Confidential
Settlement – $85,000Judge
Court
L.A. Superior Central
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Samuel O. Ogbogu
(Law Office of Samuel O. Ogbogu)
Defendant
Michael Schonbuch
(Schonbuch Hallissy LLP)
Experts
Plaintiff
Brad P. Avrit P.E.
(technical)
Janice Wexler
(technical)
Gabriel V. Rubanenko
(medical)
Defendant
Rick L. Carpenter
(technical)
Facts
On Dec. 22, 2000, at midnight, the plaintiff, a 38-year-old female, a tenant in the defendant's apartment complex in Los Angeles was preparing to take a two seater sofa to the ground floor trash area. The property had no elevator. The sofa was placed on the top landing and the plaintiff decided to step down backwards to the first stair to position herself when she tripped and fell. The top landing had a width protrusion of about three inches and height protrusion of half an inch. The plaintiff fell all the way down to the second floor, 16 flights down. The area of the accident occurred had a poor lighting condition way below the city requirement. The plaintiff had attempted to hold onto the railings when she lost her balance but could not because the railings were loose and unstable. As a result of the fall, the plaintiff sustained injuries.
Specials in Evidence
$38,678 $17,000
Injuries
Distal fractures with second and third metatarsal fracture (left arm fracture), lower back pain, headaches, left knee pain and elbow pain. The plaintiff lost consciousness and was hospitalized for eight days and then discharged. The plaintiff had multiple surgeries and had been determined after the treatments to be partially permanently disabled and has permanent neurological deficits in her left wrist, pinky and ring fingers.
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