Notable Wins

Client: A national insurer

Court: Workers’ Compensation

Trial Attorney: Prudence Higbee, Esq. 

Brief Attorney: Prudence Higbee, Esq. and Jaclyn Terranova, Esq.

**Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances**

Matter Caption: Schonewolf v. South Jersey Bakery

Following a trial that included the testimony of two factual witnesses and three medical experts Judge French granted a complete dismissal of a claim for dependency benefits.  On October 11, 2017, the decedent rolled his ankle while climbing off of a forklift.  Three days later he passed away. The diagnosis at the time of death included severe sepsis, community acquired pneumonia and cardiac arrest.  The petitioner demanded lifetime dependency benefits totaling more than $1,000,000.00. 

At trial, the attorney for the petitioner offered testimony by two different experts who submitted two different theories on causation. The first theory was that the decedent died from an acute pulmonary embolism that originated from a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in the ankle, which developed because the decedent rolled his ankle at work.  The second theory was that after the decedent developed a DVT in his ankle due to rolling it at work, Staph aureus bacteremia entered the body through micro abrasions caused from the stretching of swelled skin from the ankle injury, the DVT propagated above the knee, and into the lungs, subsequently leading to sepsis and death, all within 72 hours of the work incident.

Prudence Higbee successfully defended this case by offering the testimony of an infectious disease expert, Dr. Stephen Smith, who opined that neither of the petitioner’s theories could have caused the decedent’s death. First, Dr. Smith confirmed there was no medical evidence to support a finding that petitioner sustained acute pulmonary embolism. Notwithstanding the fact that a DVT could not be caused by an ankle sprain or rolling of an ankle, Dr. Smith agreed with the petitioner’s second expert that petitioner died due to severe sepsis caused by Staph aureus bacteremia, but explained that the infection had to be present in petitioner’s body well before he sprained his ankle as he was in severe septic shock and acute renal failure when he presented to the hospital, within just 48 hours of the ankle injury.

The Honorable Ingrid L. French, A.S.J.W.C. found Dr. Smith’s testimony to be credible and supported by the medical records in evidence. Judge French found that although there was no evidence to confirm when the local seeding of Staph aureus bacteremia took place, when Mr. Schonewolf arrived to the hospital just two days after the work incident, the progression of the infection was so severe that it supports a finding that the seeding began prior to his ankle injury.  Based on the foregoing, Judge French found that the petitioner failed to sustain her burden of proof and dismissed with prejudice the claim for dependency benefits.

Client: Robert Wood Johnson Hospital

Court: Workers’ Compensation

Trial Attorney: Ashley M. Fiore, Esq.

Brief Attorney: Brian P. Berkoff, Esq. and Nicholas Stephens,Esq.

**Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances**

Matter Caption: AnnaMarie Angelo v. Robert Wood Johnson Hospital

Petitioner filed two workers’ compensation claims for alleged injuries to the neck, shoulders, back, bilateral legs and right hip.  After many years of ongoing disputed causally related need for treatment requests, the petitioner filed a Motion for Medical and Temporary Disability Benefits wherein she certified to her restrictions, complaints and need for treatment for the lumbar spine. The petitioner sought additional medical treatment, temporary total disability benefits and permanency benefits.

The respondent was able to secure incredible surveillance which demonstrated that petitioner was in peak physical condition despite her allegations otherwise to the Court, respondent’s need for treatment expert and petitioner’s need for treatment expert. Based on this, all benefits were terminated and respondent pursued a Trial on its Motion to Dismiss for Alleged Violation of Fraud Act.

Our office proceeded with testimony and carefully went through all of petitioner’s alleged complaints and restrictions. The surveillance secured clearly contradicted her testimony. At the conclusion of her testimony, the surveillance was presented to the Judge and petitioner’s attorney. All parties agreed that Dismissals of both claims with prejudice were appropriate based on the multiple material misrepresentations made by petitioner. No further benefits were paid to petitioner and the petitioner was ordered to pay for stenographer fees associated with her testimony.

Client: Costco Wholesale

Court: Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division

Trial Attorney: Jennifer A. Cottell, Esq. 

Brief Attorney: McKenna R. Parris, Esq.  

**Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances**

The Appellate Division affirmed the trial court’s denial of the Petitioner’s Motion for Medical and Temporary Benefits.  The trial court found Costco’s two expert witnesses, both authorized treating doctors, more credible than the Petitioner’s medical expert who did not review significant medical records including an MRI of the lumbar spine and an EMG study.  He was also unaware of the Petitioner’s prior back injury.  Nevertheless, his treatment of one injection provided only 50% relief for one week, and he had no definitive future treatment plan for the Petitioner.  The trial judge concluded that the Petitioner did not sustain her burden of proving that she was in need of further causally related medical treatment.  The Appellate judges found that there was sufficient credible evidence in the record to support the trial court’s decision and affirmed.