Attorney Diana Nicole Ruff's Legal Cases

Personal injury

A.F. v. Meadow Park Apartments

Oct 16, 2012

OUTCOME: $70,000

My client was walking through a parking lot on a hot August day when she stepped into a depression which had formed in the lot as a result of underground water erosion. The depression had caused a port ... ion of the asphalt to sink, and since the depression was the same color and material as the surrounding asphalt, my client did not see it as she stepped on the edge of it. Her ankle rolled under her, causing her to twist and fall forward, landing on her knees and hands on the hot pavement. She broke her shoulder, and could not get herself up. She had to lay on the hot asphalt until paramedics came. She had surgery on her shoulder, and dealt with severe stiffness and pain for months. She needed help with all personal hygiene and cooking and cleaning, which was difficult for this formerly independent and healthy woman. Fortunately, with dedication to physical therapy and great surgeons, she made a complete recovery. I successfully negotiated a settlement with low contributory negligence attributed to my client for this trip-and-fall case.

Personal injury

Confidential

Jul 12, 2012

OUTCOME: $1,000,000.00

My client was a passenger in a vehicle which hit black ice on the way to work one morning and rolled several times. My client was knocked unconscious, and came to only to find that he was hanging upsid ... e down in the vehicle by his seatbelt, which held over his right shoulder. Following this accident, my client underwent right shoulder surgery, years of chiropractic care for his neck and back injuries, cognitive therapy for his traumatic brain injury, many rounds of physical therapy for a permanently painful, weak and stiff right shoulder, and counseling for the depression brought on by his injuries and loss of his job. Thanks to a mediated settlement, my client can seek job retraining and continued cognitive therapy in addition to pain management which he will likely require for his lifetime.

Personal injury

L.C. v. Fischer & Sons

Jun 10, 2011

OUTCOME: $150,000 settlement

My client was working on a construction site as a fire watcher for a subcontractor. One morning as she walked through the site, she fell into an uncovered "pour-back strip" which previously had been co ... vered with plywood, but the plywood was not secured to the floor and so was removed by an unknown person, and then the floor opening was covered with a fire blanket, hiding the hole in the floor. When my client stepped on the blanket, she fell through the hole, twisting her knee and jarring her back. She had two prior knee surgeries on this knee, and two surgeries after this fall to repair the trauma to her knee and aggravation of pre-existing degenerative changes in her knee. She had great difficulty doing the manual labor for which she was trained and experienced in after this fall, as she suffered from swelling, stiffness and increased chronic pain in her knee.

Personal injury

J.S. v. Premier Landscaping

Sep 22, 2010

OUTCOME: $265,000

My client was a motorcycle mechanic who had put himself through school as an adult to fulfill a lifelong dream to work on Harleys for the rest of his days. One day as he test-drove a Harley for a clien ... t of his shop, a large truck driven by an employee of a local landscaping company pulled out from a stop sign directly in front of my client. He t-boned the truck, causing significant damage to himself, and the vehicles. He injured his knee, shoulder, neck and back, and required knee surgery to repair the derangement. He was no longer able to work as a mechanic because standing, bending, squatting and stooping on concrete all day was too painful on his knees, neck and back. After a successful mediation on his litigated case, my client was able to take his proceeds to pursue a new passion with this family - sailing.

Diana Nicole Ruff's Legal Cases (4)

A.F. v. Meadow Park Apartments

Confidential

L.C. v. Fischer & Sons

J.S. v. Premier Landscaping