Slip and Fall
While shopping in a Queens cell phone store, our client suffered a neck injury when she slipped and fell on a glossy poster that had fallen onto the floor.
As our client walked around the small store viewing the cell phones on the shelves, she suddenly lost her footing on that glossy poster and fell backwards to the ground. While she was able to avoid her head hitting the floor, she described feeling her neck whip back as she fell. She was in pain and an ambulance was called to take her to the hospital where she complained of leg, hip and elbow pain. Only 4 days later, our client sought out a chiropractor due to her neck and back pain. After many physical therapy and chiropractor visits, an MRI revealed 3 bulging discs in her neck and a tear in her shoulder. She underwent shoulder surgery and a surgical procedure to her injured neck. Before the accident, the plaintiff was self-employed for over 20 years working as a door-to-door salesperson. Unfortunately, she was unable to return to work following her accident due to her debilitating neck pain.
Brielle C. Goldfaden mediated the case about 7 months before the trial date at which time the defense argued that the plaintiff should have seen the sign on the floor and avoided the accident, that the EMS and hospital records were devoid of any mention of neck pain, and that her bulging discs were degenerative and not caused by this fall. During the mediation, the defense only offered $100,000 to settle the case, which the plaintiff rejected. Brielle prepared the case for trial and a few weeks before jury selection was to commence, negotiations ramped up. Five days before jury selection, Brielle settled the case for $880,000 – more than 8 times what the insurance company offered at mediation a mere 7 months prior.