Confidential
Settlement – $800,000Judge
Court
San Diego Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Wylie A. Aitken
(Aitken Aitken Cohn)
Darren O. Aitken
(Aitken Aitken Cohn)
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Richard D. Jones
(Jones Mayer)
(technical)
Wayne H. Lancaster
(technical)
Frederick R. Martin
(medical)
Nancy E. Markel Ph.D., APC
(medical)
Robert DuBois Lynch
(medical)
Defendant
Dominick Addario
(medical)
Justin Fair
(technical)
Ronald M. Kobayashi
(medical)
Raymond M. Vance M.D.
(medical)
M. Daniel Close
(technical)
Facts
The plaintiff, a 20-year-old student at San Diego State University, was a belted passenger in a vehicle driven by defendant. The defendant made an illegal U-turn in an attempt to reach a parking spot. The defendant's vehicle was struck broadside on the passenger side by another vehicle traveling in the other direction. The plaintiff brought this action against the defendant based on a negligence theory of recovery.
Settlement Discussions
Near the one year statute date, defendant offered $250,000. Shortly thereafter, and after filing suit, the plaintiff demanded the policy limits of $1,250,000. There was no further movement until a voluntary settlement conference was held before retired judge Richard Beacom JAMS/Endispute (Santa Ana), where defendant increased the offer to $500,000. In response, the plaintiff demanded $1.1 million with indications of $1 million. Approximately one week prior to trial, defendant increased the offer to $600,000, and ultimately to $800,000, the reported settlement amount, which was reached right before jury selection.
Specials in Evidence
The plaintiff claimed a loss of between $400,000 to $1.8 million, stemming from her inability to become an attorney, her pre-injury goal.
Injuries
As a result of the accident, the plaintiff sustained a depressed skull fracture. Although surgery was deemed unnecessary, she was hospitalized for five days and withdrew from school that semester (the second semester of her sophomore year). When the plaintiff returned to school the following semester, she was plagued by headaches after prolonged reading. In addition, she had trouble with spelling, word choice and experienced lapses in both short and long term memory. The plaintiff also had trouble concentrating and sleeping. As a result of these problems, the plaintiff's GPA dropped from approximately a 3.50 in the honors programs to a 3.10 in regular courses. Approximately one year following the accident, the plaintiff began to sought neuropsychological care. She was diagnosed as a disabled student and received academic accommodations such as increased testing time.
Other Information
The settlement was reached approximately one year and seven months after the case was filed.
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