In 1988, Mrs.
Scott had recovered from lower back surgery and was back at work
with the Department of General Services. Her back surgery three
years earlier had caused her problems, but her evaluations were
now above average and she was a well-regarded employee. Around noon she entered the elevator to go
up to the office after lunch. The elevator began to jerk, rumble
and behave erratically. Mrs. Scott was understandably scared. When
the elevator jerked to a stop and then seemed to sink a bit, Mrs.
Scott hurried to exit, fearful that the elevator was dangerously
defective. She did not recognize that the elevator had stopped
eight inches above the floor and she fell forward and re-injured
the herniated disc in her lower back.
Otis Elevator
had won a state contract to maintain the elevators and was to provide
monthly maintenance. A thorough examination of their records showed
that in the weeks before this malfunction, they had been to the
building but put in little or no time inspecting and maintaining
the elevator in question. Nevertheless, Otis offered only one dollar
in settlement. The case was hotly tried in a battle of expert witnesses.
The central issue was the deterioration of contacts due to carbon
arcing and the need for regular maintenance of this type of elevator.
The case was complicated because the elevators had been replaced
prior to trial and we were attempting to reconstruct events that
were almost three years old when the case first came to us.
Numerous legal
motions were fought over the admissibility of testimony and evidence.
The case was tried for four days in Leon County. When the jury went out we knew
the case was close. Our argument focused on the testimony from
independent witnesses that the elevator jerked and behaved erratically,
including one witness, not referenced on any report, who we found
through extensive interviews with other employees in the building.
That testimony proved crucial. After twenty-eight hours of deliberation,
the jury returned a verdict of $500,000 to Mrs. Scott. Mrs. Scott
was found 50% at fault in the accident, for failing to notice the
misleveled elevator, but she ultimately recovered more than $250,000.
The case was affirmed on appeal.
Truck Wreck/Amputation
Automobile
Wreck
