The Illinois Appellate Court has affirmed a defense verdict in a multi-vehicle crash on an icy Indiana highway that caused severe injuries to motorists. The big issue in the case was which state’s law should be applied at a Cook County Circuit Court jury trial. On Dec. 26, 2007, Clifford…
In the early morning hours of April 19, 2010, Chantel Jobes was driving a vehicle alone and left the southbound lane of Highway 11, crossed the northbound lane and crashed into a concrete railroad trestle. Jobes was seriously injured and filed a lawsuit against the Norfolk Southern Railway Co., the…
A lawsuit was filed against the Chicago Zoological Society, which operates Brookfield Zoo, on land owned by the Cook County Forest Preserve District. The case was filed by Kristine O’Toole for injuries that she suffered when she fell because of an alleged defect in the pavement. The defendant, the Chicago…
On Aug. 2, 2005, Brandy Pirrello was a resident at Maryville Academy, a facility that houses and treats minors with behavioral problems. At the time, Brandy was 16 years old. She had been admitted to the facility in early 2005 and had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was at…
Ann E. Guiffrida’s personal injury case against the owner of a bar called The Palace in downstate Hamburg, Ill., was dismissed because the plaintiff had mixed up the names of two corporations. One was The Palace Inc. and the other was Boothy’s Palace Tavern Inc. Guiffrida filed a lawsuit in…
Lawyers who handle jury trials prepare their cases typically by reviewing all of the depositions, all of the issues of damages, the pleadings, the written discovery, the law that applies and the jury instructions that may be used. That would be just the start. Some lawyers, like me, abstract all…
A wrongful-death verdict that was vacated by a trial judge was affirmed on appeal by the Illinois Appellate Court. The jury’s verdict of $4.25 million was reached in a wrongful-death trial awarded to the family of a woman killed in a highway crash. But the trial judge vacated the verdict…
Attorneys should be aware that corporations can be deposed by authority of Illinois Supreme Court Rule 206. In Illinois, a deposition notice pursuant to that Supreme Court rule would require the corporate party or government entity to designate and produce for deposition a witness to give testimony at a discovery…
On April 19, 2010, Frances Villarreal was stopped at a red light on eastbound 67th Street at Cicero Avenue in Chicago. Villarreal was waiting to make a right turn when her car was rear-ended by the defendant, Cynthia Zaragoza. The crash occurred during the morning rush hour. Villarreal claimed that…
On Aug. 13, 2011, Roland P. Wilson was crossing the street after leaving the tavern, Hot City Lounge, 7342 S. Racine Ave., Chicago, Ill., when he was hit by a vehicle that fled the scene. Wilson, 66, suffered a fractured right leg and required surgery. Wilson believed the hit and run…