MOTOR VEHICLE

POLK CIRCUIT COURT

A jury awarded $5.4 million to a couple after the husband suffered a kidney laceration, spinal fracture, leg fracture and a shattered hip prosthesis in a head-on car collision in Lakeland.

David Young, who was in his 60s at the time of the July 2016 accident, also claimed he suffered brain damage that impairs his decision-making. The other motorist conceded liability for rear ending a pickup truck, accelerating across a median after her airbag deployed and hitting Young's vehicle.

Her attorneys contended Young's brain injury was a result of a preexisting condition. The jury awarded nearly $5.2 million to Young and $250,000 for a derivative claim filed by his wife.

Case: Young v. McCoy

Case No.: 2016CA004053000000

Plaintiffs attorneys: K. Mitch Espat and Matthew D. Powell, MattLaw, Tampa

Defense attorneys: Orlando D. Cabeza and Pete L. DeMahy, DLD Lawyers, Coral Gables; and Hank B. Campbell and Jack James III, Campbell, Trohn, Tamayo & Aranda, Lakeland