The auto accident attorneys of Peter Higgins Law represented four women who were in the same car, a Ford Explorer, on their way to work as cleaning ladies for a company in Barrington, Illinois. All four of the women were Mexican immigrants who spoke little to no English. They were driving on a 2-lane highway when one of the defendants, driving a white pick-up truck, rear-ended the other defendant (in a black pick-up truck) and pushed the black pick-up directly into the path of the Explorer. The impact pushed the Explorer off the road, causing it to roll over several times before coming to a rest in a ditch alongside the road.
One of the ladies in the Explorer, a 56-year-old woman, was ejected out the rear window and landed on her head. She suffered a mild traumatic brain injury which was resolved without surgery. She also suffered multiple fractures to her vertebrae, scapula and ribs, all of which resolved without surgery. Although she tried to return to her job after about one year, she only lasted a month because of the pain in her head, neck and shoulders. She never worked again.
Another lady in the car who was 55 at the time, suffered a fractured scapula and a torn rotator cuff, repaired with surgery. She missed some time from work immediately following the auto accident, was able to return to work for about two years, then took an early retirement because of her injuries and the work restrictions placed on her by her doctor.
The third woman in the Explorer, age 24, suffered a fracture in one of the vertebra of her cervical spine and had to wear a hard plastic cervical collar 24/7 for three months. She missed about six months from work.
The fourth woman involved, age 29, suffered soft-tissue injuries to her neck, low back and legs. She also suffered from severe headaches as a result of the crash, and was forced to miss seven months from work.
Peter Higgins Law filed personal injury lawsuits on behalf of each of the injured women, then took depositions of all parties and witnesses involved, as well as the treating physicians. When the cases were nearing trial, our attorneys arranged for all of the parties (our four clients, the two defendants and all attorneys) to meet with a mediator to try to settle each case. After an all day mediation, settlement agreements were reached on each of the four cases totaling about $2.1 million. Due to a Confidentiality Agreement insisted upon by the insurance companies for the defendants, the exact amounts of each settlement are to remain confidential.