Confidential
Settlement – $1,200,000Judge
Court
L.A. Superior Central
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Dean A. Olson
(Clark Hill LLP)
Experts
Plaintiff
Lawrence Miller M.D.
(medical)
Jan Roughan R.N.
(medical)
Lewis Collin Moore
(technical)
Charles Aronberg
(medical)
Stanley Goodman
(medical)
Darryl R. Zengler M.A.
(technical)
Jacob E. Tauber M.D.
(medical)
Facts
On Oct. 26, 1999, the plaintiff, a 65-year-old woman and her husband, were crossing an
uncontrolled intersection within a crosswalk in Los Angeles. The time was 6:15 a.m. and the light
conditions were dark. While driving to work, the defendant struck the plaintiff and carried her on
top of her vehicle for 25-to-30 feet prior to braking. The plaintiffÆs husband witnessed the
incident. The plaintiff was hospitalized for 40 days and resided in a convalescent center for six
months.
Settlement Discussions
The defendant's insurance carrier made a $15,000 offer prior to litigation. Later at a mediation, the carrier offered $350,000 to settle. At the last mediation, the case settled for $1.2 million.
Specials in Evidence
$305,000 Disputed
Injuries
The plaintiffÆs injuries included broken legs, blunt head trauma and a severely damaged left optic nerve. The extent of neurological damage was in dispute.
Result
The City of Los Angeles was dismissed for a waiver of costs. The defendantÆs policy limits were $15,000/$30,000, but her insurance carrier paid $1,185,000 above the policy to limit their exposure for not having settled the claim prior to the expiration of a policy limits demand.
Other Information
The case was settled at second mediation before William Sheffield. The issue was whether the insurance carrier obligated itself to pay extra contractual damages by failing to timely tender the defendantÆs $15,000 policy limit to settle. The policy was not paid in part, because the plaintiffÆs attorney did not provide medical records to substantiate the injuries, arguing there was no duty to do so. The insurance carrier contended that without the medical records, it was unable to properly evaluate the claim. The $1.2 million settlement consisted of $15,000 from the insurance policy and $1,185,000 in extra contractual damages to avoid an excess judgment against the defendant.
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