Brandon R. Herling

Secured a Delaware Superior Court appellate win following a court decision with in which the Superior Court ruled that “no reasonable mind” could have ruled as the Industrial Accident Board had ruled. In securing this appellate win in the employer's favor, in a high-profile, nationally reported case, the Delaware claimant was found to be not entitled to any compensation at all, based on the strength of the employer's evidence as presented to the Board. The evidence involved driving while under the influence of alcohol, resulting in an accident involving both physical injury and property damage. Additionally, the precedential weight of the Court's holding in this matter and under these circumstances has increased protection for employers against similar claims in the future.

Designed and authored successful Motion in Limine to bifurcate trial on liability and damages as well as seeking to bar the plaintiff from the courtroom during the liability phase based on the prejudicial sympathetic nature of his appearance and inability to assist in his case. The plaintiff was a professional harness racer who fell during a race at a local track, suffering a severe traumatic brain injury which caused him to be a limited functional quadriplegic. The initial demand for settlement was $100,000,000. The plaintiff accepted a significantly reduced offer of settlement after the Motion in Limine to bifurcate and exclude the plaintiff from view of the jury was granted. 

Secured summary judgment on behalf of a product manufacturer and distributor after a catastrophic residential fire resulted in a death and injuries to multiple plaintiffs. The plaintiffs alleged a space heater made by the client caused the fire. Recognized and then proved conclusively that the rusted fan blade at the scene of the fire could not have been produced by client based on client’s exclusive use of aluminum fan blades, a fact overlooked by investigators and experts. Summary judgment was eventually granted in favor of the client, dismissing the client from the case, with prejudice. 

Successfully defended a workers’ compensation claim by securing a judgment for the defense at a hearing by demonstrating that symptoms began more than two years after accident. The claimant wanted to expand the scope of accepted injuries, seeking more than $150,000 in new medical expenses. 

Secured the withdrawal of a claimant’s Petition to Determine Compensation Due after filing a motion that demonstrated conclusively, via payroll records, that the claimant was not working on the date of injury.

Successfully negotiated a zero-dollar reimbursement settlement with a state agency on behalf of employer despite the agency’s $20,000+ demand. The agency withdrew the demand for reimbursement when presented with the claimant’s stipulation, secured during settlement negotiations, that the claimant was not entitled to disability benefits during the time when the employer’s petition was pending before the Board.