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OHIO LAWYERS WEEKLY
LARGEST VERDICTS AND SETTLEMENTS
-2001-
Top 20 Multi-Million Dollar Settlements#17- Breach of Contract – $2.3 Million
American States Insurance Company v. Sovereign Chemical Co.
Summit County Common Pleas Court, No. 96114481
Date of Verdict: May 10, 2001
Attorneys for Plaintiff: Allen Schulman, CantonIn 1996, Sean Condren, a disgruntled employee of Sovereign chemical Company filed a claim against his employer, Dam Dipaola.
Despite the fact American States was the insurance carrier for Dipaol's business; it spent six months contending that it had no duty to defend in the suit. Eventually, American States agreed to defend Dipaola, but insisted on hiring its own attorney, despite the fact it had previously entered into an agreement with Dipaola's personal insurance carrier to contribute to the hiring of an attorney to defend him.
American States than filed a declaratory judgment action that ist was not responsible for contributing to the attorney already hired to defend Dipaola. The attorney, Aretta Bernard, filed a counterclaim for bad faith on the part of American States.
Within two months of the counterclaim being filed, American States increased Dipaola's insurance premiums five-fold. Then, a month before Condren's case against Sovereign Chemical was scheduled to be heard, American States cancelled the company's insurance policy.
The jury awarded Sovereign Chemical $175,000 for breach of contract, $125,000 in compensatory damages for the claim of bad faith and $2 million in punitive damages.
#6- Wrongful Death- Survivorship – $5.35 Million
Courtney Admin, v Albex Aluminum Inc., et al.
Stark County Common Pleas Court, No. 2000 CVO 0389
Date of Settlement: July 18, 2001
Attorneys for plaintiff: Allen Schulman Jr. and Brian Zimmerman, CantonThe widow of a 37-year-old man who was crushed to death at an aluminum plant settled her lawsuit against his employer for $5.35 million.
David Courtney was killed on Jan.7 last year while working at the Albex Aluminum plant.
Courtney, while seated inside the truck's cab, put the trailer's hydraulic lift into motion. The 40-foot filled with 45,000 pounds of scrap aluminum when the trailer's frame snapped. The truck contorted, and Courtney was crushed under the hydraulic mechanism.
Janet Courtney accuse Albex of forcing her husband to operate an unsafe, defective truck modified to lift trailers of aluminum scrap metal too heavy for the truck's hydraulics. (OHLW Aug 6, 2001)
#14- Wrongful Death- Underinsured Motorist- 'Scott- Ponzer' Claim – $3.7 MILLON
Kim Lavenburg, administrator of Glenn Lavenburg v. Moss
Stark County Common Pleas Court, No. 2000 CVO 2852
Date of Settlement: June 26, 2001
Attorneys for plaintiff: Timothy Saylor and Allen Schulman Jr., Allen Schulman & Associates, Canton.A $3.7 million settlement was reached in a case where a 27-year old motorcyclist did when a car collided with him at an intersection.
When riding his motorcycle toward a 4-way intersection, Glenn Lavenburg was struck by Elizabeth Moss' Pontiac Grand Am. Kim Lavenburg, the administrator of Glenn's estate, claimed that Moss failed to yield the right-of-way, and was attempting to make a left turn in front of the Lavenburg's motorcycle.
Upon impact, Lavenburg was thrown from the motorcycle, hit his head and lost consciousness. He never regained consciousness, and was pronounced dead five hours later. (OHLW Aug.27, 2001)
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