| DEFENDANT |
VERDICT/SETTLEMENT |
|
|
| Patterson v. Irvington Board of Education |
Jack Wurgaft and Eric Kahn represented the plaintiff in a personal-injury suit in connection with a student on-student assault that occurred in Irvington High School resulting in permanent injuries to the minor plaintiff. The plaintiff alleged negligence against the Irvington Board of Education for failing to prevent the incident. Following a two-and-a-half-week trial that began on Sept. 4. 2012, a jury verdict was obtained on behalf of the plaintiff in the amount of $16.34 million. The jury found the board 80 percent at fault. |
| NJ TRANSIT |
David Wikstrom obtained a settlement of $750,000 against NJ Transit after it hit the plaintiff while she was crossing the street. The plaintiff suffered a loss of smell, diminished taste and partial loss of hearing due to the injuries to her head. |
| CITY OF NEWARK |
Eric Kahn and Rubin Sinins Obtained $1,100,000 verdict involving a police shooting against the City of Newark |
| NEW JERSEY DIVISION OF YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES |
Eric Kahn obtained a $7,500,000 settlement from the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) for the Estate of Faheem Williams, the 7 year old who was found dead in a basement in 2003, and his two brothers. The children had been in the care of a relative under the supervision of DYFS. Claims of negligent placement and negligent supervision were alleged. |
| COUNTY OF BERGEN |
In a claim for the estate of a 19 year-old who drowned while in a county-owned lake, Eric Kahn obtained a $575,000 settlement alleging that the lifeguards failed to properly supervise swimmers and then failed to timely respond to the victim's cousin's plea for help. |
| Board of Trustees, Police and Firemen's Retirement System |
Rubin Sinins obtained a reversal of an administrative decision that required the recently retired Deputy Chief of Police for the City of Newark, who moved on to a civilian position as Police Director of the Township of Irvington, to re-enroll in the Police and Firemen’s Retirement System. The decision allowed the law enforcement veteran to continue to receive his pension benefits and to be repaid those benefits - over $70,000 - wrongfully withheld from him. |
| STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION |
Ken Javerbaum received a settlement of $650,000 for the injured driver of a vehicle struck head-on by a drunk driver who crossed over a median divider on Route 30 in Atlantic City. Plaintiff established that the highway median owned by the State DOT was in a dangerous condition and that the defect in the roadway was a cause of the accident. The settlement was awarded after trial and after the DOT was unsuccessful in attempting to establish immunity for its hazardous highway. After the case was initially dismissed on legal technicalities, Javerbaum tenaciously pursued an appeal on behalf of the clients, which resulted in a ground-breaking published opinion which was not only favorable to his clients but significantly expanded the right to recovery in such claims. That decision is reported at 239 N.J. Super 563 (App. Div. 1990). |
| STATE OF NEW JERSEY / RAHWAY PRISON |
David Wikstrom obtained a settlement of $500,000 for a psychologist who worked as a therapist in a prison for sex offenders. The therapist was attacked by an inmate armed with a hand-made knife. A correction officer was able to restrain the inmate yet due to the negligence of the prison, his radio alarm was not working. Without any back up, he handed the inmate to two other inmates instructing them to hold him while he went for help. The other inmates released the assaulting inmate who then resumed his attack on the therapist until another officer arrived seconds later. The therapist sustained knife wound injuries to her shoulder and ear and developed post traumatic stress disorder. Mr. Wikstrom argued that the prison and officers were negligent in securing the safety of the therapist. |
| COUNTY OF MORRIS (NJ) |
Jack Wurgaft received a jury verdict of $250,000 for a nurse at the Morris County Jail who was injured when she fell over a rolled up mattress that had been left in the jail’s hallway. Mr. Wurgaft established that the County of Morris was responsible for creating a dangerous condition of public property and that their actions were palpably unreasonable based upon the proofs in the case. |
