Twelve Day Trial Ends With Verdict for Russo & Toner Client

On October 1, 2018 John Komar secured a liability defense verdict for our clients in Pagan v. Paradise, after a twelve day unified trial in Supreme Court, Bronx County.

Plaintiff was a passenger in our client’s yellow taxi when it collided with the co-defendant’s vehicle as the taxi was making a left turn from the left-most lane of 7th Avenue onto 56th Street in Manhattan. The co-defendant made the same left turn but from the middle lane of 7th Avenue, claiming that the vehicle to his left waived him to go while our client’s taxi entered the intersection from the parking lane. Plaintiff alleged a left shoulder injury requiring surgery, and a left hip injury super-imposed on a pre-existing condition that required two surgeries including an acetabular osteotomy, wherein the pelvis is broken in three places and repaired with implanted hardware. Collectively, the defendants challenged the causal connection between the hip injury and the accident.

The jury heard testimony from each driver, the responding police officer, and the plaintiff, along with the plaintiff’s husband and her orthopedic surgeon. The defense produced a radiologist and an orthopedist. During summation plaintiff’s counsel asked the jury for $3 million. After deliberating for nearly three full days the jury returned a verdict finding the co-defendant 100% at fault for the accident and awarded the plaintiff $930,000 in total damages. Pursuant to a negotiated hi/lo agreement, whereby our clients’ potential exposure was capped at their available policy limit, our clients’ carrier paid $10,000 to settle the claim. The co-defendant’s carrier paid $830,000.