A 62-year-old Catholic school teacher who broke both her legs in a head-on motor vehicle collision in Montgomery County has settled her personal injury lawsuit prior to trial for $1.65 million. The plaintiff was on her way home from work when an auto repair parts delivery driver, traveling in the opposite direction, crossed Swartz Culleton Settles Motor Vehicle Accident Case for $1.65 Million the lane divider into oncoming traffic, striking the plaintiff.
A hotly contested fight early in the litigation concerned the defendant driver’s efforts to have the case transferred to Montgomery County from Philadelphia, where the plaintiff’s lawyers, Swartz Culleton, had filed suit. In an effort to have the case moved to a more defendant friendly court, the defense lawyers argued that there was no Philadelphia connection because the accident happened in Warminster, Montgomery County and both the plaintiff and defendant lived and worked in Montgomery County. Swartz Culleton attorney Chris Culleton was successful in keeping the case in Philadelphia through evidence from private investigators that the defendant driver’s employer sold auto parts to Philadelphia repair shops.
As the case approached trial, Swartz Culleton assembled a barrage of reports from vocational, rehabilitation, actuary economic and medical experts that placed dollar values on the plaintiff’s financial loss and future care costs. Attempts at settlement by a private mediator in October 2011 failed after the plaintiff’s team rejected what the defendants claimed was their final offer. Weeks later, however, and with trial looming, the defendant’s insurance carrier increased its offer and the case settled.