Lubbock, Texas Settles Personal Injury Lawsuit Filed by Woman That Fell in a Utility Pole Hole

The Lubbock City Council, in Texas, approved an $80,000 settlement for a woman who filed a personal injury lawsuit earlier this year after falling into a hole for a utility pole.

The council agreed to sign off on the settlement at its regular meeting on Thursday, December 19th.

Eva Montez and her attorney filed the personal injury lawsuit on November 1st, 2012. According to the complaint, Montez was leaving a Texas Tech football game on November 6th, 2010, when she stepped in a hole that was left by a utility pole next to the sidewalk that had been removed. She alleged in her personal injury lawsuit that utility workers from the city had removed the pole and neglected to fill the hole, compromising pedestrian safety. The lawsuit accused the city of failing to take proper precautions to warn pedestrians about the hazard at night.

Montez fell into the hole around 11 PM that night. She suffered injuries to her knee and foot in the fall.

The personal injury case alleged that the injuries she suffered would be permanent and lasting, and that she also suffered mental anguish.

In addition to the $80,000 that the Lubbock council agreed to pay in the personal injury settlement, they also agreed to pay $10,000 in mediation fees, court costs, and prejudgment interest.

Personal Injury Claims in South Carolina

Financial loss is another term for monetary damages. It encompasses the damages sustained as a result of an injury that includes quantifiable damages like medical bills and lost wages.

The law recognizes that the quality of life of the spouse of an injured person also suffers, and it allows recovery for this injury even though the spouse did not suffer physical injury himself or herself. A loss of consortium case is separate from the injured victim’s case.

A personal injury plaintiff may be entitled to an award of the costs for future medical care for permanent injuries. Typically, this must be proven with expert testimony.

Most states allow additional recovery when an injury interferes with a plaintiff’s ability to lead a normal life. With an elderly client, this could mean the ability to play with one’s grandchildren, to walk and exercise as one did prior to an injury, to communicate meaningfully with others, or to engage in pastimes one previously enjoyed.

Although one might not think that mental anguish is something that will be addressed or compensated in a civil action, this is not so. Monetary damages may be awarded for a nursing home resident’s (or his or her survivor’s) pain, suffering, disfigurement, and impaired enjoyment of life. Damages awarded for the pain someone suffers can be for both physical and mental pain.

The Strom Law Firm Can Help With Personal Injury Claims

Although many of the people we represent in these cases are from right here in South Carolina, our lawyers routinely take clients from throughout the Southeastern U.S. and, in certain types of product liability or pharmaceutical cases, from across the country as well. If you or a loved one has been injured or killed through no fault of your own, contact the South Carolina personal injury attorneys at the Strom Law Firm, LLC today for a free consultation today. 803.252.4800