Wrongful Death Cases

Nothing is as devastating as losing a beloved member of your family, particularly when it is caused by wrongful conduct or negligence. No attorney or law can bring them back, but a family deserves at least the justice our legal system allows. Brian brings decades of experience working with families going through such an ordeal.

Wrongful Death Case Settlement and Verdict Results

Verdict: $357,500, in Lokken v. Rodeberg. A vivacious high school girl died on New Year’s Eve on the way home from a keg party when her drunk boyfriend lost control of his pickup on a curve on a rural two-lane highway. The liability insurance carrier for the pickup made a top offer of less than $100,000 to the family for the loss of their beloved daughter. Although her boyfriend was not obviously intoxicated when they left the party, the jury verdict amount was tempered by the fact that she had been drinking at the party as well, and willingly rode with him.

Settlement: $715,832. Our client was a beloved husband when he died in a construction accident in Texas. He and another young man plunged to their deaths when the scaffolding they were working on, applying stucco high up on a downtown hotel, fell out from under them. We first researched and found good local counsel in Texas. Our team’s investigations and depositions in the lawsuit revealed that the general contractor had incompetently secured the scaffolding on the roof of the building. The settlement for the widow was achieved just a week before trial was to begin in Texas.

Settlements: $425,000. Our clients were the spouse and little children of a passenger in a pickup that struck a large tree after the drunk driver of the pickup, his construction company co-worker, failed to make the curve on a rural road. Our team successfully investigated to belie the drunk driver’s attempt to claim that our client’s husband was the driver, and then carefully worked with the spouse on preparation of the case. We achieved settlements totaling $425,000.00 against the liability insurance carrier of the drunk driver, and the insurance carriers of two bars that had over served the two young men that night. The amount of the settlement was tempered by the fact that our family’s decedent had willingly drank and ridden with the defendant driver.

Settlements: $170,000. Client family’s son was a delightful, active high schooler, who loved sports, especially baseball. He and several friends accepted a ride from one home to another on a weekend night from a young man they knew who was several years older than them. Unbeknownst to them, this driver had been drinking underage at a local bar. Their son died when the driver rolled the car on a rural highway. His parents did an excellent job through pictures and stories trying to do the impossible -- truly convey how much he meant to his family. With them, our team was able to obtain the maximum insurance coverages under the liability policies of the driver and the bar, along with an additional payment of thousands from the bar.

Drunk Driver Cases

Despite the dedicated efforts of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, various legislators and the courts, irresponsible drunk drivers and drug intoxicated drivers still too often cause serious injuries or death.

Brian has successfully handled these cases against the drunk drivers, intoxicated drivers and the irresponsible bars who have over served the drunks. These cases are known among experienced lawyers and insurers as dram shop cases, and handling these requires very specialized knowledge about investigation measures, special notices required and deadlines. Brian successfully represented the Paulson family in Paulson v. Lapa, Inc., which helped establish in Minnesota law that the innocent children and spouse would not be attributed the fault of the drunk driver against the bar that had illegally over served.

Results

Settlements: $180,781. Our client was a high school student running an errand for a local small business that he worked part time for, when a drunk driver suddenly crossed the centerline and smashed into his car. He suffered an ankle fracture requiring surgery with a plate and screws. Our case preparation included a detailed medical illustration of his surgery, as part of the preparation leading to worker compensation, liability and underinsured motorist settlements totaling $180,781.17.

Verdict: $357,500, in Lokken v. Rodeberg. A vivacious high school girl died on New Year’s Eve on the way home from a keg party when her drunk boyfriend lost control of his pickup on a curve on a rural two-lane highway. The liability insurance carrier for the pickup made a top offer of less than $100,000 to the family for the loss of their beloved daughter. Although her boyfriend was not obviously intoxicated when they left the party, the jury verdict amount was tempered by the fact that she had been drinking at the party as well, and willingly rode with him.