Our client, a 36 year old female from a foreign country was riding her bicycle on a street in Los Angeles when she was struck by an MTA bus. According to the Police Report and "investigation" by the Los Angeles Police Department, our client was found to be the sole cause of the accident for violating Vehicle Code 21202 (a bicyclist shall ride as close as practicable to the right hand curb) and swerving into the path of the bus.
Jay A. Kaplan, founding partner of the Kaplan Law Corporation, conducted extensive discovery in this case including taking the deposition of the MTA bus driver involved in the accident. At the driver's deposition, Mr. Kaplan was able to elicit testimony that the driver was a recent hire with a history of medical problems, traffic violations and collisions during training as well as having told several different versions of how he claimed the accident occurred.
Our office was also able to retain various safety experts who documented that the defendant's driver violated several of MTA's various rules, regulations, standard operating procedures, as well as certain California Vehicle Codes violations which were the proximate cause of the accident.
The Plaintiff suffered several painful injuries as a result of being struck by the bus, including but not limited to a pelvic fracture, fracture of the left hip joint, sacral fracture as well as various hematomas and abscesses. As a result of these injuries, she spent approximately two months at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Additionally, the Plaintiff lost approximately $15,000.00 in earnings before successfully returning to her job.
The case was recently settled for $3,000.000.00
The following is a description of a wide range of factual scenarios and injuries concerning recent cases handled by Kaplan Law Corporation. Most of the injuries involved in following cases were not either career ending or "life threatening" nature. However, the effects of these injuries are no less devastating to those who experience them and difficult on the families of these injured railroaders while they are undergoing medical treatment and recuperation.