Million Dollar Plus Settlements of 2025

Following are settlements of at least $1 million reached in 2025 and reported to Virginia Lawyers Weekly. 

Note (4/10/2026): This compilation has been edited to include an additional $1 million settlement erroneously excluded from the original list. 

$30.7 million

Water, sewer system condemnation dispute settles after three years

Type of action: Eminent domain

Attorneys for plaintiff: Paul B. Terpak and Scott D. Helsel, Fairfax, Blankingship & Keith

Case summary: This case involved the condemnation of the private water and sewer system at Massanutten resort, including all related tanks, pumps, equipment, over 200 miles of pipes and a large sewerage treatment plant. The system was owned by a conglomerate of over 100 similar systems, ultimately owned by a Canadian pension fund.

After more than three years, all parties settled with a payment to Massanutten Public Service Corp. of $30.7 million.

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$28 million

Va. counsel obtains $28M personal injury settlement

Type of action: Personal injury

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin Biniazan and Jeffrey Breit, Virginia Beach, and Justin Sheldon and Lee Floyd, Richmond, Breit Biniazan

Case summary: This was a $28 million confidential personal injury settlement resolved in July 2025 by mediation.

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$24 million

Record wrongful death settlement for woman killed in crash

Type of action: Wrongful death

Mediator: Michael E. Harman

Attorneys for plaintiff: Edward L. Allen and Parker E. Allen, Richmond, Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen

Case summary: This wrongful death case arose out of a highway collision involving a commercial motor vehicle. The plaintiff’s decedent sustained fatal injuries after a fully loaded commercial truck operated by the defendant lost control, crossed the center line and struck her vehicle at highway speed.

This case settled at the courthouse on the first day of trial, shortly before jury selection was set to begin. Upon information and belief, this settlement represents the largest reported wrongful death recovery in Virginia history, whether by settlement or verdict.

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$18.5 million

Plaintiff paralyzed after impact of rear-end collision

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: James Barkley

Attorneys for plaintiff: Bryan Slaughter, Kyle McNew and Ashley Davis, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett

Case summary: The plaintiff was driving to work in Albemarle County when she was hit from behind by a commercial motor vehicle while in stopped traffic.

After extraction from her vehicle and transport to the hospital, she was diagnosed with injury to her spinal column and cord and was paralyzed from the chest down.

Mediation occurred approximately 10 months from the date of incident, and the settlement was finalized approximately one week after mediation. Plaintiff’s counsel worked to engage a trust company and develop a trust that will protect and grow the settlement funds while providing for the plaintiff and her family.

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$17.75 million

Six people injured in home explosion

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorneys for plaintiff: Drew LaFramboise, Bridget Cardinale and Andrew Greenwald, Rockville, Maryland, Joseph Greenwald & Laake, and David Kopstein, Lanham, Maryland, Kopstein & Associates, Lanham, Maryland

Case summary: This action consisted of confidential settlements on behalf of six people injured in a home explosion.

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$17.61 million

Global settlement for 9 boys sexually abused by church leader

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin Biniazan, Justin Sheldon and Lauren A. Martin, Virginia
Beach, Breit Biniazan

Case summary: Civil suits were brought by nine boys against a Colonial Heights church, two related entities, the perpetrating youth leader, a former church leader and the father of the perpetrator. The plaintiffs’ claims included negligent and reckless breaches of duties arising from negligent hiring and retention of the youth leader, breaches of duties arising from a custodial relationship to vulnerable minors, and other claims.

The resolution concluded litigation that spanned nearly nine years and is more than four times the amount of insurance coverage that the defendants’ carriers contended was the full extent of their indemnity obligations.

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$12.5 million

Three suffer serious injuries after rear-end highway collision

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Matthew W. Broughton and Jared A. Tuck, Roanoke, Gentry Locke, and Melvin B. Wright, Orlando, Florida, Colling Gilbert Wright

Case summary: In May 2025, three plaintiffs were traveling in a small SUV on an interstate highway. As the plaintiffs’ vehicle slowed down for traffic ahead, the defendant, driving a Ford F-250, rear-ended the small SUV, pushing it into the back of a tractor-trailer.
All three plaintiffs suffered traumatic brain injuries, multiple orthopedic injuries and internal injuries.

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$12 million

Grain delivery leads to man’s electrocution

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Judge Stanley P. Klein (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Katie Rose Marion, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Rose Marion Law (pro hac vice); Kevin Biniazan, Virginia Beach, Breit Biniazan; John Cooper and Bailey Gifford, Norfolk, Cooper Hurley

Case summary: The plaintiff’s decedent worked as a commercial truck driver for a grain delivery company. When he attempted to deliver grain into the top of a grain silo using a portable auger, an electrical arc occurred between his machinery and a nearby overhead high voltage power line, electrocuting him on the ground.

A central dispute in the matter involved the presence or absence of an electrical arc and the distance the electrical arc traveled from the overhead high voltage power lines to the portable auger.

On the morning of trial, the plaintiff and the power company agreed to resolve all remaining claims.

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$12 million

Parties settle trust dispute after one trustee locked out of access

Type of action: Wills and trusts

Attorneys for plaintiff: David E. Bateman and Daniel M. Rathbun, Fairfax, Rathbun Bateman

Case summary: Diana Dunham Seiler and George Joseph Seiler created and funded a revocable trust that names them as grantors, co-trustees and beneficiaries. On the same, Diana also executed a written general durable power of attorney appointing her son, Joshua, as her “true and lawful attorney-in-fact.”

George began liquidating large amounts of the trust’s assets, and Joshua sent a written demand to George directing him to transfer Diana’s share of the trust to her after she was frozen from the accounts. George refused, and Joshua filed suit. The parties resolved the matter pursuant to a settlement agreement, which provides a distribution from the trust to Diana.

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$11 million

Claimant says crash caused traumatic brain injury, PTSD

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Justice Jane Marum Roush (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin W. Mottley and Benjamin P. Kyber, Richmond, The Mottley Law Firm

Case summary: This case involved a tractor trailer crash that occurred on Interstate 81 in the Shenandoah Valley, resulting in numerous injuries to the plaintiff, including traumatic brain injury and multiple fractures.

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$10.3 million

Truck driver’s failure to yield leaves 90-year-old woman in wheelchair

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin Biniazan, Jeffrey Breit and Alexis Bale, Virginia Beach, Breit Biniazan; Paul Mack, Chesterfield, Saunders, Patterson & Mack; Bob Pfeifer, Williamsburg, Pfeifer Law

Case summary: The 90-year-old plaintiff was a passenger in a friend’s car enjoying an outing to lunch and sightseeing. As they traveled home, they were struck by a box truck that failed to yield at an intersection, resulting in severe injuries for all passengers.

In the two months leading up to trial, the parties appeared at nearly a dozen hearings for the argument of over two dozen pre-trial motions and motions in limine.

Within a week of the trial date, the defendant company offered $10.3 million to resolve all claims for the plaintiff. This offer came days after her 94th birthday.

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$7 million

Death after crowbar falls at construction site onto worker

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: James Barkley

Attorneys for plaintiff: Peter S. Everett, Robert J. Stoney, M. Barkley Horn and Aimee N. Solano, Fairfax, Blankingship & Keith; Craig B. Davis, Richmond,
Reinhardt Harper Davis

Case summary: At the end of a workday, as the decedent was testing concrete at street level, a three-foot long crowbar fell from 100-150 feet, striking the decedent in the head.

Neither state regulatory authorities nor the defendants ever determined how the crowbar fell or who was responsible. The man died from his injuries, despite wearing a protective hard hat.

Liability stemmed from a series of actions and omissions by the defendants: the site’s owner, a company owned by historically wealthy families in Northern Virginia and a well-known property management company, acting as a general contractor.

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$6.26 million

Plaintiff: motorcycle crash resulted in leg amputation

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: W. Randolph Robins Jr. and Michael W. Lantz, Richmond, Lantz & Robins

Case summary: The plaintiff was riding a motorcycle in downtown Richmond when a rental car failed to yield the right of way at a signalized intersection, turning left in front of the motorcycle.

The plaintiff suffered injuries to the left foot, which required amputation below the knee.

The plaintiff’s counsel filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings as to scope of employment, and made a time limited demand for the commercial policy limits. The policy was tendered on the date the offer expired.

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$6.15 million

Logging facility crane operator dies after equipment collapse

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Judge Westbrook J. Parker (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kyle McNew, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett; Ed Fisher, Beaumont, Texas, Provost Umphrey

Case summary: The decedent crane operator was lowering a load of logs onto the first stage when the entire cantilevered section of the horizontal girder — with the operator’s cab and grapple — collapsed and fell to the ground. The decedent died instantly. The collapse was caused by a crack in the top I-beam where the girder connects to the leg assembly.

The plaintiff alleged claims of negligence against two companies that performed periodic services on the crane, one of which had been onsite just three days before the collapse. The case resolved shortly before trial.

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$6 million

Traumatic brain injury follows crash with steel beam

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Juli Porto, Robert Stoney and Peter Everett, Fairfax,
Blankingship & Keith; David Marks, Fairfax, David Marks Law

Case summary: As a truck hauling a steel beam attempted to cross Route 7 outside Falls Church, the beam was perpendicular across all four lanes of road. The plaintiff, driving home from work, was eastbound on Route 7. She was unable to see the darkened beam bisecting the highway and struck it at 35 mph.

The plaintiff survived the impact but suffered facial injuries and a brain injury. The case was resolved in mediation one month before trial was to begin.

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$5.4 million

66-year-old taxi passenger killed during ride home from airport

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Peter S. Everett, Chidi I. James, Amy Bradley, M. Barkley Horn and Aimee Solano, Fairfax, Blankingship and Keith

Case summary: In October 2023, an employee of a large corporation flew into Dulles Airport and planned to drive to Breezewood, Pennsylvania, with another employee. On that drive, the employee allegedly ran a red light, lost control of the car, and crashed into a minivan taxi, leading to the death of a father in the taxi.

The decedent’s son played soccer for James Madison University, and he supported players who needed financial assistance. Considering this, the family set aside $50,000 to create a scholarship for soccer players at JMU in his memory.

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$4.9 million

Wrongful death parties settle over death of mother of two

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Judge Thomas Shadrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Robert J. Haddad and Isabella I. Haddad, Virginia Beach, Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert, & Woodward

Case summary: The case involved the wrongful death of a mother of two young children, who died because of the defendant’s negligence.

An initial mediation a year earlier ended with a top offer of $750,000. With trial set, the parties reconvened mediation and reached a settlement.

Liability was disputed only as to which party was at fault for the incident, not whether negligence caused the death.

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$4.88 million

Driver paralyzed after crash; carrier initially denies coverage

Type of action: Workers’ compensation

Attorneys for plaintiff: Julia Childrey and Stephen Harper, Richmond, Reinhardt Harper
Davis

Case summary: A man in his early 30s was left a partial quadriplegic in a single vehicle accident in a claim denied by the workers compensation carrier.

The claim was fully denied by the carrier on the basis that the claimant was off the clock and had told other employees he was going to go home. The plaintiff’s counsel took multiple depositions of the claimant’s coworkers and supervisors to refute the defenses of the insurance carrier, including the employees’ practices of using personal vehicles and that timesheets were regularly adjusted after the fact by office managers.

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$4.75 million

Richmond attorneys reach confidential personal injury settlement

Type of action: Personal injury

Attorneys for plaintiff: Ryan T. Walker and Joel R. McClellan, Richmond, Marks & Harrison

Case summary: This settlement concerns a highly confidential personal injury case.

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$3.6 million

Driver hurt after tractor-trailer drifts off roadway, hits his truck

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group; Emmet Alexander, Richmond, Alexander Law Group

Case summary: The plaintiff was driving his pickup truck on an interstate highway, towing a flatbed trailer loaded with a second pickup truck. When his vehicle experienced a power failure, he pulled into the emergency safety lane alongside a concrete barrier. Moments later, a 36-ton tractor-trailer drifted off the roadway and crashed into his stationary trailer and pickup truck.

The case was heavily litigated with both parties moving for summary judgment on contributory negligence and willful and wanton conduct. It failed to settle at an initial settlement conference and at a private mediation, but later resolved during a second court-sponsored settlement conference.

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$3 million

Passenger’s injuries from auto accident include TBI

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Michael C. Allen (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Ryan E. Wind and Kevin T. Hadden, Richmond, Wind Injury Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was a passenger in a vehicle approaching an intersection in Richmond when the defendant attempted to make a left-hand turn in front of the vehicle, resulting in a collision.

The defense asserted that the plaintiff’s driver was partially at fault for the crash based on speed and lookout, and hired an expert to question the future impact of the plaintiff’s injuries.

The case settled after the initial mediation and a little over a month from trial.

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$3 million

75-year-old in wheelchair hit in crosswalk by delivery driver

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Amy L. Bradley, Matt P. Tsun and Rob J. Stoney, Fairfax,
Blankingship & Keith

Case summary: The plaintiff was 75 years old and confined to a wheelchair when he was struck in a residential crosswalk by a professional delivery truck driver.

The plaintiff died almost exactly one year after being run over, leaving behind his and two grown children. The delivery company contended that his death was caused by his underlying conditions and thus his claim was restricted to survival damages during the year he lived after the crash.

The plaintiff contended that his injuries were a proximate cause of his death but alleged alternate theories of survivor action and wrongful death.

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$3 million

Hit head-on, plaintiff suffers spine, bowel and knee injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Scott Fitzgerald, Richmond, Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen

Case summary: The defendant driver, who was operating a company vehicle, passed out behind the wheel and struck the plaintiff’s oncoming vehicle head-on. The driver asserted that he passed out due to blood loss from a laceration he sustained to his hand while at work the day before the car crash.

After extensive discovery, including depositions of the defendant’s family members, coworkers and both the plaintiff’s as well as the defendant’s physicians, $3 million was offered to settle the case.

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$2.975 million

T-bone crash results in partial tongue paralysis, other injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Amy L. Bradley and Robert J. Stoney, Fairfax, Blankingship & Keith

Case summary: The plaintiff was visiting family in Virginia and a passenger in host family’s vehicle driven by the plaintiff’s spouse at time of crash. The plaintiff’s spouse was T-boned while making a left turn by an uninsured driver who was proceeding straight through an intersection.

The case settled about one month before the personal injury jury trial was scheduled.

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$2.85 million

Plaintiff alleges chain reaction crash on I-95 results in pelvic fractures

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Thomas B. Hoover (Ret.)

Attorney for plaintiff: John Newby, Richmond, Tronfeld, West & Durrett

Case summary: This case arose from a multi-vehicle collision on Interstate 95 in Henrico County.

The crash was initiated by an unsafe lane change which caused a chain reaction of collisions. The plaintiff sustained significant injuries, including multiple pelvic fractures, disruption of the pelvic ring, traumatic rupture of the symphysis pubis, and a mild traumatic brain injury. The defendants asserted contributory negligence as a defense.

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$2.75 million

Suspect fleeing police injures van occupants, plaintiff claims

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Demetrios C. Pikrallidas and Ryan M. Probasco, Fairfax, Pikrallidas & Probasco

Case summary: A person was being pursued by a local police department after he was seen running a red light. The pursuit did not end until the fleeing suspect ran another red light and crashed into a minivan with minor children inside causing severe injuries to all victims.

The case was heavily litigated and only resolved globally on the eve of trial under terms of strict confidentiality.

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$2.38 million

Fibroid removal results in amputation of fingers, toes

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Charles J. Zauzig and Melissa G. Ray, Woodbridge, Nichols Zauzig

Case summary: A woman with uterine fibroids had a hysteroscopic myomectomy performed by the defendant obstetrician using the MyoSure device. While performing the procedure, the defendant had difficulty visualizing the fibroid, so she removed the MyoSure and performed a D&C.

The next morning, the patient’s husband took the patient to the defendant OB’s office because his wife was in extreme pain, had chills, nausea and vomiting. A CT was performed that showed a perforated viscus, and the patient was taken for emergency surgery. During surgery the patient suffered a cardiac event but was able to be resuscitated. During the surgery it was discovered that the patient’s uterus and sigmoid colon were both perforated.

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$2.35 million

Property manager says faulty light fixture caused concussion

Type of action: Products liability

Mediator: Judge Thomas S. Shadrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Amy Bradley, Juli Porto, Robert Stoney and Matthw Tsun, Fairfax, Blankingship & Keith

Case summary: The plaintiff was a property manager working in a nearly completed building. While at a management meeting, the lens cover of a seven-foot-long architectural light dislodged from its housing on the ceiling and struck her on the head. She suffered a concussion with post-concussion sequelae.

The plaintiff filed suit against the building owner for breaching its nondelegable duty to invitees; the general contractor and electrical subcontractor for failing to correct a dangerous condition of which they had notice; and the manufacturer of the fixture and the distributor who sold the fixture.

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$2.3 million

Woman says she was hit by SUV while checking mail

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Kevin D. Sharp, Virginia Beach, Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

Case summary: The plaintiff was walking to her mailbox, situated several feet from the roadway, when the defendant’s SUV drove through her yard. The SUV hit the plaintiff, causing serious and life-altering injuries.

The plaintiff is no longer employed as a licensed therapist and social worker but relearned activities of daily living and returned to some form of normalcy.

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$2.25 million

Dog killed, woman hurt after car hits her while on sidewalk

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Linda Choe and James Abrenio, Fairfax, Abrenio Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was walking with her two dogs near her home in a suburb of Northern Virginia. As she stood on the sidewalk with her dogs near an intersection, the defendant drove through that intersection, went up onto the sidewalk and struck the plaintiff and her two dogs.

One of the plaintiff’s dogs was killed, and she sustained several injuries.

The plaintiff filed suit, and shortly after she designated her expert witnesses, the case was settled for the insurance limits.

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$2.25 million

Woman hit in parking lot while walking to car with boyfriend

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Stephanie E. Grana and Elliott M. Buckner, Richmond,
Cantor Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: While visiting Richmond, the plaintiff and her boyfriend went to a restaurant at Short Pump Town Center. While walking together to her parked vehicle, they were struck from behind by the defendant’s pickup truck. The defendant claimed they failed to see couple.

The plaintiff was able to return to her job as the director of respiratory therapy for a hospital in New York but was unable to return to her “on call” employment and her second job as a part-time staff respiratory therapist.

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$2.185 million

Hotel guest says conference room wall panels collapsed, injuring her

Type of action: Premises liability

Attorneys for plaintiff: Jason W. Konvicka and Irvine L. Reaves, Richmond, Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen

Case summary: The plaintiff was crushed when a 900-pound pair of partition panels in the hotel’s conference room fell on her. At the time of the incident, the plaintiff was a guest of the hotel. She and a colleague were holding a five-day training seminar that was scheduled to take place at the hotel starting the following morning.

The case was initially filed in state court but subsequently removed to federal court. The plaintiff alleged that the hotel knew of a dangerous condition and failed to warn her of that condition. The case settled after two court-ordered settlement conferences.

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$2.15 million

Complications after outpatient procedure leads to man’s death

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Stephanie E. Grana and Elliott M. Buckner, Richmond,
Cantor Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: The plaintiff’s decedent, a 41-year-old husband and father of two teenaged children, underwent an outpatient, in-office procedure with no noted complications.

Due to some post-op bleeding, he went to the ED, where he was seen by the defendant physician. That physician then left the hospital. The plaintiff’s decedent developed difficulty breathing and swallowing, and suffered irreversible anoxic encephalopathy. Although other physicians intervened, he could not be intubated. The plaintiff’s decedent died 17 days later.

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$2.125 million

Woman rear-ended on highway by truck suffers multiple injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Joseph L. Cantor and Irvin Cantor, Richmond, Cantor Grana
Buckner Bucci

Case summary: A 50-year-old female was driving her automobile on a highway, stopping for congested traffic, and was rear ended by a delivery truck. The plaintiff suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage, a spinous process fracture of C7 and a distal radius fracture of her left wrist, among other injuries.

The case settled at a mediation a couple of months before trial.

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$2.1 million

Patient: Delayed diagnosis allowed cancer to spread

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group

Case summary: The plaintiff underwent an MRI in 2022 for one-sided facial numbness. The reading neuroradiologist failed to report the presence of a mass in the nasopharynx that was putting pressure on the facial nerve.

When the patient’s numbness worsened about a year later, a CT scan revealed growth of the mass with spread to the brain and lymph nodes. The patient underwent chemotherapy and proton beam radiation.

Within a few months after the first round of treatment, he suffered a recurrence with metastasis to the lungs. Immunotherapy and chemotherapy achieved a remission of the spread, but long-term survival is unlikely.

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$2.1 million

Hit by car, plaintiff argues respondeat superior liability against employer

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Amy L. Bradley, Peter S. Everett and M. Barkley Horn,
Fairfax, Blankingship & Keith

Case summary: The plaintiff was run over in a crosswalk by a driver who told the investigating officer that he was in town for work and had just dropped someone off in the nearby neighborhood.

The plaintiff sustained a traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage and due to her brain injury was unable to return to her job. The principal legal issue entailed the plaintiff’s claim that the driver struck her during the course and scope of his employment with a major transnational corporation, subjecting the company to liability under respondeat superior.

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$2 million

Bus fails to yield to motorcycle, sending bike and rider airborne

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Emily Mapp Brannon, Norfolk, Albiston Brannon Gilbert

Case summary: The plaintiff was riding a motorcycle when a small bus failed to yield during a left turn. The bus struck the plaintiff’s motorcycle with such force that the bike was forced off the road, struck a tree and traveled airborne with the plaintiff.

While airborne, the motorcycle struck the roof of a private residence before hitting the ground. The plaintiff fell from the air, landing on his left side.

The plaintiff suffered a few infections at his surgery sites and eventually recovered with time and physical therapy.

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 $2 million

Retired attorney’s finger amputated after work vehicle broadsides Jeep

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Greg Webb and Kyle McNew, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett; David B. Kendall, Charlottesville, Kendall Law Firm

Case summary: The plaintiff, a retired attorney, and his wife were traveling east on Route 50 in Clarke County in their Jeep Wrangler.

The defendant driver crossed the two westbound lanes of Route 50 and entered the median cut, then turned into the eastbound lanes, T-boning the plaintiff’s Jeep on the driver’s side.

The plaintiff suffered a severe degloving injury to his left hand. He was flown to a hospital, where his little finger was amputated. The primary dispute was damages, with the defense pointing to the plaintiff’s age and that “it’s just a pinkie” to attempt to minimize the value.

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$2 million

Car flips onto roof after hitting trailer blocking highway lane

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Paul R. Thomson III, Roanoke, Thomson Law Firm

Case summary: The plaintiff had struck the defendant’s trailer and then flipped, landing on its roof. He was trapped upside down, extricated by emergency personnel and transported to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with a compression fracture of T1, which was complicated due to the plaintiff’s prior anterior cervical discectomy and fusion surgery on C3-C7.

State police investigated and determined that the truck the plaintiff passed was attempting to back its trailer into a driveway, which placed the trailer across the plaintiff’s traffic lane.

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$2 million

Patient: liver transplant was necessary after meds halted

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorney for plaintiff: David J. Pierce, Virginia Beach, Pierce & Thornton

Case summary: The plaintiff’s chronic Hepatitis B virus was well-controlled for many years, and he suffered no liver-related symptoms. However, following the last panel of liver function tests, the defendant physician misinterpreted the test results as indicating that the patient had seroconverted to an inactive form of the virus and thus instructed the patient to stop taking the antiviral medications.

A few months after stopping the medication, the patient suffered an acute exacerbation of his Hepatitis B and hepatocellular failure. His antiviral medications were promptly restarted. However, his liver failure progressed, resulting in the need for a liver transplant.

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$2 million

Plaintiff says dead tree limb fell, causing concussion, shoulder injury

Type of action: Premises liability

Mediator: Judge Thomas S. Shadrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Joseph Dean, Edward Scher and Ryan Walker, Richmond, Marks and Harrison

Case summary: The plaintiff was injured on private property when a dead tree limb fell striking the plaintiff. The matter was set for an eight-day jury trial but was settled after mediation.

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$2 million

Failure to call in consult leads to permanent paraplegia

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group

Case summary: The plaintiff resented to a community emergency department with severe low back pain, numbness and tingling bilaterally in her lower extremities. She was transferred to a higher-level facility, where a routine MRI was ordered.

A hospitalist entered a neurosurgery consult, but ordered it as routine/non-stat. The hospitalist made no direct contact with the neurosurgery consulting service, and no immediate imaging was pursued beyond the initial routine MRI.

A neurosurgery consult had not happened eight hours later. Subsequent complications from a severely herniated thoracic disc causing spinal cord compression rendered the plaintiff permanently paraplegic.

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$2 million

High school student dies during supervised activity on school trip

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorney for plaintiff: Mark J. Favaloro, Virginia Beach, Favaloro Law

Case summary: A high school student, while on a school outing, passed away while participating in an activity supervised by school personnel. The case was resolved pre-suit.

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$1.99 million

Driver hit from behind, impact pushes truck into front of car

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Stephanie E. Grana and M. Scott Bucci, Richmond, Cantor
Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: The plaintiff was struck from behind by a GMC Yukon pulling a commercial trailer. The impact pushed the trunk and rear passenger area into the front of her vehicle. Data from the GMC download indicated a speed at impact of 58 mph.

She was hospitalized for almost three weeks before being discharged and transported via ambulance to a nursing home closer to her daughter.

Liability was originally contested but the decision changed following an extensive review of the damage to both vehicles and the GMC download. The case settled once the liability carrier tendered all limits.

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$1.95 million

Patient loses legs, fingertips to amputation after sepsis

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Brewster Rawls and Glen Sturtevant, Richmond, Rawls Law Group

Case summary: The patient presented to the emergency department one week after abdominal surgery with complaints of chills, shaking and abdominal pain. Emergency department physicians diagnosed constipation and discharged the patient.

Eight hours later, the patient returned to the emergency department. She was ultimately diagnosed with sepsis and required vasopressor support. She developed lower extremity gangrene and distal ischemia, requiring bilateral below-the-knee amputations as well as amputations of the fingertips on both hands.

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$1.84 million

Stroke patient dies after being given clot-busting medication

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Justice Jane Marum Roush (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group

Case summary: The patient was transported to an emergency department with signs and symptoms consistent with an acute stroke. After a remote evaluation, the patient was taken for a CT scan, and the teleneurologist called the ER physician. There was a dispute about what was said on that call.

The ER physician gave the order for TNK, which a nurse administered.

Minutes later, the error was realized when the imaging showed that the patient had in fact suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. A repeat CT scan shortly thereafter demonstrated new intracerebral bleeding. The patient rapidly declined and died a month and a half later.

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$1.8 million

Dental extractions, implants lead to death of jawbone

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Scott Kurlander

Attorneys for plaintiff: Anthony M. Russell, Roanoke, MichieHamlett; Les Bowers, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett; Michael Faust, Virginia Beach, Old Dominion Trial Lawyers

Case summary: The defendant treated the plaintiff’s oral condition with extractions and implants. After the dental procedure, the defendant did not order hyperbaric oxygen and the defendant never documented anything about hyperbaric oxygen.

After the dental procedure, the plaintiff developed problems in his mouth including implant failure and exposure of his jawbone. The defendant eventually referred the plaintiff to an oral surgeon who diagnosed osteoradionecrosis and referred the plaintiff for treatment at a tertiary care center where the plaintiff underwent several procedures including removal of his dead jawbone and reconstruction of his jaw.

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$1.75 million

Heart condition misdiagnosis blamed for plaintiff’s death

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Anthony “Tony” M. Russell, Roanoke, MichieHamlett; Les
Bowers, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett

Case summary: The decedent suffered immediate onset of severe chest and back pain. He was taken to a medical center for immediate evaluation and treatment.

The decedent’s treating doctor considered an aortic dissection but did not feel an aortic dissection was likely, so he didn’t order a CT scan. Instead, the treating doctor diagnosed the decedent with anxiety and back strain and discharged him. About 10 hours later, the decedent was found dead in his bed at home.

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$1.75 million

Worker dies after exposure to chemicals on cleaning job

Type of action: Premises liability

Attorneys for plaintiff: Elliott M. Buckner, M. Scott Bucci and Donald Gee, Richmond, Cantor Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: While performing a cleaning job, the decedent was exposed to a chemical that is known to cause severe reactions, including possibly death, if inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

The plaintiff’s decedent began experiencing acute adverse symptoms the morning after his exposure. He was taken to the hospital and died the following day.

The defendant challenged causation, arguing that a similarly exposed coworker did not become ill.

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$1.736 million

Truck driver injured after log falls, crashes into his truck

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group and Emmet Alexander, Chesterfield County, Alexander Law Group

Case summary: The plaintiff, a 60-year-old male, was driving a loaded logging truck on a two-lane road. At the same time, the defendant driver of a different loaded logging truck was traveling the opposite direction. A log fell from the defendant driver’s trailer, rolled across the road and crashed into the plaintiff’s vehicle.

The plaintiff underwent a functional capacity evaluation one year after the crash, wherein it was determined that he was unable to perform the physical demands of driving a tractor-trailer.

Both carriers tendered policy limits, minus property damage claims that had already been negotiated.

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$1.7 million

Nerve cut during lumbar fusion, leading to permanent leg injury

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Judge Thomas B. Hoover (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: T. Daniel Frith III and Thomas “Bo” Frith IV, Roanoke, Frith & Ellerman Law Firm

Case summary: The defendant surgeon performed a spinal after which the patient immediately experienced pain, numbness and lack of movement in her left leg. The surgeon told the plaintiff her symptoms were likely the result of a bruise or a stretch injury to a nerve, but that with time the injury would resolve.

After about three months with no improvement, the plaintiff sought a second opinion in another locality.

The surgeons at that facility recommended an exploration procedure. During this procedure, the treating surgeons discovered the plaintiff’s femoral nerve had been completely transected during the defendant’s procedure several months prior.

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$1.605 million

Motorcycle rider seriously hurt in T-bone crash with car

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: W. Randolph Robins Jr. and Michael W. Lantz, Richmond, Lantz & Robins

Case summary: The plaintiff was riding his motorcycle down Monument Avenue in Richmond when the defendant turned left in front of him, leaving the plaintiff unable to avoid colliding with the passenger side of the turning vehicle. The plaintiff suffered life-threatening orthopedic and internal injuries.

Suit was filed shortly after counsel received the referral to expedite identification of insurance coverage and resolution of the case. The case was resolved via a tender of available liability and UIM coverage, plus a contribution from the tortfeasor.

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$1.6 million

Plaintiff claims rear-end collision caused multiple, serious injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge John W. Brown (Ret.)

Attorney for plaintiff: W. Everett Lupton, Virginia Beach, Slaughter & Lupton Law

Case summary: This case involved a rear-end motor vehicle collision in Chesapeake. The plaintiff sustained significant injuries, including a groin laceration, a puncture wound to the buttocks and a complete rotator cuff tear of the supraspinatus tendon and infraspinatus tendon with retraction into the glenoid cavity resulting in a reverse shoulder procedure and multiple sessions of therapy.

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$1.6 million

Collision at intersection involves several vehicles, multiple injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge J. Michael Gamble (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Matthew W. Broughton and Jared A. Tuck, Roanoke, Gentry Locke and Eric Ferguson, Rocky Mount, Ferguson Law

Case summary: As the plaintiff proceeded through an intersection where she had a green light, she was struck by a Ford F-450 landscaping truck that ran a red light. The defendant driving the landscaping truck also struck a third vehicle, traveling the opposite direction as the plaintiff. All three vehicles were totaled because of the crash.

A significant amount of mediation confidential materials were exchanged with the defendants and their insurance carrier. The case settled at mediation, which occurred prior to the formal designation of experts.

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$1.6 million

8-year-old dies of heart malformation

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Tony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston Law Group

Case summary: This case involved an 8-year-old boy who experienced repeated fainting spells with exertion. He was extensively evaluated by neurology, including multiple EEGs, EKGs, radiology imaging and full seizure workups, but no neurological cause was identified.

He was eventually referred to a cardiologist, who concluded that the child’s exercise-
induced fainting was not cardiac in origin.

Over the following months, the child saw other physicians but was not seen again by cardiology after the single visit. During a later episode, he collapsed and died. Postmortem findings revealed a correctable vascular malformation.

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$1.5 million

Rare pregnancy complication causes woman’s brain damage

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Judge Johanna Fitzpatrick (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Edward J. McNelis and Ward Marstiller, Richmond, Emroch and Kilduff

Case summary: During the plaintiff’s treatment and care by the defendants, her condition deteriorated with intractable, uncontrolled vomiting, severe malnourishment and an estimated 40-pound weight loss from her pre-pregnancy weight.

The plaintiff was diagnosed with hyperemesis gravidarum, which progressively included metabolic derangement as her health declined. The plaintiff eventually developed a rare condition known as Wernicke’s encephalopathy.

The plaintiff was left with permanent brain damage, with significant cognitive and memory impairment as well as neuro-ophthalmologic deficits.

The plaintiff’s experts testified at deposition that malnutrition is a known cause of Wernicke’s encephalopathy, which could have been treated with a vitamin.

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$1.5 million

Plaintiff: error led to foot amputation after car crash

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Judge William S. Moore Jr. (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Glen Sturtevant and Brewster Rawls, Richmond, Rawls Law Group

Case summary: The patient suffered a left femur fracture in a car accident. The leg was casted; however, there was no documentation of a vascular examination.

The patient was discharged after a three-day hospitalization. However, they were readmitted nine days later with left foot ischemia. Imaging revealed occlusion of the popliteal artery, and the left foot was ultimately amputated.

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$1.5 million

76-year-old man dies after collision with tractor-trailer

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Justice Jane Marum Roush (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin W. Mottley and Benjamin P. Kyber, Richmond, The Mottley Law Firm

Case summary: This was a case for wrongful death arising from a tractor-trailer crash that occurred on Interstate 81 in western Virginia. The decedent was 76 years old at the time of his death.

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$1.5 million

Failure to monitor results in return of lung cancer, death

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Travis W. Markley, Richard L. Nagle and James N. Knaack, Reston, TrialHawk Litigation Group

Case summary: The decedent was informed by his health care provider of a nodule in the middle lobe of his right lung that warranted a biopsy. After the pathology results confirmed it was Stage I lung cancer, the decedent underwent a partial lobectomy, which was successfully completed without complication.

Years later, after complaining of chest pain, a chest CT reflected the prior nodule, but also showed a new finding of pleural effusion. He later was referred to oncology, who ordered tests that found metastatic lung cancer. Despite efforts by oncology to manage the recurrence of the lung cancer and its metastases, the decedent died.

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$1.5 million

Fall from roof while working causes shoulder, spine injuries

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: James W. Barkley

Attorney for plaintiff: Craig B. Davis, Richmond, Reinhardt Harper Davis

Case summary: The plaintiff experienced a first-floor roof level fall while working for a plumbing contractor on a building renovation. The plaintiff pursued a workers’ comp claim and filed a personal injury suit against the property owner, property manager and tenant.

An initial mediation proved unsuccessful due to disputes related to indemnification and contribution clauses between the carriers for the various defendants.

The case was settled 10 months later, through efforts that included conferences with defense counsel and national coverage counsel for the carriers.

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$1.475 million

Resuscitation of newborn with heart problems causes leg damage

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Judge John W. Brown (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Anthony M. “Tony” Russell and Matthew Kelley, Roanoke, MichieHamlett, and Les Bowers, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett

Case summary: A full-term newborn was delivered at a medical center. A day after birth, the newborn failed critical congenital heart defect screenings, after which echocardiograms were ordered and performed to see if the newborn had a congenital heart defect.

After being at home for two days, the newborn suffered respiratory failure and was emergently transported to a hospital, at which resuscitation was performed, including placement of an intraosseous line. The intraosseous line infiltrated, causing leg damage to the newborn.

The newborn’s heart condition was treated successfully, but the newborn has been left with permanent leg damage including leg deformity and shortening.

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$1.4 million

Plaintiff: driver ran stop sign, causing crash and injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge J. Michael Gamble (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Brandon Osterbind and Hannah Bowie, Lynchburg, Osterbind Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was injured in a motor vehicle collision when another driver failed to obey a stop sign and entered the roadway. The plaintiff, who had the right of way, struck the other vehicle.

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$1.395 million

Driver runs over motorcyclist at 85 mph, resulting in death

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Joseph A. Blaszkow, Alexandria, Blaszkow Legal

Case summary: The decedent was northbound on Route 28, near Chantilly, on a Kawasaki
Ninja 650 motorcycle, en route to visit his brother and sister-in-law. The defendant, travelling in the same direction in an Acura sedan, ran the motorcyclist down from behind.

The defendant was going about 85 mph just before impact, per an event data recorder download, and claimed to have never seen the motorcyclist. Investigators found a debris field approximately 450 feet long.

The case settled for all insurance coverage available under four separate policies, plus a $15,000 personal contribution by the defendant.

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$1.35 million

Factory’s allegedly defective equipment results in injuries

Type of action: Products liability

Mediator: Judge Diane Strickland (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Mark T. Hurt and Payton R. Johnson, Abingdon, The Law
Offices of Mark T. Hurt

Case summary: A factory worker suffered a crush injury to his right upper extremity from allegedly defective equipment.

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$1.35 million

Commercial van rear ends car, causing spinal, brain injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Gray Broughton, Zac Grubaugh and Sharif Gray, Richmond, Broughton Injury Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was driving home from work when she was rear-ended by a commercial van operated by the corporate defendant’s employee. The plaintiff hit her head on the steering wheel, which caused a contusion. She suffered sprains of her wrist, shoulder, and cervical spine. The plaintiff also suffered prolapsed cervical and lumbar discs.

An MRI of the plaintiff’s brain showed bifrontal temporal volume loss and a partially empty sella. The case settled nearly four months before trial just before the expiration of a time-sensitive demand.

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$1.3 million

Patient sustained permanent scarring to dominant hand

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Stephanie E. Grana, Richmond, Cantor Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: The patient underwent a prophylactic bilateral skin-sparing mastectomy followed by insertion of tissue expanders. Unbeknownst to the surgeons, there was an anesthesiology error and a failure to monitor plaintiff’s peripheral IV during the multi-hour surgeries. On removal of the surgical drapes, the surgeon immediately recognized that plaintiff’s right (dominant) arm was swollen, purple, mottled in appearance and lacked palpable pulses.

Following the error, the plaintiff remained hospitalized and had to undergo a second surgery days later for wound closure, washout and application of a wound vacuum.

Arm scarring is permanent and highly visible.

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$1.3 million

Hemorrhaging overlooked, patient dies post procedure

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Richard N. Shapiro and Eric Washburn, Virginia Beach,
Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

Case summary: The client underwent a coil embolization procedure at a Hampton Roads-area hospital. During this type of embolization, doctors normally use real-time imaging to advance the catheter into the body to embolize a clot.

The doctor conducting the procedure did not realize that a vessel laceration occurred while the procedure was in progress, visible hemorrhaging seen on the real-time imaging. The patient was sent to the recovery room but did not regain consciousness.

The case was settled following voluntary mediation, with confidential terms acceptable to the surviving two adult beneficiaries, about three months before the jury trial date.

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$1.3 million

Removal of baby’s small bowel blamed on delayed diagnosis

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Charles J. Zauzig III and Melissa G. Ray, Woodbridge, Nichols Zauzig

Case summary: A 2-month-old baby presented to the emergency room with persistent vomiting. Based in part on the defendant’s report, no surgical consult was requested on that day. The following morning, an inpatient consult to pediatric surgery was made due to the plaintiff’s vomiting and abdominal distention.

Because the radiological study was reported as not showing signs of obstruction, malrotation or volvulus, surgery was not performed. A repeat abdominal ultrasound and kidney, ureter and bladder imaging was performed. which was interpreted as showing a small bowel obstruction.

The plaintiff has required multiple additional surgeries for complications related to his short bowel syndrome.

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$1.3 million

Man dies after storage shed falls off truck during unloading

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Robert E. Byrne Jr. and Jonathan T. Wren, Charlottesville, MartinWren

Case summary: The decedent was part of an informal work crew that was unloading a large storage shed from a commercial flatbed truck. The shed became stuck as it was sliding off the flatbed, which caused the storage shed to topple and fall on the decedent, killing him.

The case had several challenges, including the fact that the decedent was wearing slippers at the time of the incident. In addition, others who were present claimed that the decedent was instructed to get out of the way.

The plaintiff was able to recover all available insurance coverage.

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$1.3 million

Motorcycle accident limits soldier’s career

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Kevin Biniazan and Michael Imprevento, Virginia Beach,
Breit Biniazan

Case summary: As the plaintiff approached the intersection of Merrimac Trail and Government Road in James City County, the defendant entered the intersection without having the right of way. The plaintiff, who had the lawful right of way and was properly operating his motorcycle, was unable to avoid a collision and struck the left side of the defendant’s vehicle.

The plaintiff was a soldier in the U.S. Army with the rank of sergeant. The injuries sustained caused him to be on a career-ending medical hold that prevented advancement.

The resolution of this matter represented the limits of available insurance coverage.

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$1.3 million

Orthopedic injuries to plaintiff after vehicle collision

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Mark T. Hurt and Payton R. Johnson, Abingdon, Mark Hurt Law Firm

Case summary: The plaintiff suffered consequential orthopedic injuries when another driver made an unsafe lane change, triggering a multivehicle collision that forced one vehicle across a median and into oncoming traffic. The plaintiff’s vehicle was struck nearly head-on, leaving the plaintiff trapped inside the wreckage for more than an hour while emergency responders worked to extricate the plaintiff.

The injuries resulted in lasting physical limitations and permanently altered the plaintiff’s daily life and functional capacity. Even after returning to work with accommodations, the plaintiff continued to experience ongoing pain, reduced mobility and a diminished ability to perform ordinary activities without assistance or modification.

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$1.295 million

Sales rep on business call slips, falls on icy sidewalk

Type of action: Workers’ compensation

Mediator: Judge Pamela S. Baskervill (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: John C. Shea, Richmond and B. Patrick Agnew, Lynchburg, Marks & Harrison

Case summary: The plaintiff, while in the course and scope of his employment as a pharmaceutical sales representative, was making a business call when he slipped and fell on an icy sidewalk on a commercial property. A snowstorm had affected the area three days earlier. The plaintiff alleged that the property owner and its contractor had not adequately removed ice from the sidewalk.

The carrier waived its lien for prior medical benefits and agreed to pay for continued medical treatment as reasonably necessary, medically necessary and casually related to the plaintiff’s injuries without any offset.

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$1.28 million

Construction project design causes wrong-way collision

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorneys for plaintiff: Alexis Bale and Kevin Biniazan, Virginia Beach, Breit Biniazan

Case summary: The plaintiff was riding his motorcycle home through a construction project when a northbound motorist inadvertently entered the southbound lane, colliding head-on with the plaintiff. The collision threw the plaintiff from his motorcycle and onto the pavement, causing severe injuries to his right leg.

After a jury was empaneled, the parties reconvened the next morning for opening statements.

Before the jury was brought in, however, the defendants extended a combined offer of $1.2 million to resolve all claims. The plaintiff accepted and the settlement was memorialized on the record in open court.

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$1.25 million

Driver claims life-altering injuries after head-on highway collision

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Sharif Gray, Gray Broughton and Zac Grubaugh, Richmond, Broughton Injury Law

Case summary: The defendant and the plaintiff were travelling in opposite directions on a two-lane road in Chesterfield County when the defendant lost control, crossed the double-yellow lines and collided head-on with the plaintiff. The defendant was found guilty of reckless driving.

The plaintiff tried to negotiate a settlement on his own with the help of his father, resulting in no offers. Plaintiff’s counsel were retained and presented the insurance company with a time-sensitive policy limits settlement opportunity and supplemented it with additional evidence prior to the deadline.

The insurance company agreed to pay the policy limits prior to the deadline.

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$1.25 million

Defendant claims he blacked out before deadly head-on crash

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: John Merrick, Richmond, Merrick Brock

Case summary: The decedent was killed in a head-on collision on Parham Road in Henrico County. He was driving home from the gym when the defendant lost control of his vehicle, crossed the center line, and struck the decedent’s vehicle head-on. The defendant claimed he experienced a “sudden emergency” that caused him to black out.

Following the defendant’s deposition, during which plaintiff’s counsel used statements from his medical records to directly challenge the validity of the sudden emergency claim, State Farm responded to a time-limited demand and tendered the full policy limits.

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$1.25 million

Patient: medication error resulted in neuropathy

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorney for plaintiff: David J. Pierce, Virginia Beach, Pierce & Thornton

Case summary: The plaintiff was admitted to the ICU and his physician ordered that he be administered Heparin infusions in accordance with a Heparin protocol to prevent clots and a potential stroke.

The nurses and hospital lab personnel allegedly failed to follow the Heparin protocol, resulting in periods of significant over-anticoagulation. Six days after admission, the patient complained of significant pain and weakness in his right lower extremity. The following day, a CT scan was performed, and the patient was diagnosed with a retroperitoneal hematoma to the posterior right iliopsoas muscle. He sustained a hematoma induced femoral neuropathy resulting in permanent neurological deficits.

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$1.25 million

Driver seriously injured in car crash on interstate

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Thomas B. Hoover (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: John G. Baker, Norfolk, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers;
William E. Kass and Aaron F. Kass, Kass Law Firm, Portsmouth

Case summary: This settlement stemmed from a motor vehicle accident on a Virginia
interstate.

The plaintiff sustained severe injuries, including a grade four splenic laceration. The plaintiff also incurred over $240,000 in medical expenses and over $70,000 in lost wages.

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$1.25 million

Girl with cancer dies after lumbar puncture

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Mediator: Judge J. Michael Gamble (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Anthony “Tony” M. Russell, Roanoke, MichieHamlett, and Les Bowers, Charlottesville, MichieHamlett

Case summary: A young girl with cancer was in the delayed intensification stage of treatment and underwent cancer treatment via lumbar puncture from the defendants. After the lumbar puncture, the young girl developed symptoms including fever, tachycardia, low blood pressure, headache and back pain.

The young girl was brought back to the defendants, who diagnosed her with neutropenic fever and started her on an antibiotic. Her condition worsened over the next half-day until she became unresponsive, suffering brain damage and eventually dying.

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$1.23 million

Plaintiff claims drunk passenger caused car wreck, serious injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Les C. Brock, Richmond, Merrick Brock

Case summary: The plaintiff and his friends were driving home late at night after celebrating one of their friend’s birthdays.

A designated driver was operating the vehicle, and the plaintiff was a backseat passenger. The driver lost control of the vehicle and veered off the highway. The vehicle overturned and crashed into several trees. The plaintiff alleged that just before the crash, the front-seat passenger said “do something crazy” and then grabbed the steering wheel and jerked it, causing the vehicle to go out of control.

The front-seat passenger was later convicted of DUI for grabbing the steering wheel while intoxicated.

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$1.2 million

Pregnant woman loses child after long delay in waiting area

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Magistrate Judge Lawrence R. Leonard

Attorneys for plaintiff: Robert J. Haddad and Isabella I. Haddad, Virginia Beach,
Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert, & Woodward

Case summary: The plaintiff was sent to the hospital by her obstetrician for monitoring, but due to unusually high patient volume, she waited 59 minutes in the labor and delivery waiting area before being evaluated.

Around the 44-minute mark, she experienced an extremely painful event later identified as a placental abruption. She was taken for an emergency delivery, but the child did not survive.

The case was vigorously contested, with the hospital maintaining throughout that it bore no responsibility. No offers were made prior to mediation.

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$1.2 million

Loose tire hits police car, causing career-ending injury

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Thomas B. Hoover (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: William H. Parcell and Andrew S. Herzog, Richmond, Parcell Webb & Baruch

Case summary: The case involved a tractor-trailer pulling a tanker trailer that lost two trailer tires while travelling on the interstate.

One tire flew into the woods, while the other struck the Jersey wall, bounced 50 feet in the air, and struck the driver’s front windshield pillar as he was going 70 mph.

The police vehicle was totaled, and the officer suffered a severe shoulder injury that required three surgeries and led to medically required retirement.

Liability was contested by the tire company that last installed the tire and the trucking company who owned the truck.

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$1.2 million

Skateboarder: leg was misaligned after improper fracture treatment

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Travis W. Markley, Richard L. Nagle and James N. Knaack,
Reston, TrialHawk Litigation Group

Case summary: The plaintiff suffered a traumatic subtrochanteric fracture of his right femur while skateboarding in June 2023. The defendant orthopedic practice employed the orthopedic surgeon who performed his femoral fracture repair surgery a day after the injury.

Per the patient, the orthopedic surgeon did not perform any physical examinations or gait evaluations at any of his five outpatient post-operative visits. Six months after his repair surgery, the patient continued to use a cane for walking anything more than short distances in his apartment.

The plaintiff later underwent a revision surgery of the repair and has yet to resume his hobbies.

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$1.2 million

Patient sustains injuries during gallbladder removal

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorney for plaintiff: Jonathan L. Thornton, Pierce & Thornton, Virginia Beach

Case summary: The emergency room physician diagnosed the plaintiff with gallstones with concerns for cholecystitis and consulted general surgery. A laparoscopic cholecystectomy was recommended and performed.

In the days following surgery, the plaintiff developed significant abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. Pathology from the laparoscopic surgery revealed the presence of common bile duct and gallbladder tissue. The plaintiff was referred to a second surgeon for emergency surgical exploration, leading to a diagnosis of a transected common bile duct and right hepatic artery.

Prior to serving the complaint, the case resolved for $1.2 million.

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$1.175 million

Army sergeant medically discharged after car accident causes injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge John Brown (Ret.)

Attorney for plaintiff: John Newby, Richmond, Tronfeld West & Durrett

Case summary: The plaintiff, a 29-year-old U.S. Army sergeant, was struck on the driver’s side of his vehicle after the defendant ran a red light.

The plaintiff sustained multiple significant injuries, including pelvic fractures with pubic symphysis disruption, left hip and acetabular tearing, retroperitoneal and mesenteric hematomas, lumbar spine pain and persistent soft-tissue trauma. The crash also worsened pre-existing PTSD from a prior combat deployment.

Ongoing physical limitations and exacerbation of the preexisting PTSD ultimately led to his medical discharge from the Army.

The defendant’s carrier initially offered $250,000 pre-litigation.

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$1.15 million

Cancer progression is blamed on uncommunicated HPV test results

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Lee Livingston and Anthony Greene, Charlottesville, Livingston
Law Group

Case summary: The patient underwent laboratory testing in 2021, which reported normal cytology but detected two high-risk HPV strains, including HPV 18, one of the most aggressive types associated with cervical cancer.

Two years later, the plaintiff was diagnosed with advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix, which had already spread to pelvic lymph nodes and, later, to her lungs. By that point, she required extensive radiation and chemotherapy and ultimately required lung surgery. Her disease is now classified as Stage IVB, with a poor prognosis and permanent loss of her ability to conceive children.

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$1.13 million

Motorcyclist says crash caused broken leg, wrists

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Allen Beasley, Virginia Beach, Breit Biniazan; Patrick Kelley, Williamsburg, Kelley, Dennett & Meixel

Case summary: The plaintiff, was enjoying an afternoon motorcycle ride when an approaching driver turned left directly in front of him, causing a collision in which the plaintiff was hurled into the bed of the approaching driver’s pickup truck.

The plaintiff was hospitalized for over six weeks and required multiple surgeries.

The plaintiff owns and runs a business which he runs as an individual, not a corporation.

The liability carrier tendered its coverage in due course and the personal auto carriers acknowledged their respective exposures. The business auto policy was issued under the plaintiff’s name, thus designating him the named insured.

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$1.1 million

Plaintiff: fatal complications follow gallbladder removal

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Stephanie E. Grana and Joseph L. Cantor, Richmond, Cantor Grana Buckner Bucci

Case summary: During a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the plaintiff’s common bile duct was misidentified as the cystic duct and transected. Also, the hepatic artery was mistaken as the cystic artery and nearly transected. The laparoscopy was converted to an open procedure to control the bleeding.

Despite losing more than 80% of his circulating blood volume, the plaintiff’s decedent survived the extended surgeries. He remained hospitalized for weeks and was then transferred to a rehab facility.

Due to postoperative complications and a subsequent infection, his death resulted 50 days after the original surgery.

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$1.015 million

Rear-end car wreck results in serious injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Ryan E. Wind and Kevin T. Hadden, Richmond, Wind Injury
Law

Case summary: : The plaintiff was driving in Fairfax County when he was rear ended by the defendant. The plaintiff was found unconscious by Fairfax EMS.

Despite suffering multiple severe injuries resulting in him being hospitalized for over a month, the plaintiff, thanks to his hard work and the care of his medical providers, has returned to his full-time job with the federal government.

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$1 million

Improper turn blamed for crash involving tractor-trailer

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Michael Gamble

Attorney for plaintiff: Craig B. Davis, Richmond, Reinhardt Harper Davis

Case summary: The plaintiff was operating his vehicle behind a tractor-trailer hauling a low-boy trailer. The defendant driver made an improper left turn in front of an oncoming pick-up truck, causing it to strike the back of the low-boy trailer, become airborne and barrel roll onto the hood of the plaintiff’s vehicle.

The plaintiff continued treating for his injuries which increased his damages claim. At the defendants’ request, the parties scheduled a mediation. The plaintiff withdrew his demand and backed out, however, when the defendants disclosed an additional liability policy, claimed an exclusion for punitive damages and hired excess counsel a week prior to the mediation date.

The parties mediated several months later based on a revised demand.

$1 million

Motorcyclist thrown from bike at impact has ortho injuries

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: David M. Erwin, Charlottesville, Marks & Harrison

Case summary: The plaintiff was operating a motorcycle on a two-lane rural highway in Fauquier County when the defendant failed to yield the right-of-way, pulling his SUV through a stop sign into the plaintiff’s lane of travel, causing the collision. The plaintiff was thrown from the motorcycle at impact.

After operative repair of pelvic and tibial fractures, the plaintiff was discharged for rehabilitative follow-up care. Surgical removal of the pelvic hardware causing pain was performed six months post-injury.

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$1 million

Patient: delayed cancer diagnosis results in terminal outcome

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Howard Bullock, Edward J. McNelis III and Harrison W. “Whit” Long, Richmond, Emroch & Kilduff

Case summary: The 55-year-old plaintiff reported a palpable lump in her left breast to her healthcare providers in September 2021. A bilateral diagnostic mammogram and left breast ultrasound were performed the following month. Both were interpreted as normal with no further follow-up, despite the plaintiff’s reported complaints of a palpable, painful mass.

During the summer of 2022, the plaintiff underwent another bilateral mammogram and left breast ultrasound, which was highly concerning for malignancy. A biopsy was then performed that same day, and the plaintiff was ultimately diagnosed with malignant left breast invasive ductal carcinoma with extensive metastatic involvement.

A review of the first mammogram showed the medical center missed the abnormal mass.

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$1 million

Woman dies after pre-surgical medication monitoring mistake

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorney for plaintiff: Lauren Ellerman, Roanoke, Frith & Ellerman

Case summary: A woman in her mid-50s presented to her OB-GYN for abnormal bleeding and was taken off her blood thinning medication prior to a surgical procedure. The plaintiff alleged the medicine was not discontinued in a timely manner, and as a result, the patient suffered an stroke.

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$1 million

Plaintiff suffers hemorrhage, broken ribs after truck crash

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorney for plaintiff: Marc P. Messier, Newport News, Dunnigan & Messier

Case summary: The plaintiff was making a left turn onto westbound Hampton Roads Center Parkway when the defendant, driving a specialty beverage truck, ran a red light and struck the plaintiff’s vehicle.

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$1 million

VA patient says misread biopsy allowed cancer to spread

Type of action: Medical malpractice

Attorneys for plaintiff: Brewster Rawls and Melissa Kouri, Rawls Law Group, Richmond

Case summary: The patient had a lesion on his scalp which was excised and biopsied and misread as benign. The patient later developed swelling on one side of his neck. The original scalp biopsy was reread and was found to be squamous cell cancer.

The patient had a difficult course of treatment and now faces a shortened life expectancy.

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$1 million

Plaintiff: pressure ulcer led to leg amputation

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorneys for plaintiff: Ellen C. Bognar, Charlottesville and Randall Lee Appleton, Richmond, Allen Allen Allen & Allen

Case summary: When the plaintiff was first admitted to the defendant facility in March 2021, she had no skin breakdown and did not require physical assistance.

By December, her function and appetite began to decline and she became dependent for assistance for activities of daily living. The facility made no changes to her care plan.

In February 2022, a podiatrist noted black eschar on her left heel and wrote an order to offload heels, feet, and ankles from the mattress. The plaintiff alleges the nursing home failed to carry out this instruction.

The left heel wound was later infected and required a below-the-knee amputation.

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$1 million

Man says unsecured ladder caused head injuries at work

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Mediator: Judge Larry B. Kirksey (Ret.)

Attorneys for plaintiff: Matthew W. Broughton, Travis J. Graham and Jared A. Tuck,
Roanoke, Gentry Locke

Case summary: The plaintiff was working outside at an auto repair shop where the defendant third-party contractor was attempting to service the furnace on the roof of the auto repair shop.

The defendant placed a 28-foot extension ladder against the building, leaving the ladder unsecured and unattended while he went back to his truck. A gust of wind knocked the ladder over, causing the ladder to fall on top of the plaintiff’s head, which resulted in a large scalp laceration.

The plaintiff was taken to the emergency room, where an intracranial bleed was discovered.

The case settled prior to the formal designation of experts.

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$1 million

Pedestrian says crash caused concussion, broken leg and arm

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: John M. Cooper, John G. Baker and Bailey L. Gifford, Norfolk, Cooper Hurley; Roger Schafer, Virginia Beach, Cooper Hurley

Case summary: A 57-year-old pedestrian was struck by commercial vehicle and suffered a concussion and leg and arm fractures requiring surgeries. The plaintiff incurred approximately $258,000 in medical bills.

After a failed mediation early in the case, the attorneys were able to negotiate a settlement three weeks before trial.

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$1 million

Plaintiff’s toe amputated after injury in medical transport ride

Type of action: Negligence and tort

Attorneys for plaintiff: Gray B. Broughton and Sharif L. Gray, Richmond, Gray Broughton Injury Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was being transported to a medical appointment by the medical transport company through Modivcare when the driver suddenly braked to avoid a stopped vehicle. The plaintiff’s wheelchair, which the driver had improperly secured, lunged forward and caused severe trauma to the plaintiff’s foot.

The resulting fracture led to infection and osteomyelitis, ultimately requiring amputation of the fourth toe. The plaintiff underwent extensive medical treatment, including surgery, IV antibiotics, wound care, multiple hospitalizations and long-term rehabilitation.

The case settled pre-litigation for $1 million, representing the full remaining policy limits available.

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$1 million

Plaintiff: dump truck wreck led to traumatic brain injury

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Attorneys for plaintiff: Gray Broughton, Zachary Grubaugh and Sharif Gray, Richmond, Broughton Injury Law

Case summary: The plaintiff was stopped in traffic when they were rear-ended by a commercial dump truck traveling at an excessive speed. The crash destroyed the plaintiff’s vehicle.

During his deposition, the defendant driver admitted to operating the vehicle with dangerously worn brakes, failing to downshift properly due to inexperience, maintaining inadequate following distance and driving too fast given the vehicle’s condition and his skill level.

The case was resolved after party and expert depositions for the remaining limits of a $1 million deteriorating policy prior to the expiration of a time-sensitive policy limits demand.

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$1 million

Decedent killed by tractor-trailer, not truck accident

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Mediator: Judge Thomas Horne (Ret.)

Attorney for plaintiff: Brendan Mullarkey, Fairfax, The Law Offices of Andrew S. Kasmer

Case summary: The decedent was a passenger in a work truck on I-81 northbound. The tire of the work truck blew out, causing the work truck to go across both lanes of travel and flip over in the shoulder. The decedent was ejected from the work truck.

The driver of a tractor-trailer pulled over a short distance after the accident and found the decedent under his trailer. The police believed that the tractor-trailer drove past the accident around the time the work truck flipped over, and no charges were filed.

The case eventually settled at pre-suit mediation for the tractor-trailer’s policy limits.