In a new unreported Maryland Appellate Court opinion, the court reversed the trial court’s reduction of damages in a liposuction medical malpractice lawsuit.
This is a somewhat rare case where malpractice occurs in one state and the doctor is sued in another The claim involves a patient who underwent a liposuction procedure in Alexandria, Virginia, and subsequently suffered permanent physical and emotional injuries.
Jury Verdict Research published data on verdicts in severe leg injury cases over the 10 years prior to October 2010. By severe, I mean severe: crush injuries and amputations. For injuries to one or both legs, and leg injuries resulting in varying degrees of leg amputations, the statistics are:
| INJURY | AVERAGE | MEDIAN |
| One or Both Legs | $4,000,000 | $2,400,000 |
The average verdict in these cases is approximately $4,000,000 and the median verdict is $2,400,000 for injuries to one or both legs, and leg injuries resulting in varying degrees of leg amputations.
The leg amputation categories include both traumatic and surgical amputations. The relatively insignificant difference surprised me between above the knee and below the knee amputations:
| INJURY | AVERAGE | MEDIAN |
| Above the knee | $3,958,003 | $2,588,649 |
| Below the knee | $4,930,186 | $3,727,500 |
| Bilateral Amputation | $13,392,589 | $5,012,500 |
As you can see, the median for bilateral amputations is a statistically insignificant difference from a single above the knee amputation.
This is interesting data and useful to use in negotiating your case. But asking the numbers to make sense is asking too much.
Below are summaries of cases resulting in verdicts or settlements where the primary injury was a serious leg injury,
Smith v. Elseroad (Baltimore City 2023) $425,000: The plaintiff was standing between two parked cars when the defendant motorist smashed his vehicle into the rear of one of the cars, pushing it forward into the plaintiff and crushing the plaintiff between the parked cars. The plaintiff suffered a bilateral leg crush injury resulting in permanent injuries, a right fibular head fracture, a permanent concave deformity on his calf, and permanent scarring on his lower body.
Hupp v. United States (D. Md. 2021) $729,000: Plaintiff suffered multiple fractures to his left ankle, requiring fusion and resulting in loss of motion and pain, as well as aggravation of preexisting condition, when the motorcycle he was operating was struck by a USPS mail truck that backed up from a parked position without warning, causing his left leg to be pinned under the motorcycle.
Johnson v. Bautista (Baltimore County 2021) $2,458,000: plaintiff suffered crush injuries to his right leg, including fractures to his right femur and tibia and nerve damage requiring surgery followed by physical therapy, and resulting in the permanent loss of feeling in his right foot and a combined right leg/lower extremity impairment rating of 46 percent. Jury awarded $208,000 in economic damages and $2.2 million for pain and suffering.
Thomas v. MTA (Baltimore City 2019) $1,200,000: plaintiff, a water taxi deckhand, suffered multiple fractures to her left leg and an open fracture of her left ankle, both of which required extensive surgeries, including placement of rods and screws and skin grafting, and resulted in extensive scarring on her leg. Case settled for $1.2 million.
Turner v. Brown (Baltimore City 2018) $390,394: plaintiff suffered a left leg hairline fracture, a left knee meniscus tear that required surgery when he was struck by a commercial vehicle driven by the defendant.
Patton v. Ruiz (P.G. County 2017) $1,584,296: plaintiff suffered right leg compound fractures, including a right knee fracture, resulting in persistent leg and knee pain and weakness and permanent radicular symptoms related to his leg and knee, when defendant allegedly made a left turn at an intersection on a steady red light and struck the plaintiff’s vehicle as it was proceeding through the intersection on a green light.
Koger v. Mabato (Baltimore City 2017) $1,203,013: Plaintiff was hit by a mobility bus in an intersection and suffered a fractured right distal femur, which required open reduction and internal fixation surgery and resulted in permanent impairment, as well as a fractured scapula, resulting in difficulty walking, standing, sitting and using stairs, continuing pain and permanent impairment of his right knee/leg.
Our lawyers are handling Tylenol autism lawsuits not only in Maryland but nationwide.
Recent medical studies have determined using high doses of Tylenol (or generic acetaminophen) during pregnancy may cause an increased risk of having a baby with autism or autism spectrum disorder. The new research regarding the link between Tylenol use during pregnancy and autism has prompted many parents of autistic children to bring product liability lawsuits against manufacturers and retailers of acetaminophen products.
Tylenol autism lawsuits have now been consolidated into a new class action MDL. If this happens and the scientific evidence is deemed admissible, there could eventually be a global settlement to award financial compensation to parents with acetaminophen-related autism.
All of us with car insurance in Maryland have uninsured motorist coverage. It is mandatory. This page explains what you need to know if you are bringing an uninsured motorist claim in Maryland.
This page is about the 3M earplug lawsuit. Our lawyers are handling these claims in all 50 states.
If you are a plaintiff in these lawsuits, you want to know when the 3M lawsuit will be settled, what the individual settlement amounts might be, and get the latest update in the class action. I start with the latest 3M earplug lawsuit update and then get into the rest.
We will have a lot of new expert witness battles now that we have moved away from Frye-Reed and joined the rest of the nation using a Daubert standard for experts. This Calvert County dental malpractice opinion is the latest in what will be a long battle.
The Maryland legislature is poised to finally pass a new law that will amend or eliminate the statute of limitations on civil lawsuits for child sexual abuse. If passed, the law would give thousands of childhood sexual assault and abuse victims the ability to bring civil sex abuse lawsuits against the abusers and the institutions that covered up the abuse (e.g., the Church, Boy Scouts, etc.).
The sex abuse lawyers at Miller & Zois represent victims of abuse in their fight for justice. We are currently seeking cases from individuals who were sexually abused or assaulted as children.
You can call any of our sexual assault lawyers at 800-553-8082 for a confidential discussion of your case and your options. You can also complete this simple online form.
A recent Jury Verdict Research nationwide study looked at truck accidents from 1996 to 2005 found that the truck accident victim prevailed and received damages in 60 percent of truck accident lawsuits.
The average compensation award of these verdicts was $90,000. Plaintiffs were more likely to prevail in and receive compensation in head-on truck crashes.
In these cases, the Plaintiffs prevailed 71% of the time and received an average jury award of $532,034. The average value of a fatal truck accident case was just over $1 million. For truck accident cases that involved a disc injury, the average award was $122,532. Three percent of the jury awards were over $5,000,000.
If you polled Maryland personal injury lawyers who handle car accident cases, most would choose Allstate as the “worst of the worst” among insurance companies to deal with on accident claims.
Personally, while I would not put Allstate at the top of my list of insurance companies I want to draw, I would not put them last, either. Don’t get me wrong. They are awful, and I hate them. Our lawyers sue them and their insureds all the time. But we are speaking in relative terms? Who are the worst three insurance companies to deal with in Maryland? Allstate is not on my list.
This post gives practical thoughts about Allstate claims in Maryland and includes a plug of why you should – in serious injury cases, anyway – hire a lawyer for your Allstate injury claim.
Back in March, I reported data I found in Metro Verdicts Monthly research that I thought would interest personal injury lawyers in Maryland on the value of fractured shoulder injuries. Yesterday I received the recent issue of Metro Verdicts Monthly that provided the median settlement value for rotator cuff injuries in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia:
| Washington D.C. | $136,200 |
| Virginia | $26,250 |
| Maryland | $45,000 |
It is hard to comment on these numbers. I can’t believe they are accurate. That a rotator cuff injury in D.C. is worth three times as much money as the same case in Maryland… I don’t buy it. I’m not sure how they get their data, but the difference in these jurisdictions is not all that pronounced. Arguably, Maryland is a better place for plaintiffs. Baltimore City and Prince George’s County are far superior jurisdictions. While we have never calculated our average or median verdict and settlement statistics in these cases, I can tell you it is a lot more than $45,000.
The rotator cuff is a composite of four major muscles and tendon fibers that blend with the upper half of the capsule of the shoulder joint. In the experience of our lawyers, most rotator cuff injuries in car and truck accidents occur in side collisions or “T-Bone” accidents.
Our law firm has handled scores of rotator cuff cases. Our clients struggle with these injuries. These painful and debilitating injuries make everyday tasks impossible. It is amazing how often you lift your arm up throughout your life, as these victims quickly figure out.
Rotator cuff injury is a relative term with varying degrees of severity, from strains of the rotator cuff that result in minor limitation in the shoulder’s motion to severe ruptures of multiple muscles or tendons. Millions of people are diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff injury every year. But if you are getting a tear — often a full-thickness — from a motor vehicle accident, you are unlikely to see an injury that easily resolves. Many of these clients require an open repair or a mini-open repair that is invasive by 2014 standards.
Interestingly, older data for rotator cuff injury cases that went to trial showed that the median final demand was $85,000 and the median final offer was $25,000. This is a wide range perhaps underscoring the difference of opinions as to the severity of the rotator cuff injury. The study also found that the median award was $50,000, which leads one to believe that both the Plaintiff’s and Defendant’s lawyers were often way off the mark on the actual settlement value of the case.
You can get more information on the value of rotator cuff injuries by looking both at statistics and sample jury verdicts and out-of-court settlements here.
$90,000 Verdict (2022 Oregon): the plaintiff was driving on a highway when she suddenly had to slow down and was rear-ended by the defendant. The plaintiff claimed that she suffered a torn left rotator cuff which required surgery. The verdict included $13k in medical expenses and $23k in lost wages.
$538,124 Verdict (2021 Geogria): the plaintiff, employed as a truck driver, reportedly sustained a left rotator cuff tear requiring surgery and leaving him with a permanent impairment, limiting his ability to work and forcing him to change his profession, when the tractor-trailer he operated in a rail yard was struck from the rear by a truck owned by defendant.
$8,865 Verdict (2021 Oregon): the plaintiff was rear-ended by the defendant at a stop sign and the accident allegedly resulted in a complete tear of his left rotator cuff.
$5,500 Verdict (2021 Texas): claimed to suffer a left shoulder, requiring surgery, as well as pain, numbness and tingling in her fingers and hand when, while dining at a restaurant operated by the defendant a tray of dirty dishes was dropped by an employee and struck her left shoulder and arm.
$35,275 Verdict (2019 Washington): the plaintiff, a 20-year-old female, was sideswiped by the defendant and claimed that she suffered a torn rotator cuff and back and neck sprains. She was awarded $8,375 in medical expenses and $25,000 for pain and suffering.
$24,887 Verdict (2018 Florida): the plaintiff was rear-ended by the defendant and claimed injuries including a torn rotator cuff and damage to his acromioclavicular joint which he alleged were permanent. Case went to trial on damages and the jury found that the injuries were not permanent.
If have suffered a torn rotator cuff or another type of shoulder injury in a accident, contact the personal injury lawyers at Miller & Zois today at 800-553-8082 to find out how much your case could be worth.
