Waller v. Shah

Defense Verdict

Date of Verdict: March 5.

Court and Case No.: C.P. Montgomery No. 2017-17767.

Judge: Garrett D. Page.

Type of Action: Motor vehicle.

Injuries: Back, neck, shoulder injuries.

Plaintiffs Counsel: Michael A. Pungitore, Spear, Greenfield, Richman, Weitz & Taggart, Philadelphia.

Plaintiffs Expert: David Smith, physical medicine; Sicklerville, New Jersey.

Defense Counsel: Michael J. Lyon, Walsh Pancio, Lansdale.

Defense Expert: Marc Manzione, orthopedic surgery, Huntingdon Valley.

Comment:

On Dec. 17, 2016, plaintiff William Waller, 42, a truck driver, was driving north on Interstate 476, near Lansdale. His sedan struck a disabled car head-on. Waller claimed injuries to his neck, shoulder and back.

Waller sued the driver, Mahek Kishor Shah. Waller alleged that Shah was negligent. Just prior to the accident, Shah was driving north on Interstate 476 during a snowstorm; he lost control of his vehicle and spun out on the road. The front of his vehicle faced oncoming traffic when Waller crashed into it. Waller's counsel argued that Shah was negligent for failing to use more caution when driving in the inclement weather, and for not properly relocating his disabled vehicle in a safer area so that Waller would not strike it.

The defense argued that Shah was exercising caution while driving in the snowy conditions, and that it was no fault of his own that he lost control of his car. Upon doing so, he attempted to pull over his vehicle to the right side of the road as much as possible, but he was limited, since there was no shoulder. Additionally, he activated his emergency flashers. The defense also maintained that Waller was comparatively negligent.

The defense asserted that Waller should have seen Shah's disabled vehicle and should have taken evasive measures to avoid hitting it.

Waller's counsel noted that although Shah claimed to have activated his hazards, he never confirmed that they were working. Waller testified he had no recollection of seeing that Shah's hazards were working.

Waller was taken by ambulance to an emergency room and was examined and released. Waller was diagnosed with herniations at cervical intervertebral discs C3-4, C5-6, C7-T1; bulging at C2-3, C4-5, L4-5 and L5-S1; cervical radiculopathy; a partial tear of the left supraspinatus tendon; and a tear of the labrum in his left shoulder.

On Dec. 23, 2016, almost a week after the accident, Waller, complaining of pain in his neck and back, presented to a rehabilitation facility. Waller came under the care of a physiatrist and underwent six to eight months of physical therapy that consisted of massage and exercise. During that time, he underwent MRIs and received an epidural injection in his cervical spine. He received no further treatment.

Waller's physiatrist causally related Waller's injuries and treatment to the accident, and opined that the plaintiff suffered a serious impairment of a bodily function. The physician rated Waller's condition as guarded and opined that he could require future treatment, including neck surgery and additional injections.

Waller testified that he continues to suffer from neck and back pain, which prevents him from sitting and standing for long periods. He contended that this affects his duties as a truck driver and interferes with him playing with his five grandchildren. He sought damages for past and future pain and suffering.

The defense's expert in orthopedic surgery testified that Waller did not suffer a serious impairment of a bodily function, as his MRIs showed only pre-existing and degenerative changes. At most, he suffered strains and sprains of his neck and back, which would have resolved eventually, the expert concluded.

The jury found that Shah was not negligent.

This report is based on information that was provided by plaintiffs and defense counsel.

—This report first appeared in VerdictSearch, an ALM publication