Pedestrian Accident in New York
After jury selection, Bill Hepner obtained a $530,000.00 recovery for our client who was injured when his car got a flat tire on the Cross Island Parkway. Bill claimed that there was only a small shoulder for plaintiff and his mother, who was following him, to pull off the road because of the negligence of a construction company working in the area. He argued that a larger shoulder had been blocked by barrels placed there by defendant. After plaintiff's mother parked on the shoulder of the exit ramp, her car was struck from behind by another vehicle and was pushed into plaintiff, who was standing in between his car and his mother's vehicle.
Considering the location of the vehicles, liability would have been difficult to prove against the construction company, because the investigating police officer could not corroborate that the shoulder was blocked. However, Bill obtained a multitude of construction documents in discovery and together with an expert witness, was able to persuade the construction company to provide a substantial portion of the settlement because its own documents did not appear to support its position. He even obtained a settlement from the insurance company of plaintiff's mother's vehicle, even though her car was not moving at the time of the accident, and was hit in the rear by another car. Bill claimed that she should not have stopped where she did.
Plaintiff, who was collecting disability insurance at the time of the accident due to three prior back surgeries, required a fourth surgery to his previously herniated disc, as well as arthroscopic surgery to both of his knees.