Verdicts and SettlementsRecent Cases Handled By Daughtery, Crawford, Fuller & Brown, LLPBUSINESS DISPUTES / BUSINESS TORTS / BUSINESS FRAUD
AUTOMOBILE DEFECT CASES/ PRODUCT DEFECT CASES
ROAD WRECK CASES
ROAD WRECK CASES/ DRAM SHOP CASES
CLASS ACTIONS / CONSUMER CASES
Past Cases Handled By The Lawyers* Of Daughtery, Crawford, Fuller & BrownBUSINESS DISPUTES / BUSINESS TORTS / BUSINESS FRAUD Joan Lyman, Mike Pearson, and Jardon Bouska were founders of an internet security company called SecureWorks. The lawsuit involved a dispute with venture capital investors over the appropriate share price to be paid the founders upon their exit from the company. The founders claimed that they were entitled to receive the same price per share upon their exit from the company as the venture capital investors. A shareholder agreement set forth the founders' rights, but the venture capital investors claimed that the provision in question found its way into the document by "mistake." After intensive document discovery and several depositions, including the depositions of the corporate lawyers at King & Spalding and Alston & Bird who negotiated and drafted the deal documents, the litigation concluded with a confidential settlement that was favorable to the founders. Lyman, et al (Counterclaimants) v. GE Capital, Mellon Ventures, Noro-Moseley Partners, and SBK Capital, Superior Court of Fulton County, Atlanta, Georgia. AUTOMOBILE DEFECT CASES / PRODUCT DEFECT CASES Product Liability / Roof Crush -- Confidential Settlement Perry and Amanda Steiner brought suit against General Motors after they were involved in a rollover in their 1998 Pontiac Montana. During the rollover, the roof structure of the Montana crushed downward onto Perry and Amanda Steiner leaving both quadriplegics. Both were wearing their seatbelts and both were seated on the passenger side of the vehicle where the roof crushed. The other three family members were also belted and walked away from the wreck when the roof did not crush over their heads. Steiner v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court of Kansas. Product Liability / Rollover/ Roof Crush Cash Settlement -- Confidential Cash Settlement Martha Stansell and her husband, Major Jackson Stansell, brought suit against Ford after they were involved in a rollover in a 1996 Ford Explorer. During the rollover, the roof structure of the Explorer crushed downward into the Stansells' occupant space, striking them and leaving Martha a quadriplegic (fracture at C-6, C-7) and Major a paraplegic (fracture at T-3). They were both wearing their seatbelts and were both on the passenger side of the Explorer where the roof crushed. On the driver's side of the Explorer where the roof did not crush, the two occupants suffered much less severe injuries from which they have fully recovered. Stansell v. Ford Motor Co., Court of Common Pleas, Hampton County, South Carolina. Product Liability / Auto / Post Collision Fire / Wrongful Death -- Confidential Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- Sherry Bradstreet brought suit against General Motors on behalf of her sister and her sister's three sons after all were killed when the car they were traveling in became engulfed in flames due to punctures to the vulnerable side-mounted fuel tank in the C/K pickup truck that struck their vehicle. Bradstreet v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court of Montana, Missoula Division. Product Liability / Seat Back Failure -- Confidential Settlement Mr. and Mrs. McCutchen brought suit against GM after she was involved in a rear-impact collision. The driver's seat of her 1990 Cadillac Sedan DeVille failed; she "ramped" underneath her seatbelt and into the back seat where she broke her back at T-11. Mrs. McCutchen, who was 74 years old at the time, was rendered a permanent paraplegic. McCutchen v. General Motors Corp., State Court of Troup County, Lagrange, Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Post Collision Fire -- Confidential Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- Brian Chamberlain brought suit against GM after he was severely burned by fire when his Chevrolet pickup was struck by another pickup causing an explosion upon impact, due to punctures and failures of the vulnerable side-mounted tank and vulnerable filler neck of the Chevrolet pickup truck. Chamberlain v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court of Kansas. Product Liability / Auto / Post Collision Fire / Wrongful Death -- Cash/Structured Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- Alvin Phillips brought suit against GM on behalf of his daughter, Angela Byrd, son-in-law, Darrell Byrd and grandsons, Timothy and Samuel Byrd after Angela, Darrell and Timothy were killed and Samuel injured when the Chevrolet pickup truck they were traveling in became engulfed in flames due to punctures to the vulnerable side-mounted fuel tank in a collision with a tractor-trailer. Phillips v. General Motors Corp., United Stated District Court of Montana, Missoula Division. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement The widow of Mr. Bampoe-Parry brought suit after his 1985 Chevette was struck in the rear by a Volvo while trying to merge onto the interstate in Atlanta and the fuel system on the Chevette failed resulting in a post collision fuel-fed fire. Mr. Bampoe-Parry sustained burns and died as a result of his injuries. Bampoe-Parry v. General Motors Corp., State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Type III Door Latch -- The wrongful death beneficiaries and heirs brought suit against GM after Mr. Cooper was crushed between the vehicle and roadway when the 1985 Chevrolet S-10 pickup he was driving was hit, and the door latching system failed and opened, partially ejecting Mr. Cooper. Cooper v. General Motors Corp., Circuit Court of Hinds County, Mississippi, First Judicial Circuit. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective fuel system in a GM A-Car -- Suit brought by the Executor of the Estate of Lottie E. Knott and by the Personal Representative of the Estate of Mary A. Whaler after they died as a result of a post-collision fuel-fed fire in a 1979 Chevrolet El Camino which was struck in the rear by a 1978 Ford Fairmont. Hamil/Knott v. General Motors Corp; White/Whaler v. General Motors Corp ., United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Type III Door Latch Defect -- The mother of young children brought suit against GM after her daughter was killed and son injured when the mother's Pontiac Grand Prix crashed, the Type III door latch failed, the door opened, and her children were ejected. Simmons v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Jackson Division. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- Surviving spouse of 46-year-old man brought suit against GM after her husband was killed by fire when a Chevrolet pickup truck he was a passenger in collided with another pickup truck, causing explosion upon impact due to punctures to vulnerable side-mounted fuel tank of Chevrolet pickup truck. Peterson v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court, District of Kansas. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank -- Surviving spouse of 41-year-old woman brought suit against GM after his wife died from fire after they struck the side of a Chevrolet pickup truck with side-mounted fuel tanks, which were blocking the roadway, resulting in punctures to vulnerable side-mounted fuel tank of GM pickup truck. Barnes v. General Motors Corp., Court of Common Pleas, State of South Carolina, County of Richland. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- Administratrix of the Estate of Jeanette Douglas brought suit against GM after 67-year-old Jeanette Douglas died from fire after Chevrolet pickup truck she was a passenger in became engulfed in flames due to punctures to vulnerable side-mounted fuel tank of GM pickup truck in collision with another pickup truck. Douglas, et al. v. General Motors Corp., Second Judicial District Court of the State of Nevada, Washoe County. Product Liability / Auto / Rollover / Paraplegia -- Cash Settlement A 19-year-old man was rendered a paraplegic when the 1980 CJ-5 in which he was a belted passenger rolled over after striking a curb. Morgan v. Chrysler, et al., State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Type III Door Latch -- The parents of a young man brought suit after their son was killed when his 1987 Pontiac Grand Am rolled over, the Type III door latch failed, the door opened, and he was ejected. Conkle v. General Motors Corp., State Court of Muscogee County, Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- The surviving parent of a young man brought suit against GM after her son was killed by fire when his motorcycle had a side impact collision with a Chevrolet pickup truck. Randolph v. General Motors Corp., State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- The mother of a 22-year-old man brought suit when her son was killed by fire after his pickup impacted a bridge. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- The surviving wife and mother brought suit against GM after her husband and young son were killed by fire when the Chevrolet pickup in which they were riding was struck by a Ford Escort that crossed the center line of the roadway. Seebeck v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court, Northern District of Georgia. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- The surviving parents of a young man brought suit against GM after their son was killed by fire when his motorcycle had an extremely low speed side impact with a GM pickup. Cockrum v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court for the District of Kansas. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Cash Settlement Defective GM pickup truck with side-saddle fuel tank design -- The surviving wife brought suit against GM after her husband was killed by fire when the pickup in which he was riding was struck by a trailer that separated from another vehicle. Wilson v. General Motors Corp., United States District Court of Tulsa County, Oklahoma. Product Liability / Auto / Wrongful Death -- Confidential Cash Settlement Defective seat-back -- The surviving mother of a 7-year-old child brought suit against Ford after her son was killed when the front seat-back of the vehicle in which he was traveling collapsed and caused him severe head trauma resulting in his death. Bundrick v. Ford Motor Co., Court of Common Pleas for the County of Richland, State of South Carolina. Product Liability / Auto -- Confidential Cash Settlement Defective Ford Explorer and Tire Defect -- The driver of a Ford Explorer suffered life-altering injuries and was rendered a paraplegic after a tire separated and the Ford Explorer in which she was traveling rolled over. The parties agreed to a confidential settlement of this products liability case against Ford Motor Company and Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. Jackson v. Ford Motor Co., State Court of Troup County, Lagrange, Georgia. CAR WRECK/ WRONGFUL DEATH Car Wreck / Wrongful Death / Dram Shop -- Cash Settlement A dram shop action was brought against Hooters' enterprises as a result of a patron becoming intoxicated at a Hooters bar and then causing a head-on collision which resulted in the death of a 29-year-old female and resulted in injuries to her minor daughter passenger. Additional settlement amounts were recovered from defendant motorist and underinsured motorist carrier. McGray, et al. v. Hooters of America, Inc., et al., State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Car Wreck / Wrongful Death - Confidential Settlement After a tread separation on the rear tire of a van in which several children were traveling, the driver of the van lost control and the van overturned resulting in serious injuries to the children in the vehicle and ultimately resulting in the death of one of the children. The parties reached a confidential settlement. Gandy et al. v. Michelin North America, Inc. et al., Superior Court of Muscogee County, Columbus, Georgia. TRACTOR TRAILER WRECK / WRONGFUL DEATH Tractor-Trailer Wreck / Wrongful Death -- Confidential Settlement Kerri Hayes, age 17, Jacob Hayes, age 11, and their stepfather James Richardson, were all killed when the small pickup truck in which they were riding was struck by a flatbed tractor-trailer near Albany, Georgia. The little pickup was turning left at an intersection, when the tractor-trailer ran a red light and "t-boned" the pickup. The tractor-trailer driver was distracted and failed to see the Richardson vehicle in time to stop or even slow down prior to impact. Richardson, et al. v. William Scottsman, Inc. and Andrew Kegler, State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Tractor Trailer Wreck / Wrongful Death -- $1,750,000 Cash Settlement A 46-year-old truck driver died when struck as a pedestrian by a tractor-trailer rig. Decedent's wife witnessed the aftermath of collision and settlement included claims for her emotional distress in addition to wrongful death and estate claims for her deceased husband. Hutcherson v. The Progressive Corporation, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company, TABS, Inc., and Carl E. Hicks, United States District Court, Northern District of Georgia. Motorcycle and Truck Wreck -- $800,000 Cash Settlement A 34-year-old construction worker suffered multiple fractures when his motorcycle was hit by Defendant's moving truck which was making an illegal U-turn. Liddell v. K.D. Curry Enterprises, State Court of Fulton County, Georgia. Tractor Trailer Wreck / Wrongful Death - Confidential Settlement A young mother was killed when a tractor trailer crossed the center median of Interstate 94 and blocked the oncoming lane of traffic in which she was traveling thereby colliding with the young mother's vehicle and resulting in her death. The parties reached a confidential settlement. Athakhanh v. Covenant Transport, Inc. PREMISES LIABILITY Premises Liability - Cash Settlement A 29-year-old female was assaulted due to inadequate hotel security while attending a trade show at Defendant's Atlanta hotel. Amount of settlement is confidential at Defendant's request. Anderson v. Radisson Hotel Corp., United States District Court, Southern District of Georgia. Premises Liability -- $ 3,250,000 Cash Settlement No security provided in dangerous area resulted in attack, assault and robbery of guest. Unnamed Plaintiff v. LaQuinta Motor Inns, Inc., State Court of Muscogee County, Georgia. PERSONAL INJURY / WRONGFUL DEATH Wrongful Death -- $3,136,265 Structured Settlement (Present cash value of $1,250,000) Wrongful death of child who died as a result of using recreational equipment. Plaintiff insisted that Defendant adopt a safety plan to prevent future injuries as a term of settlement. Unnamed Plaintiff v. Unnamed Defendant, State Court of DeKalb County, Georgia. CLASS ACTIONS Class Action / Consumer Case - "Universal Life" Insurance Policies McBride v. Life of Virginia, now known as GE Life Annuity & Assurance Co. -- Jason Crawford, Clay Fuller, and Dustin Brown worked extensively on the prosecution of this nationwide class action which was filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, Macon Division. The litigation related to "universal life" insurance policies and, more specifically, the administration of those policies with respect to periodic premium charges. Mr. McBride, for instance, saw his $150 monthly premium which he had paid regularly for 13 years, unilaterally increased by the company every year on his birthday, starting around the 14th year of his policy. Ultimately, Mr. McBride's premium obligation tripled. The issue for class purposes was whether GE Life had the contractual right to take such actions with respect to class members like Robert McBride. During the litigation, GE Life produced the equivalent of millions of pages of electronically-stored policyholder information, and the company was forced to provide discovery of user-created documents that had previously been unsearchable and scattered throughout the company's system. Settlement negotiations began in earnest, leading to a truly innovative settlement that obtained massive benefits for the class. The nationwide class action settlement was approved on August 12, 2004, nearly four years after suit was initially filed on behalf of the class representative, Robert McBride. The settlement made more than $153 million in relief available to the class members, including the opportunity to receive a guarantee from the company that premiums for qualifying class members could not be increased by the company during the life of the policies. In addition, Clay Fuller and Dustin Brown worked extensively on the administration of this settlement after forming Daughtery, Crawford, Fuller & Brown, LLP. These attorneys assisted class members who disputed the Class Action Administrator's determination of that person's level of relief. Class Action / Consumer Cases - Credit Insurance Unearned Premium Litigation Jason Crawford, Clay Fuller, and Dustin Brown have worked extensively prosecuting nationwide litigation involving the credit insurance industry. The claims relate to these insurance companies' uniform practice of failing to refund unearned premiums owed to class members when class members' loans are paid off early, and cases are pending all over the country in state and federal courts with respect to such claims. In the first of these cases to reach the certification stage, the Muscogee County Superior Court certified a nationwide class at the end of the day long hearing handled by Jason Crawford on behalf of the class. This class certification order approving class action treatment was affirmed in its entirety on July 10, 2006 by the Georgia Court of Appeals, and on October 30, 2006 the Supreme Court of Georgia declined to review that decision of the Georgia Court of Appeals thereby upholding the trial court's order certifying a nationwide class in its entirety. In proving class treatment was appropriate and necessary to address this conduct, Crawford and Fuller crafted a novel approach to obtaining evidence from a credit reporting agency which evidence establishes the insurance companies' obligation to pay refunds to those class members whose underlying loans were, in fact, paid off early. In that regard, Clay Fuller has worked extensively with an information technology expert to create the computer programming that establishes the date of early loan payoff for the class members, through the use of business records of the insurance companies and the various lenders who report to Equifax, which evidence triggers the right to a refund of unearned premium. Class Action / Government - Nationwide Ambulance Fee Schedule Litigation Lifestar Ambulance Serv., Inc. v. United States - Jason Crawford, Clay Fuller, and Dustin Brown were heavily involved in a nationwide class action against the United States government over the Department of Health and Human Services ("DHHS") failing to compensate ambulance suppliers under a "fee schedule" as directed by Congress. Within only six months after filing suit, the plaintiffs had secured class certification and summary judgment in favor of the class members over strenuous opposition. Soon thereafter, the DHHS published a proposed new fee schedule in accordance with the trial court's Order that would provide payment of over $80 million dollars to affected ambulance suppliers. On appeal the Eleventh Circuit overturned the decision on jurisdictional grounds, never reaching the merits of the dispute. *The lawyers of DCFB were involved in the representation of these cases while they were attorneys at the law firm of Butler, Wooten, Fryhofer, Daughtery & Crawford, LLP. Free personal injury consultation: Contact a lawyer at Daughtery, Crawford, Fuller & Brown in Columbus, Georgia, for a free initial consultation today so we can begin to protect your rights. |



