Although slip and fall cases may indicate minor accidents, they can result in severe injuries and extensive medical expenses, leading to long-term physical and emotional consequences. To elaborate on this, we will discuss a lawsuit against Seven Restaurants, an owner of a Burger King franchise, where the plaintiff suffered significant injuries. After explaining what happened in this case, we will discuss how serious a slip-and-fall case can be and why you should think twice about hiring a personal injury mill (i.e., intake specialist and case manager) over a real lawyer.
Don’t Rush to Judgment
Here’s the elephant in the room: People may jump to conclusions when they hear about someone suing over a slip-and-fall case. They tarnish the victim by claiming they are trying to take large sums of money over a minor incident, or they talk about how a victim is using the legal system for self-serving reasons. You may have done this yourself. Think about how the media, Seinfeld, and the general public treated the woman who spilled coffee on herself at McDonald’s. It was a complete sham, right? The victim was a 79-year-old woman with third-degree burns, which are the most severe, that covered 16% of her body.
Not only did McDonald’s require their employees to serve coffee between 180 and 190 degrees (which causes third-degree burns in three to seven seconds), but they had over 700 reports of previous injuries—and some of these had already resulted in settlements.
Granted, this blog is about a case involving Burger King, but we opened with the story about McDonald’s because we want you to be open to how serious these injuries can be. There’s more to a story than a headline; in many cases, it is a regular person who has been injured.
One of the Largest Slip-and-Fall Verdicts in Florida’s History
Money talks, and it did in the case against Burger King. Richard Tulecki, who was 48, slipped on a “wet foreign substance” in a Burger King bathroom. He was awarded $7.81 million in damages. (He only received $7.68 after the insurance company was compensated for the money they spent on his medical bills. He also received $3.35 million in lost earnings, which was included in the settlement amount.)
Remember, don’t judge a case by the headline. How can someone fall and get seven million dollars? Although the verdict wasn’t given until May 2023, this accident happened in 2019. The victim in this case, Richard Tulecki, suffered lower back injuries that required surgery. The surgery then resulted in a “postoperative perforated colon.” Like many people who suffer personal injuries, he was left unable to work while living under the high cost of his medical bills and other financial obligations.
An Intake Specialist Didn’t Win Seven Million
When you work with an experienced personal injury attorney, they will investigate, gather evidence, and document the conditions that led to your injury. Armed with experience, they will begin negotiating to secure a fair settlement based on the extent of your injuries, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages resulting from the accident. When we feel the settlement is less than what you deserve, we advocate for you at trial to maximize your chances of a favorable outcome.
Though we have discussed this in the past, personal injury mills don’t operate this way. Unlike other personal attorneys, they will often forgo investigating. They will likely utilize a predetermined formula to evaluate the strength of your case. We titled this section the way we did because when you work with PI mills, you won’t get to speak to an attorney. You will work with an “intake specialist” who cannot offer legal advice. In some cases, the longer the case takes, the more money they will withhold from your settlements, which could be as high as 50%, or more, plus costs.
Let Us Fight For You
Foldenauer Law Group houses trial attorneys; we are very upfront about that. Your needs determine our actions. If we have to go to court to obtain it, then that is what we will do; it’s what you deserve. If you have been injured, give us a call, and let’s discuss it. Your initial consultation is free because we want you to ensure we are the right fit for your case. Call us at (619) 564-8877 to get started.