March, 2025 – Our client stepped into a pothole when exiting his work van in a commercial parking lot landing on his wrists sustaining traumatic fractures. The parking lot was occupied by a refrigeration equipment supplier, who regularly provided equipment to our sole-proprietor client. The incident was immediately reported to the supplier and the property owner. Upon being injured, our client promptly advised the company staff of his fall, who applied ice to his injuries. The staff inspected and photographed the pothole and took pictures of our client’s work van in close proximity to the defect in the lot. The property owners repaired the dangerous defect within a day, re-paving the location, before our engineering expert could examine the cause of the accident. Nevertheless, the prompt documentation of the fall, and the contemporary photos taken at the site, made for a very strong liability position with the self-insured business defendants. Further, our client sought immediate ER hospital treatment where x-rays documented a non-displaced intra-articular fracture of the left wrist, and a more serious comminuted intra-articular fracture of the right wrist. Surgery was performed within days, consisting of an open reduction and internal fixation of the right distal radius, with internal fixation of three fragments, and a second open reduction and internal fixation of three fragments for displaced intra-articular fracture of the left wrist. Physical therapy was required for many months, during which time our client lost significant income, as he was ineligible for State Disability benefits, and did not carry workers compensation. After initially healing, our client addressed continuing pain in the left wrist by a further surgical removal of hardware. Significant to the prompt settlement of the case, according to the defense counsel, was his opinion that our client performed extremely well at his deposition and would be a strong witness at trial. This admission by the defense reflected our firm’s hard work in preparing him carefully to testify under oath.
**Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances**