Michael Regan Wins Favorable Jury Verdict For Insurer in UM Lawsuit

On August 21, 2013, a jury returned a favorable verdict for Michael Regan’s client, an insurance company, in a lawsuit for uninsured motorist coverage benefits.

The plaintiff was a 25-year-old woman who claimed that she sustained permanent neck and back injuries and post-concussive syndrome, including a herniated disc in her neck, after a moderate-impact collision in which her vehicle was rear-ended by the uninsured motorist. Michael Regan and his insurer admitted that the uninsured motorist was at fault, that the plaintiff had no fault, and that at least some of her medical expenses were legally caused by the negligence of the uninsured motorist. They defended the lawsuit on the basis that the plaintiff did not sustain a permanent injury and that not all of the medical expenses she claimed were legally caused by the negligence of the uninsured motorist.

At trial, the plaintiff’s attorney asked the jury to award her past medical expenses of $20,800 and future medical expenses of up to $72,800. He asked the jury to find that she was permanently injured and to award her $20,000 in past non-economic losses and up to $300,000 in future non-economic losses. Michael Reagan asked the jury to award her most of her past medical expenses, but nothing else. The jury awarded the plaintiff all of her past medical expenses and $5000 for future medical expenses. The jury found that she did not sustain a permanent injury, and therefore, did not award her any non-economic losses, past or future.

The verdict was consistent with the insurer’s evaluation of the claim. After set-offs, the net judgment for the plaintiff will likely be less than $10,000.