We obtained $150,000 in compensation in a personal injury claim for a Massachusetts resident, who lives in the Metrowest area, after he suffered fractures to both wrists in an atypical fall. Here's how it happened:
On a beautiful spring evening, our client, a 28-year-old gentleman, attended a celebration at a function with family and friends. The function included food, drinks, a disc jockey (DJ) and a dance floor. Throughout the night, everyone danced, sang, and had a lot of fun.
At one point in the night, the DJ put out a box for people to get up on and dance. During one song while dancing, our client leapt up on top of the box and immediately fell backwards. The reason he fell was because the box was not secured to the floor or stationary at all. When our client jumped up, the box it gave way and he fell backwards to the floor.
When the client fell backwards, he put both hands out behind him to brace his fall. The impact of the fall caused our client to suffer injuries to both wrists. He didn’t realize how badly he injured himself, but was in a lot of pain.
He was brought to the emergency room of a local hospital by a friend. At the hospital, the doctor noted that both of our client’s wrists were very swollen and painful. X-rays were immediately ordered, which showed fractures to both wrists. The actual bones that were fractured were the radius and the ulna. These are the two forearm bones. The fracture to the distal part of the radius was more severe. The radius is located on the thumb side of the forearm and the distal radius is where the radius connects to the wrist joint.
Due to the seriousness of the injuries, the on-call orthopedic surgeon was brought in. After reviewing the x-rays and examining our client’s wrists, the surgeon recommended surgical repair of the distal radius of one wrist. The other wrist was treated non-operatively by immobilizing and splinting. A few days later our client underwent open reduction internal fixation (surgery), which resulted in the surgeon inserting a plate and screws to hold the bone in place. As you can imagine, recovery was exceptionally difficult given that both hands were unusable. He was rendered totally disabled until the casts were removed.
This particular client found us through our website. He initially called our office to ask if he even had a case for personal injury. We met with him right away, gathered as much information as we could, and determined that this was a clear case of negligence. Our office was retained to pursue a personal injury claim. We began our investigation immediately. One vital piece of evidence was a video of the accident obtained from other attendees. This video was critical evidence in the successful handling of this claim.
From past experiences with other similar cases, we considered this to be an inherently dangerous condition. An activity is classified as inherently dangerous if it involves risk of harm to others which may be reduced by taking the proper and reasonable safety precautions. The fact that an activity can be performed safely with the proper procedures does not alter its inherently dangerous nature, however. Allowing people to dance on a small diameter, elevated box, especially considering alcohol is typically served, it is absolutely foreseeable that anyone could fall and severely injure themselves.
Through our investigation, our office located the DJ company. We served them with notice of the personal injury claim which they promptly provided to their general liability insurance carrier. Following thorough settlement negotiations, we resolved this case without the need to file a personal injury lawsuit. The DJ’s insurance carrier paid a settlement of $150,000 to our client to compensate him for his injures and damages.
Speak With An Experienced Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawyer Today
Mahaney & Pappas, LLP is a personal injury law office centrally located in Framingham, Massachusetts that serves victims of accidents in Boston, greater Boston, Worcester and all other surrounding towns. We have decades of experience representing people injured in accidents, conducting investigations and working with medical professionals all with the focus on getting our clients the money they deserve.
If you have been injured in a fall, car, truck or motorcycle accident, we are here to help and fight to get you the financial compensation you and your family deserve. We understand the stress of being injured and can help guide you through the personal injury claim process and take the immediate action needed on your case. If you, or a loved one, has been injured in an accident, do not hesitate. Call us today at (508) 879-3500 or contact us through our website. We are here to help.
