RESULTS: $1.5 Million Settlement
DATE: 2024
ATTORNEY: James (Jim) St. Clair
WHAT HAPPENED:
In this Virginia personal injury case involving a minor child, our client was a three-year-old girl who accompanied her mother to work with the consent of the dog owner. The owner had a dog with a history of prior attacks/bites/aggressive behavior. Knowing that the child was on the premises, the owner still brought the dog to work, and the dog attacked the child, resulting in a severe facial scar. Even after multiple surgeries, the child was left with a permanent facial scar with the need for future surgery.
LEGAL STRATEGY:
In any negligence case, it is important to establish both the liability of the responsible party and also prove the extent of the injury to the client. In this case, Attorney St. Clair hired a dog expert with appropriate expertise in dog characteristics and their propensities to review the available local city government animal control records regarding the owner’s dog. The records obtained by attorney St. Clair were valuable and highly relevant for the dog expert. Such records can be obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request or a subpoena when a case is already filed.
The dog expert also discussed the negligence of the dog owner in the training and handling of an aggressive breed. Attorney St. Clair interviewed the plastic surgeon responsible for the treatment of the infant (child) to establish the necessity of her past surgeries but also the requirements of multiple future surgeries to improve the quality of the client’s life as regards the appearance of facial scarring, even after more future surgery. In any Virginia personal injury case involving a minor under 18 years of age, a next of kin or parent is appointed or made a party to the lawsuit to represent the interests of the minor child.
THE RESULTS: $1.5 Million Settlement
After a daylong voluntary mediation designed to help the parties settle a civil personal injury case, Attorney St. Clair convinced the insurance company to offer his client $1.5 million in compensation. The report of the dog bite expert, and the presentation by the plastic surgeon was key in convincing the insurance company to compensate his client fairly.