Case Study: $932,500 Settlement for Spine Injury Car Accident
Brought to you by the Mullen & Mullen Law Firm of Dallas, Texas
https://www.mullenandmullen.com/personal-injury-lawyer/settlements/spinal/lumbar-disc-dallas-tx-933k/
Our client was operating a motor vehicle in the course and scope of his employment.
An underinsured motorist was inattentive, failed to properly apply her brakes, and rear-ended his automobile.
He had to be taken to the emergency room via ambulance due to immediate complaints of neck and back pain.
He was released home but had to return to the hospital the following day due to significant pain low back pain radiating down his left leg and into his left foot.
An MRI of his lumbar spine was ordered and revealed a lumbar disc herniation and annular fissure at L5-S1.
He underwent several injections, but the relief they provided was only temporary, so he was recommended for spine surgery.
With our encouragement, the neurosurgeon, hospital, anesthesiologist, surgical assistant, and hardware provider all agreed to delay billing our client until the conclusion of his case.
The spine surgery was a significant medical expense, so we went to great lengths to document our communications with insurance adjusters prior to proceeding.
Later, when the insurance company expressed doubts about coverage for the surgery, the documented communications prevented them from escaping their obligation to pay.
In the end, we demanded policy limits from the liability carrier and almost all of the available underinsured motorist limits as well.
Our client accepted the settlement offers because litigation would have delayed payment with no additional compensation.
Recall from the beginning that our client was on the job at the time of the car accident, so he had coverage from workers compensation, liability from the at-fault driver, and from his company’s uninsured/underinsured motorist insurance policy.
In this situation, the commercial vehicle policy was the clearly better alternative to Workers Comp.
Workers’ Comp coverage systems can be time consuming and may have limitations that put the worker at a disadvantage in some cases.
In this case, our client wanted to be treated by medical professionals who weren’t accountable to the Workers’ Comp system.
It’s not always clear which option to choose, so a free case evaluation by a personal injury lawyer will help you determine the best way to approach your individual case.
Here’s how the funds were distributed…
Case expenses: $2,751.
Attorney fees: $310,833.
Medical fees: $293,671
Net payment to client was $325,245.
If you’ve been injured in an accident – either on the job or off – call the Mullen & Mullen Law Firm right away for a free case evaluation. (214) 747-5240
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