> West Palm Beach Wrongful Death Lawyer – Past Cases – Boca Raton Personal Injury Attorney

Past Cases

We are a referral based practice, and we are happy to evaluate all cases for our clients and push them forward aggressively to get the best possible result. Our attorneys have obtained verdicts, judgments and settlements that total in the hundreds of millions of dollars.  Here are some of those results:    

$100 Million  - Wrongful Death
Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith has handled many large damage and high profile cases through the years.  We have the experience and resources that are needed to handle such cases effectively. The parties' desire for confidentiality prevents us from discussing the details of this record-setting award, but we are proud of our efforts in bringing a measure of justice to a very deserving family.

$20.78 Million Verdict - Drunk Driving Accident
February 12 is a day Lisa will never forget. It was the day she became the victim of a drunk driver behind the wheel of an Enterprise rental car. As a result of the wreck, Lisa suffered disc injuries in her spine that will require surgery. When attempts to settle Lisa’s claim failed, a lawsuit was filed against both the drunk driver and Enterprise. After a trial that involved several days of complex medical testimony concerning Lisa’s pre-existing fibromyalga, the jury awarded compensatory and punitive damages in the total amount of $20,786,882. Lisa was also awarded attorneys’ fees because of Enterprise’s failure to accept her offers to settle. It is the hope of Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith that this widely publicized verdict will serve as a wake-up call to drunk drivers. Nearly half of all fatal motor vehicle collisions involve alcohol.

Multi-Million Dollar Settlement - Medical Malpractice
Our 22-year-old client was a ventilator dependent patient at Delray Medical Center. Without warning, the ventilator became disconnected, thereby stopping his oxygen supply.   Alarms sounded, yet no one responded. Jairo's restrained  wrists, which were tied to the bed to prevent him from inadvertently removing the breathing tube, made it impossible for him to move.   The alarms continued to ring.  Incredibly, the nurse responsible for monitoring Jairo went on a break without informing her co-workers or obtaining coverage. Moreover, she left her stat pager, a device which would have immediately notified her that a crisis was occurring, at Jairo's bedside. By the time the hospital staff finally responded, it was too late - the lack of oxygen caused Jairo to sustain  a devastating and life-altering anoxic brain injury from which he will never recover. For the remainder of Jairo's life, he will be bedridden, blind, unable to communicate, but yet still able to feel pain.  Prior to trial, a settlement was obtained which included funds which will cover the cost of Jairo's round-the-clock needs and medical care for the remainder of his life.

$11.7 Million+  Confidential Settlement
The constraints of confidentiality prevent us from discussing the details of our representation in this precedent setting case.  The settlement is believed to be the largest of its kind in Florida history for this type of case.  Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith is not afraid to take on the powerful, nor are we afraid to "think outside of the box."   We utilize a team approach that allows us to always place our client's interests first.

Multi-million dollar confidential settlement
Our clients suffered one of the worst loses imaginable - the death of their precious 11 year old daughter. Confidentiality agreements prevent us from providing the details of this record setting settlement. Nevertheless, we can say that after over 2 years of hard fought litigation -- the file occupied dozens and dozens of boxes -- and depositions of expert witnesses all across the country, the defendants agreed to our demands on the eve of trial. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith has both the legal ability and the financial wherewithal to go toe-to-toe with the largest product manufacturers and insurance companies in the world. It is gratifying that our efforts helped bring closure to the parents of an innocent child whom we will never, ever forget.

$6.3 Million Verdict - Motorcycle Wreck
 Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith is a boutique law firm that utilizes a team approach to its cases. We are small enough to provide the personal touch, yet large enough, and with sufficient resources, to effectively represent clients in cases involving catastrophic injury or death. In this case, Josh, age 23, was wrongfully killed when an elderly driver turned directly in front of his motorcycle. The jury found the elderly driver completely at fault for causing the wreck and awarded $6.3 million in damages. We were successful in obtaining justice for Josh's parents by utilizing a team approrach that involved many of the firm's attorneys. Our attorneys have considerable jury trial experience and do not hesitate to use that experience, when needed, to obtain justice for our clients.

$6 Million - Uninsured Motorist/Insurance Bad Faith
Tiffany is a young woman who was involved in a terrible car wreck. The wreck left her a paraplegic. Tiffany lived with her grandparents, and they had a total of $4.5 million of uninsured motorist coverage. Those limits should have been paid immediately. When they were not, Tiffany’s grandparents contacted the family’s attorney, who filed a lawsuit against the uninsured motorist insurance carrier. The insurance company would not even concede the amount of available insurance – much less pay Tiffany. We worked with the family attorney to achieve justice for Tiffany in a hard fought Federal lawsuit in Ft. Myers. We were successful in obtaining a crucial ruling from the Federal Judge establishing conclusively that the available coverage was, in fact, $4.5 million. Shortly after this ruling, the insurance company tried to settle the claim for $4.5 million. Given the insurance company’s delay in meeting its obligations, we were successful in obtaining a total settlement for Tiffany of $6 million. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith encourages our clients to carry ample uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage because of the large number of drivers in Florida who either have no liability insurance or inadequate coverage.

Confidential Settlement - Nursing Home Death
Often, the survivors of loved ones retain our services not only to seek vindication for the negligence of others, but also to determine the true cause of their loved one's demise. The son and daughter of Mrs. Smith are a perfect example. After Mrs. Smith fainted at her home, she was transferred to St. Mary's Hospital and discharged to an area nursing home where she died nine days later. An autopsy was performed and the medical examiner determined Mrs. Smith died of natural causes. Fortunately, a private medical examiner was retained for litigation purposes. After the expert performed a detailed autopsy, he determined the true cause of death - skull fracture. After conferencing with the expert, and in conjunction with his records review, we determined that Mrs. Smith fell in her home and struck her head, thereby resulting in a skull fracture. The skull fracture went undiagnosed in the nursing home. During her stay at the nursing home, Mrs. Smith complained of worsening, excruciating headaches. Despite the complaints of the resident and her children, the nursing home did nothing. We determined that the complaints were due to swelling of the brain which destroyed tissue and was the sole cause of death. Furthermore, if the condition was timely recognized, life saving medication could have been used. Shortly thereafter, a significant, confidential settlement was obtained.

$3.6 Million - Insurance Bad Faith/Personal Injury
Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith has been honored to co-counsel cases involving insurance bad faith issues with lawyers throughout Florida. Several of our attorneys and staff worked for insurance companies before joining the Firm. Accordingly, we have a unique insight into how insurance companies work. In this case we were pleased to handle the bad faith aspects of a case that resulted in a a pre-trial settlement that was 144 times the $25,000 policy limits. Insurance bad faith cases are complex and hard fought. We have the knowledge and experience to hold insurance companies accountable when they violate Florida law and act in bad faith.

Denial of Coverage Results in Settlement Over 250 Times Policy Limits
 In Florida, insurance companies are governed by a set of rules they must obey. When they arrogantly ignore these rules and operate in a bad faith fashion, there are consequences. Jack's insurance company wrongly decided that he had no coverage for the claim made against him. By not providing him the defense and coverage he was entitled to, we were successful in forcing the insurance company to satisfy the entire judgment entered against Jack -- even though it was over 250 times the coverage amount. Our attorneys have had decades of experience defending insurance companies. We know both the rules and the tricks insurance companies sometimes use to try to break them. We handle cases throughout Florida when insurance companies break the rules and operate in bad faith.

$3.25 Million - Insurance Bad Faith/Motorcycle Wreck
 Henry’s wife needed help. Her husband was in a coma at St. Mary’s Hospital as the result of a terrible motorcycle accident. She retained an attorney who, after doing some research, discovered there was only minimal insurance available from the at-fault driver. The attorney told Henry’s wife she did not need to incur the expense of retaining an attorney since the $10,000 in coverage should immediately be paid by the at-fault driver’s insurance company. When Henry came out of the coma, his wife began to wonder when the family would receive the $10,000 in coverage. She again contacted the attorney who, disgusted by the insurance company’s failure to settle, immediately filed a lawsuit against the negligent driver. The attorney then contacted us to pursue an insurance bad faith claim against the driver’s insurance company. We were successful in convincing the insurance company to mediate the entire dispute before Henry’s injury claim went to trial. The result? A settlement of 325 times the $10,000 policy limits. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith is available for consultation throughout the State of Florida on insurance bad faith matters.

Construction Site Accident - Confidential Settlement
 When John Doe arrived at the new building construction site, he could never have imagined that in the following minutes the building, and subsequently his life, would begin to crumble around him. Due to one error after another by the general contractor and its subcontractors, the building literally collapsed underneath him while Mr. Doe was performing drywall work. The multiple defendants and the insurance companies worked together to fight Mr. Doe and his attorney for years. When Mr. Doe was on the verge of giving up hope, Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith took over the case. Within months, the defendants' united front crumbled like the building's floor and a confidential settlement was reached which will provide young Mr. Doe with financial security for the remainder of his life.

$2 Million - Policy Limits Settlement/Construction Site Accident
 Veny was living the American dream. A white collar worker in his native country, he readily accepted a blue collar job here until he could find something more suitable. On the day of his untimely death, he was simply following orders. His boss told him to assist a driver unloading date palm trees. Tragically, the trees had shifted in transit, but the driver released the straps holding them before walking around the truck to see if it was safe to do so. The trees suddenly and unexpectedly rolled off the truck, crushing Veny’s skull. The insurance company for the trucking company refused to settle with Veny’s family attorney, who contacted our firm to assist him. We retained an expert to quantify the family’s economic loss. A compelling video was also presented to the insurance company to demonstrate the devastating suffering Veny’s wife had suffered and would suffer for the rest of her life. The insurance company promptly offered the $2 million policy limits after seeing our presentation. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith is here to help those victimized by the wrongful death of a loved one.

Confidental Settlement - Nursing Home
 Reverend Smith was a family man and the pillar of his community. Unfortunately, in his later years he developed severe dementia and his wife was forced to admit him to a nursing home. Approximately eight (8) weeks after admission, his wife arrived at the facility to find him covered in ants. According to the nursing home records, the Reverend suffered at least eighty (80) ant bites. His eye was swollen and his foot was bleeding. He was rushed to the hospital and subsequently discharged to an area rehabilitation facility. The admitting staff at the facility discovered that the Reverend had a large, stage four decubitus ulcer of the left heel and a stage two ulcer of the right heel. The family turned to Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith for help. We initiated the statutory presuit process and, in response, the defendant nursing home claimed that the Reverend had the ulcers when he initially arrived at the home. After vigorous discovery, we were able to prove through the use of the Reverend's hospital and physicians' records that his skin was intact at the time of the nursing home admission. The case settled for a very significant confidential settlement. Bringing abusive nursing homes to justice is not just our job -- it's a passion!

$2 Million - Policy Limits Recovery / Wrongful Death - Trucking Accident
 Loss of a loved one is devastating. This is especially so when the loss occurs under violent and unjust circumstances. At Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith we have significant experience in handling wrongful death cases and work hard to represent our clients in a sensitive, caring fashion. In this case, following a tragic loss in a trucking accident, we moved quickly to employ investigators and engineers so that crucial evidence would not be destroyed or tampered with. Our prompt examination of the truck's "black box" proved critical. The data confirmed what we suspected - the trucker had been speeding and did not even slow down for a red light. When confronted with this objective evidence, the insurance company was forced to pay the available policy limits. Wrongful death cases require experience and resources. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith has both.

$1.8 Million - Wrongful Death
At Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith we work hard for our clients. Here, our clients, the loving parents of a 32 year-old son, did not suffer any economic loss when their son died. The emotional loss of losing one of their children was tremendous, though. We wanted to help them achieve a sense of justice. A confidentiality agreement prevents us from sharing the details of this hard fought, precedent setting case. Nevertheless, we can say that our hard work on behalf of our clients was truly a labor of love

$1.375 Million – Trucking  Accident
Melanie was a 28-year old hard-working mother of 2 young children who was involved in a serious collision with a tractor trailer that had lost control.  The driver of the tractor trailer was driving at an excessive rate of speed and not paying attention to the road. Melanie sustained a back injury from the collision and ultimately came to require a spinal fusion. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith was able to obtain the full $1 million policy limits from the insurer of the tractor trailer, as well as an additional $375,000 from Melanie's uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) motorist coverage.  It is very important to maintain um/uim insurance coverage.  This insurance protects you in case you are involved in an accident with someone who does not maintain sufficient insurance to fully compensate you for your injuries and damages sustained.  Although the tractor trailer did maintain $1 million in liability coverage, it was not enough to fully compensate Melanie for the extensive damages she suistained.  The foresight of Melanie maintaining sufficient um/uim coverage helped Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith obtain an additional $375,000 from her insurance company, for a total settlement of $1,375,000.

$1.3 Million - Insurance Bad Faith/Car Accident
 Shawn caused a car accident. He did not mean to; it was an accident. Shawn had purchased $10,000 in insurance coverage to protect him from such mistakes. Unfortunately, his insurance company failed to settle the claim made against him. We litigated Shawn’s insurance bad faith case in Lee County. After deposing the insurance adjuster for two days, we were able to conclusively establish that the entire claim did not settle because the adjuster was trying to save $200 on the company’s property damage payment. Shortly before trial the case settled for $1,300,000, or 130 times the policy limits. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith has the experience and resources to hold insurance companies that act in bad faith accountable.

$1.25 Million - Car Accident
Our client was struck by a slow moving car in a parking lot.  After the accident, his back hurt and his knee hurt.  It seemed like a simple case -- at least the first attorney thought so.  The case was handled in the "standard" fashion by this attorney, and the attorney tried to obtain a quick settlement.  When the insurance company made a meager, "standard" offer that was unsatisfactory to the client, he was referred to us by one of his friends. Our firm knows, from having handled literally thousands of motor vehicle accident cases through the years, that there is no such thing as a case that is either simple or standard.  Each case is different, and law firms that handle motor vehicle accident cases in a "cookie cutter" fashion frequently get "cookie cutter" results -- uniform, but uniformly poor.  At Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith we take the time to properly investigate and evaluate all aspects of our cases.  Our clients deserve nothing less.  In this case, our efforts allowed this deserving client to obtain a full measure of justice for his injuries.

$1.25 Million - Boating Accident / Wrongful Death
Our 79 year-old client lost the love of his life, his wife, in a tragic boating accident. The insurance company took the position that the damages were relatively minimal, given the age of the decedent. We knew that suffering the loss of a loved one is the ultimate injury - at any age. We fought hard to show, through photographs and testimony of family members, that the case had substantial value. After seeing our presentation and our commitment to the case, the insurance company reconsidered its position and a fair settlement was reached. At Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith we work very hard to obtain justice for our clients. We would not have it any other way.

$1.15 Million - Personal Injury Settlement
The insurance carrier requested that we keep all details of Kelly's settlement confidential. We will honor their request.

$1.12 Million - Car Accident
Nick, a 37 year-old carpenter, was involved in a roll-over collision while traveling through Tennessee, injuring his neck and his knees in the crash. He ultimately required a cervical fusion and arthroscopic knee surgery. Nick did not initially retain counsel. Shortly after the one year anniversary of the accident, he sought to recover the $10,000 uninsured/underinsured motorist policy limits available under his own policy of insurance. Shockingly, the carrier informed him that the time period he had to file his claim under Tennessee law had expired. Five different law firms turned down the case and informed him that he had no case. Just when he was about to give up hope, a good friend and former client of the firm referred him to Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith. We immediately informed him that Florida, not Tennessee, law applied. We filed a statutory notice with the Department of Insurance, waited for the requisite time period to expire, then filed suit against the insurance carrier. After we convinced the carrier of their wrongdoing and demonstrated our intent to proceed to trial, the carrier agreed to proceed to mediation where the case was settled for more than 100 times the policy limits. We are proud we were able to maximize Nick's recovery.

$1 Million+ Settlement - Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Coverage Dispute
John was a business owner who often used his personal motorcycle for business networking within the construction industry.  While using his motorcycle for job related purposes, John was involved in a serious motorcycle crash. John and his wife believed they had $1 million dollars in uninsured / underinsured motorist coverage for the household and business vehicles.  They initially consulted with another law firm who informed them they were entitled to only $400,000 in coverage for the crash.  Unsatisfied, they were referred to Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith, and we were able to obtain a settlement in excess of $1 million dollars.  Our attorneys are thorough, innovative, have significant experience analyzing issues of insurance coverage and bad faith, and will aggressively seek to get our clients the full compensation they are entitled to.

$1 Million - Truck Accident/Policy Limits Settlement
 Dwayne and Elnora did not want a lawsuit. They simply wanted the lives they had before the tractor trailer went into their lane and hit their car, even though they knew this was an impossible wish. The insurance company initially fought the case tooth and nail, even claiming that Dwayne caused the accident by hitting the truck. Furthermore, they argued, the damage to the car was minor and the initial medical care wasn't extensive. Our thorough investigation confirmed that Dwayne and Elnora were in no way "faking" and deserved justice. After all, they were just normal folks who had been victimized by a careless truck driver. We pursued the case aggressively and traveled to the State of Maine to vigorously confront the truck driver in a videotape deposition. After that deposition -- which exposed the truth of what actually happened in the wreck -- we dictated to the insurance company that they would either meet our demand for the policy limits or else we would have a jury decide what was fair. The insurance company knew we were serious in our passion for Dwayne and Lenora's case, and they knew our ability in the courtroom. Every penny of insurance coverage was promptly paid.

$1 Million - Personal Injury/Policy Limits Settlement
Gene was the proud owner of a commercial landscaping company. On February 12, 2004, he arrived at a job site in Boca Raton to pay a supplier who was delivering mulch. The supplier's employee had stacked large bags of mulch on the forklift and proceeded to drive forward. Gene walked toward the employee to pay him for the mulch. Unfortunately, the mulch blocked the employee's field of vision and he ran over Gene's foot with the forklift. During the fall, Gene's head struck the pavement. Gene suffered mild brain damage involving his cognitive abilities, as well as a loss of hearing and fractured teeth. We performed an extensive investigation. It proved that the employee's actions on the date of the accident violated several OSHA standards for which he was cited. In the face of clear liability and our relentless push to bring the matter to a verdict, the insurance carrier tendered its $1,000,000 insurance policy.

$1 Million - Minimal impact case
On May 12, 2004, C.W. had no idea when she left her home to run a simple errand that her life would forever change. For years she had struggled with low back pain aggravated by her job as a nursing assistant, but she was able to continue working and live with the pain. On the day of the wreck, she stopped for a red light and was hit from behind. Although there was minimal damage to her vehicle, her back pain instantly increased. Over the next twelve months, she tried therapy, medications, and ultimately surgery to alleviate the pain. When it was clear the insurance company was going to stonewall Claudette, her attorneys referred the case to our firm because of our trial experience in personal injury matters. The Firm filed a lawsuit and requested a trial date. On the eve of trial, the insurance company tendered their $1,000,000 policy limits. The attorneys at Lesser, Lesser, Landy, and Smith are proud to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves.

$1 Million - Motor Vehicle Accident
Benjamin, a 53 year-old dry cleaner, was involved in a collision on I-95. As a result of the accident, he suffered a neck injury that required surgery, and he was forced to sell his business. Benjamin retained counsel who tried to force him to accept the insurance company's offer of $25,000. Benjamin refused, fired his attorney, and retained Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith. After accepting the case, we immediately retained an economist to properly evaluate the wage loss claim. The insurance company initially refused to apportion any significant settlement money toward the wage loss claim as Benjamin's business was only modestly profitable. Through extensive discovery, we were able to demonstrate that due to population growth in the western end of the county, Benjamin's potential customer base grew by leaps and bounds in the years after he sold the business. During the deposition of the purchaser of the business, we confirmed our client's suspicions. We learned the profitability of the business grew more than four times over the few years after Benjamin was forced to sell it. We immediately gave a thirty day time limit demand and vigorous litigation ensued. Two hours before the demand was set to expire, the case settled for our client's request of $1,000,000.

$1 Million - Construction Accident/Policy Limits Settlement
When an insurance company knows that a law firm is well versed in insurance bad faith law, it knows that it will have to play by the rules. We were retained by attorneys who had been litigating a construction accident case for several years. The insurance company refused to make a reasonable offer, much less pay the $1,000,000 policy limits. We made a presentation to the insurance company that reminded them of their good faith obligations and showed them the consequences if they acted in bad faith. The policy limits were promptly paid.

Confidential Settlement - Nursing Home
Ms. A was beloved by her family and friends. Later in life, she developed Alzheimer's which necessitated that she be placed in a full time care facility. While at the facility, a therapist pushing another resident in his wheelchair ran over Ms. A's foot. Ms. A suffered from diabetic neuropathy. Accordingly, she had great difficulty with the wound and infection set in. She ultimately underwent a below the knee amputation. The family was initially unable to find counsel to pursue the claim as the facility was uninsured and, due to Ms. A's prior medical condition, the family was told the case was too difficult. We pursued the claim, despite the facility's continual threats to file bankruptcy. At the conclusion of the case, we were able to obtain the recovery directly from the facility. Our tenacious refusal to quit paid off.


We have certainly had other $1 million+ results for our clients. Our intent is not to list them all here. This is just a small sample of the cases we have handled. Furthermore, we know that many deserving clients do not have "million dollar" cases, and we do not limit our practice to only "million dollar" cases. We have handled thousands of cases, of all sizes, over the years. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your case with you -- regardless of its size. Every case we accept is important to us.

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