Civil Lawsuits
Third Circuit Rules that Plaintiff May Sue Insurance Carrier under the Consumer Fraud Act for Deceptive Practices with Respect to her Personal Injury Claim
Plaintiff Ana Lidia Alpizar-Fallas sued Progressive Garden State Insurance Company (“Progressive”) and one of its agents, claiming that the Progressive agent violated the Consumer Fraud Act due to deceptive business practices. Alpizar-Fallas was insured by Progressive, as was the driver of the other vehicle. She claimed to have suffered a personal injury in a car […]
Plaintiff Unable to Meet Verbal Threshold Based Upon Family Doctor’s Opinion Of Decline in Mental Status Due to Car Accident
Plaintiff Ann Giesguth was in a motor vehicle accident with a car driven by defendant Anthony Costanza. A week after the accident, she was found unresponsive and was taken to the hospital. She was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism. The hospital notes indicated that she “apparently suffered a closed head injury, TBI (traumatic brain injury) […]
Plaintiff Covered by Domestic Partner’s Verbal Threshold Selection in Insurance Policy
Plaintiff Robert Calderone (“Calderone”) claimed to have been injured as a result of an automobile accident with the defendant Michael DeFeo II (“DeFeo”). After Calderone sued DeFeo for his injuries, the defendant filed a motion for summary judgment, requesting a dismissal on the basis that plaintiff’s injuries did not satisfy the verbal threshold (also known […]
Mode of Operation Doctrine Rejected for Accident Caused by Fall on Laundry Detergent in Mailroom of Apartment Building
Plaintiff Maryann Zagloba injured her back when she slipped on laundry detergent spilled in the mailroom of her apartment building. She sued the owner of the building, Vista Gardens Associates LLC (“Vista Gardens”), for her injuries. She argued that the mode of operation doctrine should apply and, as a result, that she did not have […]
Plaintiff Unable to Prove Erectile Dysfunction Caused by Accident without Expert Testimony
In a damages only trial for an uninsured motorist claim, the jury awarded the plaintiff $1.5 million in compensatory damages. The judge molded the verdict to the insurance company’s $500,000 policy limit. Thereafter, in Chetney v. New Jersey Manufacturers Re-Insurance Co., 2018 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1718 (App. Div. July 17, 2018), the UM carrier, […]
Plaintiff Not Entitled to Mode of Operation Charge When Unable to Identify Substance Causing Fall
Plaintiff Enrico Andricola (“Andricola”) slipped and fell in the cafeteria of Defendant Kennedy Hospital (“Kennedy”). He injured his ankle and sued Kennedy. In Andricola v. Kennedy Univ. Hosp. Inc., 2018 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1146 (App. Div. May 16, 2018), the issue was whether the plaintiff was entitled to a mode of operation charge for […]
Plaintiff’s Claim for Property Damage to Vehicle Limited to Vehicle’s Market Value
Plaintiff Aaron Adena was involved in a motor vehicle accident with defendant Joseph Cupoli in which he suffered no injuries but his vehicle sustained extensive damage. Plaintiff’s insurance carrier, MetLife Auto & Home (MetLife) declared plaintiff’s vehicle a total loss and paid him for its actual cash value plus the cost of a rental car. […]
The Special Employer Rule May Bar Civil Lawsuits by Temporary Employees for Injuries Sustained on the Temporary Jobs
By: Charles F. Holmgren, Esq. Editor: Betsy G. Ramos, Esq. While it is well settled that the Workers’ Compensation Act bars employees from recovering in a civil suit against their employers for injuries sustained on the job, it is not as well known that a second employer, a “special employer,” may also find protection against […]
Betsy G. Ramos
Todd
Bill Abate
Richard Ford
Yadia
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