Shlesinger & deVilleneuve Attorneys has been fighting for the rights of Oregonians and protecting their welfare in injury cases for decades. During that time, we have tried, arbitrated and settled thousands of cases and secured well over $200,000,000 in compensation for our clients. Below is a sampling of our previous and more recent cases and the results we obtained for our clients:
We represented an elderly woman injured while driving to visit her family on a sunny summer afternoon. A sheriff’s deputy was distracted by his monitor and rear ended her stopped car at over 55 miles per hour, resulting in a horrific impact to her vehicle. Our client’s son, daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren were all waiting on their front lawn and witnessed the Sheriff’s SUV smash into their loved one’s small sedan. Her family initially feared she was killed, but she in fact sustained serious yet survivable injuries from which she made a good recovery. Because the person at fault was employed by the county government, we complied with the Oregon Tort Claims Act by providing the appropriate notice of claims. After extensive investigation and negotiations, we obtained a favorable settlement for our client to compensate her for her medical expenses and for her serious injuries. What’s more, we knew that the Oregon Supreme Court recently expanded the possibility for family members to assert claims for negligent infliction of emotional harm and that this change in Oregon law would benefit our client’s family who witnessed this traumatic event. We provided the appropriate tort claim notices and then assisted all five individuals in obtaining fair and reasonable compensation for their emotional trauma.
Our client suffered spinal fractures in his lower back while helping his cousin work on the brakes on his GMC Denali. After finishing the brake work, our client was pinned by the Denali against a garage work bench due to his cousin’s negligence. Our client and his cousin both had the same insurance company for their auto insurance. For this incident our client was entitled to insurance benefits, including personal injury protection (PIP) medical benefits, PIP wage loss benefits, compensation for bodily injury, and underinsured motorist benefits. Despite having a valid and legal right to these benefits, the insurance company denied all benefits for our client. Over and over again, the insurance company called our client and his cousin liars, cheats, and a fraud. After giving them a chance to do the right thing, we sued the insurance company on behalf of our client. The insurance company continued to deny the claims and vigorously defended the case. Undeterred, we obtained discovery and introduced evidence to prove that the claims were valid and the incident was witnessed by at least 3 other individuals. Ultimately we forced the insurance company to pay a settlement that included 100% of the available compensation for bodily injury and underinsured motorist benefits, all of our clients medical bills, all of his lost wages, and his reasonable attorney fees.
We represented the personal representative of a man killed by a careless driver while riding a friend’s motorcycle. We investigated the incident and searched extensively for ways to compensate his heirs, including his young daughter. We were able to procure insurance policy limit recoveries from the person who was responsible, as well as using the ‘stacking’ provision of Oregon’s underinsured motorist law to add two additional sources of recovery. For the wrongful death action we initiated a probate case, sought, and obtained the appropriate orders to collect and distribute the proceeds. For the minor child, we opened the conservatorship action in the probate court and facilitated the use of structured settlements to help pay for her education and for her future needs.
Our client was seriously injured when he was hit by an uninsured driver who stole a vehicle and ran a red light. Our client’s medical bills exceeded $525,000.0. Since the at-fault driver did not have insurance, we pursued an uninsured claim through our client’s own insurance to get him a settlement. The real hurdle was to make sure all our client’s medical bills were covered. We worked effortlessly to negotiate his outstanding medical balances. He eventually walked away with a positive recovery (both physical and financial) and no outstanding medical bills.
Our 27-year-old client suffered a leg amputation after being in a catastrophic motorcycle accident. Unfortunately, at the time of the accident, he was test driving the motorcycle and did not have insurance. Oregon revised statute 31.715 (https://oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_31.715) set out stringent limitations on recovering non-economic damages when driving an uninsured vehicle. In accordance with ORS 31.175, an uninsured driver, is precluded from recovering money for his substantial pain and suffering. Despite this, we were able to hire multiple experts to help build his case for economic damages and got him a million-dollar settlement.
Our client was riding his motorcycle when the defendant in a large SUV made a dangerous left turn in front of him causing our client to collide with the SUV. As a direct result of the crash, our client sustained a closed-head injury, rib fractures, hip fracture, ruptured thoracic aorta, liver and spleen lacerations, and other more minor injuries. The client was admitted to the hospital where he remained for almost three weeks before being discharged. Our client spent the next several months in intensive active recovery. It would take over a year for him to heal from these devastating injuries. Additionally, our client incurred income loss as he was unemployed at the time of the accident and now unable to look for work post-crash for several months due to his injuries. Proving income loss was one of the many hurdles we had to overcome before successfully resolving the case. The insurance company refused to consider wage loss as part of our client’s claim. Our team was determined to make sure our client was made whole, and that included getting his income loss. We gathered the necessary information and evidence to successfully force the insurance company to include this loss in any settlement consideration. After intense negotiations we were able to successfully settle the claim for over $775,000.
Our 7-year-old client was severely injured when she was bit in the face by a dog. She suffered facial scarring that required plastic surgery and significant trauma. This was a harrowing event, and we insisted our client was properly compensated. The key was not only to obtain a significant settlement, but to make sure the money would be available for the child as she matured and potentially required additional medical treatment for physical and/or emotional injuries. We successfully obtained an upfront $500,000.00 settlement and then assisted in setting up a structured settlement, to protect her money until she is 18. In doing so, we were able to ultimately double her final recovery.
Our client and her 2 friends had been drinking alcohol at home and at a bar. After leaving the bar, one of our client’s friends was driving and lost control of the vehicle causing it to crash and roll multiple times. Client suffered a traumatic brain injury and other soft tissue injuries. The driver of the car was arrested and convicted of driving while intoxicated. His automobile insurance company offered its limits of insurance of $50,000. We pursued an additional claim against the bar for serving the driver while he was visibly intoxicated. We retrieved video surveillance from cameras in and around the bar. We retrieved documents showing the alcohol that was purchased at the bar as well as the blood alcohol level lab tests of the driver. We also secured an affidavit from the driver wherein he admitted that he was visibly intoxicated when the bar continued to serve him alcohol. The bar denied fault but after being confronted with the evidence, their liability insurance paid $300,000 to settle the case out of court.
Our elderly client was returning to her vehicle at the parking lot of a shopping center when she tripped over a broken section of the ground causing serious injuries including a fracture to her wrist, injury to her jaw, and multiple contusions and abrasions. We reached out to the store to initiate a claim and were directed to their insurance company. The insurance company refused to accept responsibility and we promptly filed suit against them, as well as the management company responsible for maintaining the premises. It was clear early on that this would be an uphill battle. The culpable parties refused to acknowledge their wrongdoing or offer our client any compensation. We quickly realized this case would require an aggressive stance on our end and rose to the challenge. We commenced by issuing multiple subpoenas to all third-party contractors associated with performing any maintenance of the premises as well as serving the defendant with multiple discovery requests. We also conducted a comprehensive investigation including surveillance of the scene, interview of witnesses, and consultation with experts. Our investigation yielded critical information including evidence of preexisting poor conditions of the premises and failure to act by management. After taking multiple depositions of defendant personnel, we were confident of our chances at trial. As the trial date approached the other side finally “saw the light” and agreed to settle with our client for a six-figure settlement.
Our client was hit head-on by an intoxicated driver. He suffered serious injuries requiring extensive medical treatment. We presented a claim to the at-fault driver’s insurance company and commenced intense settlement negotiations. Ultimately, they agreed to tender the full policy limits of $100,000.00. Given our client’s extensive injuries and the punitive nature of the crash, we were not satisfied. We continued to investigate the matter and eventually additional sources from which our client could recover. In performing our due diligence, we were able to find additional insurance from the parents of the driver of the vehicle. From this additional insurance, we were able to secure an additional $850,000.00 for our client.
Our client was hit head-on by a vehicle driven by a driver that had not only medications but marijuana in her system. Our client was forever rendered incapacitated and in prolonged loss of consciousness/vegetative state. The lawyers for the driver denied liability and refused to offer an any compensation. We wasted no time and a lawsuit was filed on behalf of our client. After securing witnesses, prolonged discovery, and extensive case preparation on behalf of our client, we were able to get the driver’s insurance company to pay out their policy limits of $1,000,000!
Young teenager was crossing a street at a crosswalk with a flashing yellow light. Halfway through the crosswalk he was struck by a distracted driver who failed to see him or the flashing yellow lights. He was thrown several feet down the road. The impact was so hard even the car sustained significant front-end damage crumpling the front quarter panel and breaking the front light cover. The teenager sustained serious bodily injuries including head trauma, a back spinal fracture, left hand fracture, multiple rib fractures, pulmonary contusions, even a cardiac contusion, among other injures. He was initially ambulanced to the local hospital, but his condition required immediate transportation to Portland for medical assistance. He was life-flighted to Doernbecher Children’s hospital in Portland for full trauma management. After extensive treatment, including surgery, he was discharged home where he spent over a year getting further medical treatment. Fortunately, with time, he was able to recover from most of his injuries. Unfortunately, he was left with several residual conditions including cognitive deficits. Our litigation team spent over two years assisting the teenager and his family with his claim. After securing volumes of evidentiary materials establishing the driver’s culpability, collating extensive medical evidence from scores of providers and experts, we were positioned to fight the case all the way to jury and commenced litigation. The defense was swayed by our evidence and capitulated. We secured a large financial settlement providing him with ample compensation and ensuring his future medical and financial needs would all be met.
Our client was traveling on the freeway when conditions on the road caused her to slow down. A truck following her failed to recognize the slowing conditions and rear-ended our client’s car, forcing her off the road where she collided with a tree before coming to a stop. As a result of the crash our client sustained multiple serious injuries including fractures to her leg, hip, knee, and heel, concussion, lacerations, and abrasions. She required extensive medical treatment, including a hip replacement. We realized early on this case would demand immediate action and a lawsuit would need to be filed. The defense posture intimated their reservation on liability. They were not convinced our client was reasonable in slowing her vehicle. We wasted no time and immediately retained an accident reconstructionist to fully examine the vehicle and event data recorder (commonly referred to as the car’s “black box”). We wanted no stone left unturned and commissioned our expert to also conduct full drone imaging. By securing liability evidence early on we were able to reconstruct the accident and prove to the defense their client’s culpability. Confronted with our evidence the defense changed their position and we were successful in securing a $500.000 settlement for our client.
Our client was a passenger in a rear-end motor vehicle accident that resulted in an arm amputation and an overwhelming amount of medical bills. As is all too common, innocent victims are frequently injured by judgment proof negligent drivers with inadequate policies. When that happens, we are tasked with conducting comprehensive investigation of all possible insurance policies that may be applicable to the underlying crash. That is precisely what we did in this case. Our research and investigation revealed multiple polices with potential coverage. In pursuing each policy, we were able to obtain three separate policy limit settlements for him through two different vehicle policies. After substantial negotiations with his healthcare providers, he walked away with a positive recovery and no outstanding medical expenses.
Our client was a mill worker who had her arm caught and dragged into a piece of machinery. The arm unfortunately was severed at the scene of the accident. Our team immediately prepared the necessary groundwork to ensure our client would receive all the medical treatment she required. In doing so we were able to navigate the workers’ compensation web of red tape and guide our client to obtaining appropriate care which ultimately resulted in her arm being reattached. We were able to further assist the client with securing ongoing time loss, ongoing medical treatment for the rest of their life and a substantial settlement.
Our firm was able to assist an elderly woman with a complicated work injury case. Due to her advanced age, treatment was denied as the workers’ compensation insurance company cited age as the main reason for the treatment and not the on-the-job injury. We were able to successfully navigate our client through this process and were able to get her a substantial settlement. While settlement was ultimately achieved, our legal team had to fight through many hurdles put up by the insurance company and had to further take steps to protect the client with her ongoing Medicare given her age. There are often multiple fronts that must be addressed in traversing through a workers’ compensation claim and this case was a perfect example of why having an attorney made all the difference.
SAIF, or other workers’ compensation insurers will always look for any opportunity to avoid paying benefits to injured workers. In an example of this, our office was able to assist a client who was struck by a vehicle while adjusting road signs for his employer. The worker compensation insurance company for his employer refused to offer coverage arguing that our client was not on the job at the time he was injured. Our client was hurt picking up signs that had blown over, after he had clocked out for the day. We successfully argued that the employer expected, or at the very least should have contemplated, that the worker would have picked up blown over signs while at the job site. After all, he was doing that for the employer’s benefit and should be considered on the job for workers’ compensation benefits. We prevailed in our position and the client ultimately received a substantial settlement.
All too often, the workers’ compensation carrier will extend benefits to an injured worker for some, but not all injuries sustained. In one such case our firm was able to assist an injured worker who struck a bear while on the job driving a truck for his employer. The initial impact caused the workers some injuries. However, as a result of striking the bear, items that were being hauled by the truck shifted forward and made their way into the cab of the truck causing further severe injuries to our client. The workers’ compensation insurance company initially only accepted sprains and strains for this injured client. Our office demanded additional conditions be added to the claim so our client can get the full treatment and benefits he deserved. Our demands were denied by the employer’s worker’s compensation carrier. Our legal team requested an administrative hearing to challenge those denied conditions and was ultimately successful in not only winning at the hearing but securing a substantial settlement for our client.
At Shlesinger & deVilleneuve, we know personal injury law inside and out and we are never worried about pushing back against the powerful insurance companies to get you the settlement that will best serve your interests.
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Testimonials found on this website are actual client reviews of Shlesinger & deVilleneuve Attorneys. We appreciate our clients and their willingness to share their experiences. Please keep in mind that the success of any legal matter depends on the unique circumstances of each case: we cannot guarantee particular results for future clients based on successes we have achieved in past legal matters.
Shlesinger and deVilleneuve Attorneys, P.C.
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