Verdicts and settlements are the product of a combination of fact, personality, insurance coverage, and timing. As a consequence, it is difficult to gauge the value of one case by comparing it to another. Nevertheless, a proven track record of successful client results is one thing you can consider when choosing a lawyer. A sampling of recent results from the medical malpractice, accident, personal injury and products liability attorneys of Clancy Law Offices , Saint Charles, Illinois, follows:

Raymond Granger v. Health Professionals, Ltd., Docket No. 03 L 65 (Will County, Illinois).

Case Tried: January, 2007
Verdict: $3,016,250.00

Raymond Granger was a 38 year old inmate at the Pinckneyville Correctional Center in 2002 when he suffered a stroke.  HPL, a Peoria based health care provider, had contracted with the State of Illinois to provide health care to the inmates at Pinckneyville Correctional Center.  Mr. Granger argued to the jury that HPL failed to properly medicate him on Coumadin and failed to properly monitor the thinness of his blood and that one or both of which resulted in his stroke.  The jury returned a verdict of $3,175,000, subtracting 5% for Mr. Granger's own contributory negligence, for a net verdict of $3,016,250. 

Lin Huo, Special Administrator of the Estate of Xiaoshan Wang v. William Lee, M.D. and DeKalb Clinic, Chtd., Docket No. 04 L 74 (DeKalb County, Illinois).

Case Settled: May, 2006
Amount: Confidential

Xiaoshan Wang, 46, died in July of 2004 of lung cancer which metastasized to his brain.  Mr. Wang saw Dr. Lee at the DeKalb Clinic in September of 2001 for a routine physical.  A chest x-ray showed a spot on Mr. Wang's lung.  Dr. Lee ordered a CT scan which was performed in October of 2001.  The CT scan confirmed that Mr. Wang had lung cancer but Dr. Lee and the DeKalb Clinic failed to notify Mr. Wang of the results of that scan.  Approximately thirteen months later Mr. Wang returned to the DeKalb Clinic with upper respiratory symptoms and his lung cancer was finally diagnosed.  Defendants offered a confidential settlement amount just two days before plaintiff's experts were scheduled to be deposed.  Mr. Wang was survived by his wife Lin Huo and his son Henry.

Kathleen Smith, Special Administrator of the Estate of Joseph Smith v. Lubin Kan, M.D.

Case Settled: December, 2005 
Amount: $2,000,000.00

 

Josephine Chuffo and Dianne Simon, Special Administrators of the Estate of Ethel Hare v. Correctional Medical Services of Illinois, Inc. and Lisa Zegar, Docket No. 00 L 486 (Kane County, Illinois).

Case Tried: May, 2002
Verdict: $229,500.00
Case Settled: April, 2004
Amount: $262,500.00

Ethel Hare, a 33 year old inmate at the Kane County Jail, suffered from HIV, Hepatitis B and C, and end stage liver disease in the Spring of 1997. CMS contracted with the Kane County Jail to provide medical services to the inmates at the jail. Despite the fact that Ms. Hare sought medical care from CMS nurses five times in 32 hours (once complaining of brown, gritty vomit), CMS nurses failed to properly diagnose or treat her by calling a doctor or referring her to a hospital. Ms. Hare was found comatose in her bunk at the jail at 7:00 a.m. on March 22, 1997, about five hours after her last visit to the nurse. She died two days later without gaining consciousness. The jury returned a verdict of $450,000, subtracting 49% for Ms. Hare's own contributory negligence, for a net verdict of $229,500.00. The defendants appealed and the appellate court recently affirmed the verdict, prompting defendants to settle the case for an amount approximately equal to the verdict plus the accumulated interest.

Maria Kryvenko, Special Administrator of the Estate of Walter Kryvenko v. Greenwood Care, Inc. and S.I.R. Management, Inc., Docket No. 02 L 3077 (Cook County, Illinois).

Case Settled: January 13, 2004
Amount: $500,000.00

Walter Kryvenko, 41, died when he jumped or fell from the Church Street overpass into the traffic speeding along I-94 below. Walter was then living at and being cared for by Greenwood Care, an Evanston nursing home specializing in caring for mentally ill adults. Walter had come to Greenwood Care just 14 days earlier directly from an inpatient psychiatric stay at a local hospital. While at Greenwood, Walter admitted to not taking his medication, told nurses that he was drinking every day, and had several psychotic episodes. Greenwood failed to report any of this to Walter's treating psychiatrist. After approximately a dozen depositions and with the help of experts in nursing home management and psychiatry, CLO convinced Greenwood's insurer to offer Walter's family $500,000 to compensate them for his needless death. The settlement proceeds will be split between Walter's parents and his two adult siblings.

Gary and Karen Hart v. Brian P. Daniel, M.D. and Sterling Rock Falls Clinic, d/b/a The Dixon Clinic, Docket No. 02 L 12 (Lee County, Illinois).

Case Settled: July 23, 2003
Amount: $1,450,000.00

Gary Hart, a 37 year old Lee County deputy sheriff, went to Brian Daniel, M.D. complaining of blood in his stool. Dr. Daniel performed an examination and recorded the results in Gary's records as normal, although he told Mr. Hart that he found "pooled blood" in his rectum. Nevertheless, Dr. Daniel assured Mr. Hart that there was nothing to worry about. After approximately eight months, the bleeding got worse, and Dr. Daniel referred Mr. Hart to a gastroenterologist who discovered that Mr. Hart had rectal cancer which had metastasized to Mr. Hart's liver. His prognosis was grim.

CLO took more than 15 depositions and persuaded the judge to set an early trial date because of Mr. Hart's diagnosis. Using experts in internal medicine, gastroenterology, and oncology, and employing a focus group to evaluate mock jurors' reactions to case issues, CLO convinced defendants' insurers to pay $1.45 million in a rural Illinois county on the eve of trial. This is believed to be the largest failure to diagnose cancer settlement ever in Lee County.

State Bank of Geneva, Special Administrator of the Estate of Carmen Enrique Moreno, Maria de los Angeles Garibay de Moreno, and Francisco Javier Velazquez Salas, Individually and as Heir and Personal Representative of the Estate of Rosa Maria Moreno de Velazquez. v. Suzanne Ward and CSD 304, Docket No. 00 C 5142 (U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois).

Date Settled: January, 2002
Amount: $4,340,000.00

In a tragic accident on a cold, misty December 1999 morning, a Geo Metro collided with the side of a school bus not far from the intersection of Route 38 and Kirk Road in Geneva, Illinois. The driver of the Metro, 46 year old Carmen Moreno, and his sister, 35 year old Rosa Velazquez, were killed. Carmen's 35 year old wife Angeles, a front seat passenger, was severely injured. Discovery revealed that the Moreno and the Velazquez families had entered the United States legally but the adults had obtained employment using forged Immigration and Social Security papers. CLO filed suit on behalf of the families in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago, Illinois. Discovery in this wrongful death auto accident case lasted approximately 12 months and included more than 25 depositions. Over the course of the case, CLO consulted and engaged experts in accident reconstruction, meteorology, economics, neurology, neuropsychology, orthopedics and rehabilitation medicine. Using the assistance of a professional mediator, CLO was able to convince the school district's insurer and the insurer for another defendant to offer $4.34 million dollars for the families to share.

Robert and Helen Krell v. Patricia Swayne, Docket No. 00 LK 408 (Kane County, Illinois).

Date Settled: April, 2001
Amount: $1,900,000

Eighty-six year old Robert Krell was struck by a car as he attempted to walk across State Street in Geneva, Illinois at its intersection with Anderson Boulevard early one May morning in 2000. Mr. Krell sustained a serious traumatic brain injury. After conducting extensive discovery designed to show that Mr. Krell was active, vibrant, and the center of the life of his family (which included his wife of 62 years, Helen, his 3 children, and his 9 grandchildren), CLO contacted medical experts and illustrators and supervised the creation of a series of medical exhibits designed to explain to a jury the nature and extent of Bob's injuries. Shortly after the exhibits were unveiled at the deposition of one of Bob's treating physicians (whom CLO had convinced to assist in the preparation of the exhibits), the case settled for $1.9 million dollars.

Denis Berghauer, Special Administrator of the Estate of Julie Berghauer and Mark Bauman, as Father and Next Friend of Alec Berghauer v. Bruce Heyl, M.D. and St. Elizabeth Hospital, Docket No. 98 CV 164 (Outagamie County, Wisconsin).

Case Tried: July, 2000.
Jury Verdict: $546,228.91
Settled: December, 2001 (following a decision by the Wisconsin Appeals Court)
Amount: $624,000

Nineteen year old Julie Berghauer hung herself in the psychiatric unit at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton, Wisconsin in May of 1995. Julie's family (including her son Alec Berghauer, who was two when she committed suicide) and the family's Wisconsin lawyer turned to CLO for help.

Discovery revealed that Julie had managed to commit suicide in the hospital using the exact plan which she described having considered to the admitting physician when she checked herself in to St. Elizabeth Hospital on April 26, 1995. Although the hospital and psychiatrist contended at trial that Julie showed no signs of being suicidal after she was admitted, careful examination of the doctors and nurses caring for her and the presentation of the testimony of experts in psychiatry and psychiatric nursing convinced the jury that Julie's suicide should have been prevented. Although there had been no offer to the family prior to trial, the jury awarded Alec and the rest of Julie's family a total of $546,228.91 and the Court added an additional $4,720.26 in costs and $14,905.14 in interest. Both the Hospital and the doctor appealed, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to support the jury's verdict and that the jury had acted out of sympathy and without considering the facts. CLO represented Julie's family on appeal and, in an unpublished decision, the Wisconsin Appeal's Court upheld the verdict in it entirety. The case then settled for $624,000, this representing the approximate value of the verdict with interest.

JoAnn Meister v. North Aurora Motel, Docket No. LKA 96 0506 consolidated with LKA 96 0379 (Kane County, Illinois).

Case Tried: October, 1999
Verdict: $3.72 million
Settled: February, 2001
Amount: $3.2 million

JoAnn Meister sustained a significant brain injury as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning when a swimming pool water heater malfunctioned, filling her hotel room with deadly carbon monoxide gas as she slept. After extensive discovery conducted by Ms. Meister's Maryland attorney, Ms. Meister and her attorney turned to CLO to be lead trial counsel. The offer prior to trial was approximately $1,000,000.

In a trial lasting more than three weeks in Kane County, Illinois and involving issues touching on premises liability and products liability, CLO presented and cross examined dozens of witnesses and helped the jury understand difficult concepts as diverse as the mechanical engineering requirements for the proper installation of a water heater and ways in which carbon monoxide can produce a hypoxic brain injury and an untreatable syndrome which is much like Parkinson's Disease. The jury awarded Ms. Meister $3.72 million dollars, the highest amount ever awarded in Kane County for a brain injury. Although the defendants appealed, the case settled for $3.2 million dollars while the appeal was pending.

Carollyn Pickett v. David Chudwin, M.D., Mary Levin, M.D. and Michael Reese Health Plan Foundation, Docket No. 91 L 5642 (Cook County, Illinois).

Case Tried: February, 1996
Verdict: $10.3 million

Carollyn Pickett, a 49 year old jazz/blues pianist and college lecturer was diagnosed with a large, malignant tumor at the base of her brain in April of 1989. Investigation revealed that Ms. Pickett had been complaining of symptoms that should have warranted a detailed medical work up for several years before the tumor was discovered. CLO consulted with one of the country's leading radiation oncologists and developed an extensive and detailed series of anatomic models which showed the size and location of the tumor when it should have been discovered and the size and location of the tumor when it was actually discovered.

Ms. Pickett was blind and terribly disfigured from surgery at the time of the trial. The trial in this failure to timely diagnose cancer case lasted four weeks and resulted in a verdict for Ms. Pickett in an amount slightly in excess of $10.3 million dollars.

Dolores Barry, Guardian of the Estate of Kristen Hiland v. Raymond Thomas, Roadrunner Enterprises, Inc. and Roadrunner Distribution Services, Inc., Docket No. 96 L 16931 (Will County, Illinois).

Case Settled: February, 1999
Amount: $970,000

Kristen Hiland, a 30 year old Peotone resident, sustained a terrible traumatic brain injury and orthopedic injuries when her car was struck by a speeding truck as the car in which she was a passenger pulled out from a gas station in Peotone, Illinois. Discovery revealed that the truck had been stolen from its driver earlier that day and was being driven by the thief at the time of the crash. Although the company which owned the truck initially insisted that it had no responsibility for the acts of the thief, CLO was able to discover that the driver from whom the truck had been stolen had failed to pick up a load on time or to check in with his dispatcher for several days. Despite this, the company failed to initiate any efforts to determine where the driver was or what he was doing. After extensive discovery, the insurer for the driver of the truck and another party offered $970,000 to settle Ms. Hiland's claims.

M_____ B_____ v. Sean, Richard and Janis Jones and Gene Wuthrich, Oneco Township, Kevin Rakowska and Waddams Township, Docket No. 92 L 63 (Stephenson County, Illinois).

Case Settled: March, 1995
Amount: $1.375 million

Seventeen year old M.B. was badly hurt in a one car automobile accident in a rural portion of Oneco Township (located in northwestern Illinois) in October of 1991. M.B. and a friend were returning from an evening out in a car driven by his friend. As they attempted to negotiate a poorly designed intersection on a rural road late at night, the car left the roadway, ejecting M.B. He sustained a serious traumatic brain injury.

Following extensive discovery and a number of depositions, CLO was able to put together a settlement package for Matthew totaling $1.375 million dollars.

Laurie Kokenes, Individually and as Special Administrator of the Estate of George Kokenes v. Loyola University Medical Center, William Boblick, M.D. and Boblick Medical Group, Docket No. 92 L 1475 (Cook County, Illinois).

Case Settled: May, 1997
Amount: $775,000

George Kokenes, a 42 year old lithographer, was afflicted with a rare blood clotting disorder similar to hemophilia. In 1995, Mr. Kokenes developed a spontaneous brain bleed which required him to be in the hospital for several weeks. He was discharged, but began to complain of a returning headache and chest pain a week later. He was taken to Loyola University Medical Center, evaluated in the emergency room, and discharged. He died shortly thereafter at home.

Despite the arguments of the hospital and its physician that the failure to conduct an autopsy made the cause of Mr. Kokenes' death speculative, years of discovery, depositions, and consultation with experts in hematology and emergency medicine convinced defendants to offer $775,000 to settle the case, which alleged the failure to timely diagnose and treat Mr. Kokenes, immediately prior to jury selection.

Goins v. Mercy Center, 281 Ill.App.3d 480 (7th Cir. 1996)

Wilson v. Clark, 84 Ill.2d 186, 417 N.E.2d 1322 (Ill. Supreme Ct. 1981)