Successes

Negligent and Reckless Actions Bring a Liability Verdict

After four weeks of trial, Mr. Stapleton obtained a liability verdict on behalf of client.  Our client was blinded during a construction site accident when a highly pressurized test plug blew off the end of a sanitary sewer line he was installing and struck him in the face.  The sanitary line was being inspected by the City at the time. It had been filled with an excessive amount of air pressure as per the direction of City’s plumbing inspector and over the objections of our client.  As a result of the excessive air pressure, a plug was forcibly ejected from the line.  It struck our client in the face, fracturing his orbital bone and causing a massive retinal tear that left him completely and permanently blind in one eye.  The liability phase of the trial, which involved complex and hotly contested issues of municipal immunity, resulted in a finding that the actions of the City were not just negligent, but were also reckless.  The trial was bifurcated and the damages portion of the case is still pending.