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Chain reaction crash did not cause serious injuries, defense argued

Type:

Verdict-Defendant

State:

Florida

Venue:

Palm Beach County

Court:

Palm Beach County Circuit Court, 15th

Injury Type(s):

neck-fusion, cervical;
neck-herniated disc (herniated disc at C5-6), cervical (herniated disc at C5-6);
other-bone graft; other-chiropractic; other-physical therapy; surgeries/treatment-decompression surgery

Case Type:

Motor Vehicle – Rear-ender, Right Turn, Multiple Impact; Insurance – First-party Benefits; Motor Vehicle – Multiple Vehicle, Automobile Insurance, Underinsured Motorist

Case Name:

Antonina DiGregorio v. Plastic Engineering Associates, Inc., a Florida for profit company, Plastic Engineering Associates Licensing, Inc., a Florida for profit company, Raymond Williams and Geico General Insurance Company, a foreign corporation,
No. 50-2015-CA-006079-XXXX-MB

Date:

January 19, 2018

Parties

Plaintiff(s):

Antonina DiGregorio (Female, 44 Years)

Plaintiff Attorney(s):

Dennis Todd Fronrath;
Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath;
West Palm Beach,
FL,
for
Antonina DiGregorio ■ Arye P. Corbett;
Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath;
West Palm Beach,
FL,
for
Antonina DiGregorio

Plaintiff Expert(s):

David Campbell; M.D.; Spinal Surgery; Jupiter,
FL called by:
Dennis Todd Fronrath, Arye P. Corbett

Defendant(s):

David J. Fogarty, 

Raymond Williams, 

Geico General Insurance Co., 

Plastic Engineering Associates Inc., 

Plastic Engineering Associates Licensing Inc.

Defense Attorney(s):

Patrick Shawn Spellacy;
Kirwan Spellacy & Danner, P.A.;
Fort Lauderdale,
FL,
for
David J. Fogarty, Plastic Engineering Associates Inc. ■ Lawrence E. Brownstein;
Kirwan Spellacy & Danner, P.A.;
Jupiter,
FL,
for
David J. Fogarty, Plastic Engineering Associates Inc. ■ John J. Wilke;
The Law Office of John J. Wilke, P.A.;
Boca Raton,
FL,
for
Raymond Williams ■ None reported;

for
Plastic Engineering Associates Licensing Inc. ■ Natasha Coyle;
GEICO Staff Counsel;
West Palm Beach,
FL,
for
Geico General Insurance Co.

Defendant Expert(s):

Jordan Grabel;
Neurosurgery;
West Palm Beach,
FL called by:
Patrick Shawn Spellacy, Lawrence E. Brownstein

Insurer(s):

Progressive Casualty Insurance Co. for Williams;
State Farm Insurance Cos. for Fogarty and Plastic Engineering Associates

Facts:

On Dec. 2, 2014, plaintiff Antonina DiGregorio, 44, a finance manager, was driving a Cadillac in the right lane of Lantana Road, in Palm Beach County, while a sport utility vehicle owned by Plastic Engineering Associates Inc. was traveling in the middle lane. As the driver of the SUV attempted to make a right turn into Lantana Airport from the middle lane, the driver cut off DiGregorio, causing DiGregorio’s Cadillac to hit the right rear of the SUV. A Pontiac Transport driven by Raymond Williams then rear-ended Digregorio’s vehicle. DiGregorio subsequently claimed an injury to her neck. DiGregorio sued Plastic Engineering Associates Inc. and Williams. Plastic Engineering Associates Licensing Inc. was also mistakenly named as a defendant in the initial case caption, but it was ultimately let out of the case. DiGregorio claimed that Williams and the driver of the SUV were negligent in the operation of their respective vehicles and that Plastic Engineering Associates was vicariously liable for the SUV driver’s actions. Williams’ insurer tendered its $10,000 policy limit.DiGregorio then sought further recovery via the supplementary-underinsured-motorist provision of her own insurance policy, which was administered by Geico General Insurance Co., a subsidiary of Government Employees Insurance Co. Since there was initially a dispute over the value of the claim, DiGregorio named Geico as a defendant in her lawsuit. However, Geico eventually tendered its $100,000 policy limit prior to trial. DiGregorio later added the driver of the Plastic Engineering vehicle, David Fogarty, to the complaint as a defendant. Thus, the matter continued against Fogarty and Plastic Engineering Associates. Fogarty and Plastic Engineering’s counsel admitted liability, and the matter proceeded to trial solely on the issue of damages.

Injury:

DiGregorio claimed that she sustained a herniated cervical disc at the C5-6 level as a result of the collision. DiGregorio did not go to a hospital after the accident, and she first sought treatment with a chiropractor three days after the crash. Her doctor ultimately diagnosed DiGregorio with the C5-6 disc herniation, and DiGregorio initially treated the injury with physical therapy. Then, on July 7, 2015, the DiGregorio’s treating spinal surgeon performed an anterior cervical decompression and fusion with a bone graft. DiGregorio continued with physical therapy after the surgery until sometime in 2017. After the surgery, DiGregorio underwent nerve conduction studies, which showed cervical radiculopathy. An MRI in May 2017 also showed foraminal encroachment in her neck. DiGregorio did not return to work until the fall of 2015. She claimed that upon her return, she was tired and had continued pain, which prevented her from doing her job as she had before. She alleged that as a result, she required additional absences from her job to deal with her symptoms. In addition, DiGregorio claimed that she could no longer lift weights as she had before the accident. The plaintiff’s treating spinal surgeon opined that DiGregorio’s need for the surgery was a result of the accident. He also opined that DiGregorio would need additional surgery on the discs above and below the initial herniation. Thus, DiGregorio sought recovery of $716,000 in damages, including past and future medical expenses, past lost earnings, and damages for her past and future pain and suffering. The defense’s expert neurosurgeon opined that there was minimal impact to DiGregorio’s vehicle during the accident and, thus, did not cause any serious injury. The expert also opined that any injuries that DiGregorio did suffer were the result of a pre-existing condition.

Result:

The jury rendered a defense verdict. It found that Fogarty’s negligence was not a legal cause of injury to DiGregorio.

Trial Information:

Judge:

Lisa S. Small

Demand:

$475,000 (from Fogarty and Plastic Engineering Associates)

Offer:

$125,000 (by Fogarty and Plastic Engineering Associates)

Trial Length:

3
 days

Trial Deliberations:

1
 hours

Jury Vote:

6-0

Jury Composition:

2 male/ 4 female

Post Trial:

Plaintiff’s counsel has moved for a new trial.

Editor’s Comment:

This report is based on information that was provided by counselof Fogarty and Plastic Engineering Associates. Additional information was gleaned from court documents. Williams’ counsel declined to contribute, and the remaining parties’ counsel did not respond to the reporter’s phone calls.