$928,440 for Auto Injuries
An Essex County jury awarded $1.03 million on March 24 to a man who suffered broken bones in a traffic accident, but reduced the verdict by 10 percent after finding him comparatively negligent. Patrick Tierney broke his right wrist and ankle in March 2001 when his car collided with a box truck on Pulaski Street in Bayonne. He claimed that the other driver, Chun Wei Li, an employee of ASW Transport of Bayonne, made an improper left turn. Li countered that Tierney was speeding and crossed the center line.
Tierney, a forklift operator, has not worked since the accident. the jury found damages of $131,600 for past lost wages; $250,000 for future lost wages; $550,000 for pain, suffering, disability, impairment and loss of enjoyment of life; $100,000 on a per quod claim by Tierney's wife, Susan. The jury attributed 90 percent of the negligence to Li and 10 percent to Tierney, reducing the award to $928,440
(This information was obtained from the New Jersey Law Journal)
