On the face of it, New Haven-based attorney Rosalie Louis appeared to have a slam dunk.

Louis' client, Francheisca Ortiz, who kept impeccable records of alleged neglect by landlord 26 Nelson Street LLC, had been knocked unconscious after her ceiling collapsed on her. She had also slipped and fallen on a puddle of water on the floor.

But two factors threatened to derail the case, leading plaintiffs counsel to rely on nonstandard discovery.

"She had a good amount of documentation—from text messages back and forth with the landlord, to phone calls and pictures about the conditions in the apartment," Louis said.

In addition, on at least two occasions the New Haven apartment complex had failed inspection, the attorney said.

Plus, Ortiz was 36 weeks pregnant at the time of her fall in October 2015. The fall didn't hamper the pregnancy, but Louis said Ortiz was nervous until her daughter was born three weeks after the incident.

Louis, an associate with Lynch, Traub, Keefe & Errante, said there was pushback as the case took years to settle.

In court pleadings, the defense argued Ortiz was in part responsible for the fall, because among other things, she had failed to keep and maintain a proper lookout, and had failed to watch where she was stepping. It also claimed Ortiz "negligently, and without authority, modified pipes" in her apartment which "was a substantial factor in causing her own injuries."

Michael Sekkas, an attorney with Wood Smith Henning & Berman in Norwalk, represented defendant 26 Nelson Street. He declined to comment.

The case, amended in May 2019, appeared headed for trial. But the defense agreed to settle for $240,000 on March 3, two days before jury selection.

Louis believes the move was due in part to the plaintiff side receiving permission from the judge to pursue nonstandard discovery through detailed, written questions. She said it appears opposing counsel was on the defensive.

"We put pressure on them to show we were not backing down and going away," Louis said. "You can tailor nonstandard discovery requests, and we tailored it to getting specific plumbing records and bills."

The defense never produced those documents, because it settled soon after that.

"We believe that with our requests, it made them go back and reevaluate the case again," said Louis, who said this, coupled with her client's good record-keeping, helped clinch the six-figure settlement.

"Keep records, and have great documentation so you can use it later," Louis advises embattled tenants.

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2 Hurdles

Even though the apartment complex had failed prior inspections, it had passed the most recent one before Ortiz's fall, creating a litigation hurdle for the plaintiff.

"We overcome that by stating that clearly, the remedy the landlord did was not significant," Louis said.

Ortiz, 33, injured her back, requiring chiropractic care and orthopedic treatments. But she never had back surgery, another hurdle for Louis, who was prepared to prove her client's ongoing injury, by showing Ortiz continues to take pain medication.

"We had a very pregnant woman who fell, and was in fear or losing her child or having an emergency C-section [because] of the deplorable conditions of the property," Louis said. "It was a very stressful three weeks until the baby was born."

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