Charlotte Scott v. North Coast Village Homeowners Association
Published: Jun. 6, 1998 | Result Date: May 1, 1998 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: N74021 – $0
Judge
Court
San Diego Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Suzanne H. Mindlin
(Law Offices of Suzanne H. Mindlin)
Defendant
Robert M. Scherk
(Murchison & Cumming LLP)
Experts
Plaintiff
Alan N. Nevin
(technical)
Alison G. Vredenburgh Ph.D., CPE
(technical)
G. Charles Roland
(medical)
Defendant
Brian Bergmark
(technical)
Raymond M. Vance M.D.
(medical)
Carl A. Beels
(technical)
Facts
Plaintiff Charlotte Scott, a 35-year-old chiropractor, claimed she tripped and fell on a common area sidewalk within a condominium complex where she and her husband lived for six years prior to date of accident. She claimed there was uneven concrete and a portion of a wooden expansion joint sticking out from between two pieces of sidewalk. The plaintiff admitted having used the walkway one to two times per day, every day, for six years but never noticed any problems with the sidewalk before the date of the accident. The plaintiff had made previous maintenance-related complaints to the homeowners association but none were related to sidewalks or walkways. The plaintiff brought this action against the defendant based on negligence and premises liability theories of recovery.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiff made a settlement demand for $100,000. The defendant made an offer of $70,000.
Specials in Evidence
$26,000 (approximately) $93,000 (per plaintiff) $18,000 (per defendant) $40,00 to $50,000
Injuries
The plaintiff claimed a bimalleolar fracture of her right ankle and deltoid ligament damage to her right ankle. She underwent open reduction, internal fixation, a second surgery to remove hardware and arthroscopy. She claimed residual pain, numbness and instability.
Other Information
The verdict was reached approximately one year and two months after the case was filed. A settlement conference was held on April 3, 1998, before a two-attorney settlement panel, resulting in no settlement. Per defendant, nine jurors found the plaintiff had not met her burden of proof and believed the emergency room surgeon had no reason to report the accident any way other than the plaintiff had first reported it within four hours of the accident.
Deliberation
three hours
Poll
9-3
Length
six days
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