Confidential
Settlement – $1,350,000Judge
Court
San Francisco Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
David A. Krausz
(Law Office of David A. Krausz)
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Craig Oelrich
(technical)
Carol R. Hyland M.A.
(technical)
Ronald M. Ruff
(medical)
Defendant
Ronald H. Roberts Ph.D.
(medical)
Mark H. Strassberg M.D.
(medical)
Facts
Lian Jie Zhou, 61, was crossing Third Street at its intersection with Revere Street in San Francisco on Aug. 28, 2002. As she passed the center divider walking from west to east in the intersection's southern crosswalk, her light turned red. She continued across and walked in front of a tractor-trailer that was stopped at the crosswalk in the no. 2 northbound lane. She was then struck by a water bottle truck owned and operated by Sierra Springs Water that had entered the crosswalk from the no. 3 northbound lane. Zhou and her husband, Zhao Zheng Wu, 65, sued Suntory Water Group, doing business as Sierra Springs Water, Atlanta, for vehicular negligence.
Settlement Discussions
Zhou received $104,967 in cash up front, and Wu received $81,000. Zhou also got a lifetime monthly annuity of $4,000 which was guaranteed for at least 10 years. About $540,000 went to attorney fees, and $23,000 went to costs. The remainder was used to pay off medical liens.
Injuries
Zhou claimed that she suffered a diffuse axonal injury (injury to the connective strands of neuronal tissue of the brain) and an orbital blowout fracture (a fracture of the bones of the eye socket). She also alleged that she sustained permanent cognitive and emotional deficits. Wu made a claim for loss of consortium. The defense disputed the severity of the brain injury.
Other Information
Zhou received $104,967 in cash up front, and Wu received $81,000. Zhou also got a lifetime monthly annuity of $4,000 which was guaranteed for at least 10 years. About $540,000 went to attorney fees, and $23,000 went to costs. The remainder was used to pay off medical liens.
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