Author: cwdadm

On July 19, 2008, Plaintiff fell as she was walking into Defendant grocery store. As a result of the fall, Plaintiff suffered a severely fractured elbow, which ultimately had to be surgically reconstructed and supported with metallic hardware. Plaintiff sued Defendant alleging that it acted negligently and wantonly by failing to maintain its premises in a reasonably safe condition.

Before and during trial, Plaintiff presented conflicting evidence with regard to how the accident occurred. Plaintiff ultimately alleged that she was made to fall because (1) the access ramp she was walking on at the time was not maintained to code and (2) the grocery store created a hazardous condition by placing an ashtray can in the middle of the walkway. Plaintiff produced expert testimony that the ramp and other features of the front entrance of the store were not built to code and, as such, were inherently hazardous. Plaintiff also argued that Defendant violated its own safety procedures and protocols by failing to inspect the area.

Defense attorneys T. Kent Garrett and R. Brett Garrett countered by pointing out the inconsistencies in Plaintiff’s evidence regarding how the accident occurred. Defendant also produced expert testimony that the ramp was, indeed, built to code, and was not at all hazardous. Defendant’s expert further testified that City building officials reviewed and approved the construction plans for the ramp and walkway years before the accident occurred and determined that the design was safe and appropriate. In addition, Defendant testified that hundreds of thousands of customers have passed through the area where the fall occurred since the store opened for business, and that Plaintiff was the only person who had ever been injured as the result of a fall.

Plaintiff asked the jury to award her $500,000.00 in damages. The jury deliberated one hour before returning a verdict in favor of Defendant.

After five days of trial, William S. Haynes and Frank J. Stakely received a defense verdict from a Barbour County jury in favor of the Defendant physician. Plaintiffs claimed that the Defendant breached the standard of care for a board certified internal medicine physician by failing to detect an abnormality on the patient’s x-rays which was later identified as cancer. The Plaintiffs then claimed that the delay in diagnosis caused the patient to undergo more aggressive chemotherapy and radiation than she otherwise would have received, and ultimately resulted in the patient’s death.

On behalf of the Defendant, expert witnesses testified that given the circumstances of the patient’s presentation when the x-rays were performed, the internal medicine physician’s interpretation was reasonable and within the standard of care. The causation witness further testified that the unfortunate outcome could not have been prevented even if the diagnosis of lung cancer had been made at that time. The jury returned a verdict in favor of the Defendant physician.

In April, Rushton Stakely partnered with the Center for Business to host an employment law luncheon for human resources professionals. During this meeting, attorneys Benjamin C. Wilson and Bethany L. Bolger lectured on recent legal issues in the workplace environment, including matters involving ADA, Title VII, age discrimination, sexual harassment, social media, privacy expectations, FMLA, and many other important topics. As a service to our clients and the local business community, Rushton Stakely and the Center for Business regularly host employment law luncheons throughout the year. These luncheons are designed to provide networking opportunities for local human resource professionals and to present practical advice for handling a variety of legal challenges that arise in the workplace. If you are interested in registering to attend a future employment law luncheon, please contact our firm administrator at lmcglaun@rushtonstakely.com.

Attorneys Involved:  Alan T. Hargrove, Jr. and Bethany L. Bolger

The defendants, an attorney and his firm, were sued by a former client under the Alabama Legal Services Liability Act in Montgomery County Circuit Court.  Attorneys Hargrove and Bolger successfully moved for the dismissal of the defendants in their initial responsive filing to the complaint.  The plaintiff appealed the circuit court’s decision to the Alabama Supreme Court, and Attorneys Hargrove and Bolger again defended the dismissal of the defendants.

The dismissal was affirmed by the Supreme Court of Alabama without opinion.

Shareholders Benjamin C. Wilson and R. Austin Huffaker, Jr. recently spoke at the June Meeting of the Montgomery Chapter of Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) regarding recent trends in employment law. The presentation covered legal issues that frequently arise in different phases of the employment relationship including matters involving ADA, Title VII, age discrimination, sexual harassment, social media, privacy expectations, FMLA, and many other important topics. The employment lawyers of Rushton Stakely are often called upon to lecture on legal issues in the workplace environment. The firm also partners with the Center for Business to host employment law luncheons periodically throughout the year. If you are interested in receiving additional information about these topics or you would like to register to attend future employment law luncheons, please contact our firm administrator at lmcglaun@rushtonstakely.com.

Friday, at 4:20 p.m., after nine days of trial and four hours of deliberation in Dothan before the Hon. Mark E. Fuller, a seven-person federal jury ruled for the plaintiff, Glenn Construction Co. of Ozark and against the engineering firm of Barge Waggoner Sumner & Cannon as to all counts in the complaint.  The jury awarded the plaintiff $1,232,520 in compensatory and $625,000 in punitive damages.  The jury also requested to know if they could order the defendant also to take out a full page ad in the Dothan Eagle aplogizing to the owners of Glenn Construction for actions taken during the construction of an expansion of the US Helicopter facility at Blackwell field in Ozark.  Plaintiff was represented by Dennis R. Bailey, R. Austin Huffaker, Jr. and J. Evans Bailey of the firm of Rushton, Stakely, Johnston & Garrett, P.A. of Montgomery.  Defendant was represented by Skip Laney and Forrest Adams of Laney and Foster, P.A. of Birmingham.