$1,292,000.00 Settlement September, 2006 MTBE Ground water contamination
The plaintiffs are thirty-four separate property owners located in Taunton MA., whose property wells were contaminated by a spill of gasoline containing the additive MTBE, an oxidant added to gasoline, that had migrated from a leaking underground storage tank located on the defendants property.  The Plaintiffs sued the defendant in Massachusetts Federal Court alleging negligence and strict liability. The case was settled after the first scheduling conference. The settlement requires that the defendant pay each homeowner the sum of $38,000.00. In addition, the Defendant had previously agreed to install piping to the entire neighborhood to connect the neighborhood to the city water supply. This requirement has been fulfilled. The defendant was prepared to argue that the contamination is not a carcinogen and all tests have not linked MTBE to any increased health risks. The defendant also asserted that although there was some intrusion into the home owner’s wells that the level of MTBE found was below the accepted state limits and as such damages were negligible. Moreover, the defendant claimed that they had remedied the problem with the properties by providing town water and as such there was no harm to their properties or impact on property values.

$75,130.33 Jury Verdict: September 2006 - Premises Liability
On January 25, 2001 the plaintiff was walking out the door of an apartment building to get the newspaper when his pant leg was caught by a piece of the metal skin on the exterior door causing him to trip and fall suffering a back injury.  The homeowner’s insurance company denied liability and refused to settle.  A lawsuit was filed and the case was tried to a verdict in the Taunton Superior Court. The jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff.  The homeowner’s insurance company appealed the verdict and the Mass. App. Court affirmed the verdict for our client.

$100,000.00 Settlement: June, 2006 - Motor Vehicle Collision
The plaintiff, a 60 year old female had just attended mass at a church and was getting into her car when another elderly woman driving out of the church parking lot blacked out behind the wheel causing her car to roll into the plaintiff, pinning her against her own vehicle.  Plaintiff suffered bruising and swelling of her legs, injuries to her back, neck and pelvic area.  X-rays were negative for any fracture(s).  Her legs remained bruised, swollen and painful for months afterwards and all diagnostic tests came back normal.  The case was settled through direct negotiations with the automobile insurance company for the full policy limit of $100,000.00.

$36,000.00 Settlement: March, 2006 - Driver injured after improper roof installation
The 23 year old female plaintiff was injured when her auto ran off the side of the road as she attempted to re-latch the sun roof that had unlatched as she was driving .She had  just left the installer that had supplied the sunroof when the accident occurred. The plaintiff suffered a broken rib and broken nose and had a small cut on her forehead. The plaintiff had the vehicle examined by an expert and was prepared to present evidence that the sunroof was improperly installed and that the installer failed to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for installing the sun roof. Defense experts were prepared to testify that the Plaintiff continued to drive her vehicle after she discovered that the roof became unlatched and that she was the cause of the accident.

$100,000.00 Settlement: Feb. 2006 - Employee Injured While In Course of Employment
The  68  year old male plaintiff was injured while in the course of his employment with New England Car Wash.  The Plaintiff was bending over spreading ice melt on the icy ground when a fellow employee operating a customer’s vehicle exited the car wash striking and knocking the plaintiff to the ground.  The plaintiff through this office filed for worker’s compensation benefits.  The employee received worker’s compensation benefits for approximately two years and eventually lump summed his claim for $50,000.00. In additional the plaintiff filed a claim against the negligent employee, however, the employee’s insurance policy with Allstate contained an exclusion barring any claims “arising out of operations such as repairing, servicing, testing, washing, parking, storing, or selling autos.”  The plaintiff then filed an uninsured claim against his own insurance company, Metropolitan and eventually settled for the policy limits of $50,000.00. The plaintiff suffered an injury to his lower back, left thigh and left hip.   The plaintiff treated with a number of physicians, underwent physical therapy, chiropractic care, steroid injections and  a couple of facet nerve blocks.

$90,000.00 Settlement: February, 2006 - Employee Injured on her way to work
 In January of 2005, Ms. Monetiro, age 24, a passenger in a fellow employee’s car was injured in an auto accident on their way to work at a nursing facility in Newport , Rhode Island .  She was employed as a nurse for the Defendant, Clinical One, a temporary agency for health care facilities. The plaintiff/employee was injured approximately 20 minutes before she was to start her shift at 7am. The negligent fellow employee did not have car insurance and the workers comp insurer refused to pay claiming that she had not yet started work and therefore was not injured in the course of her employment. The plaintiff through this office filed for worker’s compensation benefits.  At pre-trial the Judge denied the employee’s petition for benefits because her injuries were barred by the going and coming rule, which holds that employees must be working at the time of their accident to be eligible to receive benefits. The employee appealed the Judge’s decision.  Depositions were taken and the Trial was held in October of 2005. 

The Plaintiff argued that the plaintiff’s claim didn’t fall within the coming and going rule and that travel was an integral and necessary part of her employment and that in this unusual case the travel to work conferred a financial and marketing benefit on the employer in pursuing its business. The trial judge agreed and found that the injuries sustained by the employee were in the course of her employment and not barred by the “going and coming rule,” The judgment required the employer to pay the employee all back wages and medical bills. The Judge’s decision had statewide impact. Due to the effect on the industry the employer appealed the judgment.  During the appeal the employee, who had moved out of state, settled her claim for all back benefits plus the equivalent of 5 years of future workers compensation benefits

$54,445.00 Arbitration Award: December 2005 McMorrow vs. Desrosiers
Motor vehicle collision that occurred on icy road.  The plaintiff sustained soft tissue injuries and some bruising to her right thigh. Diagnostic testing which included that of X-rays and MRI's taken over the span of a year were all negative.  Despite only subjective complaints and no objective evidence, the arbitrator favorably awarded the Plaintiff in the above amount.  The highest offer made by the defendant to settle  the case prior to arbitration was $12,000.00.

$500,000.00 Settlement: Ibbotson v. F & F  Auto Accident Nov. 2005
On May 30, 2003 , the Plaintiff, age 18, a resident of Rhode Island and a passenger in the defendant’s vehicle, who at the time was her boyfriend, was injured when the Defendant lost control of the car on Rte 24 in Raynham Ma., causing the car to strike the guardrail. The plaintiff suffered several fractures of her mid-back requiring surgery. The plaintiff made a good recovery and is now attending college. The case was settled on the first day of trial in the Federal District Court of Massachusetts

Settlement $200,000.00: Correia v. Elmasion  Auto Accident- Pedestrian Oct.2005
The Plaintiff,s car door was struck by the defendant’s vehicle  as she was exiting her vehicle in a parking lot in Cranston Rhode Island . The door contacted her right knee resulting in a torn interior ligament of her right knee resulting in surgery.The plaintiff fully recovered. The case was settled at a mediation in Providence for $200,000.

$75,000.00 Settlement: Iemma v. Auto Accident Aug 2005
The plaintiff was injured as a result of an auto accident. The Plaintiff suffered a back and neck injury. The case settled after a mediation conference.

$176,000.00 Settlement: 
8 Jane Does vs. City of Fall River School Department and John Gibney:Civil rights July 2005
The case arose out of the inappropriate sexual Behavior and conversation between eight minor female children attending Middle School and John Gibney, a substitute teacher employed by the Fall River School Department.  The harassment lasted over several months of the 2001 school year. John Gibney, the substitute teacher, admitted guilt.  A civil action was filed on behalf of the minor children.  During litigation it was discovered that a prior complaint had been made against the teacher while at another middle school.  He was then transfered to another school where his inappropriate behavior continued.  After two days of mediation before retired judge John Tierne, the case settled favorably for the minor plaintiffs. 

$160,000 Settlement: Viveiros vs. Construction Co.
On April 6, 2001, The Plaintiff was employed by a subcontractor, employed to fire- proof portions of a building in Needham, Massachusetts, was seriously injured when 500 degree tar was spilled from an area above where he was working by the employees of the Defendant, who were spreading tar on the roof of the building.  The Plaintiff received 3^rd degree burns on the side of his face and in his ear causing severe scarring to his face; the plaintiff sued the subcontractor and the general contractor.                                                                                                

$275,000Settlement: Carvalho vs. Homeowner
On or about June 12, 2004, the Plaintiff was visiting a friend when a grease fire broke out on the stove. In an attempt by the homeowner to take the pan on fire out the door, grease was split onto the plaintiff’s legs causing second and third degree burns.  Plaintiff brought claims against the homeowner’s policy. 

$117,000.00 Settlement:Chagnon vs. Restaurant & Bar and City
The Plaintiff had left a restaurant and while walking to her vehicle was caused to trip and fall due to a protruding sign post.  The sign post had been there for more than one year and because the city of New Bedford’s failure to respond to the condition the insured took it upon himself to cut the post which stood about one and ½ foot and reducing its size to two inches, as a result of owners’ actions the protruding sign post became an unforeseeable dangerous condition to pedestrians. By his actions, the restaurant owner created a duty upon himself to the Plaintiff.  The Plaintiff settled against both Defendants. 

$750,000 Settlement: Booten vs. USA
The estate of a VA patient who suffered severe brain damage and died after coding during surgery received a settlement in the amount of $750,000.00 from the United States of America. 

Plaintiffs’ decedent, Allen D. Booten, II was a 60-year old male with a history of acid reflux.  The decedent underwent an esophagectomy (surgical removal of the esophagus) at defendants’ Veteran’s Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island.  Six months prior to the esophagectomy, decedent had several endoscopies.  The last endoscopy indicated only slight to moderate dyslpasis and despite the indication that the decedent’s condition could be treated conservatively, defendants’ physican decided to remove the decedent’s esophagus.  The physician performed an elective radical procedure that was not warranted. 

Furthermore, approximately three weeks after the surgery, decedent became visibly worse.  At the same time, the classes of attending physicians at the hospital changed.  Decedents’ condition continued to deteriorate during the three to four day period when the old doctors left and the new ones arrived.  Decedents’ original physician had ordered a CT scan, which was not performed immediately.  The new attending physician was not familiar with the case.  However, he did recognize that decedent was in serious condition.  A CAT scan was finally performed and decedent underwent surgery to determine the reason for the deterioration in his condition.  During the surgery, decedent coded and suffered severe brain damage.  He lapsed into a coma and died three weeks later.

$500,000 Settlement: Jordan vs. Doctor
On June 11, 1999, the Plaintiff, Jordan, was approximately thirty-six (36) weeks pregnant with her unborn child.   Her due date was June 30, 1999.  Approximately six weeks prior to her due date, Dr. Defendant ordered a non-stress test to be performed twice a week due to a decrease in fetal movement. 

On June 11, 1999, Jordan arrived at St. Luke’s Hospital at approximately 1:30 p.m. for a non-stress test, which began at 2:10 p.m. and lasted for approximately 40 minutes.  During this test, the technician,  noted there were periods of minimum to absent long-term variability with periods of moderate long term variability.  These were abnormal findings and, at approximately 2:45 p.m., Dr. Defendant was called with the results.  Dr. Defendant advised the nurse to send Jordan to Navix for an ultrasound exam.    Jordan arrived at NAVIX 10 to 15 minutes later, where an ultrasound was performed. The ultrasound confirmed that there was a medical emergency and the baby required immediate delivery.  The technician at NAVIX contacted Dr. Defendant who advised her to send the plaintiff to his office.  Although a medical emergency existed, Jordan waited in Dr. Defendant’s waiting room for 15 minutes.  Dr. Defendant testified that he had no idea of how long she waited and generated no office notes reflecting this visit.

After meeting with the plaintiff  Dr. Defendant told the plaintiff to pick up her husband, go home, pack a bag and return in two hours to St. Luke’s Hospital, where a cesarean section would be performed.  Although, Dr. Defendant admitted that the plaintiff’s condition and the findings on the ultrasound and non-stress test represented a medical emergency that required immediate delivery, he saw additional patients in his office, never went to the hospital and had his partner cover for him. 

Dr. Defendant  claims that he told Mrs. Jordan to return to the hospital at 5:00 p.m., however, this claim remains undocumented, he did not try to contact the patient, or produce any notes of this office meeting with the plaintiff.  Nor has Dr. Defendant  given any explanation as to why he failed to document his office visit with the plaintiff.  Most compelling is that every other office visit was documented. 

When Jordan arrived at St. Luke’s Hospital at approximately 6:30 p.m., she was placed on a fetal monitor, where no heartbeat could be detected.