Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby LLP

Partner Mark T. Gallagher and associate Wendy S. Smith secured a defense verdict in a fall-down accident case recently tried before a jury in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas.

The two-week trial involved a negligence claim against the Firm's client, the property owners of the plaintiff’s apartment complex, and a negligence/product liability case against the manufacturer and installer of a new shower base that the plaintiff claimed was so slippery he fell and tore his ACL.  The plaintiff is a retired plaintiffs' lawyer in the Philadelphia community who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1986. He had a history of falling, which was evident in his medical records, including a fall in his shower in 1986 due to his condition. While the manufacturer settled the plaintiff's direct claim before opening arguments, the jury deliberated for a little over an hour before returning with a defense verdict on all other claims.