Congratulations to Partner, Patrick Au and Associate, Patrick Malone of the Woodland Hills office on achieving a fantastic result in a highly contentious dispute involving allegations of assault and battery against a Las Vegas Hotel, casino operator and individual security personnel. Plaintiff suffered a torn rotator cuff which required surgery and multiple lesser injuries. In all, he alleged approximately $200,000.00 in medical special damages and another $60,000.00 in loss of earnings. Plaintiff also alleged that he was entitled to significant general damages and punitive damages on the basis of the alleged conduct of the defendants being particularly egregious.
Over the life of the lawsuit, Mr. Au and Mr. Malone, successfully rebutted all of Plaintiff’s liability and damages arguments in an effort to minimize Plaintiff’s expectations in regard to the potential value of this case and to prepare for trial, which seemed likely throughout based on the contentious nature of the dispute. Although not directly employed by the client, Plaintiff had been trying to impose liability on our client on the basis of an agency and/or special employee relationship with the security personnel involved. While working with their co-defendants to ensure a staunch defense against Plaintiff’s allegations generally, Mr. Au and Mr. Malone focused on systematically dismantling each element of these arguments that Plaintiff set forth in regard to the connection between the security personnel and the client.
In a last ditch effort to resolve this matter prior to trial, the parties agreed to mediate. In advance, Plaintiff set forth a global demand of $1,800,000.00. Mr. Au and Mr. Malone spent the majority of the time convincing the mediator of their ability to prevail on the liability issues in the case and that Plaintiff needed to be reasonable in order to avoid the very real potential of a defense verdict. Despite the exorbitant demand, it appeared that the months of persuasive efforts had convinced Plaintiff of the strength of the client’s position and Plaintiff ultimately settled with the client for only $55,000.00. The matter has now globally resolved and suffice to say, both the carrier and the client are very pleased with this result.