Justia Lawyer Rating for Robert D. Kreisman

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United Parcel Service (UPS) has conceded it could not sue Material Handling Services (MHS) for contribution under the Illinois Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act. This case stems from an incident involving Raichid Rafik, a UPS employee who was struck on the head by a 10-lb. metal disc that fell from an overhead package handling system.

Rafik sued MHS for negligence in designing and installing the warehouse machinery and UPS for spoliation in choosing not to preserve the evidence he needed to identify and sue the shipper for negligent packaging. UPS filed a cross-claim against MHS for subrogation, equitable and statutory.

UPS reasoned it was entitled to equitable subrogation and statutory subrogation under 740 ILCS 100/2(f) of the Illinois Contribution Act because (1) the damage it potentially owed for spoliation was equal to what Rafik could have recovered from the shipper, and (2) the shipper could have pursued a contribution claim against MHS.

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Michelle Anderson, 36, was driving in the southbound lane of the highway when Calvin Adams, traveling in the opposite direction, attempted to pass a line of traffic in a no-passing zone.

Adams crossed the centerline and struck Anderson’s car head-on.

Both drivers were killed in the crash. Anderson was survived by her husband and three minor children.

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Hunter Brown, 25, was traveling to California on a Greyhound bus late at night. The bus stopped at a rest stop and Brown left the bus to use the facilities. When the bus driver, Arthur Coley, began to pull away from the rest stop before Brown had re-boarded, Brown tried to get his attention. The driver drove the bus forward and ran over Brown’s foot and back.

Brown died from his injuries. He was survived by his parents.

The Brown family individually and on behalf of his estate sued Greyhound Lines, alleging negligent hiring and training and vicarious liability. The Brown family asserted that the driver, Coley, chose not to take a headcount before leaving the stop in violation of company’s policy.

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Alice McKee, 62, worked as a pharmaceutical delivery person. She went to the Wesley Manor Nursing Home campus to make a midnight delivery of medicine. She was unable to enter the building. After she called the nurse’s station and did not receive an answer, McKee walked over the building’s side lawn, attempting to reach a window within sight of the nurse’s station.

McKee climbed over some landscaping and unknowingly stepped into a window well, falling six feet into a cement pit.

She suffered a fractured femur, which has left her with a limp. She is unable to stand or sit for any length of time.

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In 2005, a van containing six family members slipped off the edge of an Illinois roadway. In the rollover crash, everyone was hurt and one passenger died. The crash occurred in a construction zone. A guardrail had been removed and was not replaced. All lines had not been repainted on the repaved road, and pieces of asphalt laid on the shoulder.

In the lawsuit against the construction companies, the defendant attorneys told the plaintiffs that the two companies were operating as a joint venture with a $1 million liability insurance policy. The parties settled for $1 million. The plaintiffs signed a release of all claims, which stated that plaintiffs agreed that they were not relying on any statements by any parties’ attorneys. Four years later, the plaintiffs discovered that the companies in fact carried separate liability policies.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled as a matter of law that the failure to identify the individual policies violated Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26. The undisclosed policies would have covered plaintiffs’ claim, and no joint venture agreement existed under Illinois law; therefore, joint venture exclusions and the individual policies were inapplicable.

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On June 14, 1988, Thomas John Heck Jr. executed a note in favor of Paul D. Heck.  The note promised to pay $51,000 at 7% interest, compounded annually, with this instruction: “Borrower shall make a single payment on demand within 90 days of demand letter. If payment is not demanded or paid by Borrower, this note will renew automatically in full force of the terms until said note is paid.”

Thomas John Heck Jr. died on Nov. 7, 2016 without Paul Heck ever demanding payment on the note. Paul Heck demanded payment from the Estate of Thomas John Heck Jr. (Estate) on Dec. 8, 2017.

Paul Heck filed suit on Jan. 3, 2018 seeking $362,886.62, plus interest, attorney fees and costs.

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While driving a Schnitzer Steel Industries tractor-trailer on an interstate highway, Kenneth Cathey crossed the center line and collided head-on with an SUV driven by Carrie Jones. There were five occupants of the Jones’ SUV, which included Jones, her two minor children, her mother, Judy Madere, and Madere’s twin sister who died in the crash.

Madere’s husband, individually, and on behalf of her estate, sued Schnitzer Southeast LLC, Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. and Kenneth Cathey.

The plaintiffs claimed that Cathey was driving while fatigued and had slept only 4-5 hours the night before the crash.

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John Pesci, 60, was driving his motorcycle through an intersection when he was struck by a vehicle driven by Jacklynn Barke. She had run a red light. It was a T-bone collision. He suffered a fractured right leg, as well as a fractured skull, jaw, and nose. He underwent 13 surgeries before he was able to walk again and required a wheelchair for two years after this incident.

Pesci sued Patrick Mahoney, who owned the vehicle that Barke was driving. Pesci alleged that Mahoney negligently allowed Barke to use his vehicle while she was under the influence of drugs. Pesci also claimed that Mahoney was vicariously liable for Barke running the red light, maintaining proper control of her vehicle, and choosing not to yield the right-of-way. Pesci did not claim lost income or medical expenses.

The jury signed a verdict for $8.9 million.

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Mary Mitchell, 62, was riding her bicycle in a crosswalk at an intersection.  Steven Anderson pulled out of a supermarket parking lot, drove through the intersection, and hit Mitchell, causing her to suffer a fractured right hip and wrist.

Mitchell had surgery on her wrist and hip and later required physical therapy.

Several years after this incident, Mitchell was diagnosed as having bursitis in her right hip resulting from the impingement of a surgical screw onto a bursa.  Mitchell’s injuries limit her physical activities. She is limited in her ability to walk, garden and play the piano.

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William Keck III, 48, was playing in a paddle tennis tournament at the Bel-Air Bay Club on a hot and humid day. He entered the club’s locker room, which was not air conditioned, and told an attendant that he had cramps in his leg. The attendant began to massage Keck on a locker room bench and later on the floor. However, Keck’s cramps continued and spread to his other leg and to an arm.

This cramps persisted for several hours. Keck began to turn red despite drinking ice water. The locker room attendants called the club’s athletic director, a manager, and the head of security to check on Keck.

More than four hours after Keck entered the locker room, the athletic director of the club called 911 when Keck began to suffer breathing difficulties and turned blue.

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