On October 3, 1996, Edith Schaffer, then 67 years old, voluntarily admitted herself to a small psychiatric hospital in Ossining, New York, for an episode of depression and anxiety. The next day, she suffered the first of a series of seizures and was sent to a nearby community hospital for a neurological consult and
Seizure
New Trial Ordered by Appellate Court in Lawsuit over Teenager’s Drowning Death – Jury was Wrong in Refusing to Award Pain and Suffering Damages for 11 Day Period after Drowning but before Death
By John Hochfelder on
Posted in Wrongful Death
It was a hot summer day – a great one to be off the city streets and in a cool swimming pool. So, on July 21, 1995, Jeremy Williams, an 18 year old high school senior, went to Betsy Head Pool in Brooklyn. Part of the New York City Parks department system, the pool…
Verdict for $5,000,000 for Past Pain and Suffering in Trip and Fall Back Injury Case Set Aside on Appeal – Jury’s Findings Irreconcilably Inconsistent as to Fault and Illogical as to Damages
By John Hochfelder on
Posted in Back Injuries
What were they thinking? In a stairway trip and fall negligence case, the jury found:
- plaintiff was negligent but defendant building owner was completely at fault and
- the 35 year old plaintiff was entitled to $5,000,000 for past pain and suffering but zero for future pain and suffering
No one knows for sure what…
No Future Pain and Suffering for Stroke Victim in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit? New York’s Highest Court Affirms but Allows $300,000 for Past Pain and Suffering
By John Hochfelder on
Posted in Brain Injuries, Medical Malpractice
It’s rare that the Court of Appeals, New York’s highest court, rules on the proper amounts for pain and suffering in accident or medical malpractice cases. Usually, jury verdicts are challenged by the aggrieved party at the trial court level (a post-trial motion addressed to the trial judge) and/or at the intermediate appeals court…