New Jersey Vehicle Accident Lawyers
Verdicts and Settlements
NEW JERSEY WOMAN ACCEPTS $960,000.00 FOR INJURIES
On June 1, 2010 a New Jersey woman accepted a $960,000.00 settlement award for injuries she sustained in an automobile accident.
Jane Reynolds (real name withheld for privacy), was a passenger in a wheel chair equipped van on February 16, 2008 when the van was struck by another vehicle that made a sudden left turn in front of the van. Ms. Reynolds, 55 years of age at the time of the accident, was a paraplegic since the age of sixteen. Despite being wheelchair bound, she led a very full and independent life. As a result of the accident, she sustained a bicondylar right tibial plateau fracture, fibula fracture, comminuted displaced intraarticular fracture of the right distal radius, and a supracondylar fracture of the right femur.
The defense argued that the injuries were not significant because Ms. Reynolds was a paraplegic prior to the accident and had not suffered any significant additional disability due to the accident related injuries. The attorneys at Lependorf and Silverstein argued that in fact the injuries that plaintiff sustained were more devastating to her then they would be to others as they caused her to lose the independence that she was able to enjoy prior to the accident. Significantly, they were able to successfully argue that her wrist injury robbed her of her independence as she was no longer able to transfer in and out of her chair.
With a trial date looming, the parties mediated the case for two days in front of a retired Judge before reaching the $960,000.00 settlement agreement.
$2.5M in New Jersey Truck Accident Case
Doe v. Solid Waste Services Inc.:
A trash hauling company agreed on March 3 to pay $2.5 million to a motorist injured in a crash with one of its tractor-trailers, settling a suit in Essex County.
[The motorist] was driving on the New Jersey Turnpike near Newark on July 23, 2001, when the truck tried to move from the left to the right lane, hitting the left front of his car. The car struck a guardrail, turned 180 degrees and lodged under the truck's trailer.
[The motorist] sued Solid Waste Services Inc. of Harrisburg, Pa., and its truck-owning subsidiary J.P. Mascaro & Sons, arguing the truck driver negligently changed lanes when [the victim]'s car was in his blind spot.
[The motorist] suffered severe clavicle and left hip fractures and a ruptured urethra that resulted in incontinence and partial sexual dysfunction. [He] is still employed as an administrator in Jersey City, but has nerve damage in his left foot, which makes walking difficult, said his lawyer, Gabriel Lependorf, of Lependorf & Silverstein in Princeton, who was assisted in the case by partner David Silverstein.
The defendants, represented by Stephan Fenster, a partner at Gallo Geffner & Fenster in Paramus, were prepared to contest liability and argue that [the victim] failed to undergo a medical procedure that might have mitigated his incontinence and sexual dysfunction.
The case had been listed for trial. The settlement was reached after two days of mediation with retired Superior Court Judge Edward Seaman.
The defendants had a $1 million policy with Wausau Insurance of Wausau, Wisc., and an excess coverage policy with AIG of New York.
- NEW JERSEY LAW JOURNAL, September 15, 2003
Arbitrator Awards $1.2 Million for Neck, Back Injuries in Car Crash
Poole v. National Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh: An arbitration panel on June 4 recommended an underinsured motorist's insurance award of $1.2 million for a woman's neck and back injuries in a rear-end car crash, though the plaintiff will recover only $900,000 in UIM benefits.
Sharon Poole, a saleswoman, was driving a company vehicle on Route 130 in East Windsor on April 25, 1997, when it was hit by another car, says her attorney, Gabriel Lependorf.
Poole, 49, formerly of East Windsor and now of Doylestown, Pa., had two disc removals and vertebrae fusions, and a vertebrae decompression. She is unable to work because of her injuries, says Lependorf, who handled the case together with David Silverstein, his partner at Lependorf & Silverstein in Princeton.
Allstate Insurance Co., the carrier for the other car's driver, paid Poole its full $100,000 bodily injury coverage. Poole then sought UIM coverage from National Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, the insurer for her employer at the time, Moore North America of Parsippany.
When National Fire refused Poole's request for its $1 million policy limit, she sued in Mercer County Superior Court. The case was referred to binding arbitration, as the policy required in coverage disputes, Lependorf says.
National Fire paid $900,000 because it was able to count Allstate's $100,000 payment as a credit, says Lependorf.
National Fire's attorney, John Sawicki of Stevens & Schwab in Secaucus, did not return calls for comment.
- NEW JERSEY LAW JOURNAL, June 14, 2004
Residual Problems from C2 fracture only issue left for trial
| SETTLEMENT | $375,000 |
| CASE COURT JUDGE DATE |
Anthony Giordano v. Joseph Barresi, No. MRS-L-1036-01 Morris County Superior Court, NJ W. Hunt Dumont 7/21/2003 |
| PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY(S) | Gabriel R. Lependorf, Lependorf & Silverstein, Princeton, NJ |
| DEFENSE ATTORNEY(S) | Joseph E. Kelley, Maloof, Lebowitz, Connahan & Oleske, Chatham, NJ |
FACTS AND ALLEGATIONS On Aug. 29, 1999, at approximately 9:30 p.m., a plaintiff Anthony Giordano, a 66-year-old retired vice president for Chase Manhattan bank, was driving his 1997 Honda Prelude west on Sunset Road in Pequannock Township in Morris County. Joseph Barresi was driving his 1996 GMC Jimmy 4X4 north on West Parkway. Barresi came to a stop sign at the corner of West and Sunset and allegedly ran it, striking Giordano on the driver's side.
Giordano sued Barresi for negligence.
Barresi did not contest liability.
INJURIES/DAMAGES depression; fracture; odontoid process
Giordano sustained a fracture of the C2 odontoid. He had a transverse process, requiring two months in a hard collar and two more months in a soft collar. He spent eight days at Morristown Memorial Hospital and 16 days at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. His medicals were in excess of $70,000, but were all covered by the no-fault carrier. There was no lost-wage claim.
He claimed significant residual problems from the fracture and depression.
Barresi claimed that the fracture healed well with only minor residual problems and disputed Giordano's alleged depression.
| RESULT | The parties settled for $375,000 |
| INSURER(S) | State Farm for Barresi |
| EXPERT(S) | None reported |
EDITOR'S NOTE Defense attorney Joseph Kelley was out of the office for personal reasons and did not contribute to this report.
- New Jersey Reporter-Alison Love
Logan v. Porter - On August 30, 2005 Robert Logan accepted a settlement of $400,000.00 for injuries that he sustained in an automobile accident on July 9, 2002. Mr. Logan sustained soft tissue injuries to his neck and back and alleged a closed head injury. Although Mr. Logan lost no time from his employment at Princeton University, he complained of memory deficits and post-traumatic headaches. His attorney, Gabriel R. Lependorf, was successful in proving that although he lost no time from work, his quality of life was impacted due to his injuries.
$370,000 for Injuries in New Jersey Auto Accident
| SETTLEMENT | $370,000 |
| CASE | Malhotra v. Paula Massberg, No. L-264-05 |
| COURT | Mercer County Superior Court, NJ |
| JUDGE | Mary C. Jacobson |
| DATE | 7/25/2007 |
| PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY(S) | Gabriel R. Lependorf, Lependorf & Silverstein, P.C., Princeton, NJ |
| DEFENSE ATTORNEY(S) | Keith Bursack, Law Office of Doreen Ryan, Wall, NJ |
Facts & Allegations On Dec. 23, 2003, at approximately noon, plaintiff Vivek Malhotra, a software engineer, 48, was driving a sedan in the left hand lane on Route One South in West Windsor Township. Near the road's intersection with Harrison Street, a vehicle being driven by Paula Massberg came from plaintiff's right, pulled in front of his lane of travel and came to a stop. Malhotra could not stop in time and a collision occurred.
Malhotra sued Massberg, alleging negligence.
Defendant stipulated to liability, but disputed the nature, causation and extent of the claimed injuries. This case was a no-threshold, or zero threshold, matter.
Injuries/Damages Malhotra sustained a neck strain that nearly fully healed. He also suffered from a left (non-dominant) thumb basal joint injury that was treated with two steroid injections and only gives plaintiff pain with increased activity. The plaintiff also suffered left foot neuropathic paresthesia that began to give him trouble approximately four months after the accident but continues to cause a near constant electrical feel in his inner left foot and heal. No treatment has been rendered for this problem. The plaintiff's expert opined that Malhotra's injuries healed except thumb may continue to give him ongoing pain.
The defense argued that the injuries were preexisting or degenerative based on MRI film. The defense expert opined that the neck and thumb problems resolved. The expert admitted that the foot condition was related to the accident but opined that he suffered no pain or disability from the condition.
Result The jury found that the plaintiff sustained injuries arising from the accident. Malhotra was awarded $370,000.
| RESULT | $370,000 |
| DEMAND | $40,000 |
| OFFER | $25,000 |
| INSURER(S) | Allstate |
| Trial Details | Trial Length: 2 Days Jury Deliberations: 1.5 Hours Jury Poll: 6-0 Jury Composition: 1 male, 5 female |
| EXPERT(S) | Plaintiff: Richard Chang, M.D., orthopedics, Bridgewater, NJ (Gabriel R. Lependorf) (treating) Defense: Thomas K. Bills, M.D., orthopedics, Lawrenceville, NJ (Keith Bursack) |
- Written By Ivan Alexander
Bicyclist fell avoiding pickup truck, damaging both wrists
| SETTLEMENT | $225,000 |
| CASE | Jonathan Vogel v. Cheryl Davis, No. ESX-2104-05 |
| COURT | Essex County Superior Court, NJ |
| JUDGE | Theodore A. Winard |
| DATE | 8/14/2007 |
| PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY(S) | David E. Silverstein, Lependorf & Silverstein, P.C., Princeton, NJ |
| DEFENSE ATTORNEY(S) | Chad B. Sponder, Hardin Kundla, McKeon & Poletto, P.A., Springfield, NJ |
Facts & Allegations On July 24, 2004, plaintiff Jonathan Vogel, 34, rode his bicycle down Wyoming Avenue in South Orange, with his two-year-old son strapped in a children's seat on the back. As Vogel was about to pass Redmond Road, a black Toyota pickup made a right turn in front of them. In order to avoid contact with pickup, Vogel veered sharply off the shoulder and into a grassy yard, where the bicycle fell to the side. Vogel extended both hands to break the fall.
Two bystanders ran after the truck and stopped the driver, Cheryl Davis, who later said she hadn't stopped because she hadn't felt anything: the pickup and the bicycle never made contact.
Vogel suffered abrasions and scrapes, and his helmet even cracked, but his child was fine. Within months, the real estate developer and avid bicyclist realized that his wrists were not healing.
"He's the type of guy that, on his honeymoon for instance, went to Alaska and hiked through the woods," plaintiff's counsel later commented.
Vogel sued Davis for motor vehicle negligence, alleging that she suddenly turned right and left him no choice but to steer off the shoulder. Counsel argued that a motorist has the duty to yield to bicyclists.
The defense contested liability. Davis said she thought she had enough time to turn. The defense argued that Vogel should have been aware of the pickup and slowed to allow Davis to make the turn.
INJURIES/DAMAGES
Jonathan Vogel sustained ligament damage in both wrists. He didn't seek medical attention for several months, but by September he realized that his wrists were not healing and sought medical treatment.
Vogel underwent arthroscopic surgery on March 9, 2005, but it helped little. On Dec. 12, 2006, the right-handed attorney underwent a second surgery to his right wrist, called Blatt Catsulodesis, which includes internal fixation with pins. On Feb.1, 2007, he had the hardware removed.
Vogel missed no work. All medicals were covered by PIP.
Vogel claimed pain and suffering; he still has pain in the wrists.
The physician for the second surgery, Scott W. Wolfe, M.D., determined that Vogel would suffer permanent residual pain.
"It's not like he's a concert violinist or a pitcher," plaintiff's counsel David Silverstein, later said. "He has trouble using his computer mouse and trouble playing tennis and kayaking.?
The defendant's medical expert, Ross J. Fox, M.D., basically agreed that the Vogel needed the second surgery, saying, "I will concede to Dr. Wolfe's recommendations on this patient."
Silverstein later added, "It was refreshing to get a doctor who agreed with Dr. Wolfe and agreed that this guy was really hurt and needed the surgery."
| RESULT | Cheryl Davis held a $250,000 policy with Encompass Insurance Co. Jonathan Vogel settled for $225,000. |
| INSURER(S) | Encompass Insurance Co. |
| PLAINTIFF EXPERT(S) | Scott Wolfe, M.D., orthopedic surgery, New York, NY |
| DEFENSE EXPERT(S) | Ross Fox, M.D., orthopedic surgery, |
| EDITOR'S NOTE | This report is based on an interview with plaintiff's counsel. The defense did not respond to phone calls |
- Stephen Kurczy
Bridgen v Ablett - On August 23, 2005 John Bridgen accepted a settlement of $200,000.00 for injuries he sustained while bicycling in Franklin Township, New Jersey on October 12, 2003. Mr. Bridgen sustained a fractured orbital bone, a fractured clavicle and a fracture to his left thumb when his bicycle was struck by an automobile operated by the defendant.
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