In what is becoming more and more frequent, the case involved a very low-speed sideswipe motor vehicle collision, with a plaintiff who nonetheless alleged very significant injuries – including three surgeries (neck, back and shoulder). Plaintiff also alleged a significant past/future lost wage claim. The Firm represented the defendant-employer, a railroad transportation company, who owned/operated the vehicle plaintiff occupied. The Jury returned a mid-five-figure verdict, which was significantly lower than the seven-figure demand sought by plaintiff.
The trial team was able to cross-examine the plaintiff’s physicians to great effect, demonstrating that the physicians relied upon plaintiff’s subjective complaints to determine causation, but they had no knowledge whatsoever as to how the accident occurred, and had been completely unaware of the plaintiff’s significant pre-existing treatment history. The trial team was also able to demonstrate that plaintiff himself was completely unreliable, that he failed to disclose his prior treatment, and was generally unsympathetic. Surveillance footage was also used to great effect, which showed the plaintiff lifting hundreds of pounds at the gym. The trial team was led by John A. Bonventre and Alex Marcus.