After a four-week trial in Nydam v. Cunningham, the jury returned a verdict of no liability, resulting in a complete dismissal of the action.
Our defence team, Chet Wydrzynski, Merella Botros, and Juny Kim, acted as co-counsel for the defendants and are pleased to have achieved this successful result for our clients.
The case involved a boating incident that raised several contested evidentiary and marine liability issues, all of which were fully argued at trial.
Our firm represented John and Alex Cunningham, the owner and operator of a small pleasure boat. The plaintiff, Mieke Nydam, was a passenger in the boat at the time of the incident. The evidence showed that Alex Cunningham swerved to avoid a partially submerged log, during which the plaintiff—who was seated with her feet on the chair and wrapped in a towel—moved in the boat and struck her head on the base of the boat’s sink.
The jury accepted our clients’ position that Alex was a responsible operator and that the plaintiff’s injuries did not result from any negligence.
Although the jury found no liability, it went on to assess damages for the record in the event of an appeal. The damages were modest given the nature of the plaintiff’s injuries. The injuries included a fracture at C7, though her treatment had been limited and no surgery was performed.
The jury’s assessment of damages was as follows:
• General Damages – $75,000
• Past Loss of Income – $22,579
• Future Loss of Income – $110,567
• Future Care – $125,853
Total – $333,999
The plaintiff called a total of seven damages experts, including various medical, future care cost, and vocational experts. Of particular note for injury and trial lawyers, the court ruled inadmissible approximately ten medical illustrations prepared by Artery Studios, finding them prejudicial. This evidentiary ruling may serve as a useful precedent in future bodily injury trials.