Paul E. Godlewski

Jury Verdict - $ 15,868,960.00 

Description: This case involved a 19-year-old young man who was working in a local gas station in rural Minnesota. The trial was one of the longest jury trials for a single injured plaintiff in Minnesota history. This major product liability case was appealed all the way to the United States Supreme Court, which ultimately upheld the verdict as reduced by the Minnesota Supreme Court. The result was not only a successful recovery for the plaintiff, but also established legal rights for protection of the public and those injured by defective products. In 1988, the Minnesota Supreme Court reduced the original verdict to $8,200,000.00 as follows: $3,700,000.00 compensatory damages and $4,500,000.00 punitive damages.

Settlement - Multimillion dollar confidential settlement 

Description: The claimant's family lost a son and brother, and a young boy was left brain-injured as a result of a car/train collision. This confidential multi-million dollar settlement allowed for structured annuity to pay necessities and income loss of the young boy and relieve the financial burden on the parents. The wrongful death settlement will allow for the college education and early adulthood start-up expenses for the surviving sibling.

Settlement - $ 1,900,000.00 

Description: The case involved a 15-year-old young man who was initially injured in a motor vehicle collision. When brought to the emergency room, there was a misdiagnosis regarding injuries to the hips, which resulted in further significant injuries and damages ultimately leading to bilateral hip replacements.

Settlement - $ 1,500,000.00 

Description: The case involved a 19-year-old young man who was a passenger in a car, which left the roadway and rolled over causing a severe neck injury resulting in quadriplegia. A structured settlement was put in place with these funds resulting in a return many times more than the actual settlement. This settlement allowed for lifetime care and income.

Settlement - $ 1,000,000.00 

Description: Crane Operator move trusses that had been hoisted to the top of a garage. Upon moving one of the trusses it bumped another causing it to fall and hit a 42-year-old man with four children, on the head causing bruising of the cervical spine and partial periphrasis of both upper extremities.

Settlement - $ 715,000.00 

Description: On August 22, 2005 S.W., a law enforcement officer with a local suburban jurisdiction in Hennepin County was called to the scene of a traffic accident on Interstate 94. As S.W. approached the accident scene off of an entrance ramp to the freeway, S.W. had to pull over onto the median because the accident was behind the ramp intersection with I-94. As S.W. was backing up on the median shoulder towards the accident scene a truck towing a back hoe owned and operated by employees for E.C. Companies could not stop in time when it applied its brakes, swerving right and colliding with a van in the right lane, and then swerving left off onto the shoulder rear ending the squad car occupied by Officer S.W.

The post accident report initially came to the conclusion that Officer S.W. was backing up on the freeway, but the overhead views from helicopters clearly showed S.W. was backing up on the median and the truck and trailer operated by EC Companies went off the roadway and onto the shoulder colliding with the squad car.

A post accident commercial vehicles inspector’s report verified that the electronic brakes for the trailer towing the back hoe were not hooked up at the time of the collision and the rear axel was over weight by 1,800 pounds. Therefore, the truck and trailer was operating without proper brakes, went out of control, was not able to stop in time causing the collision.

Officer S.W. has not been able to return to his employment as a law enforcement officer. A year and a half post collision S.W. had an L4-5 disc replacement with an artificial disc by Dr. Salib. This unusual surgery required an anterior and posterior approach and was a large factor in the Work Comp subrogation claims of $348,000.

Because S.W. was injured and disabled in the course and scope of his employment as a law enforcement officer he was the recipient of life long health care benefits to age 65, to include his family. S.W. also qualified for disability benefits from PERA, receiving monthly disability income of $2,100.00, so long as he is disabled and not earning more than 125% of his earnings as a law enforcement officer. There is no subrogation to this claim; however, it is subject to collateral source offsets.

This case settled at mediation with mediator Mark Catron on June 17, 2008 for $715.000.00.

Plaintiff S.W. is left with a 9% permanent partial disability and permanent tinnitus. Dr. Salib opined that the artificial disc replacement at L4-5 would not result in further degeneration of the low back because an artificial disc should wear evenly and not cause arthritic changes on the discs above and below it – at least based on current medical literature and research.

S.W. has already begun mitigation of damages by re-entering college to obtain a degree in marketing which was his high aptitude post injury testing with both Dr. Phillip Haber and with PARS Work Comp QRC Shannon Prudhomme.

S.W. is 33-years of age, married with two children ages 5 and 12.

With Workers’ Compensation and PERA benefits S.W. was able to maintain a modest but adequate standard of living although it was very tough on the family during his long rehabilitation.

Part of the settlement will be structured through Capital Planning.

Settlement - $ 600,000.00 

Description: During a National Guard outing, a boat owned and operated by a former Colonel with the Minnesota National Guard collided with a boat operated by another soldier resulting in the death of 37-year-old Lieutenant, and causing severe injuries to five other soldiers.

Settlement - $ 500,000.00 

Description: The case involved a middle age man who sustained a severe fracture to the foot in an auto accident and was required to use a brace for rest of his life, even though he could continue to work.

Settlement - $ 475,000.00 

Description: This case involved a husband and father who was employed in the meat department of the local food store who suffered a closed head injury in a motor vehicle collision. This man sustained a permanent disability, which entitled him to social security and disability benefits. Additionally, the liability settlement was placed in a structured annuity returning many times its value to the plaintiff and his family.

Settlement - $ 400,000.00 

Description: This case involved a 16-year-old young woman, who was driving through an intersection in Elk River, when a pick up pulling a full trailer of asphalt ran the red light an crashed into the young woman.

Settlement - $ 400,000.00 

Description: This case involved a 45-year-old Hispanic man who was employed on a temporary job at a pizza and dough related bakery in southwest Minnesota. He was hired to clean trays and other equipment. At the time of the accident he was asked to clean a tri-roller machine. This was the first time he had worked on a moving machine. He was standing on a stool and reach up over his shoulder height into the hopper to clean the inside. When the two rollers caught the glove he was wearing and drew his left hand and arm into the machine, crushing it and requiring amputation below the elbow.

Settlement - $ 300,000.00 

Description: The case involved a young mechanic who lost the sight in one eye after a medical doctor failed to diagnose the presence of a foreign metal object in his eye during routine emergency room care. Plaintiff presented to the emergency room after a fleck of metal struck his eye while he was hammering a tire rim. The result was that the foreign body formed scar tissue, which damaged the retina and this young man lost sight in his eye.

Settlement - $ 300,000.00 

Description: Claimant was a middle aged woman injured when the at-fault driver crossed over the center line on a city street, causing a head on collision. Claimant fractured the calcaneus (heal bone) in her right foot, requiring surgery and the use of crutches for nine months. The claimant worked in an office and was able to return to work.

Settlement - $ 275,000.00 

Description: A 14-year-old boy was riding on the front of a pontoon with his feet dangling in the water, the adult driver was not paying attention and the boy fell forward into the water and the propellers from the motor struck the boy on the buttocks causing loss of muscle tissue and scarring.

Settlement - $ 250,000.00 

Description: Claimant was hunting and used a tree stand purchased through a mail order catalog. The tree stand collapsed and claimant sustained a severe fractured foot and was out of work for a year.

Settlement - $ 245,000.00 

Description: The case involved a retired couple that was invited to a friend's new house. Because of the new construction they had temporary stairs put in until the permanent stairs were finished. The couple was walking up the stairs when they collapsed.

Settlement - $ 200,000.00 

Description: Claimant, retired, walked to a local dry cleaners to pick up some pants at a strip mall near his home. Precipitation was light, but the weather was cold enough so that the mist and light snow froze on the sidewalk near the entrance of the dry cleaners where claimant slipped and fell, fracturing his hip. The cleaners was open for business in the early morning hours and there was no salt or sand placed on the icy sidewalk for the protection of customers.

Jury Verdict - $ 195,000.00 

Description: Middle aged laborer living in a HUD owned property slipped and fell on the accumulation of ice and snow outside of his townhome door. There had been prior complaints of the accumulation of ice and snow, due to the design of the townhome, which went unrepaired. Claimant slipped and fell, fracturing his hip

Settlement - $ 165,000.00 

Description: The case involved a 65-year-old man who attended a function at Opportunity Partners with his wife. He drove to this event, and parked in the parking lot where other buses were transporting senior citizens to Opportunity Partners Open House luncheon. After the luncheon, he was returning to his car and walked from the sidewalk to the parking lot, passing behind several buses when suddenly one van among the buses backed out and struck knocking him to the ground. The van did not have a back-up audible signal.

Jury Verdict - $ 163,953.00 

Description: The claimant was a 20-year-old married father of one child who was injured in an intersection collision when another driver failed to stop for a yield sign and collided with claimant. The driver of the at-fault vehicle was not insured and this claim proceeded to a jury trial against claimant's own insurance carrier. The claimant sustained permanent soft tissue injuries to his neck and back.

Jury Verdict - $ 144,471.00 

Description: Plaintiff was a single woman, who returned to a vocational school after her mid life divorce, and was the oldest student in her classes. She received the highest grades of all the students and was immediately placed for work full time after her graduation. Less than four years later, and now a grandmother, she was involved in a rear-end collision. After settling with the at-fault driver, plaintiff proceeded in a claim against her own carrier for additional underinsured motorist benefits because of the permanent injuries to her neck and back.

Jury Verdict - $ 121,463.00 

Description: Plaintiff was a mechanic on a casual Saturday afternoon motorcycle ride when a driver pulled out from a stop sign colliding into the side of the motorcycle. The claimant sustained soft tissue injuries to his foot and ankle, and fractured one of the small bones in his foot. He was able to return as a mechanic, but had to wear a permanent orthodic device in his shoe.

Settlement - $ 120,000.00 

Description: Five year old girl was bit on her lip and cheek by a small dog. There was some residual scarring on this fair skinned young lady.

Jury Verdict - $ 105,000.00 

Description: This case involved injuries to a physical therapist as a result of an intersection collision. These injuries were to the soft tissues, muscles, tendons and ligaments of the neck. As a result of these injuries the physical therapist was required to change occupations, which included his returning to school and becoming certified as a dietician and then re-entering the professional work force.

Arbitration Award - $ 100,000.00 

Description: A 19-year-old young man died while being restrained by security personnel at a Casino/Hotel on an Indian reservation. After resolving sovereign tribal immunity issues, this case proceeded to binding arbitration resulting in a recovery for the family of this unmarried emancipated 19-year-old young man.

Settlement - $ 91,000.00 

Description: The case involved a 34-year-old man who was bit in the face, twice, by a friend's dog.