Case results
We settled a motor vehicle collision in Jackson County, Missouri for $4.83 Million. Robert Craig Ashurst (“Craig”) was traveling east on Missouri Highway 78 near Independence with his son Joseph when their 2004 Dodge Durango experienced mechanical problems. They pulled over to the shoulder and called a friend for help. Shortly after their friend arrived, a large box truck driven by Zachary Wolfe struck both vehicles and Ashurst as a pedestrian. Wolfe was distracted at the time, possibly by a text message. Ashurst was thrown from the impact and pinned underneath one of the vehicles.
Wendt Law Firm P.C. and associated counsel negotiated a settlement in a class-action case regarding improper payment for royalties associated with oil and gas produced in Kansas. The case was eventually settled before trial and we were able to secure $3,760,000.00 in compensation for our clients.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. confidentially settled a medical malpractice case arising out of mid-Missouri for $2,750,000.00. When our client walked into a surgery center for a routine operation on a herniated disk, he never imagined that would be the last time he would ever walk.
During the course of our client’s procedure, the surgeon carelessly injured his spinal cord, resulting in his total paraplegia from the chest down. Because the surgeon failed to provide the appropriate care and industry standard monitoring, our client’s injury went undetected and uncorrected. Wendt Law Firm, P.C. filed suit against the hospital, neurosurgery practice, and the surgeon for the negligent medical malpractice that left our client permanently paralyzed.
We engaged in extensive discovery that included thoroughly investigating the doctor’s conduct, retaining multiple world-renowned experts, and deposing all involved in the botched procedure. Our medical expert determined the surgeon’s conduct fell well below the mandatory standard of medical care owed to our client, in that the approach taken by the surgeon was inappropriate due to the availability of safer techniques and the failure to utilize proper monitoring technologies capable of detecting spinal injuries allowed our client’s injury to go unnoticed.
Our client, who was once an active family man in the height of his career, had his life suddenly and unexpectedly altered due to the negligence of his surgeon. Not only is he now confined to a wheelchair, but he is also unable to continue working in his chosen field and requires assistance in everyday activities, such as bathing and dressing. Our client’s disability will require ongoing treatment and therapy for the remainder of his life. After revealing the facts and conclusions we obtained through the exhaustive discovery process, the defendants agreed to participate in settlement negotiations. As compensation for the injuries and lifestyle changes tragically thrust into our client’s life by the surgeon’s carelessness, Wendt Law Firm, P.C. secured a $2,750,000.00 settlement on our client’s behalf.
The family of a man who died while in a southeastern Missouri jail cell have been awarded damages totaling $2.555M. Wendt Law Firm was able to show that the jailers and officers had failed to provide adequate care and had needlessly escalated confrontations with the man, including unreasonable use of force in violation of his constitutional rights.
A man struck by a motor vehicle in a Home Depot parking lot suffered head, neck, chest, rib and knee pain as a result of injuries suffered. Through the effective use of expert witnesses and witness testimony Wendt Law firm was able to secure a $2M settlement for their client to cover his medical expenses and other damages.
Wendt Law Firm P.C. confidentially settled a negligent supervision case for $1,000,000.00. The defendant failed to adequately warn the client’s family of his son’s sexually aggressive behavior and failed to adequately protect the client from his son, resulting in the client’s sexual molestation.
Defendant negligently drove through a crosswalk, striking our client and knocking her unconscious. Wendt Law Firm P.C. was able to show that defendant did not even begin braking until after impact. The incident was also captured by nearby surveillance cameras. As a result of the collision, our client died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. settled a wrongful death claim in Camden County, Missouri for $833,333.00. We represented the parents of 23-year-old Joseph LeMark, who was tragically killed in a boating accident on the Lake of the Ozarks after being forcefully ejected from a boat, sustaining fatal injuries.
The crash, which resulted in 3 total fatalities and serious injuries to 2 others, occurred in the early morning hours of May 19, 2018, when the driver, who was intoxicated and operating the boat at an excessive speed, struck the rock bluff forming the perimeter of the lake head-on. On behalf of Joseph’s family, Wendt Law Firm, P.C. filed suit against the operator of the boat and the owner of the boat, who was also aboard at the time of the wreck.
The operator was legally intoxicated at the time that the owner asked him to operate the boat, placing the safety of all 5 aboard the boat in danger and making them both legally liable for the deaths and injuries that ultimately resulted. After exhaustive investigation of the wreck and all involved, we successfully resolved the claims against the owner and operator of the boat for $833,333.00.
Although the successful disposition of this case has allowed Joseph’s parents to attain some closure from the tragic loss of their son, Joseph’s memory will not soon be forgotten. He will be remembered by all who had the pleasure of knowing him as a fun-loving, fiercely loyal person whose charismatic personality allowed him to connect and create life-long friendships with everyone he met. Joseph’s contagious energy, laughter, positive attitude, and comic wit were taken away far too soon as the direct result of the carelessness and complete disregard for the safety of others exhibited by the individuals who owned and operated the boat.
A passenger in a car struck by a drunk driver received a settlement for 825K after she was left with lower back pain following the incident. Despite requiring ongoing treatment and surgery the insurance company offered a settlement well below what was required to cover her damages. Wendt Law Firm was able to intervene and settle with the insurer for a much larger settlement to better assist her with expenses.
Decedent died of suffocation in front of her family at the hospital, which was caused by the defendants’ failure to properly identify and seek proper treatment of the hematoma that developed in her neck. The hematoma was neither prevented nor properly controlled, treated, or diagnosed by the defendants.
Wendt Law Firm P.C. confidentially settled a Salmonella poisoning case against a local restaurant for $500,000.00. On behalf of our client, we filed a lawsuit against the restaurant and aggressively pursued extensive discovery. After Wendt Law Firm P.C. disclosed its four nationally prominent experts, the restaurant proposed engaging in settlement negotiations.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. confidentially settled medical malpractice and wrongful death claims for $468,906.85 on behalf of the decedent’s surviving husband and five children. When the decedent began experiencing symptoms such as leg pains, she sought medical intervention. It was then that doctors discovered the possibility that she had a blood clot. Soon thereafter, the decedent was rushed to the emergency room with an elevated heart rate, extreme difficulty breathing, and a rash. While examining the decedent, the emergency physician was informed of the possibility that she had a blood clot. Despite this knowledge and the visible symptoms of a blood clot that the decedent was exhibiting, the physician declined further testing, diagnosed the decedent with Poison Sumac, and administered an antihistamine injection before discharging her from the emergency room.
By the next morning, the decedent’s symptoms had worsened significantly, leaving her nauseous, struggling to breathe, and too weak to take more than a few steps at a time. Her husband called 911, but by the time paramedics arrived, the decedent had fallen into a state of critical respiratory distress. She was transported by ambulance to the nearest emergency room, where she suffered a seizure soon after arrival. Despite lifesaving measures taken by medical personnel, she tragically passed away as a result of cardiac arrest caused by a pulmonary embolism. The decedent’s death was the direct result of the emergency physician’s failure to adequately examine, diagnose, and treat the decedent for the pulmonary embolism she was clearly exhibiting classic signs of when she arrived at the emergency room the day before her death.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. retained medical experts to prove that the physician’s conduct fell below the standard of care owed to the decedent when he failed to recognize textbook symptoms of a pulmonary embolism, ignored the possibility of a preexisting blood clot, chose not to conduct additional testing, and incorrectly diagnosed her with Poison Sumac despite symptoms indicating a diagnosis much more severe than an adverse allergic reaction. Once the defendants were presented with our evidence, they agreed to mediate a settlement of our client’s claims. As compensation for the death of the decedent, Wendt Law Firm, P.C. successfully negotiated a $468,906.85 settlement on behalf of the husband and five children of the decedent.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. successfully negotiated a $400,000.00 settlement on behalf of the parents of an 18-year-old who was killed in a motor vehicle accident in Joplin, Missouri. Our clients’ daughter was riding as a passenger on a motorized scooter when it was suddenly struck from behind by a much larger vehicle. The force of the impact threw her body from the scooter, coming to a rest in the opposite lane of traffic. She was emergently transported to the local hospital with severe head trauma, skull fractures, and bruising on her brain, among numerous other injuries.
Tragically, after courageously battling for her life for 5 days, the decedent ultimately succumbed to her injuries while hospitalized. Subsequent investigations of the wreck determined that it was caused by the negligence of the individual driving the scooter on which the decedent was a passenger. Not only was he was operating the motorized bike at a dangerously slow speed, but he did so in the left lane, which violates Missouri law mandating vehicles to be driven in the right lane unless passing another vehicle. Moreover, the driver who struck the scooter reported to investigating officers that she did not see it until moments before the collision because its operator failed to properly illuminate the scooter with rear tails lights.
Finally, the driver did not have a helmet available for his passenger; had she been provided one, she may have survived the impact of the collision. Because the scooter was uninsured, Wendt Law Firm, P.C. sought to recover uninsured motorist coverage from our clients’ insurer on their behalf. The insurer, however, denied liability without reasonable cause. Accordingly, we filed suit against the insurance company to recover damages for the injuries sustained as a result of the driver’s negligence, as well as additional damages for the insurer’s vexatious denial of our clients’ uninsured motorist claim. Soon thereafter, the defendant indicated its willingness to mediate a settlement of our clients’ claims.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. ultimately secured a $400,000.00 settlement for our clients, allowing them to close this horrific chapter of their lives and begin moving forward from the unexpected loss of their beloved daughter.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. recovered $358,333.34 on behalf of the surviving children of a man who was tragically killed after being called to the scene of a friend’s disabled vehicle along Highway 169 in Clay County, Missouri. Upon arrival, the decedent parked his vehicle in the right lane, directly in front of the disabled vehicle, in order to tow it to safety. While the decedent attempted to secure the tow line, the owner of the disabled vehicle repositioned himself to the left lane of the highway, while his passenger remained near the stopped vehicles in the right lane.
Simultaneously, another vehicle was traveling in the left lane of this stretch of highway. The driver of that vehicle suddenly realized that a pedestrian, who was later identified as the owner of the disabled vehicle, was standing in the left lane, directly in his line of travel. The driver swerved into the right lane in an attempt to avoid striking the pedestrian. Unfortunately, however, the driver failed to observe the two vehicles stopped in the right lane, slamming directly into the back of the disabled vehicle at over 55 miles per hour. The immense force of the impact propelled the disabled vehicle into the decedent’s vehicle, striking both pedestrians near the vehicles, including the decedent.
Tragically, our clients’ father succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the collision and was pronounced deceased at the scene. Wendt Law Firm, P.C. sought to recover monetary damages on behalf of the decedent’s 4 surviving children for their losses sustained as a result of this catastrophic incident. Ultimately, Wendt Law Firm, P.C. successfully settled claims against the insurance providers for both the pedestrian walking in traffic and the driver who struck the stopped vehicles, securing a total of $358,333.34 on behalf of our clients.
Wendt Law Firm, P.C. successfully settled a wrongful death claim out of Jackson County, Missouri for $250,000.00. We represented the wife and young son of the decedent, who died tragically as the result of severe blunt force trauma. The decedent was intoxicated and walking along Interstate 70 in the early morning hours when he was suddenly struck by a tractor-trailer traveling at 70 miles per hour. Upon collision, the decedent became airborne, traveling over 130 feet before coming to a rest in a ditch along I-70. By the time emergency personnel arrived at the scene, the decedent had succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene by the county medical examiner.
The tractor-trailer that struck and killed the decedent was being operated by an employee of a commercial transportation company. Subsequent investigations of the wreck revealed that the driver had exceeded his 8-hour driving limit in violation of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and continued to operate the tractor-trailer despite his fatigue and diminished alertness. Moreover, the driver failed to utilize his high-beam headlights at the time of the wreck, significantly decreasing the distance from which he could see the decedent and take proactive measures to avoid hitting him. Wendt Law Firm, P.C. aggressively pursued claims on behalf of our client for the losses she suffered from her husband’s death caused by the negligence of the driver and the transportation company.
We retained a trucking expert who reviewed the facts of the case to determine the cause of this fatal wreck. At her deposition, our expert testified that her experience and expertise allowed her to conclude that the collision was the result of the driver’s hours-of-service violation and improper use of low-beam headlights. Once the defendants were presented with this evidence, they finally agreed to negotiate a settlement of our client’s claims. Wendt Law Firm, P.C. ultimately secured a $250,000.00 settlement for our client, providing her and her young son closure from the tragic death of their beloved husband and father.
Given the delicate nature of this case, Wendt Law Firm P.C. will not disclose details. We were successful in securing a $235,000.00 settlement on behalf of our client through court-mandated mediation.