Maryland Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

The young daughter of a 23-year-old man killed while riding his motorcycle has been awarded a $1 million verdict for damages. The jury award was part of $2.8 million in total damages granted to the survivors of the victim, who died when a car struck his motorcycle.The family's attorney, expressed some degree of satisfaction, even though no amount of money will bring the victim back.

"I am very satisfied that the jury awarded this child double what we had asked for," he said. According to court records,the victim who worked as a manager for a large retailer was riding his motorcycle. A car collided with him resulting in his death. The negligence claim was based on the fact that the driver of the car failed to yield the right of way while driving a Ford Mustang, the plaintiff's lawyer said.

The suit sought damages for pain, suffering and mental anguish.After the issue of liability was determined by Circuit court, the jury assessed how much damages should be paid to the victim's survivors. In addition to $1 million awarded to the victim's 5-year-old daughter, his parents will each receive $500,000 under the verdict. Another $798,000 was awarded for economic damages, including $4,200 for funeral expenses, Sweat said.

The award was high, but not near the highest granted. The record verdict reached was in 2007 when $110 million was awarded against a man for sexual abuse. The victim moved to the area in 2005 from Georgia. He enjoyed skateboarding, the outdoors and was a member of a Christian Church, his family said.

If you or your friend has been a victim of a motorcycle or bicycle accident call me at 1-800-320-0080 to set up an appointment at one of my conveniently located offices in Rockville or Baltimore or hospital visit.

A law firm has filed a lawsuit against the state on behalf of four bicyclists who were severely injured while riding on Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in August 2009. The cyclists suffered everything from severe cases of road rash to concussions, broken bones, punctured lungs, even paralysis. The state agency hired an outside contractor to re-pave a portion of PCH in Malibu near Zuma Beach. The re-paving process was in its initial stages. On the first Friday after the project began, the contractor left the jobsite unprotected, without warning of the danger it posed. Bicyclists riding northbound on PCH encountered an incline without any reasonable notice of what they faced at the bottom of the incline, namely that the road was "...cut away and strewn with loose gravel, rocks, sudden irregularities in elevation, narrowing of the shoulder, ground-up roadway surfaces, cracks and crevices," according to the lawsuit. These conditions "would and did cause said roadway to be unreasonably dangerous and defective for bicyclists who regularly and typically used PCH....". The hazardous conditions remained from Friday through Sunday despite messages left on the states hotline and e-mails sent informing them of the conditions. The governmental agency did not begin to remedy the situation until Monday, explaining that they were closed on Friday due to the state-mandated furlough. "The state did not do their job," says Personal Injury Attorney and avid cyclist who specializes in handling bicycle cases. "Pursuant to policy and directive, they are responsible for issuing warnings about highway construction projects, and they dropped the ball ... big time. Call it oversight, carelessness, stupidity or indifference ... it still comes down to many innocent people being seriously injured." If you or a loved one has been injured from a bicycle accident due to fault of a driver contact me for a free intitial consultation at my Rockville or Baltimore Offices at 1-800-320-0080.