Auto Accident Lawyer Wins $2,031,196 For Grief Stricken Family
Tom and Tess Lee were on the way from their home in Chicago to Cleveland for a family wedding. The couple was traveling in the eastbound lanes of the Ohio turnpike near Toledo. A car driven by retired podiatrist Charles Marlowe, Jr. came from the westbound lanes across the median and into the eastbound lanes striking the Lees' vehicle head-on. The Lees were killed instantly.
Accident Attorney Dennis R. Lansdowne of The Spangenberg Law Firm in Cleveland, Ohio reports that a Federal Court jury in Toledo has returned a verdict of $2,031,196.33 for the deaths of the Lees, a husband and wife on the Ohio turnpike. The award was returned for the five adult children of the couple. (United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio, Western Division (Toledo), Case No. 3:08CV1739)
Cuyahoga County Jury Returns Verdict In Operating Room Fire
A Cuyahoga County, Ohio jury has returned a favorable verdict after finding a plastic surgeon responsible for causing a fire in an operating room. Cleveland Attorney, Peter H. Weinberger with the Ohio law firm of Spangenberg, Shibley & Liber LLP represented the victim of this medical malpractice lawsuit.
The malpractice case was against plastic surgeon Dr. Bryan Michelow and his corporation Contemporary Cosmetics, Inc in favor of his patient Lauren Wargo in the amount of $872,000 as a result of second degree burns she suffered on her face and neck caused by a fire in an operating room at the Zeeba Surgery Center on December 18, 2006.
Lauren, age 20, was having a mole removed from her right eyebrow and was sedated and receiving oxygen supplementation via a face mask when Dr. Michelow activated an electrocautery "device known as a bovie which caused a fire to erupt in the operating room". Ms. Wargo alleged that Dr. Michelow was negligent in failing to communicate to the anesthesia assistant who was controlling the oxygen that he was going to use the bovie so that the anesthesia assistant would know to turn off the oxygen. During the trial, Dr. Michelow blamed this anesthesia assistant for not knowing that he was going to use the bovie. The jury exonerated the anesthesia assistant and found Dr. Michelow 100% responsible for the fire.
The jury also found that Dr. Michelow concealed from Lauren and her parents the true cause of the fire and as a result awarded Lauren an additional $425,000 in punitive damages against the doctor.
Insurance Company Canceled Health Insurance Policy in Violation of Ohio Law - Settles Bad Faith Case for $1,650,000
Pete Weinberger and Nick DiCello were privileged to represent a wonderful lady for whom this settlement was obtained. Because her Cobra benefits were running out, she contacted an independent insurance agent to help her find an individual health insurance policy. The agent filled out a standard health questionnaire for her. When he asked what her weight was, she told him that she did not know because she knew she had recently gained substantial weight and did not own a scale. Like a lot of women, she was embarrassed by her weight to the point that when she would see her family doctor, she looked away from the scale and preferred that her doctor not tell her how much she weighed. The agent asked to see her driver's license which listed her weight as 150 lbs. She told the agent that that was probably off by 30 lbs or more, and he responded that he would put 175 lb on the application and that it would not be a problem.
$1,000,000 Judgment in Head Injury Case
Recent successes include a settlement well in excess of $1,000,000 on behalf of a young man who suffered a serious head injury when he was struck by a container of negligently stacked merchandise that fell from an elevated store shelf. We also obtained substantial compensation for a young man and his wife who were assaulted and wounded during a robbery at a fast food restaurant. Firm lawyers were able to obtain a settlement that ensured the couple's financial future.
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The attorneys at Spangenberg Shibley & Liber are WINNING Trial Lawyers representing one of the Leading Law Firms in Cleveland, Ohio.
$1,250,000 Medical Malpractice Verdict
On January 14, 2005, a Trumbull County jury returned a verdict of $1,250,000 for a man whose wife died when an emergency room physician negligently failed to diagnose a catheter related infection in the woman, which led to a need for surgery and ultimately to the woman's death. On April 10, 2002, the woman presented to the ER with complaints of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. She also had a Tesio catheter in her chest for dialysis. Evaluation at that time showed fever and an increased white blood count, indicating infection. She was sent home with a diagnosis of gastroenteritis. Her symptoms persisting, she was readmitted 41 hours later and diagnosed with endocarditis, an infection of the heart valves. She did not survive the surgery to repair her heart valves. Experts in the case testified that the physician in charge on April 10, 2002 failed to meet the standard of care when discharging her without recognizing or investigating the potential for catheter related infection, a commonly known risk of such devices. Further, expert testimony concluded that starting her on the antibiotic Vancomycin on April 10, 2002 would have avoided the need for the surgery and an extensive hospitalization which she did not survive. Instead, she would have been treated with antibiotics and on an out-patient basis. Thus, the ER physician's breach of the standard of care was deemed to be the proximate cause of the woman's death.
$800,000 Dental Malpractice Verdict
On November 1, 2004, a Mahoning county jury rendered an $800,000 verdict against a dentist who negligently failed to diagnose an aggressive tumor in the plaintiff's jaw, which led to the destruction and ultimate reconstruction of the man's jaw. In the fall and winter of 1998 and spring of 1999, the 24-year-old plaintiff went to the dentist on multiple occasions complaining of swelling on the right side of his jaw and a loose tooth. The dentist failed to recognize unusual soap bubble abnormalities on small periapical x-rays and diagnosed an infection. He failed to recognize the abnormalities, to follow-up with more complete x-rays, or to refer the plaintiff to a specialist in a timely manner. While the defense argued that this was a slow growing tumor and that detection and removal would not have altered the outcome, a large Panorex x-ray taken during a visit in January, which would have established the size of the tumor at that time, was said to have been lost. Six months later, the plaintiff was diagnosed with a rare tumor of the jaw which had by then infiltrated and destroyed much of his right, lower jawbone.
