And The Defense Wins

Partner Gerard W. Cook of O’Halloran, Kosoff, Geitner & Cook LLC, Northbrook, Illinois, recently won a defense verdict after a two-week trial in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois (Urbana). In the case of Hopey v. Spear et al., the plaintiff sought $2.3 million in damages for a concussion, post-concussion syndrome and aggravation of pre-existing spinal disc conditions allegedly caused in a rear end motor vehicle accident by a deputy sheriff. The defense admitted negligence and no contributory negligence by the plaintiff, but denied the accident proximately caused any of the claimed damages. Plaintiff was a 58-year-old auditor/accountant who claimed he was permanently disabled from working. The trial included testimony from multiple physicians and biomechanical engineers, including a neurosurgeon on behalf of the defense, who was recently depicted in the Hollywood movie “Concussion.”

To learn more about DRI, an international membership organization of attorneys defending the interests of business and individuals in civil litigation, visit www.dri.org.