Bicyclist Who Suffered Catastropic Injuries In Motor Vehicle Accident Reaches $3.5 Million Settlement With Help Of Medical Expert
By: J. Hernandez
Submitted: 2010-07-15 14:48:45 | Word Count: 624
The right expert witness can make the difference between a winning outcome and the loss of a vehicle accident case. In practical terms, however, it is not always economically feasible to hire an expert witness. The economics of a case involving minor injuries where the recovery is probably going to be for a modest amount make it too expensive to hire an expert. In the event that the case deals with serious injuries and the recovery is likely to be a large sum, though, retaining an expert might be sensible.
Let's analyse the report of a motor vehicle accident case in which a bicyclist was badly injured. The driver of the automobile involved in the vehicle accident was an elderly gentleman. While driving he lost control of his car. After this the car hit the victim and was stopped when it hit a telephone pole. The bicyclist was aged 40 and a father of two. The driver was found to have sustained heavy trauma to the chest in the accident. He died at the scene of the accident prior to the arrival of first responders.
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As a result of the car accident the bicyclist suffered a head injury. He went into a coma. He was diagnosed with permanent brain damage. With this disability he was not able to go back home to be with his two daughters. He was could not go back to his job. The victim will most likely require long term care in a rehabilitation facility or institution. The cost of his medical care up to the time was over $500,000.
It was concluded that the defendant had suffered a heart attack. The defense used this information to take the position that the reason the defendant lost control of the car was due to the heart attack. As this constituted a medical emergency the defense argued that the defendant had not been careless and thus the plaintiff was not owed any money. The end result would be that the insurance company would not have to compensate the plaintiff. Under the circumstances many law firms would not have continued with the claim at this point. The biycyclist was fortunate to have retained a law firm that was willing to investigate deeper. To determine what actually happened the law firm retained a medical expert.
The law firm that handled this case had slides of the driver's heart tissue examined by a medical expert who was able to prove that the heart attack did not happen before the accident. Instead it occurred following the accident from the trauma experienced when he slammed into the pole.
The law firm documented that, equipped with this critical information, it was able to recover a settlement for the claim for $3,500,000. Of this amount, $1,000,000 was for the bicyclist's wife who had a claim for loss of consortium. This claim illustrates that facts which at first appear adverse to a lawsuit could in actuality be just what causes the case to settle when it is explained in the correct context. The case shows that in certain circumstances retaining someone with just the right type of expertise can make all the difference in the outcome of the case. Lastly, the case illustrates the importance of not letting the defense characterize the lawsuit.
Author Resource:-
Joseph Hernandez is an Attorney accepting bicycle accident cases. For additional information on bicycle accident and about other vehicle accident cases including motor vehicle accident cases visit the websites
