Fakhouri v Poma and Buck’s Oil Company

Court/Case No: Wayne County Circuit Court/20-002247-NI

Tried/Argued Before: Judge

Demand: $1,819,000

Verdict: No-Cause

Name of Judge(s): Hon. Sheila Ann Gibson

Keys to the Case:

Admitted liability third-party truck accident case. Plaintiff was a passenger in a vehicle struck by Defendants’  fuel truck while her vehicle was stopped at a red light. She alleged that her arthroscopic shoulder surgery, as  well as disc herniations in her neck and back and wrist injuries all arose from the accident.

Defendants had neuroradiological, PM&R and orthopedic surgery experts examine Plaintiff. All of them opined  that Plaintiff had no more than soft-tissue injuries from the accident, which should have resolved within weeks,  and that her continuing complaints and shoulder surgery were the result of degenerative processes, as opposed  to trauma. Defense counsel was also able to use Plaintiff’s medical records to impeach her relative to her claim  of no prior neck injuries.

Plaintiff asked for $700,000 in damages to the present, and over $1.1 million in future damages. The jury  awarded $0, finding that Plaintiff failed to meet the required injury threshold because her claimed injuries didn’t  result in a serious impairment of body function and/or permanent serious disfigurement.

Defense SW attorney(s) Involved in Case: