Family Car Doctrine $365,000.00 Settlement: We obtained a prejudgment attachment of over $650,000 for a young man who was struck by a hit and run driver as he was walking down the road with friends following an off-campus party at UCONN. The PJR hearing lasted 2.5 days and the award was instrumented in bringing the defendant's to a mediation. The owner of the vehicle agreed to pay $255,000.00 out of her personal estate and the insurance company agreed to pay $10,000.00 above their policy.

Contractor Liability: Elderly man who had let floor refinishing crew into son's apartment suffers badly burned leg when workmen failed to turn off stove pilot light. Flooring stain ignites causing flash fire resulting in second and third degree burns to leg. No lost wages and all medical bills paid by health insurance. $275,000.00 settlement.

Auto Accident: Woman who suffers shoulder strain in auto accident wins $42,000.00 in a binding arbitration which we arranged to take place at our office. Arbitration resulted in case concluding without the need for a trial which was two years out.

CASE CAPTION: Patricia Collins v. Daniel Scoppetta, M.D.

VERDICT: jury awards $350,000. Court remitted damages in the amount of $35,435 and collateral source offset in the amount of $5,731 for a net verdict of $308,834.

Breakdown: $50,000 for economic damages and $300.000 for non-economic damages.

DOCKET NO.: CV-03-0822784-S

COURT: Hartford Superior Court

JUDGE: Kevin E. Booth

DATE OF VERDICT: July 7, 2005

ATTORNEYS:

PLAINTIFF:	Kevin C. Ferry, Esq., Law Office of Kevin C. Ferry, L.L.C., Hartford
DEFENDANT:	John W. Sitarz, Esq., Cooney, Scully, & Dowling, Hartford

FACTS: A Hartford Superior Court jury deliberated for two days before returning a verdict in the amount of $350,000 to a woman who proved that her surgeon fired a cork screw like tack into her lateral femoral cutaneous nerve. The surgeon was affixing a piece of mesh during a laparoscopic hernia repair surgery when he committed the error.

Defendant Daniel Scoppetta, M.D., a general surgeon, recommended surgical repair of Plaintiff's inguinal hernia. The Plaintiff, Patricia Collins consented to surgery and the operation took place on September 11, 2001. The Court forbade Plaintiff's lawyer from making argument that the date of the surgery played a role in the Doctor committing an error. Following the surgery, plaintiff was diagnosed with nerve entrapment of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve. Plaintiff underwent a second surgery in which Dr.Scoppetta removed some of the tacks and repositioned others.

Plaintiff alleged that, during the placement of the mesh used in the repair, defendant placed tacks onto or into the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve, causing entrapment. Plaintiff alleged that defendant's care fell below acceptable standards. As a result of this negligence, plaintiff claimed she suffered a permanent nerve injury which was exacerbated by cold weather and clothing contacting her thigh.

Defendant argued that his care of plaintiff fell within all acceptable standards and the injury was one of the risks of the surgery. Defendant also argued that the plaintiff's leg injury was caused by insufflating the surgical site with CO2 under pressure. The defense presented a neurology expert to testify that the tacks played no role in causing the nerve entrapment.

PLAINTIFF PROFILE: Plaintiff was a 27 year old single female at the time of the incident. ALLEGED INJURY: Nerve entrapment of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve resulting in permanent pain and thigh numbness.

TRIAL DETAILS:

TRIAL LENGTH:	6 days
JURY DELIBERATIONS:	2 days

SETTLEMENT EFFORTS: Last demand: $200,000 Last offer: None INSURANCE CARRIER: CMIC

EXPERT(S):

PLAINTIFF:	Mitchell Frost, M.D. General Surgeon- Rockville, MD
DEFENDANT:	Mark A. Reiner, M.D. General Surgeon- New York, NY
	Robert L. Van Uitert, M.D. Neurologist- North Adams, MA

Criminal Trial Verdict

State v. Doe: Mr. Doe was accused of sexually assaulting three different young girls over the course of five years. From day one, he denied any wrongdoing and demanded a trial. Mr. Doe took and passed a lie detector test administered by a highly trained former FBI employee. Two accusers said they were assaulted by Mr. Doe in a local business establishment. The third claimed she was molested during the middle of the night in Mr. Doe's home. The trial court consolidated all three cases and at trial Mr. Doe faced nine felony charges. His maximum jail exposure was in excess of fifty years.

With the help of an expert trial consultant, Allen Cowling, from Cowling Investigations, a lot of hard work, and collaboration with top experts on child abuse in the country, Mr. Doe was acquitted of all sexual assaults and was found guilty of one count of risk of injury to a minor. This verdict was accepted by the Court in Manchester, Connecticut in March 2007. The case is under appeal and Mr. Doe stands an excellent chance of prevailing on appeal.