Faced with the unusual prospect of having no testimony from treating doctors, and no proof of medical bills in a jury trial in a motor vehicle tort case, plaintiff attorney Mohan Sreenivasan had his work cut out for him.

The New Haven attorney took over representing plaintiffs Daniel Scinto and Jennifer Lestrange on the day of jury selection. He concedes it was a gamble, because no treating medical doctor would testify on the couple's behalf, an obstacle Sreenivasan overcame to secure $550,000 for his clients.

This left the attorney to devise a litigation strategy hinged on noneconomic damages, as bankruptcy loomed for his clients. The verdict was lower than what the couple had sought, but it surpassed all the medical expenses, which the plaintiff alleged, without support from doctors.

Plaintiffs Scinto and Lestrange sued defendant Frank Rogers, alleging he'd T-boned their Nissan station wagon as the couple was driving in Orange in 2016, headed toward their retirement home in South Carolina.

Scinto, who was driving, claims the collision worsened his heart condition, resulting in a surgical procedure. And Lestrange, the passenger, was claiming injuries to her nose, and trauma to her face.

But the treating physicians, most in South Carolina, did not believe the crash had caused the injuries to either plaintiff, according to Sreenivasan, co-owner of New Haven-based Calabrese + Sreenivasan.

"No doctor wanted to talk about causation," the attorney said.

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'I gambled'

The treating doctors didn't testify, because they believed there was no connection between Scinto's heart condition and the traffic collision. And as for Lestrange, who'd had prior surgery, physicians said that "the science supported that the nose surgery was a result of a naturally occurring condition," Sreenivasan said.

In addition, the doctors refused to release their medical costs to Sreenivasan, meaning the jury had to take the attorney at his word that the couple's medical costs were about $400,000.

So, what was Sreenivasan's defense for his clients?

"I gambled," the attorney told the Connecticut Law Tribune. "I raised the issue of Mr. Scinto going into bankruptcy as a consequence of him not being able to work, and being overwhelmed."

Sreenivasan continued: "I raised the bankruptcy issue in front of the jury, saying this accident profoundly changed the couple's life. I told the court to remove the jury instructions for economic damages, and did not present a single medical bill. We gave the jury a case on noneconomic damages. I also told the jury that Mr. Scinto was a stand-up guy who does not back away from his debt. My argument to the jury was that if this accident did not happen, they would have been enjoying their retirement."

The jury ended up siding with the plaintiff to the tune of $550,000, awarding $350,000 to Lestrange and $200,000 to Scinto in a verdict rendered Jan. 8.

But it was far less than what the plaintiffs had sought, with Sreenivasan asking during closing arguments for more than $7 million in damages.

The lack of medical support took its toll, but Sreenivasan said he thinks the aftereffects swayed the New Haven Superior Court jury.

"The couple had a successful business for more than 40 years," the attorney said. "He was a plumber, and she was a general contractor. Their work life was interrupted because of this accident and this event."

Defense counsel Joseph Grippe of Cheshire-based Ouellette Deganis Gallagher & Grippe, pointed jurors to the lack of medical testimony and evidence.

"At trial, the plaintiffs provided testimony that they incurred more than $400,000 in medical bills," Grippe said. "The defense was able to get some of the injuries precluded, as there was no expert disclosed regarding causation."

The defense never admitted liability, and left it to the plaintiffs to prove their case.

Grippe said, "This was an unfortunate accident where the plaintiffs were claiming significant issues requiring multiple surgical procedures."

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