By Samantha Schulz, Texas Verdict Search
VENUE & ATTORNEYS: Tarrant County Court At Law No. 1, Judge R. Brent Keis. June 18, 2008. Plaintiff's attorney: Patrick Gallagher, Haslam & Gallagher, Fort Worth, Texas. Defense attorneys: James W. Karel, Jana Hicks Taylor, Karel & Hicks, Dallas, Texas
FACTS & ALLEGATIONS: On April 24, 2005, plaintiff Mary Doubrava, 60, a nurse, slipped and fell while descending the front steps of Joe's Crab Shack restaurant in Grapevine.
Doubrava sued Joe's Crab Shack Texas Inc., claiming that a rainstorm left the front steps slippery, that the restaurant knew or should have known of this allegedly unsafe condition, and that the restaurant was negligent in failing to remedy the situation.
Joe's Crab Shack argued that the steps were made of a rough and porous material and were not slippery. Defense counsel also contended that no other accidents had ever been reported on the steps, leaving the restaurant with no prior notice of the alleged condition.
INJURIES/DAMAGES: dislocated shoulder; physical therapy
Doubrava was taken to an emergency room, where her dislocated left shoulder, allegedly sustained in the fall, was popped back into place. She was discharged that day.
Doubrava then wore a sling to restrict her shoulder's movement and underwent physical therapy. She finished treatment by September 2005, with several follow-up visits with her doctor thereafter and with continuing pain and soreness in her shoulder, she claimed.
Doubrava sought recovery for past medical expenses, pain and suffering and mental anguish.
The defense did not dispute damages.
VERDICT: The jury rendered a verdict for the defense, finding no negligence.
DEMAND: $12,500
By William Cresenzo, Texas Verdict Search
VENUE & ATTORNEYS: Dallas County Court At Law No. 3, Judge Sally Montgomery. October 1, 2007. Plaintiff's attorney: Marquette Wolf, Ted B. Lyon & Associates, Mesquite, Texas. Defense attorneys: James W. Karel, Jana Hicks Taylor, Karel & Hicks, Dallas, Texas
FACTS & ALLEGATIONS: On April 29, 2003, plaintiff Betty Frazier, 74, retired, was walking to her table at the Saltgrass Steakhouse in Dallas. She slipped and fell. Frazier sued the steakhouse, parent entity Landry's Restaurants Inc., Houston, and related entity FSI Restaurant Development Ltd. for premises liability
Frazier claimed that she slipped on a dustpan that an employee had left in an aisle. The defense disputed the allegations, contending that Frazier was responsible for the accident. The employee testified that the dustpan was in his hand when Frazier slipped.
INJURIES/DAMAGES: deep vein thrombosis; fracture, tibia
Frazier sustained a tibial fracture and a subsequent deep vein thrombosis. She said that she would take an anticoagulant, Coumadin, for the rest of her life. Frazier also claimed that the pain from the injury continued to worsen to the point that she constantly needed pain medication. In March 2004, Frazier went to a hospital for an accidentl Methadone overdose. At trial, she claimed that she needed Methadone to ease her pain. She also claimed that the injury damaged her health to the point that she could not live independently.
Frazier asked for $109,500 in past medical bills, $16,000 in future medical bills, and $280,000 for past and future physical pain, mental anguish, and physical impairment.
VERDICT: Defense. Jury vote 5-1.
DEMAND: $375,000. OFFER: $35,000.
TRIAL LENGTH: three days. DELIBERATIONS: one and a half hours. JURY: four male, two female.
By John Schneider, Texas Verdict Search
VENUE & ATTORNEYS: 35th District Court, Brown County, Texas, Judge Stephen Ellis. March 17, 2005. Plaintiff's attorney: Donald G. MacPhail, Abilene, Texas. Defense attorneys: James W. Karel (lead) and Jana Hicks Taylor, Karel & Hicks, Dallas, Texas
FACTS & ALLEGATIONS: In May 2000, plaintiff Robert Rogers, 61, sustained a back injury while on a business trip in Vancouver, Canada, in the course and scope of his work as a superintendent of plastics for Kohler, a maker of plumbing products. He was golfing with clients and fell, and he filed a workers' compensation claim. At first, the injury did not cause him to miss much work. He had back surgery, but used vacation time for it. Rogers claimed that, in April 2002, the injury started causing him to miss work more often, and on April 16, the company demoted him to manager. He had worked for Kohler for more than 35 years. Rogers sued Kohler under Chapter 451 of the Texas Labor Code. He alleged that the company demoted him in retaliation for filing his workers' compensation claim. He also alleged malice.
Kohler's supervisors testified that, before demoting Rogers, they did not know about his workers' compensation claim. Rogers acknowledged that he never told them of the claim. Kohler acknowledged that Rogers was a good employee, but it contended that he could not grasp new labor-planning and production tools that the company was implementing. Several defense witnesses, including his supervisor, testified that they had attempted repeatedly to explain these initiatives to him and work with him, but that he still failed to understand and implement them. Rogers testified that he understood the initiatives and was implementing them.
INJURIES/DAMAGES: Rogers was demoted, and his annual pay decreased from approximately $75,000 to $60-65,000. Six days after the demotion, Rogers went on disability. On Jan. 1, 2003, Rogers retired. According to defense counsel, Rogers said that, but for the demotion, he would not have retired until many years later. At trial, Rogers claimed lost wages and mental anguish.
VERDICT: Defense. The jury did not find retaliation by Kohler.
DEMAND: $250,000. OFFER: $5,000.
TRIAL LENGTH: four days. DELIBERATIONS: one hour. JURY: five male, seven female.
By Mike Amon, Texas Verdict Search
VENUE & ATTORNEYS: 67th District Court, Tarrant Texas, Judge Don Cosby. May 3, 2006. Plaintiff's attorney: Rick L. Powell, Fort Worth, Texas. Defense attorneys: James W. Karel (lead) and Jana Hicks Taylor, Karel & Hicks, Dallas, Texas
FACTS & ALLEGATIONS: On Jan. 27, 2003, plaintiff Gloria Collier, 53, a homemaker, tripped and fell on a curb drainage inlet in the sidewalk of the parking lot of Joe's Crab Shack in Ft. Worth. Collier sued Landry's Crab Shack, operating as Joe's Crab Shack, for premises liability, claiming that the placement and design of the curbside drain was unreasonably dangerous. Collier's counsel claimed that the restaurant should have had some type of warning or guard near the inlet, which had a gutter depression of 12.75 inches.
Counsel for Joe's argued that the inlet complied with all city codes and was not an unreasonably dangerous condition. William Eldorado, an engineer who testified for the defense, opined that the gutter depression must be at least 30 inches before a warning is required. Counsel for Joe's asserted that Collier was comparatively negligent, arguing that she should have kept a better lookout.
INJURIES/DAMAGES: A week after her fall, Collier's attorney gave her a referral to see a doctor. An MRI revealed that she herniated a disc at L5-S1. She underwent conservative treatment with a chiropractor and orthopedic surgeon. John Stasikowski, an orthopedic surgeon who testified for Collier, opined that she would need a future surgery to repair her back.
Collier's counsel asked the jury to award $171,671 including $75,000 for the future surgery, $11,671 for past medical expenses, $29,000 for past physical impairment, $10,000 for future impairment, $40,000 for past pain and suffering, and $10,000 for future pain and suffering. Counsel for Joe's argued that Collier would not need future surgery.
VERDICT: Defense. The jury found that neither Collier nor Joe's was negligent.
DEMAND: $85,000. OFFER: $10,000.
TRIAL LENGTH: three days. DELIBERATIONS: two hours. JURY: four male, eight female.