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December 11, 2010
While performing surgery to alleviate spinal cord compression(stenosis) the doctor injured the patient's spinal cord and left her nearly unable to move her legs. Doctor initially tried to tell the patient that she would be fine. The case settled successfully after plaintiff's expert demonstrated how the doctor's incorrect technique had caused her injury.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
A plastic surgeon failed to use proper technique to repair a child's congenitally malformed ear. As a result, the young boy lost almost his entire ear and the area surrounding it was badly scarred. After the defense completed the deposition of plaintiff's expert witness the case settled.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
Just engaged to be married, a young man driving his company's pickup truck was killed when the flat bed trailer of an oncoming tractor trailer skidded sideways across his lane striking his truck. The tractor trailer's brakes were in disrepair and proved to be out of adjustment. The trucking company was cited. The case brought by the young man's parents was settled at pretrial.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
While stopped in traffic a middle-aged father of five was killed when a truck driver fell asleep at the wheel of his rig and drove his tractor trailer over the top of his car. This case was settled at mediation.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
Parents of a young girl took their daughter the hospital on 2 consecutive days because she was feverish and vomiting. On both occasions ER doctors ignored the child's complaints of lower stomach pain and sent her home with her parents. When she returned the third time her appendix had ruptured. She had developed peritonitis and was septic. After one week on a ventilator in the ICU she recovered. Her case was successfully settled before trial.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
An elderly man underwent lung sugery to remove what proved to be a benign tumor in his lung. After the procedure he developed swelling and redness at the sugical site as well as fever. The doctor attributed these symptoms to normal healing until a blood culture demonstrated Staph Aureus. After 3 months on a ventilator in the hospital's ICU the patient recovered. The case settled shortly after the sugeon's deposition was completed.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
22 weeks pregnant, a young mother's bag of waters broke and she delivered a still born boy at the hospital. Her doctor chose not to perform a D&C. She returned to the same hospital 5 days later with a fever and a rapid hearbeat. Although her chest X-Ray was clear the emergency room doctors diagnosed pneumonia and chose not examine her for a uterine infection. Her condition worsened until she hemorrhaged 12 hours after her admission. At that time a young resident diagnosed her as having retained products of conception and a D&C was performed. Unfortunately, her sepsis continued to worsen and she went into respiratory failure. She was intubated and kept alive for 3 months before she died. A case brought by her husband against her doctor and the hospital was successfully settled before trial.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
Promised a simple easy snoring cure a man agreed to allow his doctor to perform minor surgery on his palate. Instead of the simple procedure described the doctor removed a significant portion of the man's palate which left him with permanent difficuly swallowing and speaking.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
On her way to the office a company vice president slipped on ice accumulated near a leaking drain pipe in an enclosed unheated garage and suffered a broken hip. Case settled successfully at pretrial conference.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
Despite being in a doctor's care a young girl's worsening asthma condition went undetected until she collapsed while cheerleading at a high school football game. Paramedics were unable to revive her. Case brought by the girl's mother against her daughter's doctor settled at mediation.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
A highly successful businessman from California came to Chicago to attend his niece's wedding . A recovering alcoholic, he'd stopped just before coming to Chicago.When he began suffering delirium tremons(DTs) as a result of etoh withdrawal he was taken to the hospital ER. From there he was transferred to the ICU with instructions that he be closely monitored. However, he was left unmonitored by the staff for an extended period of time. When he was found he was unresponsive and not breathing. He was revived after being intubated but he had suffered extensive brain damge as a result of oxygen deprivation. Unable to care for himself as a result of his injury he remained in Chicago and lived in a nursing home until his death three years later.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
A Kansas truck driver delivering goods to a warehouse in Chicago fell 20 feet into a freight elevator shaft when its door opened unexpectedly while the elevator car was on a different floor. The case settled successfully on the eve of trial.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
An Airline Captain, First Officer and two flight attendants were seriously injured when the driver of a hotel coutesy van fell asleep at the wheel and drove the hotel van into a bridge abutment. Suit on behalf of each crewmember was settled successfully after a mediation in Portland, Oregon.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
A 30 yr old mother of 2 children was given anti-emetic(nausea) medication by IV catheter to combat nausea. She was 6 weeks pregnant with her 3rd child. When she developed cold symptoms (coughing, headache, fever) hospital physicians didn't check her for blood borne infection(sepsis). When her husband brought her back to the emrgency room she was admitted to ICU and died 2 days later. Suit against the hospital was successfully settled at mediation.
William L. Barr
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December 11, 2010
On his second day at work a 20 yr old lineman apprentice working on a steel lattice tower with his foreman was directed by a utility company on site representative to check a static or sheild wire connection. Neither he nor his foreman were told that the it was energized. When he inadvertantly touched the wire he was electrocuted. The case was successfully settled for his family after suit was filed under the Illinois Publc Utility Act.
William L. Barr
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October 15, 2010
A 59 year old man whose blood test demonstrated microcytic anemia, a sign of potential colon cancer, was not prescribed appropriate colo-rectal cancer screening. When it was diagnosed one year later the cancer had spread to his liver and was inoperable. The claim was settled successfully at trial in favor of his widow.
William L. Barr
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October 15, 2010
A fuel leak caused an explosion of an off-shore raceboat severely injuring the three men in its crew. The engine's manufacturer failed to attach its exhaust securely. When the manifold became loose it struck the fuel block and caused the leak of high octane fuel in the boat's hull.
William L. Barr
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October 15, 2010
Undocumented Polish immigrant lost both hands due to a failure of a safety pull-back device. Device failed to withdraw worker's hands before ram desecended. Worker spoke only Polish. Case was settled successfully and injured worker returned to Poland.
William L. Barr