$1,400,000.00 verdict
Robert Kendall (carpenter foreman):
I was hired by the railroad industry in 1977 and worked for Metro-North Railroad from 1983 until 2007. My career was cut short because of a severe back injury I sustained opening up a heavy sliding gate leading into a railroad storage yard. I had complained to supervisors several times before the accident and the railroad actually did try to fix the gate. Because the gate was not fixed properly, the next time I had to open the gate, I felt a pop in my back. I didn't report my injury right away because the accident happened at the end of the day and I was hoping my injury was just a muscle pull. It took my doctors years to detect a torn disc in my lower back and decide that I needed major surgery to fuse my spine.
After the railroad tried to settled my claim for a small sum, I decided to file a lawsuit and Ira Maurer represented me. During the trial in federal court, Metro-North Railroad claimed my injury didn’t happen at work and that the railroad had acted reasonably in its efforts to repair the sliding gate. My wife and I knew we were in good hands with Ira trying the case. He nailed every witness who tried to change their pre-trial story. Ira also spent a lot of time working with my doctors to make sure the medical evidence offered during the trial would help win my case and the damages I deserved. Just after the jury started deliberating, a note was sent by the jury to the judge asking for a calculator! At that time, the railroad’s claim agent offered me the $750,000.00 that I had previously said would settle the case. My wife and I, with the support of Ira, turned down the settlement and took a verdict. The jury awarded $1,400,000.00! Ira Maurer made that verdict possible.
