Brooklyn Jury Awards Plaintiff $50,000 For Injury To Knee In A Rear End Collision

A Brooklyn jury recently awarded a plaintiff passenger $50,000 for personal injuries sustained in a read end motor vehicle accident.

The plaintiff was a passenger in a livery cab that was involved in a collision in March 2014 on Joralemon Street, near its intersection of Court Street. The issue of liability was waived and the issue resolved at trial was the determination of damages. The plaintiff testified that the impact jolted her back and forth and that her knee struck a magazine rack in front of her, which caused her to sustain a serious personal injury.

The plaintiff further testified that after her accident she started conservative treatment for her right knee. The plaintiff claimed that physical therapy and knee injections failed to provide her with sufficient relief for her knee pain. Ultimately, she underwent surgery to repair a chondral crack of her patella and for chondromalacia, a condition where the cartilage beneath the knee cap softens and breaks down.

The defendant argued that the plaintiff did not sustain a serious personal injury in the accident because the impact from the rear end collision was “light.” The defendant had an expert radiologist testify, who testified that the plaintiff did not sustain a fracture of the patella. The defendant also argued that the surgery was unnecessary and premature because the plaintiff did not allow the conservative treatment to run its course.

The Brooklyn jury awarded damages in the amount of $50,000 for past pain and suffering. No award was given by the jury for future pain and suffering or for medical treatment.