$440,000 Settlement for Hazardous Condition / Broken Door

Blume Donnelly partner Kenneth Elwood represented a 70-year-old man who fell over a sand-filled spackle bucket used as a door stop at a bagel shop. The mechanism on the door (the “door prop”) which would normally keep the door in an open position, was broken. Our client fractured his upper arm (humerus) in the fall; which did not require surgery. However, he also injured his radial nerve causing RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy), requiring pain management treatment and physical therapy. He is unable to undergo surgery, which might alleviate some of his pain, because of the RSD and other unrelated medical conditions from which he suffers. The man was left with a permanent loss of function and pain. Mr. Elwood settled this case at mediation for $440,000.