Case Results

$17,800,000 Jury Verdict for the Wrongful Death of Two 22-Year-Old Women

While on the Palmetto Expressway, the clients collided with a disabled truck in an area that was poorly and inadequately lit. A good samaritan pulled over and alerted the Florida Highway Patrol, but FHP failed to respond. Due to FHP’s failure to respond, the two young women tragically died. Attorney James Traitz aggressively prosecuted the case through trial despite receiving no offers to settle from the defense.  After a long and difficult trial, the jury ultimately returned a verdict of $17,800,000 for the families of the two deceased women.

$4,000,000+ Medical Malpractice Settlement

The client in his 40’s underwent gastric bypass surgery, consequently suffering cardiac arrest while still within hospital care.  Two other prominent medical malpractice law firms rejected the case, based on their expert opinion that the surgery was done properly.  Mr. Traitz took the case and discovered that an error was committed after surgery when a surgical complication was not appreciated and addressed.  The client lost the ability to work and use his upper extremities. Mr. Traitz achieved a settlement in excess of $4,000,000.00 without having to file a lawsuit.

$3,300,000 Auto Accident Settlement

While waiting at a traffic light, the client, a pregnant woman in her 20’s, was struck by a vehicle traveling 70 miles per hour, which had just collided with another vehicle that had turned into its path.  Mr. Traitz determined that this occurred because the road engineering firm had improperly closed a lane during morning rush hour.  The impact drove the client’s vehicle down an embankment, rendering her unconscious.  While in the coma, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy. She later awoke from coma mentally intact but lost the ability to speak, move about unassisted, and even hold her own son. Nine weeks into trial, Attorney James Traitz successfully reached a settlement of $3,300,000.

$3,000,000 Medical Malpractice Settlement

The client, a 34-year-old female, suffered from a succession of strokes that brought her to the hospital each time, where she was evaluated, treated, and then released.  We argued that the client was inadequately cared for because the hospital failed to determine the cause of the recurrent strokes.  The final stroke was devastating and significantly diminished the client’s quality of life, leaving her with substantial deficits. It was only then that it was determined that the cause of the strokes was a condition that could have been fully treated with a single surgical procedure.  Where prior lawyers failed to recover adequately for our client, we stepped in and achieved a $3,000,000.00 settlement.

$2,000,000 Medical Malpractice Settlement

The client was a handyman in his 40’s who suffered stroke-like symptoms that sent him to the hospital, where he was treated and kept for monitoring. The hospital failed to acknowledge a significant change in his symptoms around midnight. The neurologist did not learn of this change until 8:00 a.m. the following morning; by then, it was too late to administer tPA, the emergency clot-busting medication needed to treat his condition. Without having to file a lawsuit, Mr. Traitz was able to successfully reach a settlement of $2,000,000.00

$1,600,000 Jury Verdict for Wrongful Death of African American Teen

A seventeen-year-old African American client was involved in a rollover vehicle accident that tragically ended his life. Attorney James Traitz took the client’s case to trial and fought tirelessly until the jury returned a verdict in favor of the client for $1,600,000. At that time, there had never been a jury verdict of a million dollars or more for an unemployed black teenager in the state of Florida.  In addition, the judge awarded $300,000 in attorney’s fees to Mr. Traitz. 

$750,000 Settlement for Country Club Premises Liability Negligence

While spending a relaxing day at the country club, the elderly client visited the sauna. During her time in the sauna, she went into cardiac arrest and because she was left unattended for hours, no one was around to render assistance or call 911. As one would imagine, an employee should check in on a sauna every 30 minutes, especially recognizing that this facility catered to the elderly for proper maintenance. Unfortunately, this country club negligently left our client unattended for hours before she was ultimately found, after she had already passed away

Attorney Ian Miller investigated the accident and took depositions of the employees. In so doing, he determined that if the country club had followed its own inspection procedures, our client’s life could have been saved.  Ian also discovered that there was not an emergency button in the sauna to press for help, nor was there a timer to automatically turn the sauna off after the recommended 15 minutes of use. On behalf of the client, Ian brought a wrongful death claim against the country club. After months of depositions and investigation, Ian reached a settlement of $750,000 that helped compensate the family for their pain and suffering.

$550,000 Settlement for Hospital and Ambulance Negligence

After suffering a heart attack our client was sent to a local hospital to be treated. As his symptoms began to improve it was determined that he would need a cardiac catheterization. However, this hospital did not have a catheterization lab that is needed to perform this necessary procedure, so they contacted a private ambulance company to transfer the patient to another hospital that had the proper facilities to treat him. The hospital that our client was being transferred to informed the original hospital and the private ambulance company of the equipment that would be needed to safely transfer the patient. Negligently, the private ambulance and the original hospital did not provide the correct equipment. Consequently, during the transfer, the client’s condition quickly deteriorated. Upon arrival at the second hospital, he was diagnosed with cardiac shock and he died very shortly after. Our client passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital.

Attorney Ian Miller investigated the incident and determined that both the private ambulance company and the original hospital were negligent. Ian discovered that the hospital negligently discharged the patient, and that the ambulance company did not transfer the decedent correctly by not having the proper equipment on board. After bringing this claim, Ian successfully negotiated a settlement of $550,000 to compensate the surviving spouse for her loss.

$550,000 Medical Malpractice Settlement for Inadequate Stroke Management

After a hospital failed to revascularize our client, he faced amputation of an extremity due to the hospital’s negligence. Without needing to file a lawsuit, Mr. Traitz successfully reached a settlement of $550,000.00, compensating the client for his medical expenses and suffering.

$510,000 Settlement Reached in Death from Caregiver Negligence

At the age of 97, our client, who was a Holocaust survivor, required a caregiver to assist with daily activities such as walking, bathing, and cooking. One day, the caregiver assisted the client up from her chair and gave her a walker to use. After taking a few steps, she began to lose confidence in her ability to stand, so she told the caregiver she could not continue to walk. Instead of helping her remain upright or attempting to return to the chair, the caregiver negligently turned around and left her side to get a wheelchair several feet away.  At that moment, our client fell back and hit her head, causing a fatal brain bleed that could have been avoided.

The family first presented the case to two other prominent law firms in South Florida that both turned them away. The other law firms said that there would be nothing meaningful to recover because of the decedent’s advanced age and the fact that her husband previously passed away.  The family then turned to Attorney Ian Miller, who took on the challenge of returning justice and compassion to this incredibly deserving family. After litigating for months and completing extensive depositions and investigations, Ian turned a case that was thought to be worth pennies into a case that settled for $510,000.

$250,000 Auto-accident Settlement for Aggravation of Pre-Existing Back Pain

After suffering from long-term back pain from a prior motorcycle accident, the client was injured in a subsequent car crash that injured the right side of his back. Although the opposing party argued that our client’s injuries were all from the prior crash, we selected and worked with our highly trained medical experts to distinguish the client’s new injuries by comparison to those from the original motorcycle accident.

Attorney Ian Miller pursued this claim to help the injured client and successfully reached a settlement of $250,000 to help compensate the client for medical expenses as well as pain and suffering.

$200,000 Settlement for Negligent Road Design

While seated as a passenger in a commercial truck, our client was involved in a trucking accident that left him dead and his spouse widowed and in fear of losing her home.

After obtaining a small settlement in the underlying truck accident case, a prominent local attorney referred the case for attorney Ian Miller to investigate other potential avenues for recovery to help get the widow the recovery that she deserved

After a detailed and extensive investigation, including retaining an engineering expert, Ian determined that the county negligently designed the roadway, such that the county failed to install the necessary traffic control devices and warnings in the area where the crash occurred. Ian then presented the claim and after intense negotiations, the county settled for maximum applicable sovereign immunity limits of $200,000 to help provide the financial support the widowed spouse needed.

$163,237 Jury Verdict for Fraudulent Inducement

After a long and grueling jury trial that went on for many days, attorney Ian Miller was able to persuade the jury to return a verdict in favor of his client for $163,237. The case involved claims of alleged elder abuse and fraudulent inducement.

Confidential Settlement Reached for Defective Adjustable Bed Frame

In anticipation of an upcoming neck surgery, our client purchased an electric adjustable bed frame and mattress to allow her to recuperate from the surgery at home. Following the successful neck surgery, as the client laid in bed, she reached over to turn off the lamp on her nightstand. As she reached over the bed, the bed tipped over sideways throwing her into the nightstand and then onto the floor. This caused her to strike her head and injure her shoulder and her neck that had very recently been operated on.

Attorney Ian Miller investigated the incident and determined that the bedframe had been negligently designed due to the support legs being too far in from the edge of the bed. This design defect caused the bed to tip over when weight is transferred past the support legs. Ian brought claims against the companies that designed, manufactured, and sold the bedframe. After months of extensive litigation, Ian reached generous confidential settlements to help compensate the client for her pain, suffering, and future medical needs.

Confidential Settlement Reached for Defective Horse-Riding Saddle

After purchasing a secondhand, foreign-made saddle online and mounting the saddle to her horse, the client attached grab straps to the metal “D” rings on the saddle. While riding the horse she pulled on the straps and the “D” rings failed, causing her to be thrown to the ground. The client suffered a fractured wrist and required surgery, along with prolonged postoperative care.

Attorney Ian Miller investigated the accident and brought a claim against the saddle manufacturer. Ian alleged that the saddle was defectively designed and lacked adequate instructions and warnings. Due to his persistence and thorough investigation, Ian was able to reach a confidential settlement with the manufacturer of the saddle that compensated the client for her pain, medical needs, and lost wages.