Personal Injury - Automobile Accident Windfall Settlement

Plaintiff was rear ended by defendant in a low velocity impact car accident. Liability was admitted immediately. Plaintiff however wanted a windfall settlement. Glenn Barger, a partner with Smith Freed & Eberhard was hired to represented the defendant.

The property damage involved in the collision was minimal, consisting of scratches to the plaintiff’s rear bumper cover, and damage to the defendant’s license plate holder. The total damage was less than $500. Despite the nature of the collision, Plaintiff alleged over $38,000 in damages including chiropractic treatment, massage therapy as well as pain and suffering. Plaintiff claimed she suffered a permanent soft tissue injury to her neck. The alleged medical condition was said to affect plaintiff’s every day activities including work and caring for her child.

Settlement was unattainable due to the plaintiff’s unrealistic expectations of recovery. A three day jury trial was necessary. Plaintiff presented three expert witnesses including her primary care physician, her chiropractor and an accident reconstruction/chiropractor. All testified that plaintiff was permanently injured in the accident.

Defendant presented the testimony of a bio-medical engineer who analyzed the property damage involved in the accident, the speeds of the vehicles, the gravitational forces exerted on the plaintiff as a result of the forces in the collision, as well as the plaintiff’s gravitational force tolerances as exhibited in her medical records. Ultimately, the opinion of the defense expert was that plaintiff sustained less than 1lb per square inch of force on her neck as a result of the collision. The accident’s forces were well below the forces exerted on her body in daily activities as well as the very treatment she received after the accident. The defense expert’s opinion was that accident did not generate sufficient forces to cause an injury to the plaintiff.

The jury came back with an 11-1 verdict in favor of the defense; resulting in no compensation to the plaintiff.