On November 12, 2012, Florence Nemeth, then 67 years old, was diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma, a tumor of mesothelia cells in the abdomen. She died from the disease on March 5, 2016, before a lawsuit was brought on her behalf against several firms involved in the manufacture and distribution of a talc based product
Substantial Pre-Death Pain and Suffering Award in Case of Woman Struck by Vehicle
On November 23, 2011, Margarita Martinez was pushing her shopping cart in a crosswalk when she was struck by a cargo van on Cypress Avenue at East 138th Street in the Bronx. The van was driven by Robert Lane in the course of his employment as a delivery driver for Premium Laundry.
Ms. Martinez, 79
Pre-Death Pain and Suffering Claims Reinstated on Appeal for Patient in Vegetative State
After five years in a nursing home for treatment for several medical issues including chronic urinary tract infections and a stroke, and a month at New York Presbyterian Hospital (“New York Pres.”) in October 2013 where she was treated for respiratory distress and pneumonia, Charlotte Much was transferred to a New York City nursing home
Damages Affirmed in Case of Medication Error Causing Death of 81 Year Old Hospital Patient
On August 16, 2007, Rose Kij, then 81 years old, had a sudden attack of left-sided weakness and was taken by ambulance from her home in Buffalo to Millard Fillmore Gates Hospital. She was admitted with a diagnosis of transient ischemic attack (similar to a stroke, but usually lasting only a few minutes and causing
Substantial Verdict Reductions Ordered in Fatal Car Crash Case
On May 1, 2007, at 4 p.m., Jenna Vatalaro, a 19 year old college student, was driving her car westbound on Montauk Highway near its intersection with Atlantic Avenue in the hamlet of Blue Point in Suffolk County when her car was struck by a 35 foot long Suffolk County transit bus. Ms Vatalaro
Punitive Damages Assessed in Medical Malpractice Case
On October 26, 2009, when six year old Claudialee Gomez Nicanor was examined by her pediatrician, a test revealed that her blood had an excessive amount of glucose so she was referred to an endocrinologist in Elmhurst, Dr. Arlene Basa Mercado.
Dr. Mercado’s Office (in the basement of her sister’s house)
Appellate Court Affirms Liability Verdict and Modifies Damages Awarded by Jury in Truck-Pedestrian Fatality Case
On May 10, 2007, Ivan Hernandez Morales, then 21 years old, was killed in a work-related accident when a private garbage truck lurched backward and he was pinned and crushed against a dumpster in a driveway off 37th Street in Astoria. Mr. Morales was employed as a helper on the truck owned by his employer
Crane Collapse Case Wrongful Death Awards Modified
On May 30, 2008, crane operator Donald Leo and laborer Ramadan Kurtaj were working at a building construction site in Manhattan. Mr. Leo was inside a crane’s cab 14 stories above East 91st Street and Mr. Kurtaj was working on the street below. Shortly before 8 a.m.,the crane tilted, rocked and then sheared off of
Damages Verdict for Pre-Death Pain and Suffering Affirmed in Yard-Work Vehicle Tragedy
On March 11, 2007, Elias Fasolas was operating a Bobcat S175 skid-steer loader with a bucket attachment when a limb from a nine-foot-tall tree entered the open operator cab, crushing him against the rear and ceiling of the cab and killing him.
Mr. Fasolas was 28 years old, lived with his parents in Port Jefferson
Economic Damages Addressed on Appeal in Wrongful Death Case
On December 14, 2011, Suzanne Hart was entering the elevator in the lobby of the building where she worked, at 285 Madison Avenue in Manhattan, when the elevator malfunctioned and suddenly shot upward while its doors were still open. The moving elevator struck her at about knee level causing her to fall into the