Wrongful Death | Major Injury Law Blog

Family of 5-year-old Who Died at Rotating Restaurant Settle Lawsuit

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May 052021

The loss of a child is never easy to deal with, but when the loss comes at the tender age of five it could be impossible to recover from. This is the tragic situation faced by the family of Charlie Holt, a 5-year-old child who was identified as the victim of a tragic event that took place at Sun Dial Restaurant, Atlanta. The youngster died during an incident that took place at the Westin Peachtree Plaza four years ago and has been the result of a long-running legal case. The suit has now been settled, though, with ownership group Marriott.

Holt died in 2017 when he was caught between a wall and a table of the rotating floor within the restaurant. The child was on holiday with parents Rebecca and Michael, when he was pinned. Though staff and employees worked hard to rescue the boy, serious brain injuries led to his untimely death at Grady Memorial Hospital.

The family filed a lawsuit in 2017 stating that the restaurant had failed to tackle what they called a “longstanding safety hazard”, and also heavily disputed claims that the child’s death came when he wandered away from his parents.

A statement was released from both parties, saying that Charlie has not wandered away from his parents, and both parties have agreed to find consensus as opposed to continue litigation. The terms of settlement, though, were not made public.

What was said?

The parents of Charlie released their own statement, saying: “Our family will never recover from the loss of Charlie. In fact, we have struggled for many months with whether or not we should release this joint statement. Being under the microscope of the world has been horrific and the thought of conjuring it up again was like reopening a wound that will never fully heal. However, we are reminded of the goal of this statement, so that Charlie’s siblings know that their brother and their parents did nothing wrong that day.

“One day, when they Google their brother, which they will, they need to be able to find the truth hidden in the lies and commentary of the press and police officers who never asked nor took our statement. We owe it to Charlie to make sure the world knows the truth. And we owe it to all families, to make sure safety measures have been put into place to prevent this from ever happening again.”

Citation

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atlanta/family-5-year-old-who-died-after-being-pinned-sun-dial-settles-lawsuit-with-marriot/K26IZCGZOBBINJ2H4IFNMFJHLI/

Don Holt Bridge Wrongful Death Suit Filed

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Sep 042020

Tow Truck

On July 1^st, a fatal crash took place on the Don Holt Bridge that saw the death of Will Ellis, a tow truck driver. The driver was killed in the crash and this has led to the filing of a wrongful death suit against two drivers, as well as the South Carolina Department of Transportation. The two drivers were named as Dale Phillips II and Peter Katzburg, hailing from Tennessee and Charleston respectively. Also seriously injured in the crash was Charleston County Sherriff Deputy Mike Costanzo.

The lawsuit has been put forward with the allegation that Katzburg’s vehicle was disabled on the right-hand shoulder of the Don Holt Bridge. Ellis pulled in behind in a red rollback tow truck, with warnings lights engaged. Costanzo then pulled in behind the tow truck shortly after, with his blue lights activated to indicate the need for assistance.

The court documentation alleges that Phillips, who was driving a Ford F-350, was towing a trailer on the right-hand lane when the truck slammed into the back of the police vehicle. This pushed it into both the officer and Ellis – the impact caused both men injury, but it also caused Ellis to fall over a short concrete wall. He fell over the bridge and lost his life both as a result of the collision injury and the impact of hitting the water.

The lawsuit claims that Katzburg was negligent and failed to exercise due care. It also claims that Phillips was negligent, failed to keep proper lookout, and was driving distracted. Katzburg was alleged to also be following too closely and thus would have violated the Motor Vehicle Act of the state. The suit also claims that he failed to comply with law in that significant speed reductions and lane changes to the land that isn’t adjacent to an emergency vehicle.

Overall, the suit states that the South Carolina Department of Transport is also negligent by “failing to engineer a forgiving quality to the shoulder of the roadway, failing to engineer signage to warn approaching traffic of stopped cars on the crest of the bridge, failing to engineer a side wall tall enough or with railings to prevent inadvertent or disabled pedestrians from falling over the side, and failing to engineer a fence or net to allow forgiveness to the inevitable and foreseeable circumstance of pedestrians who are forced over the short concrete side wall.”

The suit looks to seek actual, general, and punitive damages and is seeking a jury trial.

Citation

https://www.live5news.com/2020/08/13/wrongful-death-lawsuit-filed-july-don-holt-crash/

Child Dies at Oregon Day Care Despite ‘Red Flag’ Warnings

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Oct 032018

foster child care

When a child is placed into care at any kind of child or day care facility, high standards of care are obviously expected. The health and care of a child under the watchful eye of an expert should, for any parent, be something that provides comfort and certainty in equal measure. However, this certainty will be tested for parents with the recent news that a child died at an Oregon baby day care center, despite ‘red flag’ warnings that child welfare officials should have spotted, according to a lawsuit.

The lawsuit states that Oregon child welfare staff had overlooked allegations about one child suffering from traumatic injury at his day care center. It also states that a second baby boy died in the months following this incident. The parents of Allan Swearengin were never informed about the previous reports of abuse at Lane County Day Care, according to the lawsuit.

Indeed, ‘A.J.’ was supposed to have been found with repeated injuries at day care, before being found unconscious on September 12^th, 2016. He was pronounced dead an hour and a half later, aged 10 months and six days.

The lawsuit, valued at around $18.75m, contends that the Department of Human Services, as well as his pediatrician, failed to protect A.J. and thus prevented him from death. The lawsuit also says that, had welfare workers investigated the role of the day care workers in the first traumatic incident, as the parents had urged, then this could have been prevented.

Worrying precedent

It was concluded that he died of non-accidental injuries, and that they were “highly similar” to the injuries suffered by the first baby. C.J. Greaves, one of four attorney’s involved in representing the boy’s estate, said: “Whatever else in terms of obligations, if DHS had done an investigation and spoken with the babysitter and actually looked at these files, A.J. would be alive today,

“It’s basic — just a warning that parents should be concerned, because how else is a parent going to know this?”

This comes in the face of multiple lawsuits coming up in Oregon against the child protection agency. It’s suggested that ‘grave failures’ have led to numerous deaths, or severe abuse, or children. Indeed, two young sisters were recently found to have been abused in foster care by a 13-year-old who had known issues.

The Department of Human Services spokeswoman, Christine Stone, said that the department does not comment on any pending cases. More on this story as it develops.

Southwest Airlines Faces Injury Lawsuit

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Apr 052018

Southwest Airlines Airplane

In March 2018, a lawsuit was filed against Southwest Airlines. The aviation firm has seen the wrongful death lawsuit filed against them on behalf of a Prairie Village resident who was injured on a Southwest Airlines flight. Filed on behalf of him by his family, the issue stems from how the man, who was disabled, wasn’t cared for appropriately on the flight he took.

Eugene Dreyer, 81, was the victim of serious injuries when on-board the flight. His seatbelt had become undone, and he was thrown against a cabin wall during the flight due to the seatbelt issue. His family has alleged a chart of wrongful death against Southwest Airlines, after Dreyer died months later from injuries sustained during the incident.

The claim is to point out and highlight the careless negligence of the airline and its employees during the flight. Dreyer, a financial advisor, was unable to use his legs after contracting polio. Wheelchair bound, he was on the flight with his wife and an assistant heading from Kansas City to Fort Lauderdale, FLA.

He was wheeled on their plane by Southwest Airlines staff, and was placed in the front row of the aircraft. Before the take-off took place, though, Dreyer asked for an extension to his seatbelt. He was buckled in by a member of staff who used both the seat belt and the extension. The suit states that neither Dreyer, his wife or their assistant touched the seatbelt during the flight operation.

“Loss of Cognitive functions and severe depression”

Taking place on February 21, 2017,Dreyer suffered heavily from the impact. The plane, upon landing, began the process of deceleration. At this point, it is claimed that the belt “failed to restrain him” and that he “flew forward into the bulkhead wall,” per the allegations made in the lawsuit itself. According to the suit, “Eugene Dreyer hit his head, leg, foot, shoulder and other parts of his body onto the front bulkhead wall.”

He suffered significant injuries to the head, shoulder, foot and leg – and broke his femur. “He suffered loss of cognitive functions and severe depression,” the lawsuit claims.

Eugene died on April 23, 2017, and the claim alleges that this was a direct result of the injuries that he had suffered on the plane. As his wife and two children chase the suit and seek an unspecified volume in the claim, Southwest Airlines said that they have no comment to make on the matter “ahead of the legal process.”

Moms Sue Pop Warner Football League Because of Kids’ CTE

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Feb 062018

Kimberly Archie of Los Angeles and Jo Cornell of San Diego both had sons with similar interests: football. Their sons shared interest in football, a sport they played when they were young at Pop Warner and later on, high school. Both their children are now gone – just in their 20s – and they share yet another thing in common: both were found to be afflicted with a degenerative brain condition, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is believed to be linked to repeated hits to the head. Both mothers are suing Pop Warner for neglect.

Pop Warner is a long-running organization dedicated to youth football. But it doesn’t just focus on sport; it requires participants to adhere to certain academic standards.

Those were the reasons Archie and her ex-husband signed up their son, Paul Bright Jr., for Pop Warner football. They simply wanted “well-rounded” children. That and youth football in America is considered a “rite of passage.” Bright played at Pop Warner from the age of seven until he was 14. He then went on to play a year of high school football.

In his early 20s, Archie suspected that something was wrong with her son. She noticed that he wasn’t in control of his emotions. Plus, he also displayed obsessive compulsive tendencies. At the age of 24, Bright was gone – a victim of a 2014 motorcycle crash the police said was his fault.

Archie thought it was “quasi-suicidal” and decided to have her son’s brain looked at. She suspected that her son may have CTE, a condition that can only be diagnosed after death, although progress has been made to detect this with an MRI. Her suspicions were confirmed.

Archie believes that Paul’s CTE resulted from years of playing Pop Warner football. So together with Cornell, they are suing the youth league for failing to protect their children’s brain health.

Like Bright, Ty Cornell played football from the age of eight to 17. He committed suicide in 2014. He was 24 years old.

In their suit against Pop Warner, the mothers claim that the league misled parents regarding the safety of helmets their children used and the effectiveness of the training of their coaches.

Although officials from Pop Warner have not discussed the lawsuit directly, they have spoken about how the league is keeping children safe. They have set up a medical advisory committee, done away with kickoffs for the youngest age groups, and required safety training for coaches. They have also eliminated full-speed tackling drills during practice.

Dr Julian Bailes, neurosurgeon and chairman of Pop Warner’s medical advisory committee who also served as an NFL doctor, said that “CTE has never been found in someone who just played youth football.”

It’s true that while a number of young men who died in their late teens and early 20s have been diagnosed with CTE, a lot of them played a combination of high school football and other contact sports.

Critics have said the changes the league implemented still aren’t enough. Their argument is now backed by a study from Boston University. That research provided definitive evidence that head impacts caused brain disease and CTE.

As the lawsuit against Pop Warner carries on, so does research into the link between youth sports and brain injury. Either result will have an impact on the decision of parents to allow their children to play youth sports.

University of Louisiana Hazing Death Leads to Lawsuit

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Nov 242017

University of Louisiana Lafayette

On November 6^th, 2016, Michael Gallagher, a student at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette died when he fell asleep behind the wheel of his vehicle and killed another student, Rustam Nizamutdinova, who was walking along the street at the time. The events occurred during the 2016 Homecoming Weekend and after the student had been hazed by a fraternity, which included sleep-deprivation.

A lawsuit was launched against the Kappa Sigma fraternity, individuals who were directly involved with the hazing, and Board of Supervisors at the University of Louisiana who oversee the activities. Filed by the Rustam Nizamutdinova’s mother, Farida, the suit alleges that the 72 hours of sleep deprivation that immediately preceded Gallagher driving to his home that morning caused him to fall asleep behind the wheel as he was driving along the street that Nizamutdinova was walking.

Another lawsuit was filed by Michael and Amy Gallagher, the parents of the student who fell asleep, against Kappa Sigma, the UL chapter, and the Board of Supervisors along with ten members of the fraternity who have not been named. Their lawsuit contends that their son suffered mental anguish and emotional distress after the accident occurred. It states that Gallagher was in shock in the aftermath of the wreck and didn’t know he had struck Nizamutdinova along with being unable to remember what had occurred.

This is not the first incident involving Kappa Sigma concerning hazing incidents which have resulted in the fraternity being banned, removed, or suspended from other major universities over the past 17 years. Hazing allegations that involved the death of students at the University of Miami, University of West Virginia, and the University of Connecticut along with other incidents involving Northwestern State and Wake Forest have garnered national headlines questioning the severity of the hazing and inability to oversee the events so that the deaths might be prevented.

It is true that the University of Louisiana did not changed its policy towards Kappa Sigma for several months. They still promoted the fraternity despite the ongoing lawsuits. Plus, the self-governing policy of the University has come under criticism as well with claims that it has allowed such hazing policies to continue. It was only several months later did UL revoke the charter of Kappa Sigma, although the reasons why have yet to be revealed.

Public records released since the lawsuits were filed revealed that the fraternity showed that the investigation demonstrated that incidents such as allowing underage pledges to consume alcohol, get burned with cigarettes, being paddled with a wooden paddle, and sleep deprivation. This included pledges who were deprived of sleep being used as designated drivers for fraternity members.

In addition to Kappa Sigma, other fraternities on the UL campus, including Kappa Alpha Order, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Sigma Nu, and Theta Xi were also placed on interim suspension for conduct that violated the policies of the university. It does seem that the death of Rustam Nizamutdinova and the subsequent lawsuits have had a profound effect on how fraternities at the University of Louisiana conduct pledge initiations.

Reference

http://www.wwltv.com/news/lawsuits-hazing-led-to-tragic-death-of-ul-student/491114897

Toddler Dies Caught up in Medicaid Billing Fraud

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Apr 112017

Medicaid billing schemes are not new; in fact, many have been convicted of committing this crime over the years. However, a recent personal injury lawsuit has caught the attention of a lot of people since a toddler was involved — and even died in the process.

The wrongful death lawsuit claims that unnecessary dental procedures were performed on fourteen-month-old Daisy Lynn Torres as part of a corporate scheme that aims to make money from Medicaid. The toddler’s family is suing dentist Dr. Michael Melanson and mobile anesthesiologist Dr. David Williams, along with Austin Children’s Dentistry and Texan Anesthesiology Association.

Daisy Lynn died on March 29, 2016, while she was going through a dental procedure at Austin Children’s Dentistry. The procedure was performed by Dr. Melanson while anesthesia was provided by Dr. Williams, who works for Texan Anesthesiology Association and was present while the child received the dental treatment.

Daisy Lynn’s mother, Betty Squier, had brought the toddler to Austin Children’s Dentistry to have two of her cavities filled. Squier noted that she was present when her daughter was put under anesthesia but was asked to leave the room afterwards. According to her, Dr. Melanson came out of the room after several minutes and told her they were going to place six crowns on Daisy Lynn’s teeth — four more than what had been originally planned. A short while after that, Squier was informed that her daughter had gone into cardiac arrest.

Forensic dental examiner Dr. Robert Williams worked on the case and reported that “no indication of dental disease or pathology was seen” in Daisy Lynn’s dental X-rays on the day she died. He points out that the child may possibly have had “congenital enamel defects” in her partially erupted teeth, but stated that they did not necessarily require treatments especially considering her age. Dr. Williams noted that there was no evidence that Daisy Lynn was in “any type of pain” due to any dental diseases.

This report was included in the autopsy report filed by the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office, which was released in July 2016 and ruled that anesthesia was the cause of death of the child. A few months later, in September 2016, Austin Children’s Dentistry filed a libel, defamation, and business disparagement lawsuit against Dr. Robert Williams. The company sponsored national dental experts to independently review the case, and the reviews concluded that the treatments that Daisy Lynn Torres received before her death were “dentally necessary”.

Despite this, the toddler’s parents believe that their daughter wrongfully died and that her death was caused by a scheme that aims to bill Medicaid for unnecessary dental procedures. Betty Squier states that her child’s life “was cut short due to someone’s greed and negligence”, while Daisy Lynn’s father Elizandro Torres wants the case to be heard so it won’t happen to other people. He reminds parents that “they can ask questions” and “get second opinions, third opinions”.

The family’s attorney Sean Breen points out that Daisy Lynn’s case will hopefully highlight the fact that dentists and dental clinics all over the country are committing Medicaid fraud by doing unnecessary procedures and collecting money from them. Breen states that other parents have come out and revealed that their children also received unnecessary dental treatments from Austin Children’s Dentistry.

Grandmother Files Lawsuit After Suicide of 6-Year-old

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May 192016

There are personal injury cases that are based from the negligence doctrine. By nature, negligence will require everybody in a society to be responsible and avoid risking others. Although it doesn’t say that negligence results when somebody gets hurt, it is recognized in the doctrine that there are unavoidable accidents. To make the defendant liable, the plaintiff must provide evidence that the former would have done otherwise under the circumstances.

Cases of Negligence

Some examples related to negligence include medical complications due to carelessness of the physician, car mishaps due to drunk driving, and canine attacks when vicious animals are left out of the care of the owner. In such cases, the risks have been ignored by the responsible party which resulted to the injury of the plaintiff.

For this reason, the defendant is required to pay the plaintiff for the injury as a result of the actions done by the former. However, not all cases are the same since some damages can be calculated easily which can be linked to medical bills or property damage. For certain cases though that involve emotional distress or the loss of capacity to earn, it will require the testimony of an expert.

The Suicide Case of the 6-Year-Old

The case of the six-year-old female allegedly involved the failure of the child protection system at Hennepin County. Based from the statements of the grandmother Mary Broadus, it is only fair to claim damages resulting from the death of the victim Kendrea Johnson.

The suit stated that the county together with the foster providers as well as the mental treatment provider have knowledge about the suicidal tendencies of the child. Sadly, they weren’t able to take that issue seriously. As a result, they failed to work together to safeguard the young girl.

Failure of LifeSpan to Disclose Essential Information

LifeSpan is the agency taking care of Kendrea’s treatment for mental health and her schooling. They were fully aware of the behavior of the child. They allegedly have knowledge of how this girl was inclined to commit suicide based on their observations.

However, the lawyer of the defendants claimed that his clients weren’t guilty because of the lack of evidence that they were actually guilty. Thus, none of them did nothing wrong despite what happened to the victim. Additionally, he stated that the girl came from circumstances that were extremely difficult. In fact, the workers made sure that the child received the type of care she deserved.

The Foster Home

The child was placed in a foster home of a certain Tannise Nawaqavou at Brooklyn Park in 2014. Nawaqavou told the police that she was threatened by the girl with a screwdriver and even told her foster parent that she would jump out of the window to kill herself. Some pictures were also drawn by Kendrea depicting a child hanging from a rope, which supported the child’s suicidal tendencies.

Revocation of Licenses and Payment of Fine

The conclusion of the investigation of Kendrea’s death led to the revocation of licenses of Nawaqavou and her foster home. It was then found that although Nawaqavou wasn’t responsible for the child’s death, she was charged for locking the child in her room. An appeal was later filed but the DHS agreed with their request to keep operations after it will pay a fine of $600.

Reference

http://www.startribune.com/lawsuit-filed-after-death-of-6-year-old-foster-child/378815171/

Pop Warner Football Settles Brain Injury Lawsuit

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Apr 232016

Pop Warner, the oldest and biggest youth football program in the United States, made news earlier in March when it settled a brain injury lawsuit that was filed by the family of a young man who committed suicide in 2012.

The victim, 25-year-old Joseph Chernach, died on June 7, 2012, when he hung himself in his mother’s shed. His family believed that one of the biggest contributors to his suicide was chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE, a type of progressive degenerative disease of the brain. This illness reportedly caused him to have poor mental capacity, prevented him from controlling his mood, and eventually pushed him to end his life.

The lawsuit was filed by Chernach’s mother Debra Pyka in February 2015 against the Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc., The Pop Warner Foundation, and Lexington Insurance Company (Pop Warner’s insurer).

What is CTE?

CTE usually develops in people who undergo repetitive brain trauma, such as concussions. It’s common among athletes who play contact sports such as football (both American and association football), ice hockey, wrestling, motocross, and bull riding. It’s important to note, though, that it doesn’t only affect professional athletes; a recent study found out that even teenagers who play football for just a few years in high school can develop long-term brain damage — even if they don’t go on to play in college and professionally.

This seems to be what happened to Joseph Chernach. He played football with Pop Warner for three years (from 1997 to 2000) and went on to become an excellent student and athlete. But everything changed when he reached his sophomore year in college, when he began to exhibit changes in his mood, behavior, and cognitive functions. All three went on to decline every year until his death, causing him to be depressed and making him paranoid and suspicious of family and friends.

According to the lawsuit, Chernach reached the point when he could no longer “control the impulse to kill himself”. The lawsuit also pointed out that his suicide was the “natural and probable consequence of the injuries he suffered” when he played football with Pop Warner.

What does this case mean for other people?

The lawsuit filed by Chernach’s mother sought $5 million in damages, although the actual terms of settlement has not been revealed.

The settlement is one of the many cases that demonstrate the heightened awareness about CTE and the pressure that many football organizations face from people who are concerned about concussion-related damage. The National Football League is one such organization. In 2015, a class-action lawsuit was approved between the NFL and former players, ensuring that the ex-NFL players who retired on or before July 7, 2014, would receive up to $5 million each. This amount is provided to help the players with any serious medical conditions that are related to concussion-related head injuries.

The NFL, for the first time, has acknowledged that there is a link between football and CTE. Pop Warner, meanwhile, has taken steps to make football safer for the young people who play the game.

With the settlement of the Chernach lawsuit, ex-football players and their families may want to look into filing a personal injury lawsuit against the relevant organization. This way, they can seek compensation for the damages that they have suffered because of the illness and injuries that resulted from football-related brain trauma.

Reference

http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/09/us/pop-warner-concussion-lawsuit-settlement-player-suicide/

Can Porsche be Held Accountable for Paul Walker’s Death?

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Feb 032016

Guest Post by Frank Fernandez

It was just two years ago that news outlets began picking up reports of Paul Walker’s death. In an ironic twist of fate, the Fast and Furious star was killed when the Porsche he was riding in went up in flames. Police investigated, and with the help of agents from Porsche, it was determined that the driver was at fault for the collision. The California Highway Patrol ascertained the Carrera GT was traveling between 80 and 93mph in a 45mph zone, when Roger Rodas lost control of it, and they believe speed was the cause of the accident. However, Walker’s teenage daughter is now suing the automaker in a wrongful death lawsuit.

Speed May Have Been the Cause, but there were Numerous Contributing Factors

According to the recent lawsuit, the friends were traveling at a maximum rate of 71mph. Interestingly, CNN reported that the coroner’s office said that Rodas and walker were exceeding 100mph, though an investigator for Rodas’ widow concluded the maximum speed was 55mph. The fact that the car can reach speeds of 200mph, and can accelerate to 60mph in 3.5 seconds, likely compounds the difficulty in determining an accurate speed. On top of this, several other things have been noted about the collision.

The car’s tires were nine years-old. This means that it would have had great difficulty gripping the road.
An after-market exhaust system had been installed on the vehicle, which would have increased its horsepower.
Porsche warned some of its dealers that the car was incredibly sensitive and powerful nearly a decade before the crash. They told managers not to let anyone drive it without training, and said that even a Foster beer can turned on its side would damage the under panels of the vehicle.
According to Rodas’ widow, the speedy cars should have sturdy cages, like racecars do, to protect people in crashes. Porsche has been held responsible for how their vehicles performed in prior fatal crashes.
According to the lawsuit from Walker’s daughter, the car did not have an electronic stability control system, which is common in sensitive vehicles like the Carrera GT, and might have prevented the collision.
The same lawsuit alleges that the vehicle’s seatbelt design is defective, and that it prevented Walker from exiting the car after the crash.

The Outcome of the Wrongful Death Lawsuit will be Determined Based on Negligence

Cases like this are incredibly complex, and in order for this one to have merit, the attorneys for Walker’s family must prove Porsche was negligent. In one of the prior cases, a widow received $4.8 million, but Porsche was only deemed to be 8% at fault for the victim’s death. Regardless of speed, if the plaintiff can prove that Porsche played a role in Walker’s death, reparations may be made available. The defective seatbelt design, poor vehicle structure, and lack of common safety features will be paramount in the case, though it will have to be proven that the automaker should have known better, or that they intentionally acted irresponsibly.

Multiple Parties are Often Faulted for an Incident

Sadly, cases like this are all too common. May other similar ones are still underway over Takata airbags. Millions of vehicles were recalled because the airbags would sometimes shoot shrapnel throughout the car upon deployment. Some of these vehicles had faulty TRW crash sensors, which caused the airbags to deploy when there was no collision. In these cases, both companies have been found to share blame for injuries. In other words, the layers only need to prove that Porsche was partially to blame for the extent of the damage. It’s entirely plausible that Walker’s family will be awarded a payment for losses, which some experts say could be more than $10 million.

If you’ve lost a loved one in a collision, of if you have been injured in one, yourself, it’s important to review the reports and have a critical eye examine not just who caused the car accident, but what events lead to injury or death. Before news broke about Takata and TRW, individual drivers were being held accountable for the injuries. Huge cases like this usually begin with one person realizing that the car didn’t perform as it should have, and taking action. Much of the time, these lawsuits aren’t about the money at all. They’re about seeking justice for the death of a loved one, or to force regulators to take action so more deaths and injuries don’t occur.

Author Bio:

Frank Fernandez, Co ntact an attorney regarding your criminal matter. Boston MA.

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