Case Results

A mother of two severely autistic boys was buried alive when her SUV collided with a dump truck carrying tons of sand. The driver of the dump truck swerved to avoid hitting another vehicle, causing the load of sand to shift and tip the vehicle over and onto the SUV. Eisenberg Rothweiler trial attorneys, Ken Rothweiler, Fred Eisenberg and Dan Sherry tried the case for the Walsh family against three defendants: the driver of the truck; the mining company that loaded the sand, and the driver who was creeping out onto the roadway which caused the dump truck to swerve. A high-low agreement was reached before verdict to provide a more speedy recovery of funds for the family of the deceased.

En route to an athletic event, a high school’s van driven by the coach left the road, rolled over and severely injured a high school athlete. Although wearing a seatbelt, the student was partially ejected from the van and is now a wheelchair-dependent quadriplegic. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., filed a civil complaint in the New York State Supreme Court, alleging that the City was responsible for the actions of the High School and Coach; that the school was negligent in its failure to advise its coaches and staff that transporting students in passenger vans was prohibited under law. Suit was also filed against the van’s manufacturer because the passenger van lacked canopy airbags to prevent occupant ejection during a rollover, and against the automotive company for designing a seatbelt that did not provide reasonable restraint. The result achieved by Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., ranks in the top five largest settlements against New York City.

Attorneys Kenneth Rothweiler, Fred Eisenberg and Todd Schoenhaus settled a truck accident case for $9 million after two years of litigation and one mediation. The settlement was reached as a trial was set to begin. In this case, our client was a single mother whose car was struck in a head-on collision with a tractor trailer when the truck crossed the center line. The truck driver had a history of medical issues and safety violations, was overly fatigued, and should not have been permitted by his employer to operate a commercial vehicle. Our client suffered a traumatic brain injury, which the trucking company vigorously disputed, and broke multiple bones. She is permanently unable to work or care for herself. The $9 million settlement will help provide the care that she will need for the rest of her life.

Partners Ken Rothweiler and Daniel Jeck resolved a medical malpractice action in Philadelphia just prior to trial arising from the failure by Obstetricians at a local hospital to recognize and appreciate a pattern of non-reassuring fetal heart rate tracings that warned of significant fetal cord occlusion or blockage in a timely manner. As a result of the failure to perform an expedited delivery, our client suffered severe and permanent neurological injuries from hypoxia (lack of oxygen) sustained towards the end of her mother’s labor.

At six months old, a child was infused with a solution that contained ten times the prescribed dose of sugar in the concentration. The boy went into shock, suffered a stroke and now has permanent brain damage. The manufacturer of a compounding system that creates intravenous solutions for supplemental nutritional needs was to blame. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., maintained that the compounding machine should have utilized software that would recognize and prevent incorrect dosing. The technology not only existed, it had been incorporated in similar machines to prevent mixing of potentially lethal concentrations. The settlement will help provide for the young boy’s needs today and into the future.

An 8-year-old boy was killed after he was ejected from a van struck by a tractor-trailer. The van’s lift gate latch failed upon impact, opening the rear gate and ejecting all occupants inside. The boy was then run over by oncoming traffic. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., argued before a jury that the minivan was not crashworthy and did not offer adequate protection from a collision. The automobile manufacturer knew that in certain scenarios, the rear hatch could open due to a design flaw in the latch mechanism. It was also known that the seats would collapse backward and the seatbelts would be unable to keep the occupants in the vehicle. The manufacturer did not warn drivers or issue a recall. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., recovered a large award for the boy’s family during the trial.

A young woman was driving her SUV at only 35 mph when struck by another motorist, causing her vehicle to roll over. She was ejected from the vehicle when her seatbelt malfunctioned. As a result, she has chronic, intractable pain from metal rods surgically placed in her back to stabilize her spinal cord, and required surgery to remove a kidney damaged in the rollover. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., argued that the auto manufacturer was responsible for an SUV design which was not crashworthy and failed to protect the driver in such a collision. The manufacturer acknowledged the propensity for the vehicle to rollover, yet did nothing to warn or protect drivers. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., recovered a large settlement for the client.

After surgery for an abnormally curved spine, a 7-year-old girl was transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) to recover. As is proper procedure, the patient was restrained using soft wrist restraints to guard against her removing her breathing tube (a normal reaction when patients regain consciousness). Within hours of arriving at the PICU, the restraints were removed. When she awoke, she removed her breathing tube. She stopped breathing and her heart stopped. She was resuscitated, but oxygen deprivation caused permanent damage to her spinal chord. She has lost the use of her legs, cannot control bladder or bowel function and faces a lifetime of health complications. Her future medical needs will exceed $4 million. Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C., achieved a multi-million dollar settlement after two mediations.