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Representative Cases – Plaintiff
"In the trial of any
lawsuit, there are one or two key witnesses that determine the outcome
of trial. The lawyer who can identify and successfully examine those
witnesses is the lawyer who will carry the day."
Products liability
A tread and belt separation tragedy in west Texas resulted in the
death of a devoted wife and mother of two and personal injury of
other passengers in the vehicle. MHN brought the wrongful death
and survivor claims and the bystander claims of her sons and husband
and the personal injury claims of the passengers. The suit challenged
the design and manufacturing of a tire manufactured in Oklahoma.
Factual investigation uncovered witnesses who testified that the
manufacturer, in their zeal to produce tires more quickly, forced
workers to ignore safety considerations in favor of higher production.
From a design standpoint, patents obtained by the defendants revealed
that nylon cap plies had been touted as a remedy for tread and belt
separation but had not been used on tires produced in the United
States for economic reasons (the cost would increase by $.03 to
$.10 per tire). The manufacturing defect, combined with the design
defect resulted in a seven figure verdict unparalleled in the Federal
Court in San Angelo before then.
Employment
The discharge of the general manager of a business engaged in the
application of aluminum coatings to steel to resist, among other
things, the corrosive effects of sea water on steel to be used in
off shore oil applications resulted in MHN being retained to address
the propriety of the termination of the client's employment and
the appropriate scope of his covenant not to compete. Upon sale
of his business, the buyer/employer agreed to keep the client on
as a general manager of the company. When the client was subsequently
fired, suit followed and the issues litigated included wrongful
discharge, the strength of the contract of employment and the effectiveness
of certain non compete covenants. A seven figure resolution was
achieved for the client.
Nursing home/assisted living
The death of a mentally handicapped woman who had been mistreated,
improperly medicated and neglected while in the care of workers
at an assisted living center for the mentally challenged resulted
in the retention of MHN to investigate and address the perceived
injustice. Factual investigation revealed workers who were working
8 hours at one job then going immediately to their "night job"
with the defendant where the workers would put in an additional
10 to 12 hours. The quality of care the workers could render was
suspect given their circumstances. Further investigation challenged
the effectiveness of the medication program and the financial incentive
of such assisted living facilities to diminish medication toward
the end of the calendar month as medicaid funds for prescriptions
ran low, then resume regular dosages at the first of the month.
By working with forensic physicians and toxicologists and coupling
the science with testimony from undertrained and overworked employees,
a favorable result was achieved.
Insurance Subrogation
When a national insurance company balked at fulfilling its contractual
obligations in a multi-million dollar loss, MHN was hired to lead
the recovery effort under the policy. After months of diligent investigation
and legal briefing, the client recovered not only the full amount
due under the policy, but also the attorneys fees that had been
incurred by the client in seeking the recovery. MHN was successful
in obtaining a complete victory without incurring the time and expense
of a full trial. Instead, he convinced the trial judge to grant
a summary disposition for the full amount plus the incurred attorney's
fees.
Medical Malpractice
When a mother of five died suddenly after being discharged from
a hospital, the family asked MHN to find out why. A thorough, tireless
and aggressive investigation revealed a misdiagnosis and failure
to properly monitor the patient's heart thereby implicating two
doctors and a hospital. Following the depositions of the doctors
and nurses involved, one of the doctors and the hospital quickly
settled insisting that the settlement be kept confidential. The
other doctor held out until the second day of trial, when he too
agreed to settle. As might be expected, he and his lawyers also
insisted that the settlement be kept confidential.
Employment
When the discharge of two pilots from a major airline recently received
national attention, MHN was retained to address the alleged wrongful
termination of the pilots. By combining civil process with a strategy
incorporating the benefits of the pilots’ collective bargaining
agreement, all matters were resolved and the pilots remain productive
employees of the airline. |
