Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly
Type of action: Personal injury, auto accident
Injuries alleged: Traumatic brain injury, chronic migraines and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
Name of case: Jackson v. Clark
Court: Prince William Circuit Court
Case no.: CL18002646-000
Tried before: Arbitration
Name of judge or mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)
Date resolved: 6/6/2022
Special damages: $72,159.85 in past medical treatment
Demand: $1,000,000
Offer: $160,000
Verdict or settlement: Arbitration award
Amount: $500,000
Attorney for plaintiff (and city): Dickson J. Young, Fairfax
Young
Description of case: Jackson was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her husband proceeding eastbound on Interstate 66 in Arlington County. When stopped for traffic she was struck from behind by the defendant’s vehicle, striking her head on the headrest in her vehicle. She was treated in the ER; as a result of her husband’s employment in the military, the majority of her treatment was at Walter Reed. The case was hotly contested on the issue of injuries, specifically postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or POTS, being related to the crash as the onset of those symptoms did not begin until three years post-crash. Neuro quant MRI provided objective evidence of TBI. A physician concluded the POTS resulted from the crash and injury to the brain. Plaintiff at the time of the crash was married and the mother of three children. Trial of case was cancelled twice because of COVID. Plaintiff continues to treat for POTS while stationed in Europe with her husband who is there on assignment. Award of $500,000 specifically found that POTS not related to the crash which discounted the plaintiffs claim for continued disability. Available coverage was less than the amount of the award as some portion of the policy had been used to settle the claim of the child and husband.
Dickson Young, plaintiff’s attorney, provided case information. [022-T-109]
