Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro, Moses & Halperin, LLP attorney Frank J. Lombardo obtained a settlement during discovery at a private mediation. The 29-year-old plaintiff was employed as a laborer and tripped and fell while carrying a metal beam with two other co-workers. The plaintiff sustained a lumbar herniated disc, which required a laminectomy and fusion. In addition to these injuries, the plaintiff required arthroscopic repairs of the left shoulder rotator cuff and left ankle collateral ligament.
The defense’s counsel contended that the plaintiff’s accident did not occur because it was not reported. They also attempted to discredit the plaintiff’s injuries by claiming that he returned to work after the incident and continued to work for one more month. The defense cited an emergency room record from one month after the accident, which noted a different account as to how the injury was sustained.