On June 27, 2009, Michael Gibson was a back-seat passenger in a car that was rear-ended by defendant Louise Damen at LaGrange Road (Route 45) and Interstate 80 in Will County, Ill. Gibson, 18, maintained that the impact caused his left knee to hit the console inside the car, tearing…
On June 3, 2008, the plaintiff, Richard Girden, who was a right side rear-seat passenger in a Land Rover, was stopped on southbound Route 59 at 119th Street in Will County, Ill. Another vehicle, driven by Fidel Ramirez, was stopped behind the Land Rover. The Girden vehicle had been stopped…
The amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code expands the existing ban on e-mailing while driving. The new act goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2014. The law prohibits the use of all electronic communication devices while driving with a few narrow exceptions. Except for hands-free telephone use, GPS navigation, CB…
On Jan. 14, 2010, Anthony Rossi was driving eastbound on 95th Street in Oak Lawn, Ill. The corner of his car was hit by a semi-tractor-trailer truck on the same eastbound 95th Street driven by the defendant, Steven Groft, as he was changing lanes. The crash caused Rossi’s car to…
On July 31, 2008, a multi-car collision occurred in which the car driven by Gregory Mlot rear-ended the vehicle in front of him driven by Michael Dervin. Wendy Palacios was a passenger in Dervin’s car. It was alleged that the Dervin vehicle then rear-ended the vehicle in front of him,…
The family of a woman who died when her Toyota Camry suddenly accelerated and crashed, despite her efforts to stop it, has sued the Toyota Motor Corp. In opening statement the attorney for the plaintiff’s family asked the jury to return a verdict in excess of $20 million. This case involves the…
A bill signed into law by Illinois Gov. Patrick J. Quinn permits the Illinois Secretary of State to retroactively invalidate a driver’s license if the minor had a citation for which a disposition had not been rendered when the license was issued. In other words, a permit driver, 18 years old…
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Travelers Insurance Co. alleging that it misled injured individuals in car accident cases against Travelers’ insureds. The case, filed in the Chancery Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County by Sabrina Roppo, alleges that when she was injured in a car…
In 2007, Illinois amended the Wrongful Death Act to add language saying, “including damages for grief, sorrow and mental suffering.” The language was added to the description of available wrongful death damages. According to this Chicago federal court case, Hammond v. System Transport, Inc., the Illinois legislature’s intentions in amending…
Heike Wehrle and Robert Wehrle were severely injured in an auto crash with a drunk driver who had minimal insurance coverage. The Wehrles had an underinsured motorist insurance policy with Cincinnati Insurance Co. that paid the difference between their $1 million coverage limit and the $200,000 that they received from…