Larry W. Meese v. Walter Wayne Heitschmidt and Marion Heitschmidt
Published: Apr. 18, 1998 | Result Date: Nov. 19, 1997 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 96CV90 Verdict – $70,000
Judge
Court
Morgan District
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Michael E. Harvey
(Seyfarth Shaw LLP)
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
A.L. Wilson
(technical)
David Donaldson
(medical)
Defendant
C.W. Anthony
(technical)
Facts
On July 23, 1995, plaintiff Larry Meese, was riding a motorcycle on a dirt road adjacent to defendants Walter and Marion Heitschmidt's property. The plaintiff claimed that he encountered a muddy area in the roadway, allegedly caused by the defendants' irigation pivot sprinkler which had oversprayed onto the dirt road. The plaintiff lost control of his motorcycle when he hit the muddy area and fell while traveling approximately 17 mph. The defendants denied negligence and asserted that reasonable, diligent efforts had been made to adjust the sprinkler to prevent over-spray, but because of the age of the irrigation sprinkler, it came out of adjustment, causing the wet roadway condition. The defendant also claimed that the plaintiff was comparatively negligent for riding his motorcycle through the muddy road conditions. The plaintiff brought this action against the defendants based on a negligence theory of recovery.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiff made an initial settlement demand for $100,000. The defendants made a settlement offer of $5,000.
Specials in Evidence
$17,976 $5,000 - $7,000
Injuries
The plaintiff suffered a comminuted fracture of the left leg.
Length
two days
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