Attorney Robert Merbaum Somer's Legal Cases

Wrongful death

"Black Box" data key in auto death case

Nov 18, 2016

OUTCOME: $450,000.00 settlement

Plaintiff's decedent was an 85 year old reasonably healthy and self sufficient widowed female who was a driver killed in a two car collision at an intersection. She had been proceeding straight on B ... raddock Road and the other driver made a left turn in front of her at Roberts Road. Liability was contested The decedent's car was equipped with a Crash Data Retrieval mechanism "Black Box" which records and preserves objective data about the vehicle (speed, engine speed, percent throttle and brake switch circuit state during the 5 seconds immediately prior to the collision. Plaintiff's accident reconstruction expert relied on the Black Box to support their opinion that plaintiff's decedent's acts neither caused nor contributed to the collision. An eyewitness to the collision estimated in a deposition that plaintiff was traveling 50 to 60 mph in a 40 mph zone. This testimony was contradicted by the black box data.

Personal injury

Hot tea spill was breach of duty by restaurant

Sep 02, 2016

OUTCOME: $500,000 structured settlement for plaintiff with special damages for current and expected future medical bills.

While dining at the Defendant’s restaurant, the adults were seated at one table and the children seated at a separate table, a carafe of hot tea was placed on a Lazy Susan at the children’s table. One ... child turned the Lazy Susan spilling the carafe of hot tea on the other child, resulting in burn injuries to a 5 year old child’s lower abdominal area and thighs.

Personal injury

Arbitration in Auto Accident

Jun 22, 2016

OUTCOME: $240,514 arbitration award for the plaintiff

A three vehicle collision where the primary issue of the case involved whether the medical bills and lost wages were a direct result of the accident. The accident resulted in immediate neck, shoulder a ... nd back symptoms. The hip injury (a partial detachment of the plaintiff’s right acetabular labral [hip] tear) which showed up later and caused much of the lost time from work, also involved extensive physical therapy and necessitated an arthroscopic surgery to repair the partial detachment of the hip tear.

Car accident

Auto Accident

N/A

OUTCOME: 900,000

Policy limits settlement for $900,000.00 on behalf of two minor children injured in a hit and run accident with a tractor trailer that cut off their vehicle and fled the accident scene. The Virginia St ... ate Police trooper who investigated the crash attributed the accident to a tire blowout of the SUV in which they were riding as passengers. A tire expert hired on behalf of the claimants conclusively ruled out a tire blowout and through diligent investigation several key eyewitnesses were located who provided favorable testimony establishing that the actions the tractor trailer driver in changing lanes caused the SUV to lose control. After extensive litigation and negotiations, a settlement was reached for the insurance policy limits of $900,000.00. In approving the terms of the settlement, the presiding trial judge noted that “he had never seen Allstate voluntarily pay their entire policy.

Wrongful death

Wrongful Death

N/A

OUTCOME: 670,000

Auto exhaust can be deadly. Our client was on a friendly overnight visit to his cousin’s house in Silver Spring, Maryland. While he was sleeping, someone accidentally left a car running in the garage. ... The carbon monoxide from the car exhaust infiltrated the house and, tragically, killed everyone in the house. The case was tricky because all the witnesses had died in the house. Nevertheless, we performed so well during the three-day trial that the judge granted a directed verdict and the jury awarded our client’s estate the amount listed above.

Personal injury

Child Injury

N/A

OUTCOME: 500,000

This $500,000 structured settlement resulted from a case involving burn injuries to a child’s lower abdominal area and thighs. While dining at the defendant’s restaurant, the adults were seated at one ... table and the children seated at a separate table, a carafe of hot tea was placed on a Lazy Susan at the children’s table. One child turned the Lazy Susan spilling the carafe of hot tea on the other child, resulting in the injuries. Robert Somer won a $500,000 structured settlement with special damages for current and expected future medical bills.

Personal injury

Dog Bite

N/A

OUTCOME: 120,000

A neighbor’s pit-bull escaped from its owners’ backyard. Our client, at the request of the neighbor, was helping locate it. As both where standing talking by the open gate at the rear of the neighbor’s ... backyard the dog returned entering the yard where it suddenly and without provocation viciously attacked our client biting her on her legs and thighs. Our client managed briefly to extricate herself from the animal’s jaws and got out of the gate in an attempt to get away, however the neighbor failed to restrain her dog whereupon it ran out of the gate, followed our client and continued its attack. The animal’s jaws were finally dislodged from their grip on the client’s body by her boyfriend who came to her rescue when he heard her scream. A lawsuit was filed in Fairfax County Circuit Court and the jury returned a verdict against each defendant.

Robert Merbaum Somer's Legal Cases (7)

"Black Box" data key in auto death case

Hot tea spill was breach of duty by restaurant

Arbitration in Auto Accident

Auto Accident

Wrongful Death

Child Injury

Dog Bite