Yesterday, the firm resolved a trucking crash case that occurred roughly 2 years ago for $1,525,000.00 from the trucking company’s insurance company. The photos attached demonstrate the damage to our client’s car and the testimony taken from eyewitnesses who we were able to track down with help of our investigative team. The case was in active litigation and ready for trial in early May.
Numerous depositions had been taken and motions had been taken up and argued. One of the largest defense firms in Missouri was on the other side funded by an insurance company with a market cap of over $19.6 billion.
Perhaps most chilling was the fact that our client was on the phone with his wife at the time. All she heard was the gnashing of steel (like 1000s of aluminum cans crunching she said) and then dead silence. She could not reach her husband for close to a minute. She didn’t know if he was alive or dead.
Our client’s injuries did not present immediately at the scene. He was relieved he was still alive after he got himself together. The defense repeatedly claimed in court filings and in affidavits that, not only was our client uninjured, but he was the cause of the crash. As you can see below, they listed all the ways they claim our client caused the crash.
We invested tens of thousands of our own money to pursue this case for our client. The insurance company initially refused to even respond to our demand to settle before filing suit. We kept pushing and doing what needed to be done.
We spent hours and hours with our client. He is a great man–a young father of 5 (soon to be 6) with a fantastic wife. He suffered a torn shoulder after the crash that required surgery. However, the more nuanced injury was to his brain. Unbeknownst to him at the time, he suffered a concussive brain injury that damaged his pituitary gland.
Through our brain injury practice and commitment to further education, we have been able to become more experienced about and help identify such injuries that largely go missed. Our client was able to see an endocrinologist whose blood work showed our client was suffering from growth hormone deficiency. The doctor prescribed a replacement therapy that has dramatically improved our client’s life–getting him closer to who he was before the crash.
How did we suspect this injury? By talking with our client’s wife and asking the right questions. She is such a strong person and knew something was not right with her husband. Upon hearing some ongoing complaints with our client, we asked to speak with his wife. He agreed. She then told us the issues he was facing–ones we have seen before and we suspected pituitary dysfunction. Our client was then asked to see an endocrinologist who objectively found dysfunction and related the cause to the crash and head trauma.
Brain injuries are tricky things. They don’t always get identified immediately. But the symptoms will persist and help can be found if the client is committed. In this case and in rudimentary terms, the trauma caused the pituitary to become compressed, therefore disrupting blood flow to it and causing damage to hormone production. This, among many other things, can happen in a whiplash type crash.
Remember, choosing a lawyer is an important decision. You should not base your decision on advertisements but rather spend time researching the firm or getting to know your attorney. Do not go it alone. You will miss too much. It is crucial.
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Posted Under: Personal Injury