APPELLATE COURT OPINION FAVORABLE FOR SEVERELY DISABLED PLAINTIFF
The Illinois Appellate Court has issued a favorable opinion for the Estate of a severely injured plaintiff, Derek J. Thomas, who is represented by the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll. The Illinois Appellate Court affirmed the Circuit Court of Cook County's grant of the disabled plaintiff's Amended Petition to Vacate an Order entered in the Law Division approving settlement for the mentally and physically disabled plaintiff and dismissing the case.
The appellate court's opinion will allow the firm to continue its fight in pursuing a personal injury lawsuit on Mr. Thomas's behalf. This young man's injuries require an extremely high level of medical care. The court's ruling will allow us to pursue the recovery of a substantial amount of funds to take care of him. The appellate court referenced the trial court specifically noting the "extraordinary efforts" taken by the guardian ad litem, the temporary guardian and Jeffrey Kroll to ensure the protection of Thomas.
The lawsuit arose out of a tragic car accident. Derek Thomas was a passenger in a motor vehicle operated by Robert L. Martin and owned by William L. Dawson Nursing Center on I-57 at or near 103rd Street in Chicago. Martin lost control of his southbound motor vehicle and entered the northbound incoming lanes and collided with a second vehicle.
As a result of the appellate court's ruling, the case will return to the Circuit Court of Cook County where we will continue to engage in litigation to ensure that when this matter is ultimately dismissed, Derek Thomas will be fairly compensated for his injuries.
Frankly, this personal injury suit has had a storied past. Before I represented the plaintiff when he was represented by another law firm, a pre-trial conference was held wherein defendant agreed to pay $175,000 in an annuity. No action was taken on the case for a year until the defendant brought a motion to compel the plaintiff to approve the settlement in both the law division and the probate division. On October 18, 2005, defendant's motion to compel plaintiff to approve the settlement was granted and plaintiff's counsel was instructed to "seek to approve the settlement reached between the parties before October 21, 2005" or "this Court will make its own motion to approve the settlement." Neither the guardian or his attorney were present in court; only defense counsel was present. The court was never advised of a $262,000 Illinois Department of Public Aid lien.
In the probate court, a guardian ad litem was appointed and she was instructed to examine the reasonableness of the proposed settlement. The probate division entered an order finding that the $175,000 settlement was unconscionable and rejected it.
After the law division order was entered stating that the proposed settlement agreement "is proper," the guardian ad litem filed a petition to intervene. That petition was denied. A motion to reconsider the petition to intervene was brought before the court. That motion was granted, but the petition to vacate the order approving the settlement was denied. The presiding judge of the Law Division vacated the order approving the settlement and set a new briefing schedule and transferred it to a new judge. The new judge vacated the dismissal order finding that it was unenforceable. She found that the plaintiff established due diligence in vacating the dismissal order and met his burden by a preponderance of the evidence. Further, the court noted that the prior judge did not indicate in the order that he found the settlement to be fair and reasonable, the order did not provide that the settlement monies would be paid only to the representative of the disabled person and the order did not comply with any of the procedures required by the circuit court rules.
The defendant appealed the order vacating the dismissal order.
The appellate court affirmed the trial court's order holding that the plaintiff had a meritorious claim to vacate the dismissal order.
If you have been injured in a car crash, please contact the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll. We care about our clients and make every effort to ensure that you are justly compensated for your injuries.
