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| Andrea Balazowich v. Jon Soos[CV 2006-10-6315] |
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| Court:Summit County Court of Common Pleas |
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| Judge:Magistrate John Shoemaker |
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| Date of Trial: |
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| Facts: | | This was an action for bodily injury resulting from an automobile accident. The plaintiff was a passenger in her own vehicle on her way to an Urgent Care Center because of a severe cold. The defendant ran a red light and caused a collision. Liability was not disputed.
Plaintiff's 1988 Chevy Corsica was totaled in the collision. |
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| Injury/Damages:Plaintiff suffered a whiplash type of injury, a muscle strain of the trapezius and the neck and mid back, and also had some strains in the anterior thigh muscles. Plaintiff treated for her pre-existing cold and asthma symptoms at MedGroup Urgent Care in Stow immediately after the accident. Plaintiff did not mention she had just been in an accident. Three or four days later the plaintiff developed accident-related symptoms stated above. A week after the accident they became worse. Nine days after the accident the plaintiff returned to the MedGroup Urgent Care, where she was prescribed an initial course of six physical therapy visits. Plaintiff waited three weeks to start physical therapy and treated for three weeks. She did not seek any further medical treatment for more than three months. Plaintiff then returned to the MedGroup Urgent Care Center where she was prescribed a second course of physical therapy. She returned one more time approximately six months after the accident and was doing better, but not fully recovered.
Defendant contended that plaintiff had a severe pre-existing asthmatic condition that caused her repeated attacks involving extensive coughing. This was the cause of the plaintiff's headache complaints, not the accident. When plaintiff returned to the MedGroup Urgent Care Center after three months without treatment, she had complaints of a nose bleed that had lasted on and off for two days. Her asthma caused her so much coughing that she had to use her inhaler every hour. This was why she returned to the doctor. The medical records for that visit indicate that the plaintiff had full range of motion. At the followng visit, the plaintiff was found to be "predominantly better".
Plaintiff also asked for property damage for her 1988 Chevrolet Corsica, which she had purchased a few weeks before the accident from a private owner for $600. Plaintiff claimed she had spent $50 on new brakes and that the vehicle had a blue book value of $650 to $850. Defense contended that old, used vehicles go down in value, not up, and that $600 was fair compensation. |
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Non-medical Experts: None |
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Medical Experts:sigmund Norr, M.D., Board Certificed in Pediatric Medicine and Addiction Medicine, MedGroup, Stow, Ohio. |
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| Lowest Demand:$6,000.00 |
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| Highest Offer:$2,463 ($1,908 bodily injury; $555 property damage) |
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| Jury Verdict:$3,200 ($1,300 for past medical expenses, $1,250 for past pain and suffering, $650 for property damage) |
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| Percent of Comparative Negligence:N/A |
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| Net Award:$3,200 |
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| Plaintiff's Attorney:Andrew D. Jamison, Esq., Reminger & Reminger Co., LPA, 200 Courtyard Quare, 80 South Summit Street, Akron, Ohio 44308 |
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| Defendant's Attorney:Adam E. Carr, Esq., The Carr Law Office, LLC, 5824 Akron-Cleveland Road, Suite A, Hudson, Ohio 44236 |
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