Since its foundation in 1975, the lawyers of Kerrigan Estess Rankin McLeod & Thompson have always sought to maximize the compensation for injuries received by their clients.  To do that, the lawyers have been committed to going to trial when the insurance companies offer less than the claim deserves.  Through the years, the lawyers at Kerrigan Estess Rankin McLeod & Thompson have successfully tried cases, both big and small, to verdicts that reflect the dedication and skill of the lawyers involved.  Because the insurance companies know which lawyers and which law firms go to trial, the insurance companies are more likely to offer settlements commensurate with a client's injuries.  If you are considering hiring a lawyer to redress an injury, you should always ask that lawyer how many cases he or she has tried and what the results were.

Selected verdicts here are listed according to their amounts.  It reflects that in the very beginning of the firm, when verdicts were generally much smaller than they are today, the lawyers of the firm tried many more cases.  Cases are tried when the offer is rejected by the client and in the lawyer's judgment the case should be presented to a jury.

Sampling of Representative Verdicts:

$5,000,000 jury verdict in a products liability action against a crane manufacturer awarded to a man who was badly injured in a crane accident. The crane operator was working with a ground crew to attach a four-part line to a heavy load. The operator inadvertently moved the crane boom out far enough to break a single line holding a large hook and ball ("headache ball") that was pulled up out of the way. The "headache ball' fell and struck our client. This is a well-known crane hazard called "two-blocking". The defendant crane company had developed an anti-two-blocking device, but made it an extra cost option. The defendant in the case made only a modest pre-trial offer, relying on its defense that the operator and our injured client were both at fault. This case prompted a worldwide change in the crane industry. Sidner v. Harnischfeger, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 82-50

$250,000 verdict. Wynn v. Division of Corrections, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 80-1960

$28,000,000 jury verdict for the death of a 12 year-old child killed by a habitually drunk driver.  Slaughter v. Parrish, Santa Rosa Co. Circuit Court Case No. 83-C-969

$360,137.96 jury verdict for a plaintiff with a knee fracture and a bad back. The knee fracture healed quite well, but the client's chief complaint was back pain. Although liability was admitted, defense lawyers hired a doctor who supported State Farm's claim that the plaintiff suffered only from the disabling back problems, including disk surgery, reported before the accident. KERM&T lawyers successfully argued before the jury that even a bad back can be made worse and motivated the jury to award well above the $75,000 offered pre-trial. Davis v. State Farm, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 03-CA-2023

$70,000 verdict. Nancy Ellis v. Albertsons, Inc., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 80-4980

$13,300,000 jury verdict in a bad faith case against an insurance company.  Hartford v. Gillette, 519 So. 2d 1059 (Fla. App. 1 Dist. 1988)

$900,000 jury award in product liability action against the manufacturer of a water heater for the death of a woman who died from carbon monoxide poisoning. The verdict was substantially more than the defendant offered pre-trial. The defendant claimed that the death was caused by improper venting during installation. Plaintiff successfully argued to the jury that the manufacturer had substantial warnings that the water from the heater would be hot, but failed to adequately warn about the carbon monoxide hazard, which could have steered sales towards an electric water heater. Comptom v. Rheem Manufacturing Co., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 90-0520

$8,322,546 jury verdict for the parents of 2 teenaged children killed by a high performance boater while riding a jet ski.  Richmond v. Smith, Santa Rosa Co. Circuit Court Case No. 2000-631-CA-01

$56,001 verdict. Resmondo v. Mason and Erickson, Santa Rosa Co. Circuit Court Cae No. 83-C-364

$8,000,000 jury verdict for a man who suffered severe and debilitating injuries after being assaulted by a bouncer at a bar.  Parrish v. Kent Ins. Co., et. al., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 83-775

$25,000,000 verdict for the death of a 17 year-old girl killed when a tractor-trailer turned in front of her. This stands as the largest contested wrongful death verdict in Santa Rosa County history. Bernadette Cook as Personal Representative of the Estate of Dana Rose Cassulo v. Paschall Truck Lines, Inc. and Robert L. Burger, Santa Rosa Co. Circuit Court Case No. 03000947CA

$3,698,664 jury verdict as a result of an unnecessary and negligently performed medical procedure resulting in irreversible anatomical and neurological damage.  Camp v. Kimbell, 526 So. 2d 691 (Fla. App. 1 Dist. 1988)

$1,200,000 jury verdict for a welder who sustained burns to over 50% of his body when a tank exploded spewing acid onto his body. Sowell v. American Cyanamid, U. S. District Court, Pensacola, FL Case No. 84-4463-RV

$2,300,000 jury award for a mechanic who was severely injured while repairing a truck.  Culbertson v. Coastal Insulation, Escambia Co. Circuit Court

$1,500,000 jury verdict in a medical negligence action where the physician installed a prosthetic patella femoral joint in an upside down position.  Sewell v. Flynn, 459 So. 2d 372 (Fla. App. 1 Dist. 1984)

$2,747,000 jury verdict for a young woman who sustained a severe hand injury when a garbage truck backed into the path of her vehicle. Stolfi v. ECUA, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 99-1920-CA

$750,000 jury verdict.  Amber Nall v. Loretta Epps, M.D. & Associates and James Boyd, M.D., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 1994 CA 001261

$37,001 verdict. Frye v. Mason, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 01-CA-1487

$144,000 verdict. Maloney v. Southeastern Fidelity Ins., et. al., Santa Rosa Co. Circuit Court Case No. 82-419

$500,000 verdict.  Richbourg v. USAA, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Cae No. 1985-CA-002246 

$35,000 verdict. Brenita Price v. General Electric Co., et. al., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 82-3967

$140,000 verdict. Ralph Frye v. Suttles, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 86-5657

$250,000 verdict.  Cecil Lee v. Southern Bell, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 1986-CA-004493

$750,000 verdict. Powell v. Rosso, U. S. District Court of Florida, Northern District, Case No. 82-0593

$350,000 verdict. Davidson v. Gaillard, 584 So. 2d 71 (Fla 1st DCA 1991)

$120,000 verdict.  Johnson v. Bahama Cruise Line, U. S. District Court, Northern District, Pensacola, FL Case No. 85-4256-RV

$500,000 verdict in a product liability case where the defense never made a pre-trial settlement offer. The decedent, who was killed when he fell from a ladder, was the only one present when the ladder was being used and thus, there were no witnesses to his fall. After the trial court was upheld by the 1st DCA, the defendants paid the full judgment plus costs and interest. Lang v. White Metal Rolling & Stamping Co. and Sears Roebuck, Okaloosa Co. Case No. 87-2126

$3,000,000 verdict Miller v. John Affleck, M.D., and Hodnette Medical Center Clinic, d/b/a Medical Center Clinic, P.A., Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 87-5696-CA-01

$40,000 verdict.  Fitzpatrick v. Allstate, Escambia Co. Circuit Court Case No. 85-4567-CA-01


A Sampling of Various Settlements:

$2,900,000 settlement for a young Boy Scout who sustained a back injury caused by an uninsured drunk driver. The settlement funds were placed into an annuity that will compensate the young client for many years.

$3.1 million settlement for a 35 year-old father of two minor children.  The father was injured when he collided with a logging truck blocking both lanes of travel on a rural road.  Our client, the father, sustained a serious head injury.  The policy limit settlement was achieved despite a vigorous effort on the part of the logging truck's insurance company to place the fault on our client.

$3,750,000 settlement for two young children whose mother, a New Orleans police officer, was killed in an interstate accident while returning home from a family vacation to Disney World.

See More Settlements