When a vehicle braked suddenly in an intersection, Natalia couldn’t help but rear-end it. Unfortunately, she knew that it would be hard to prove what happened. Who brakes in the middle of an intersection for seemingly no reason?
It turns out the driver of the braking car was from out of town. He realized he needed to turn at the intersection instead of going straight through. But that is not what he told Natalia at the scene of the crash. And that isn’t what he told the insurance companies. He insisted he was not at fault. We didn’t learn the truth until much later.
Other attorneys didn’t want to take her case. It was a sure loser. Natalia was concerned because she was in a lot of pain. She had a bone break in her foot that limited her ability to walk. That was a big problem because she was a dog walker.
It turned out that a surveillance camera was pointed in the direction of the intersection. It was meant to monitor a driveway, but it also picked up just enough of the intersection to show the crash and confirm what Natalia remembered. She was not at fault.
Some accidents and injuries come down to two people blaming the other—and there appears to be no evidence, neutral third-party, or witness to verify who is correct. The following scenario is a case very much in line with what we described. However, Natalia was able to get a significant settlement despite the other person claiming our client was at fault.
First Impression
Our client rear-ended someone. This needs to be highlighted because it demonstrates why it is so important to contact an attorney. Has anyone ever said to you that you are always at fault if you rear-end someone? It is almost so common that it appears to be true. It isn’t because the client received damages because they weren’t at fault.
Challenges
The first challenge was that the driver who caused the accident denied being at fault. They blamed Natalia for rear-ending them. There appeared to be no evidence to prove otherwise. The second was determining how much our client lost because they couldn’t operate the dog-walking business anymore. Personal injury cases are about recouping the money you lost because of an accident that wasn’t your fault.
Sometimes, that number can be challenging to arrive at, especially if you are self-employed.
Finding Resolution
The challenges were proving that our client wasn’t at fault and determining how much the dog-walking business was worth. The turning point came when we found a nearby business with surveillance video of the intersection. It had recorded the accident and showed the defendant braking in the intersection and thus making the collision unavoidable. During the trial, we not only caught the driver lying under oath, but we got the person to admit it they were at fault.
Regarding the business, our client sold it. By selling it, we were able to show just how valuable the business was. Furthermore, the business sale came with a schedule of when our client walked dogs and for whom. With the schedule and appropriate business valuation, we proved that our client could make $200,000 in a single year.
With this information, we took the case to trial and got a 1.2 million dollar jury verdict.
We even received a commendation from the Mayor of Lancaster for our work!
Cases like these take time and patience. Our client went from being blamed for the accident to recuperating over $1 million in damages. Everything that occurred in between resulted from a focused effort to make the situation right for our client. If you have been in an accident and need professional and experienced legal counsel, contact Howell, LLP, to schedule a free consultation.
