Moore, O'Brien & Foti - Middlebury, CT

Moore, O’Brien & Foti is a firm of eight lawyers dedicated to the recovery of compensation for victims of personal injuries and wrongful death. We represent clients in a variety of settings, including auto collisions, slip and falls, construction accidents, defective products, medical malpractice and air crash disasters. We have earned a reputation in Connecticut as one of the plaintiff's bar's premier firms. We are recognized by Martindale-Hubbell, the leading worldwide law firm directory, with its highest "AV" rating based on recommendations of lawyers and judges. Several of our attorneys have held executive offices in both the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association and the Connecticut Bar Association. Several have also continued leadership roles in those organizations and in a variety of organizations and committees devoted to the civil jury system. Several have been recognized by their induction into national trial advocacy organizations, including The American College of Trial Lawyers, The American Board of Trial Advocates and the National Board of Trial Advocacy, that only award their limited membership to lawyers based on trial experience, reputation and ability. Several are also board certified as civil trial advocates.

We believe passionately that every case is unique and our clients deserve our personal attention as we see them through difficult times. Because our fees are contingent on the result achieved, we never turn down a case because of a client's inability to pay.

We represent clients throughout the state, and we are trial counsel for over 350 law firms and lawyers who refer their personal injury cases to us. Currently, over fifty percent of our cases are referred to us from other lawyers who have chosen us to help them resolve their client's personal injury matters. When another lawyer refers a case, the original fee is shared so no additional cost is imposed on the client. As a testament to our abilities to vigorously represent our clients, we have also received cases and referrals from judges, insurance claims adjustors, jurors and court personnel who have seen our abilities first hand.

The members of Moore, O’Brien & Foti were formerly partners and lawyers with Carmody & Torrance in Waterbury and New Haven before founding and joining together in their new firm that limits its practice to plaintiffs' personal injury cases.

Case Highlights

Although the following is a just a sample of some of the cases we have resolved for our clients, we do not limit our practice to large cases. In fact, since many insurance companies have refused to fairly settle many cases in which the injuries are so-called "soft tissue" injuries (strains, sprains, etc.) or the property damage is slight, many of our trials every year are against these insurance companies. We encourage our clients to try these cases rather than accept a settlement that is unfair and inadequate to compensate them fully.

Please be advised that the following are only brief descriptions of the cases. Many details were, by necessity, omitted.

WRONGFUL DEATH

Truck-Car Crash; settlement $1,450,000
Truck collided with client's car in Vermont, causing severe chest injuries and eventual death. Settlement was based on pre-death pain and suffering and loss of income as a discount store clerk.

Death of Child in Car Crash; settlement $1,900,000
Our client, a fourteen-year old boy was a passenger in the rear seat of a car operated by a friend when the car left the highway and rolled over. A claim against one defendant was settled for $200,000, and the remaining defendants paid an additional $1.7 million dollars in an arbitration award.

TWA Flight 800 crash; settlement
Our client was one of the victims of the TWA Flight 800 crash off Long Island, New York. Our client was on route to Paris to present his fiancé with a diamond engagement ring when the plane went down. After years of litigation, the case was settled and the parties agreed to a confidentiality agreement. The engagement ring was eventually found at the bottom of the ocean.

Amusement park accident; settlement $1,000,000
Our client was a five year old boy who died when thrown from a ride at an amusement park. A lawsuit was filed against the park claiming that the ride was mechanically defective and inadequately staffed. The insurance carrier for the amusement park settled for $1,000,000.

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

Failure to Diagnose Cancer; settlement $1,350,000
Our client kept regular appointments with his internist who failed to order test for colon cancer. Our client discovered during a routine physical exam that he had a large colon tumor. The doctor's insurance company initially contested the matter, but eventually agreed that a sigmoidoscopy test would have detected the cancer in time to have cured it. The case settled for $1,350,000.

Bladder Perforation; settlement $300,000
During a hysterectomy, the surgeon negligently perforated our client's bladder. To correct the mistake the surgeon accidentally sewed the client's vaginal cuff to her bladder. It took the next two years to correct the mistake, and resulted in scarring and permanent numbness to the patient's thigh.

Knee Surgery Infection; jury verdict $385,000
Our client underwent surgery for degenerative knee condition. The surgery was successful but left the client with an infection in his knee joint. The infection progressed to the point where another surgery was needed. The insurance company refused to settle the case and the jury awarded the client $385,000.

Misdiagnosed Kidney Cancer; verdict $429,000
Our client is forty-seven years old and his urologist misdiagnosed kidney cancer that had spread to other parts of his body. As a result of the misdiagnosis, our client died. A jury returned a verdict of $429,000 based on the client's limited life expectancy.

Failure to Diagnose Kidney Disease; settlement $200,000
Our client lost a kidney because her internist failed to take the necessary test that would've revealed a disease that if caught early enough would have been curable. Even though our client functioned well with the remaining kidney, the insurance carrier agreed to pay $200,000 as a settlement.

CAR/TRUCK ACCIDENTS

Bus Accident; jury verdict $1,890,000
Our client, a twelve year old boy, suffered brain injuries when the bus he was riding rear-ended a stopped tractor trailer on the highway. The impact through him forward and impacted the metal plated seat back in front of him. The insurance company for the bus refused to settle the case for a fair amount, and after five weeks of trial, the jury returned the verdict of $1,890,000.

Minimal Damage/Low Impact Claim; jury verdict $315,000
Our clients, a mother and her two children, were passengers in a car that was rear-ended by a person who claimed she slid on black ice. The collision resulted in minor property damage. The defense hired an engineer who claimed the impact occurred at just over 4 m.p.h. and therefore our clients could not be injured. The court precluded the expert from testifying as to his opinions regarding the force of the impact and the unlikelihood of injuries. The insurance carrier offered a total of $61,000 for all three plaintiffs. A jury awarded a total of $315,000.

Minor Impact; jury verdict $224,000
Our client was rear-ended resulting in a minor impact with low property damage. The insurance company for the other driver denied responsibility even for the property damage. Our client was willing to settle for $5,000, but the insurance company offered only $3,000. The case was tried and our client recovered $224,000 from the jury.

Minor car accident; jury verdict $249,000
Our client was hit from the side as she was traveling on the road around the Danbury Mall. Our client was treated primarily by her chiropractor and incurred $38,000 in bills. According to her chiropractor, she later developed fibromyalgia. The insurance company for the other driver never made an offer to settle. The jury awarded $249,000.

Low Impact; jury verdict $88,000
Our client was hit from behind at low speed resulting in little property damage. Although she recovered from her initial injuries, she developed thoracic outlet syndrome years later. While her neurologist said the syndrome was likely caused by the accident, the insurance company hired its own doctor who said it was not. The insurance company refused to offer more than $15,000. The jury awarded $88,000.

Bus/Auto Collision; settlement $285,000
Our client was rear-ended in a chain reaction by a Greyhound bus, result in permanent disability to his low back.

Golf Cart Accident; arbitration award $300,000
Our client was in a golf cart that was struck from behind by another golf cart. His cart was pushed forward ten feet. The accident caused disc herniations in his neck, requiring surgery. The case was submitted to binding arbitration with a high of $300,000. The arbitrator awarded the maximum.

Tractor trailer/car accident; arbitration award $805,000
Our clients were traveling on Interstate 84 when they were struck from behind by a tractor-trailer. Our client injured his shoulder, neck and low back. He ultimately had shoulder surgery and incurred bills of $30,000. His wife also hit her face on the dashboard and had surgery and incurred $55,000 in medical bills. After jury selection, the parties agreed to arbitration and the arbitrator awarded $805,000.

Rear-end car accident; arbitration award $225,000
Our client was struck from behind by another car. Although his car had less than $1,000 in damage, the impact caused a torn rotator cuff for which he required surgery. An arbitrator awarded our client $225,000.

Automobile accident; settlement $225,000
Our client's were taking their child to the doctor when the defendant made an illegal left turn in front of their car. Our clients suffered back and knee injuries. After knee surgeries, our client was left with a permanent knee condition the prevented her from working full-time. Our client incurred $50,000 in medical bills. The insurance company hired a doctor who claimed the knee injury was not due to the accident and offered $15,000 to settle the case. The case was brought to mediation and the recovery of $225,000 was recovered.

Car accident; arbitration award $249,000
Our client was injured when a another driver lost control of her car causing our client to strike her head on the driver's side window. Although initial medical test showed a soft tissue neck injury, our client continued to complain of severe headaches. Our client was eventually diagnosed as suffering post-traumatic stress disorder which caused her to relive the horror of the accident. The insurance company refused to settle, but an arbitrator awarded $249,000.

Minor car accident; jury verdict $136,000
Our clients were in their van with their children when another car suddenly pulled from the roadside onto the highway grazing our clients' van. Our clients suffered neck and back strains and a minor jaw injury. At trial the defendant contended that because of the minimal damage for to our clients' car ($100), the couple could not have been injured. A jury awarded them $136,000.

Minor car accident; jury verdict $315,000
Our client was rear ended at a low speed by an inattentive driver. Our client suffered a chronic back injury that required pain injections every 6 to 8 weeks. Although the insurance company hired an engineer to testify that the collision was unlikely to cause any injury, we were successful in keeping that testimony out of the case as inherently unreliable expert opinion. The jury awarder our client $315,000.

SLIP/TRIP AND FALL ACCIDENTS

Slip and fall on ice; jury verdict $615,000
Our client fell on a two-inch thick piece of ice on the walkway leading to his apartment and injured his low back. The ice was the result of a snowstorm from the night before. Our client suffered two herniated discs in his low back which required surgery. He incurred approximately $87,000 in medical bills and had a permanent injury to his back. He also lost wages of approximately $33,000. Prior to trial, the client offered to settle his case for $100,000 and the insurance company offered only $15,000. A jury returned a verdict of $615,000.

Slip on water at hospital; jury verdict $370,000
Our client was visiting her mother in the hospital when she slipped on an area recently wet-mopped by the hospital porter. She suffered a knee injury that required surgery and chronic pain to her thigh. She incurred $38,000 in medical bills. The hospital denied liability and took a no pay position, claiming that the porter placed a wet floor sign in the doorway when he did not. The jury awarded $410,000 that was reduced by 10% for the plaintiff's contributory negligence.

Slip and Fall on ice; settlement $175,000
Our client slipped and fell on ice on the steps of her rented apartment, hitting her back against the concrete steps. Her physician discovered two herniated discs in her neck and despite two operations she was left with a permanent impairment and $32,000 in medical bills. For years the landlords insurance company placed blame for the accident on our client and refused to settle. One week prior to trial the case settled for $175,000.

Slip and fall; verdict $259,000
Our client, a bread deliveryman, made delivery to a twenty-four hour diner where he was required to use a narrow rear delivery entrance. He slipped and fell on ice. He suffered a knee and back strain but later required surgery for a tear to a ligament in his knee. The insurance company refused to settle, and a jury awarded $269,000.

Trip and fall; verdict $91,000
Our sixty-year old client was attending a wedding, and while returning to her table she tripped on an electrical outlet and broke her arm. Although our client's medical bills were only $2,000 she suffered a permanent injury to her arm. The jury returned its verdict for $91,000 on the basis that the reception area was over crowded forcing guests to walk in the area where our client fell.

Trip and fall over orange safety cone; jury verdict $39,000
Our client was walking from the parking lot of a hospital when she tripped and fell over an orange safety cone on the sidewalk. She suffered a bruise to her head and a neck strain. Her doctor assigned her a minor impairment to her neck. The hospital refused to settle, and the jury awarded our client $39,000.

Slip and fall; settlement $75,000
Our client slipped on ice leading to the building where she worked, falling and injuring her back. Although she previously sustained a back injury in an automobile accident two years before, her fall severely aggravated her back condition and caused her to seek additional treatment. It was discovered that she sustained a herniated disc in her back. A lawsuit was filed on her behalf and the case was settled for $75,000.

PEDESTRIAN/BICYCLE ACCIDENTS

Pedestrian Accident; arbitration award $1,000,000
While crossing the street after visiting a hospital, our client was struck by a hit and run driver and thrown approximately fifteen feet in the air over another car. Her severely broken leg required surgical implanting of pins and screws which resulted in the shortening of her leg by several inches. She incurred $100,000 in medical bills and was out of work for six months. Fortunately, because our client had uninsured motorist coverage, she was able to make a claim against her own insurance company. An arbitration panel awarded her $1,000,000.

Bicycle - Car accident; settlement $1,400,000
Our client was a young child who darted out from a street and was struck by a car that was speeding, resulting in severe brain damage. Evidence was developed of the continuing cost of care of the child. The case settled just before jury selection.

OTHER CASES

Child Injured At Play; Structured Settlement of $180,000 present value
Our client was a young child who was over at a friend's house to play. Our client hit his throat on the edge of a picnic table, suffering severe injuries to his throat and voicebox. Evidence developed showing that the adult at home did not supervise the children properly and was drinking at the time. The case settled for a present value of $180,000 with a structured settlement totaling over $375,000 in payments over time.

Worker poisoned by defective forklift; settlement $640,000
Our client suffered brain damage from exposure to carbon monoxide fumes emitted from a dangerous forklift. Up until the time of trial, the insurance company refused to settle for a fair sum, but after jury selection the case was settled for $640,000.

Train/truck crossing accident; settlement $750,000
Our client was injured on a commuter train when it collided with a truck that was stuck on the tracks at a crossing. Our client suffered injuries to her shoulders and knees, requiring surgery. Her medical bills totaled $110,000. The case was mediated and settled for $750,000

Train Derailment in Arizona; settlement $150,000
Our client was traveling on a train going through Arizona when the train derailed. She suffered a non-surgical herniated disc and was treated for chronic pain. The case was brought in Connecticut federal court and was settled before trial for $150,000.

Victims of bar fight; verdict $69,000
Our clients were assaulted by other patrons at a bar, inflicting lacerations and contusions. Lawsuit was filed against the bar for its inadequate training of its bouncer. The insurance company for the bar took a no pay position. The jury returned a verdict of $69,000.