject of the Chicago personal injury case of Eva Holmes White v. Chai H. Leung, d/b/a Choice China Wok, Leung Choice China Wok 10L-2254. In 2004, Eva White ordered the lunch special at Choice China Wok, a Chinese restaurant located at 10341 S. Halsted St. Because Ms. White is allergic to shrimp, she asked that the shrimp egg foo young, the shrimp fried rice, and the shrimp egg roll that were included in the special be substituted with chicken.

After receiving her order, White returned to her car to eat her food. Before eating her egg roll, White reported that she broke it in half and checked that there was not any shrimp in her egg roll. After determining that there was not, she proceeded to take a bite. However, immediately after that she noticed that there was in fact shrimp in her egg roll.

Continue reading "Jury Finds Chicago Chinese Restaurant Not Liable for Allergic Reaction to Egg Roll - White v. Leung" »