2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003
2007
Larry and Richard welcomed Champ Lyons as a new partner in June 2007. Champ comes from a diverse legal background, having once defended lawsuits for the insurance industry, but now fully committed to representing the people of Alabama. His prowess shone early, as he registered a $415,000 jury verdict for an Alabama consumer against an out-of-state mortgage company in a fraud case in Chilton County -- one of the highest verdicts ever in that county.
Among notable cases settled during 2007 were those involving a lawsuit against a major automobile manufacturer for a faulty design resulting in the wrongful death of an Alabama client's family member; a case involving a client dropped by hospital employees shortly after she had undergone surgery in such a manner that she endured severe injuries; a case brought on behalf of a police officer badly injured when struck by a car while directing Christmas Eve traffic; multiple cases brought on behalf of nursing home patients injured through the fault of treatment staffs; and several cases against trucking companies whose drivers have wreaked havoc and caused injuries and deaths on Alabama's roadways.
The firm also has taken note of the plight caused to injured Alabamians when workers' compensation insurance companies breach their obligations to handle claims honestly and fairly. In response, the firm has launched a campaign to bring those insurers preying on the weak to justice, and settled several such claims in 2007. Several more lawuits were filed in that area, as well. Of course, the firm continued with its efforts to stop the onslaught of retaliation some employers show toward injured workers, and effectuated several substantial settlements in key lawsuits brought on behalf of those fired simply because they exercised their rights to seek workers' compensation benefits after job injuries.
As always, the firm continued in 2007 with its efforts in the "dram shop" area of the law, culminating a significant settlement against a bar that served a patron visibly drunk -- who then drove away and killed an innocent motorist. Inasmuch as intoxicated drivers cause millions of dollars of needless suffering and loss in Alabama every year, pursuing those responsible remains a steadfast priority of our lawyers.
2006
Most notable among the firm's achievements for 2006 include a record-setting jury verdict in a case involving a man fired in retaliation for claiming workers' compensation benefits. Our client, a cement truck driver for the world's largest manufacturer of concrete, asked for further counseling for the post-traumatic stress disorder he developed following a catastrophic rollover accident -- and was promptly fired. A Chambers County jury compensated him $200,000 for wage and benefit loss, and for the emotional anguish the firing caused him. The jury tacked on $2 million in punitive damages, for a total verdict of $2.2 million. We believe that our firm is unique among all firms in Alabama, given that this is the third time juries have awarded our firm's clients verdicts of $1 million or more in this type of case.
Another case of particular interest involved a lawsuit against a doctor who left his office highly intoxicated, and crashed on his way home into the rear of a van driven by our client and occupied also by her son and a son's friend. Despite the fact that the doctor's insurance policy excluded coverage for punitive damages, we were able to achieve settlement that involved both insurance proceeds -- and a significant sum paid directly by the doctor.
Other high-profile and noteworthy cases which settled for confidential amounts included:
- A lawsuit against a Birmingham strip club which allegedly served too much alcohol to a customer who then left and caused a horrible accident on U.S. 280 – resulting in medical bills of well over $100,000;
- A lawsuit against a trucking company whose driver slammed into the rear of our client’s vehicle – a road construction truck carrying a lighted "CONSTRUCTION AHEAD" sign, causing severely disabling injuries;
- A lawsuit on behalf of our client who, on his way home to Georgia, stopped to help a vehicle which had been disabled by ice on the road; when our client got out of his car, he was struck and severely injured by another vehicle whose driver had lost control on the icy road;
- Several lawsuits involving wrongful death or severe injuries were settled against drunk drivers, a growing scourge on Alabama’s roadways;
- A matter in which our client, while a patient at a major Birmingham hospital, had her identity stolen by a hospital employee – who the hospital had neglected to determine had a lengthy criminal background prior to being hired;
- A lawsuit against a workers’ compensation carrier for extensive punitive damages where it had systematically refused to provide medical treatment or benefits to a worker – who it also happened to employ!
- Several lawsuits against national and international employers who fired injured employees in retaliation for claiming workers’ compensation benefits. This work continues to fuel our efforts in this area of the law, both in the courtroom and on the lecture circuit.
2005
Many of our clients, and lawyers and judges statewide, recognize that the lawyers of King, Horsley & Lyons have developed a special aptitude for suing employers that fire injured workers in retaliation for claiming workers' compensation benefits; that cause of action is called "retaliatory discharge." In 2005, the entire existence of that remedy came under vicious attack by big business -- which asked the Supreme Court of Alabama to hold that it was perfectly legal to fire injured workers, as long as they could fire them before a workers' compensation lawsuit was filed. We stepped into the fray, filing with the Supreme Court a "friend of the court" brief arguing against the efforts of industry. To our relief, the remedy was saved. To our delight, the unanimous opinion of the Supreme Court borrowed heavily from our brief.
Most notable among the firm's cases that went to trial in 2005, a Norfolk Southern engineer who sustained a ruptured disc when the railroad accidentally released a boxcar onto the track where his locomotive was stationed was awarded $720,000 in compensation by a Jefferson County jury; the railroad's motions for new trial were all denied.
The firm's record for achieving settlements without trial also maintained a growing pace. In the most tragic, a trucking company whose driver was under the influence of methamphetamine and likely speeding and over the center line of a highway, paid the full limits of its insurance coverage for an accident that resulted in the death of a child and severe injury to a college student. In another tragic accident, a major restaurant chain that was alleged to have served alcohol to a customer already visibily drunk settled claims made by a carload of injured people and several who died in an awful interstate collision caused by the drunken customer. The alleged negligence of a nursing home that resulted in an elderly patient's development of horrific decubitis ulcers (pressure sores) resulted in yet another high-dollar settlement. Two retaliatory discharge lawsuits against the same company, brought by workers who were allegedly fired in retaliation for claiming job injuries, resulted in voluntary settlements by the company well into six figures. And in a novel case, the firm achieved a notable settlement against a school board when it failed to provide adequate police protection at a high school baseball game, resulting in an umpire being violently assaulted by an unruly fan.
We continue to recognize that drunk driving is a problem in Alabama that causes far too many needless deaths and injuries. Two college girls injured when the college boy, allegedly intoxicated, driving them to their car ran his vehicle off the road and flipped received substantial settlements for their injuries. Lawsuits were also filed against two lounges and restaurant that allegedly served a visibly intoxicated patron who later was involved in a tragic accident that killed one young man and terribly injured another, and against a "topless bar" which allegedly served a noticeably drunk customer who left and caused horrifying injuries in an automobile accident with a dedicated family man. We will not stop that crusade.
Finally, Lindsey Hill successfully passed the Alabama Bar Examination, and joined our ranks as a practicing attorney. She has already gained valuable courtroom experience with trials before both juries and judges, and has successfully represented the firm's clients on a number of critical motions. We are truly fortunate to have her fighting with us!
2004
We are delighted to announce that we have hired Lindsey O'Dell Hill to our roster! Lindsey graduated on the Dean's List from the Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham in December 2004, and takes the bar exam in February. We anticipate that she will begin actively practicing with us around May 2005. She hails from Hueytown, Jefferson County, Alabama, and lives with her husband, Nick, here in Birmingham. Lindsey has proven to be exceptionally capable and intelligent in ferreting out the merits of cases in which we aggressively seek to protect the rights of our clients, and she will be an asset to our firm as a highly-skilled and well-trained trial attorney.
We also take a moment to recall that each of our lawyers spoke at several seminars for the benefit of other lawyers and judges statewide in 2004, including multiple seminars on advanced workers' compensation issues, as well as on auto accident litigation.
Noteworthy jury verdicts for the firm during 2004 included a Shelby County record -- highest jury award ever in that county for a client wrongfully fired in retaliation for having claimed workers' compensation benefits; the verdict is significant, given that Shelby County generally votes about 80% in favor of pro-business Republican political candidates. Further, we tried to successful judgment the case of an African-American child wrongfully accused and detained by Caucasian police officers; that judgment has been satisfied in full without appeal. Finally, we secured a $2,000,000 judgment against a trucking company after its driver crossed the center line of an Alabama highway and struck our driver's Jeep as he was reporting for active military duty; he sustained horrific injuries, and the resulting collision resulted in the tragic deaths of other motorists, as well.
As with prior years, noteworthy settlements in 2004 were many, and include:
- Confidential seven-figure settlement in favor of a client injured in an automobile collision with a tractor trailer;
- Confidential seven-figure settlement arising from wrongful death of client caused in automobile accident as a result of corporate negligence;
- Confidential settlement of claim of client against international hotel chain following brutal rape that occurred due to alleged negligent security;
- Confidential settlement on behalf of hundreds of consumers allegedly defrauded by a major utility;
- Confidential high six-figure settlement on behalf of client allegedly defrauded by workers' compensation carrier;
- Confidential settlements of claims by family members of persons allegedly unlawfully embalmed by funeral home;
- Confidential settlement on behalf of our client, a medical doctor, arising from extensive damage to his home caused by blasting operations;
- Several confidential settlements with hospitals, airport authorities, and others for clients victimized by alleged sexual harassment;
- Significant settlements on behalf of several clients victimized by malpractice alleged against podiatrists;
- Several substantial settlements achieved without the necessity of trial in cases involving clients injured in automobile accidents caused by intoxicated drivers.
We are looking forward to 2005, and have several significant cases of interest set for trial already.
2003
The "2003 Year in Review"© edition of the Alabama Jury Verdict Reporter© collected extensive data regarding 334 jury trials in civil cases from across Alabama. Those publications describe the cases, list the lawyers involved, and provide highly useful information on court proceedings statewide.
A study of that data reveals that the lawyers of King, Horsley & Lyons achieved several results of which the firm's clients are very proud. In statewide comparisons with all other reported jury verdicts, that data shows that firm's verdicts included the following rankings:
- #1 rank -- highest jury award of punitive damages, employment retaliation case.
- #2 rank -- highest jury award of compensatory damages, single plaintiff, personal injury case.
- #2 rank -- highest jury award, "slip and fall" case.
- #2 rank -- highest jury award, employment retaliation case.
- #2 rank -- highest jury award, loss of consortium claim (award made to wife compensating for effects of injury to husband).
- #11 rank -- highest award, punitive damages, cases not involving wrongful death.
- #2 rank -- highest jury award, compensatory damages, not reversed by appellate court, employment retaliation case.