$7,525,000 Compensation for Family Following Tragic Deaths After a Car Accident

Learn How Our Lawyers Helped After a Devastating Car Crash

In a New York case, a mother and her son were tragically killed in a Long Island crash. Two other children in the car were seriously injured. Our firm represented the surviving children and the estate of the deceased child.

Court and County
Supreme Court, Suffolk County

Accident Description
This case involved a horrific collision on County Road 111 in Suffolk County between a Ford van owned by an electrical contractor and a privately owned Honda sedan. The Honda belonged to a Suffolk County family with three young children. At the time of the accident, the Honda was driven by the family’s wife and mother, who was only 30 years old, and all three children were passengers in the car. They were on their way to a go-kart race track where their eldest son was scheduled to compete, a track at which their husband and father had arrived ahead of them that morning to set up. He was awaiting their arrival when tragedy struck. The work van was driving along County Road 111 and the family sedan was pulling out from a side street. Within that intersection, the front of the van collided into the driver’s side of the car with massive force.

As a result of the impact, the family’s loving wife and mother was immediately killed, as was their beloved 7-year-old son. The two surviving children, who were 4 and 2 years old at the time, suffered serious injuries. The accident was covered extensively by local media and the community rallied around this family as they grieved and struggled to get back on their feet. Our firm represented the surviving children and the estate of the deceased child.

The case was a challenging one to prove because the only available direct evidence, including the testimony of the van driver and his passenger, was that the work van had the green light while our client’s vehicle ran through a red light. Early on, in fact, it appeared as though it may be impossible to prove any fault on the part of the van driver at all. But through our firm’s tenacious investigation and probing questioning-, we were able to expose some inconsistencies and raise enough doubt about the Defendants’ claims that the defense agreed to discuss settlement at a private mediation.

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Injuries/Damages
Of the two surviving children, the most severely injured was the family’s 4 year old daughter (who is now 7), who suffered a brain injury as well as fractures to her skull, face, pelvis and left leg. She was hospitalized for about one month, during which time she underwent craniotomies and a surgery to stabilize her left tibia/fibula fractures. Despite serious early concerns about how much brain function she would recover or whether she would walk again, this brave young girl has made a remarkable recovery. She still faces several significant challenges, but she is now able to walk and run, read and play, and she is attending a normal school with special education services and therapies.

The 2 year old son who survived the collision, who is now 5, suffered facial fractures and a skull laceration, but has made a near full recovery. He no longer requires any medical treatment for his injuries, he attends a regular kindergarten class and he enjoys playing football and go-kart racing, just as his brother had. Tragically, the family’s beloved oldest son died as a result of this collision. He was officially pronounced dead one hour after the incident, but the evidence demonstrated that he died immediately upon impact and suffered no conscious pain or suffering.

Settlement Amount
The van had a total of $11 million of insurance coverage. Following a private mediation, the Defendants agreed to pay a total of $7,525,000 to settle these claims.

Attorneys

This case was handled by firm partners Stephen J. Murphy and David L. Scher, as well as associate attorney Christina (Mark) Mercado.