OUTCOME: $1,000,000 Settlement just prior to jury selection, which represented the doctors available insurance.
Karen was doing very well on her anti-depressants when her psychiatrist told her to stop her medication cold turkey because a mildly low sodium level called hyponatremia. Karen began to spiral downward.... Despite several pleas to her doctor Kara got no sense of hope. She attempted to take her own life and while unsuccessful suffered serious injuries. Our experts testified that there was no reason to stop Karen's medication for such an insignificant finding on some bloodwork. The defense argued that hyponatremia is very serious and the termination of the medication was justified.
Personal injury
Pat v. Fire Chief
Nov 04, 2011
OUTCOME: $2,000,000.00 verdict later settled with both defendants for a confidential amount
Pat witnessed her husband burned by a live electrical wire that had been left unattended by the combined negligence of the electric company and the local fire chief. Pat's husband lost his left arm an...d left leg from the burns. Pat suffered severe emotional distress from what she had witnessed and suffered the loss of the enjoyment of her husbands company and normal relations
Election campaigns and political law
Committee to Recall Theresa Cassagrande V. Theresa Cassagrande, 304 N.J. Super. 421 (App. Div. 1997)
Jan 01, 1997
OUTCOME: We were successful before the trial Judge and the Appellate Division unanimously agreed and dismissed the recall being brought against my client, Theresa Cassagrande.
In this election law challenge I argued before the Appellate Division that the Committee to Recall had not properly followed the strict letter of the election law statute and that the recall should be ...dismissed.
Personal injury
Oswin v. Shaw, 129 N.J. 290
Jan 01, 1992
OUTCOME: The Court created new rules for plaintiffs to satisfy to successfully prosecute a verbal threshold case. Years later the Supreme Court reversed itself and our original position was vindicated. Not that that helped Annie Oswin.
Procedural Posture: Plaintiff injured party challenged the judgment from the Superior Court, Appellate Division (New Jersey) that affirmed the trial court's entry of summary judgment in favor of defend...ant driver in plaintiff's action seeking recovery of non-economic losses for the soft tissue injuries she sustained in an automobile accident.
Overview:Plaintiff filed an action against defendant seeking recovery of non-economic damages for the soft tissue injuries she sustained in a car accident. The appellate court affirmed the trial court's grant of summary judgment in defendant's favor. On further appeal, the court affirmed, holding that plaintiff had not adequately supported a claim for relief under the verbal-threshold statute, N.J. Stat. Ann. § 39:6A-8(a). The court applied the summary judgement model and held that it was for the trial court to make the threshold determinations of whether plaintiff's injuries fell within at least one of the nine categories specified by § 39:6A-8(a) for recovery of non-economic injuries, and if so, whether the evidence demonstrated a material dispute of fact regarding the nature and extent of plaintiff's injuries. The court noted that §39:6A-8(a) did not define the term "serious injury." The court held that the appropriate test for determining "serious injury" was the "serious impact on plaintiff's life" test, which plaintiff failed to meet because she did not show a material dispute of fact by presenting objective, credible medical evidence that could support a jury finding in her favor.
Outcome:The court affirmed the appellate court's judgment affirming the grant of summary judgment in favor of defendant in plaintiff's action for recovery of non-economic damages for the soft tissue injuries she sustained as the result of a car accident. The court held that plaintiff's injuries did not fit within any of the verbal-threshold categories because she did not show a material dispute of fact by objective, credible medical evidence.
Personal injury
Vernon v. Supermarket Services Services Corporation
Jan 01, 1991
OUTCOME: 250 N.J. Super. 8 (App. Div. 1991)
Successful appeal from a dismissal of the plaintiff's case by the trial judge. The Appellate Court agreed with my argument that the workers compensation bar did not preclude Mr. Vernon from suing the ...employee of a sister corporation.
