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Morgan & Morgan attorneys James Cannella and Darrell Carver secured a $100,000 verdict on behalf of a man injured while evacuating a MARTA bus he was riding after it got stuck at a railroad crossing with a train quickly approaching.
In a scene reminiscent of an action movie, our client was only able to get 10 feet away from the bus before it was struck by the train. Unfortunately, in his haste to escape the oncoming train, our client fell and injured his shoulder. He did not linger on the ground, though, and got up and ran further away from the accident scene. In the heat of the moment, no one saw our client fall and get hurt.
Our client went to the emergency room the same day, and later, an orthopedist, who determined that our client tore his rotator cuff while fleeing the bus and would require surgery to repair it. Our client did not complain of shoulder pain until several days after the accident, however, and the treating physician determined he had separated the same shoulder years prior and never got it repaired.
These circumstances made fighting to get our client the compensation he deserved an uphill battle. The defense knew this, and offered a maximum of $15,000 in compensation before trial, far below the value Cannella and Carver believed the claim to be worth.
Additionally, the defense spent $25,000 on two expert doctors – a radiologist and an orthopedist — who both said the rotator cuff tear was preexisting, and the neck and back pain were only strains. And since our client did not complain of shoulder pain in his initial ER visit, it seemed as if the defense’s experts were correct.
Undeterred, Cannella and Carver took the case to trial and secured a $100,000 verdict.
“Near the end of the case, my client told me that he has been telling his friends that I am fighting for him,” Cannella said. “After the jury came back with the verdict, I think he truly felt vindicated. He gave me a hug, which caught me a little by surprise, but you could tell it was heartfelt and the he appreciated someone fighting on his behalf.”
Going to Trial Can Make A Difference
At Morgan & Morgan, we always fight to get our clients the full value of their claim, even if that means going to trial. After all, no one should have to settle for partial justice. In two recent cases that went to trial, our attorneys recovered $3.85 million on behalf of a construction worker injured on the job and nearly $3 million for a women injured in CarMax parking lot.
If you would like to learn more about how a Morgan & Morgan personal injury attorney may be able to help you, contact us today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.