The law firm of Pugatch & Nikolis has successfully represented clients in a variety of matters in the Courtroom.  We have fought hard for each of our clients to assure that they receive fair and just compensation which realistically reflects the losses they had suffered.

Success in the Courtroom can require the retention of experts in a variety of fields including engineering, architecture, economics, medicine and medical illustration.  Pugatch & Nikolis has successful consulted with and utilized the services of such experts with great success.

Below is a listing of some representative cases:

·           Trip and fall down stairs.  

COURT :   Supreme Court/Queens County.

CLIENT :   Sixty-two year old year New York City teacher.

FACTS :   Client was walking down the stairs at the Long Island Railroad Murray Hill Station to catch a train into New York City.  The stairs were broken, irregular and badly in need of repair.  Our client was caused to fall down the stairs and sustained serious injuries.

INJURIES :

a.         Comminuted displaced fracture of the left wrist;

b.         Intraarticular fracture of the left wrist;

c.         Several rib fractures;

d.         Traumatically induced arthritis;

e.         The plaintiff underwent four surgical procedures in an attempt to repair the severely fractured wrist.  Ultimately, her wrist had to be fused.

RESULT :   Settlement for $900,000.00.

·           LIRR “Gap” fall

FACTS :  Plaintiff was exiting a Long Island Railroad train at the Stony Brook station.  As plaintiff stepped from the train to the platform, she fell into the “gap” between the train and the station platform.  Plaintiff was seventy-seven years old at the time of her accident.

INJURIES  :

a.         Spiral fracture of the left proximal femur;

b.         Open reduction and internal fixation of the femur fracture;

c.         Plaintiff was confined to the hospital for six days and required the use of a walker for three months following her accident.

RESULT :   Settled after jury selection at Supreme Court, Queens County, for $340,000.00.

·           Pedestrian knockdown #1

FACTS :   Plaintiff is an eighty-seven year old practicing physician who was crossing the street in front of his home when he struck by a vehicle making a turn on a winter evening at approximately 7 p.m. 

INJURIES :

The plaintiff sustained a fracture to his right tibia and fibula as well as fractures to his right sixth rib and his nasal bone. 

The plaintiff was hospitalized for five days and thereafter underwent rehabilitation at a facility for an additional sixty days.  He was then discharged to home where he continued to live independently.

RESULT :   Settled during jury selection for $347,500.00 at Supreme Court, Nassau County.

·           Injured worker

FACTS :   The plaintiff was a thirty year old HVAC laborer who injured his back during the removal of a 500 pound air conditioning unit located in the elevator room of a high rise building.  As the air conditioning unit was being lowered, the weight of the unit shifted to the plaintiff resulting in multiple herniated discs. 

INJURIES :

a.         Disc bulge at L3-L4;

b.         Disc bulge at L5-S1;

c.         Disc herniation oat L4-L5.

The plaintiff was caused to and did undergo surgical intervention in an attempt to repair his injuries with the use of orthopedic hardware. 

The surgery was unsuccessful in diminishing the plaintiff’s pain and thus, he was caused to undergo years of pain management therapy. 

The plaintiff was found to be permanently disabled and incapable of finding alternate employment.

RESULT :   Plaintiff received a jury verdict of $11,600,000.00.

·           Pedestrian knockdown #2

FACTS :   An eighteen year old college student was struck by a vehicle while crossing in the middle of a block.  The plaintiff claimed that he had passed in front of a beverage delivery truck and that the driver of the truck waved at him indicating to him that it was safe to cross.  As he stepped out from the beverage delivery truck, he was struck by a passing motorist. 

INJURIES :   The plaintiff suffered from a close head trauma, episodic seizures, and a fractured jaw.

RESULT :   Settled before trial for $800,000.00.

·                                   Slip and fall  

FACTS :   A forty-one year old worker in a nursing home and slipped and fell on a floor which had been freshly mopped.  The worker contended that the outside vendor that mopped the floors had failed to put up appropriate warnings that the floors were wet and slippery.

The worker fell backward and suffered an injury to her cervical spine.

During the course of her treatment for her cervical spine injury, a benign tumor in her spinal canal was discovered.  The defendants claimed that the plaintiff’s complaints of pain and disability were not related to the injuries she sustained in her slip and fall accident but instead were related to the existence of the benign tumor in her spinal canal.

RESULT :   Settled before trial for $950,000.00.

·           Wrongful Death