While we all learned as young children that the phrase “I told you so” is not polite, sometimes litigation is about getting to the point of “I told you so.”
Partner Scott Perry recently resolved a case on behalf of one of our clients after multiple years of litigation that went through nearly every emotion possible for our client who unfortunately had serious injuries after a fall. Another lawyer referred the case to Scott and the team at Murray Guari after getting no response out of the insurance company for the landowner. Scott at first identified all of the potential defendants and provided a comprehensive demand package explaining liability, all medical treatment, causation, and future damages. The insurance companies responses were essentially: “we just don’t see liability or exposure.”
Murray Guari’s response to this was: “no problem, here is the lawsuit.” Through litigation, the defendants stalled, denied, and otherwise tried to avoid providing documents or admitting liability, all while trying to have the case dismissed through summary judgment. Scott refused to allow the defendants to dictate the case and forced summary judgment to wait until he had an opportunity to receive documents and depose the key witnesses, exposing gaps and inconsistencies in their testimony. Even with those key facts, defendants continued their theme of “we just don’t see liability or exposure.”
With enough key facts to not only defeat summary judgment, but to prove the case in chief, Scott responded to defendants’ summary judgment, again offering the defendants a way out before the hearing – which was declined. At the summary judgment hearing, the judge promptly ruled against the defendants finding more than enough facts existed to support moving the case to trial.
Shortly after that, and a few expert depositions that did not go the way of the defendants, the defendants’ insurance carriers finally wanted to discuss resolution because they saw the liability and they saw the exposure, and trial was looming. After reaching numbers that should have been paid long before we reached the point where we could have told them “I told you so,” but resolving the case to the satisfaction of our client was much more rewarding.
