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Forty-Nine Million Dollar Personal Injury Award
Santa Clara has not seen such a large award for a single-plaintiff in this decade. In fact, $49 million may be the largest award of this type since 1999. What makes this story especially newsworthy is that Santa Clara juries have a reputation for being very conservative and typically not willing to enter such large awards. A large part of the award was based on out-of-pocket-expenses. Because of this fact, it is likely that the award will hold up throughout the appeals process. In May of 2007, the plaintiff’s car was struck by a semi truck that had collided with another truck. According to the plaintiff’s personal injury lawyer, the plaintiff’s severe injuries require the plaintiff to receive medical care at all times of the day. The plaintiff was only twenty-one years old at the time of the collision. The majority of the award went toward future medical expenses that the plaintiff will have to endure for life. That amount came to $27.6 million. Additionally, according to plaintiff’s counsel, the defendants will be severally liable for the general damages amount of $13.5 million. According to the lawyer for the plaintiff, the significance of the size of the award is really a reflection on the high cost of providing medical care to individuals who have suffered traumatic brain injuries. While modern medicine has prosthetic devices for the loss of an arm or a leg, there simply isn’t any replacement for loss of brain function. The trial, which lasted for 5 weeks, concluded with the jury finding one driver sixty percent at fault and the other driver and trucking company thirty-five percent at fault. Additionally, California was found to have five percent liability. The defendant trucking company continues to maintain that its driver was not negligent and bears no fault in the occurrence of this incident. A lawyer representing California’s department of transportation indicated that a settlement was reached with the state in the amount of ten million dollars. About the Author: Keep up-to-date with injury legal news, info, and resources . If you’ve suffered an injury, submit your request for a free case evaluation. Talk to a personal injury lawyer near you now. Know your options. See if you have a case. Find out how much your case may be worth. Gus Kalakis I built this successful website with SiteBuildIt!  |