Judge Abellera v. Fletcher General Construction Inc.
Published: Mar. 11, 2000 | Result Date: Jan. 19, 2000 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 972030054 Verdict – $842,210
Judge
Court
Snohomish Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Theodore Becker
(medical)
Neil Callahan
(technical)
David Nank
(medical)
Defendant
Mark Hendricks
(technical)
John Coker
(medical)
Santosh Kumar
(medical)
Jan Veling
(technical)
Donald Uslan
(technical)
Facts
Plaintiff was a 47-year-old ironworker with 22 years of experience in his field. Defendant was a subcontractor on
the jobsite. DefendantÆs employees had left a shallow ditch open and unprotected across a walkway used by
workers for ingress and egress to their worksites. In attempting to cross the ditch, plaintiff, fully loaded with
gear, did not make it across and slipped into the ditch. His knee was damaged, which ended his career as an
ironworker.
Plaintiff had no skills transferable to another occupation and subsequently, had been
unemployed since he was released from light duty following the incident. The primary legal
issues were workplace safety and allegations of contributory negligence. The primary damages
issue were employability and mitigation of damages.
Specials in Evidence
$14,200 $328,000 (or more) $700,000 (or more)
Injuries
Weakened anterior-cruciate ligament, consequent knee instability and pain.
Deliberation
four hours
Length
seven days
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