Philadelphia County Car Accident Lawyer Gets Verdict for Victim

Categories: Car Crashes

Philadelphia County Left-Turn Results in Verdict for Limited Tort Plaintiff

This Philadelphia County car accident case involved the personal injury of a plaintiff who stated that the other driver caused a collision by negligently making a left-hand turn from the right-hand lane of a 2-lane Philadelphia County roadway.

The other driver denied fault, and testified that the personal injury victim caused the car accident when he drove outside the travel lane and drove up the left side of the defendant’s vehicle as he was attempting a left turn. The plaintiff driver was driving his uninsured vehicle, so was deemed Limited Tort under the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law. The jury returned a verdict in the plaintiff’s favor.

Car Accident Claims and Facts

The Philadelphia county man was driving an old truck on 7th Street at the intersection of Spring Garden in Philadelphia County. His Philadelphia car accident lawyer brought him up to testify at the trial that the defendant was traveling in the same direction but behind his truck, and struck the right side of the truck as he attempted to make a left turn from the right lane. The personal injury victim maintained that he was in his lane the entire time and that the defendant driver was not being truthful. A witness to this Philadelphia County car accident testifed consistent with the plaintiff’s testimony, and the jury believed the plaintiff and the witness over the defendant.

Philadelphia County Car Accident Lawyer Limited Tort Lawsuit Discussion

Limited Tort insurance is oftentimes a death knell for a car accident case. There are 3 common ways to get over the limited tort insurance problem:

  1. the other driver is convicted of DUI;
  2. the other driver is operating a vehicle from a state other than Pennsylvania; or
  3. the plaintiff suffers a “serious injury or serious disfigurement.”

In this Philadelphia County car accident, the plaintiff relied on the serious personal injury exception. The personal injury victim was diagnosed with a herniated disc and lumbar radiculopathy. He complained of constant radiating back pain that limited his activities of daily living. The defense lawyer hired a doctor to perform an “Independent Medical Examination.”

The defense doctor testified that all of the plaintiff’s injuries were gegenerative in nature, and that they were not caused by the car accident. The jury chose to not believe this doctor, who was paid to testify in a way that helped the defense.