$2,650,000 Recovery

New York Premises Liability

WRS Partner, Kenneth Halperin obtained a settlement at a mediation in the amount of $2,650,000.00 for a 43 year old man who was injured in an accident involving his motorcycle.

The accident in question occurred at the Kings Plaza Mall parking garage. Plaintiff was injured when he was struck on the head by the armature gate as he was exiting the parking lot. The gate improperly descended before he exited and as a result of the blow he was thrown off of his motorcycle and onto the ground. We obtained summary judgment on the issue of liability by establishing that the parking garage was on notice that the gate routinely malfunctioned when it encountered a motorcycle. We also established that the attendant was supposed to be trained not to raise the gate when motorcycles were exiting. Rather, the attendant was supposed to instruct the operator of the motorcycle to go around the gate and thus avoid the potential for an accident. In this case, the attendant violated company policy by raising the gate when plaintiff was exiting and created a dangerous condition that caused the accident.

As a result of the accident, plaintiff aggravated a pre-existing, but asymptomatic herniated disc in his back and also sustained two herniated discs in his neck. As a result of the injuries the plaintiff underwent two operation s on his neck and two on his back. At the time of his settlement he was still employed full time at the job he had prior to the accident. We did, however, retain a Vocational Rehabilitation Expert and Economist to support our argument that as a result of his injuries plaintiff suffered a reduction in the number of years he would be able to work in the future. Based upon this opinion we argued that plaintiff was entitled to some future loss of earnings. This helped us raise the overall value of the case, which otherwise would have been restricted to damages for pain and suffering only.

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