The National Trial Lawyers
  • Home
    • Meet Our Team
    • Contact Us
    • Mission & Goals
    • FAQ
  • Webinars
  • News
  • Membership Directory
    • Top 100 Map – Civil Plaintiff
    • Top 100 Map – Criminal Defense
    • Top 40 Under 40 Map – Civil Plaintiff
    • Top 40 Under 40 Map – Criminal Defense
  • Top 100
    • Civil Plaintiff Officers / Executive Committee
    • Criminal Defense Officers / Executive Committee
    • Benefits
    • About
    • Top 100 Presidents Message
    • Diplomat
    • Membership Renewal
    • Member Profile Updates
    • Top 100 Badge
  • Top 40
    • Civil Plaintiff Officers / Executive Committee
    • Criminal Defense Officers / Executive Committee
    • Top 40 Under 40 Trial Academy Bootcamp
    • Benefits
    • About
    • Top 40 Presidents Message
    • Membership Renewal
    • Member Profile Updates
    • Top 40 Badge
  • Specialty Assoc
    • About
    • Shop
    • Officers
    • Membership Renewal
    • Member Profile Updates
  • Nominate
    • Top 100
    • Top 40
    • Specialty Association
    • Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame
    • Trial Lawyer of the Year
    • Trial Team of the Year
    • America’s Most Influential Trial Lawyer
    • America’s Most Influential Law Firm
    • Lifetime Achievement Award
  • Shop
  • Magazine
    • A-List
  • Education and Networking Agenda
    • Trial Lawyers Summit
    • Top 40 Under 40 Trial Academy Boot Camp
    • Mass Torts Made Perfect
    • The Lanier Trial Academy Master Class 6.0
    • The Business Of Law
    • Webinars
  • Hall of Fame
    • Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame

$26M Verdict for Electrician Crushed by Negligently Repaired Garage Door

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Eleanor Smith
warehouse door

An inexperience technician over-tightened the garage door clutch spring, which disabled the clutch itself. When a garage door clutch is too tight, it will not slip when the door hits an obstacle.

An Indiana jury awarded $26 million in favor of an electrician eight years after he was crushed by a negligently repaired garage door. He fell head-first to the floor 16 feet below and suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed from the chest down.

Electrician Ralph Parker was injured at a  construction site where he was working on April, 6, 2006. The door exerted between 220-600 pounds of force, crushing him.

The damages awarded by Marion Circuit Court jury were reduced to $18.2 million after a finding that the defendant, Professional Garage Door Systems, Inc., of Plainfield, Indiana, was only 70% at fault. The Marion Circuit Court, located within a comparative fault jurisdiction, also returned a $4.5 million loss of consortium verdict for Parker’s wife, Cheryl Proper, of which the couple will also receive 70% or $3.1 million.

Parker was hired to inspect and rewire an old warehouse located at 6990 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana. While he was working on the garage doors, which had just been inspected and serviced by a Professional Garage Door Systems technician the previous week, the garage door activated and trapped Parker against the garage.

Parker, who had been on an extension ladder above the closed garage door, had moved a signal wire, causing the garage door to activate. The garage door pinned Parker against the beam or truss directly behind him, and he could not push the door away.

Trapped and Unconscious

Parker eventually passed out while he was pinned down, and approximately 34 minutes later, the motor pulley burned off, which released the pressure of the garage door. Evidence showed an inexperience technician over-tightened the garage door clutch spring, which disabled the clutch itself. When a garage door clutch is too tight, it will not slip when the door hits an obstacle.

The case proceeded to trial on the theory that the injuries were caused by improper tightening of the clutch by the technician and the negligent training of the technician.

The owner of the warehouse is insured by a company that was able to preserve the clutch and motor for the workers compensation carrier and the garage door company, who both visited the accident site within days. Parker’s attorneys were able to obtain the original motor in order to conduct evidentiary tests on the motor at the specific clutch setting, which was preserved.

“Not Our Fault”

At trial, the defense contended Professional Garage Door Systems was not negligent due to Parker’s actions. Professional Garage Door Systems asserted Parker was at fault for:

  • Failing to disable the garage door motor.
  • Pulling the plug or the circuit breaker.
  • Placing his ladder above the garage door.
  • Pulling the wire which activated the garage door.

 

Professional Garage Door Systems also asserted Parker assumed the risk of his injuries by knowingly participating in an inherently dangerous activity.

Parker’s trial lasted six days, during which the jury deliberated nearly ten hours. Parker is permanently paralyzed from the chest down due to Professional Garage Door Systems’ negligence.

Posted in Blog, Personal Injury

Comments are closed.

News Categories

Read about other Top Jury Verdicts

Salmon Purchasers Reach an $85 Million Price Fixing Settlement

Salmon Purchasers Reach an $85 Million Price Fixing Settlement

According to Reuters, who had seen the proposed settlement after it was filed on 25 May, the settlement will r[Read More...]
Ford Agrees to Pay $19 Million to Settle False Fuel Economy and Payload Claims

Ford Agrees to Pay $19 Million to Settle False Fuel Economy and Payload Claims

Ford Motor Company as agreed to a $19.2 million multistate settlement among 40 attorneys general that concluded an investigat[Read More...]
Total Settlement in Surfside Condo Collapse Tops $1 Billion

Total Settlement in Surfside Condo Collapse Tops $1 Billion

The proposed settlement reached nearly a year after the catastrophic Surfside building collapse along the South Flo[Read More...]
UCLA Will Pay Nearly $700 Million in Abuse Lawsuits

UCLA Will Pay Nearly $700 Million in Abuse Lawsuits

The University of California system announced Tuesday it will pay nearly $375 million to more than 300 women who said they we[Read More...]
Things to Consider When You Sue an Insurance Provider

Things to Consider When You Sue an Insurance Provider

We are all too acquainted with insurance coverage in our everyday lives. According to Investopedia, everyone should have[Read More...]

#LegalNews

@@TheNTLtop100

Contact Us | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

Attorney information and content provided on this website is provided for the benefit of members of The National Trial Lawyers and as a public service by Legal Associations Management, Inc. The website and all data are the property of Legal Associations Management, Inc. Data, including without limitation attorney information and content, on the site may not be mined, sold, or used commercially for any purpose without the explicit written consent of Legal Associations Management, Inc. This site may not be accessed by any automated program for extracting data for any use. By accessing and using the site you agree that you will not develop, support or use software, devices, scripts, robots, or any other means or processes (including crawlers, browser plug-ins and add-ons, or any other technology) to scrape data or otherwise copy profiles and other data. Unauthorized use or attempted unauthorized use of this system may subject you to both civil and criminal penalties.