Truck Accident Cases

Our client suffered a leg amputation. Our firm obtained a $15 million settlement for them.

Stephenson Rife obtained a settlement of $20 million Canadian dollars which amounts to approximately $15 million USD in a trucking case which resulted in a leg amputation of our client along with other orthopedic and internal injuries. This result was reached within 10 months of filing suit. The team at Stephenson Rife worked feverishly to hire the appropriate experts to build a strong case on liability, punitive damages, and the economic losses suffered by our client. If you’ve been injured in an Indiana accident involving a delivery truck, contact the experienced Indiana delivery truck accident lawyer. We are committed to securing maximum compensation for victims of negligence and holding responsible parties accountable.

We obtained a settlement of $5.3 million for the family of a father and son who were killed.

Stephenson Rife obtained a settlement of $5,350,000 for the family of a father and son who were killed when their vehicle was rear-ended by a semi-tractor trailer at highway speeds. Stephenson Rife worked quickly to preserve critical evidence, including the download of the semi’s electronic control module the semi driver’s cell phone. Through the collection of this evidence, it was determined that the cruise control for the semi was set to 65mph and no braking or evasive action was taken by the driver of the semi until after impact. The team at Stephenson Rife, along with its experts, were able to utilize the driver’s cell phone activity in the week prior to the crash to establish that the driver had likely fallen asleep at the wheel.

Trucking company tried to defended itself, but ultimately lost to our firm.

Stephenson Rife, an experienced Indianapolis wrongful death lawyer, obtained a wrongful death settlement against a trucking company for $3,075,000 when the trucker failed to see stopped traffic in front of him and collided with the rear of our client’s vehicle, causing his death. The case was vigorously defended by the trucking company on the basis of fault and then on damages caused by our client’s death. The defendant’s final offer of settlement to our client’s family was over 3 ½ times the initial offer made to the original attorney handling the case for the estate.

“D.W.” was a front-seat passenger in a vehicle that was struck by a UDF truck making deliveries.

D.W. received broken arms and legs, as well as internal injuries. Stephenson was retained by D.W.’s personal counsel to prepare and try the case. Discovery determined that the UDF driver had multiple driving violations. Stephenson retained numerous experts to show the jury the devastating effects of the injuries.

Before trial, the defendant’s company stated that a jury in a small southern county in Indiana would never return a verdict for $1 million in this case. The defendant was correct; the verdict was twice that amount.

Personal Injury Cases

Loose dog causes motorcycle accident.

Stephenson Rife obtained a settlement of $1 million in a case involving a traumatic brain injury to our client. The matter involved an unrestrained dog that ran into the road, causing our client to lose control and crash his motorcycle. Stephenson Rife uncovered evidence that the dog had a prior history of leaving the property and straying onto the roadway. The settlement amount was the full insurance policy limit covering the defendant homeowner. The resolution of this case was achieved in fewer than 6 months following the crash.

Bar & Grill held accountable for a physical altercation.

Blackford County jury returned a verdict for client for an amount over four times the last offer from the insurance company. Our client, JR, a 40 year old lady, went with friends to Mel’s Keg in Hartford City, Indiana. Mel’s is a small bar and grill near downtown Hartford City. JR and her female friend, KS, met a group of high school friends at Mel’s. Shortly after JR and KS arrived at Mel’s, KS’s stepsister of 25 years, RTB, came into the bar with a group of her friends to celebrate her birthday.

Unfortunately, later that evening KS and her stepsister, RTB, got into a heated argument which eventually turned into a physical altercation. The altercation was broken up by the groups of friends who had come to Mel’s Keg with both women. Immediately after the two women were pulled apart, RTB grabbed a beer mug and threw it across the room at her stepsister but missed and struck our client in the face, severely cutting her upper lip and breaking off a front tooth. The entire argument and physical altercation was captured on surveillance tape.
JR went to the ER but her injury was so severe that she was referred to an oral surgeon for treatment. JR was taken to Indianapolis the following day where the through-and-through laceration of her lip was sutured. She eventually had a root canal and a cap placed on her front tooth. JR has undergone one revision surgery to minimize the scar, and will likely need the cap replaced over the course of her life time. She was left with a noticeable scar on her lip. JR’s medical expense totaled $8,900.

Suit was filed against JR’s stepsister and Mel’s Keg. At mediation and before trial the most offered to settle JR’s claim was $35,000. The jury returned a verdict in her favor for $157,000, assessing 55% of the liability to one stepsister, 35% to the other stepsister, and 10 % to JR, resulting in a net verdict over two times the amount offered by the RTB’s insurance company.

Dedication in Action: 6 Years Ends in Substantial Settlement

Our battle began with a simple goal. We planned to prove that insurance coverage was in place in our client’s case and that the insurance company had to pay. It sounds straightforward, but this case took a long path to resolution. 

In 2019, our client came to us after suffering a completely preventable injury. She had gone to receive a spa service at a reputable facility, was given the wrong service, and endured severe chemical burns. The injuries required painful and repeated laser treatments. The laser treatments may continue indefinitely because of the intense trauma to the skin. The full extent of the disfigurement may change with age, which left our client unsure if she’d ever look the same again.

Businesses carry insurance for scenarios just like this. It would stand to reason that the claim would be easily processed, and our client would receive fair payment. However, we were up against a large insurance company who denied coverage for our client’s injuries.

We had to take a multi-step approach to bring this case to a successful conclusion. It started with two years of hard work that ended with a consent judgment in our favor. The business admitted fault and agreed to a fair sum for what our client had experienced. That left the business out of the picture for our purposes but left us with another daunting task: getting a court to order that the insurance company pay the consent judgment.

After two years of pushing the case, we achieved another milestone victory. The Court granted summary judgment in our client’s favor finding that the insurance policy provided coverage in this case and that the insurance company had failed to fulfill the terms of the policy. An additional summary judgment order from the Court found that the previous consent judgment was reasonable and enforceable.

However, our final step was more strenuous and complicated. We were up against a large insurance company with expansive resources. But that didn’t stop us. We continued to doggedly pursue our goal. The insurance company initiated an appeal of the previous Court orders. Rather than wait once again to close this case, we earned a fair settlement from the insurance company at mediation. 

The focus of our team was not only to prove that the insurance company should offer a fair settlement but also to demonstrate the ongoing struggles our client experiences because of this injury. After nearly six years justice was attained.  

Precision, Documentation, and Detail Drive Results in Slip and Fall

It is easy to take the freedom of motion and mobility for granted. Few people imagine a future in which they will be unable to lift, move without pain, or simply grasp consistently in their 50’s. However, that is the harsh and unfortunate reality that came to plague our client after a dramatic slip and fall. 

Our client had gone out to celebrate Father’s Day at an upscale establishment inside a historic mansion. Our client is a husband, father, and grandfather and should have ended the special day with joy. Instead, as he exited the establishment, a heavy swinging door pushed him onto a deteriorated top step where he lost his balance on the uneven surface and was propelled forward, hitting his head and neck on a metal railing. He spent the remainder of his Father’s Day in the emergency department of a local hospital with his wife.  

This was only the beginning of the numerous medical visits, therapies, medications, and procedures our client would endure over the next 2 years and continues to endure to this day. The injuries he suffered include:  

• Permanently damaged discs in the neck with pinched/compressed nerves causing numbness and tingling in the shoulder, hand, or overall arm
• Recurring, unpredictable headaches post-injury that do not respond well to treatment
• Issues with spinal function in the neck and upper back
• Permanent arm pain and numbness
• Pinched/compressed tendons in the shoulder
• Traumatic disc herniation in the neck that required surgery
• Subsequent surgeries to address infection caused by the first spinal surgery

In short, his injuries completely and permanently altered how his upper body functions. He cannot lift his arms as he did formerly. He frequently loses control of his grip and drops items. He no longer enjoys a full range of motion in his torso, arms, and hands. Beyond the injuries, he endures constant pain. Out of 16 pain ratings, he never ranked his pain below a 5 out of ten, and the average pain rating over multiple years of appointments was 7 out of 10. Sadly, the constant onslaught of pain has made him irritable and impatient with his loved ones.

Although it was clear that our client’s injuries had caused irreparable harm, our team had to demonstrate that the injuries were a direct result of the negligence of the restaurant owner and building owner. In the process of collecting our evidence, we made a shocking discovery. Not only had the defendants been aware of the issue but they also attempted to address it in July of 2019, nearly 4 years before our client fell. This showed that they were aware of the hazard and felt on some level that it needed to be remediated. However, rather than doing a thorough and lasting repair, a simple patch was used as an attempt to mitigate the problem.  

Within 2 years of patching the uneven surface of the step, photographic evidence showed that the original problem had returned. There was severe pitting evident in October of 2021. It stayed there, untouched, until our client fell in June of 2023 and until the parties involved conducted an inspection in December of 2023. A forensic examination showed multiple points where the change in elevation went to nearly 1.5” deep. This was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which defines a tripping hazard as a change in any vertical level over 0.25”.  

We had the medical records. We had the forensic evaluation. And then we drove our point home with two experts who reviewed the evidence and testimony of the parties involved. The forensic consultant concluded in his expert opinion that the defendants knowingly failed to maintain the surface of the step. He also concluded that the heavy and fast-closing door combined with the hazardous step was the clear cause of our client’s fall. Our medical expert also concluded that the fall was the precipitating event for our client’s injuries and subsequent treatments and procedures.  

Through our investigation, aggressive litigation, and negotiations, we achieved a settlement that was over 10 times the initial offer made by the defendants. More importantly for our team, our client shared that he felt our representation was defined by compassion and communication. Our drive, our detail, and our commitment to excellence brought this case to a successful conclusion.

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Product Liability Cases

$2.25 million secured from a national home kitchen appliance company for burns our client suffered.

Stephenson Rife secured a settlement for $2,250,000 from a national home kitchen appliance company for a client who suffered scald burns to her body because of a defective product. At the first settlement conference, the defense claimed it would never pay Stephenson Rife’s client anywhere close to $1,000,000. After meticulously combing through over 200,000 documents produced by the company and conducting depositions in six different states, the team at Stephenson Rife was able to establish that key upper management knew about the defective nature of the product causing the same type of scald injuries to other consumers at least two years before the incident involving Stephenson Rife’s client. The team at Stephenson Rife resolved the case a week before trial for more than double what the defense claimed it would never pay their client.

A large chain tire retailer sold an “almost new” eight year old tire to an unsuspecting buyer in Nevada.

As the young man was driving his Ford Bronco along a two-lane state road, the tire failed causing him to lose control and go left of center striking a motorcycle killing “J.M.” and his wife.

Stephenson was hired and went to Nevada to examine the wreck and the tire. The family had been advised initially that the age of the tire would prevent the successful prosecution of a wrongful death action against the manufacturer. Thorough research and the employment of national experts led to the conclusion that the original assessment was incorrect. A thorough expert analysis of the tire, along with a trip to the tire manufacturing facility and obtaining the factory specifications for the tire, allowed Stephenson to produce objective evidence that the tire had been improperly manufactured by the manufacturer’s own standards. Stephenson, with the assistance of highly specialized computer animation, put together a state-of-the-art visual presentation that showed objectively how the tire failed to meet the manufacturer’s own standards. This technology demonstrated clearly the magnitude of defects in the tire and how easy it would be to show a jury the reason for the tire failure.

The case settled after the presentation of the computer animation.

Faulty Crane Design Causes Significant Injury

Our client was critically injured when the main lift arm of a man lift attached to a large piece of mine machinery broke as our client was being transported from nearly 20’’ in the air to the ground. After a thorough investigation, we were able to establish that the support arm failed to meet design requirements. Our client received a confidential settlement.