Case Results

$5 million gross settlement for a 40-year-old woman who sustained injuries to her neck, chest, back, and head when a truck failed to stop for a stop sign and crossed into the path of her vehicle.

Settlement for a Connecticut woman who suffered permanent cervical and lumbar spine injuries, a concussion, and post-concussion syndrome following a car crash.

Negligence / Wrongful Death

D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers secured a multi-million dollar million policy-limits settlement for the estate of a disabled 54-year-old man who fatally choked to death after facility staff failed to properly supervise him during meals. Because of known difficulties with eating safely and a prior choking incident, he required specific mealtime precautions and close staff supervision.

D’Amico Pettinicchi developed evidence concerning the individual’s documented care needs, the prior choking event, the safeguards to protect him during meals, and whether those safeguards were followed or sufficient. The case required extensive review of care plans, facility records, facility practices, staff responsibilities, medical evidence, multiple depositions and expert analysis addressing supervision, standards of care, and the cause of his death.

We ultimately secured a multi-million-dollar policy limits settlement, providing substantial compensation for the devastating and preventable loss suffered.

Surgical Medical Malpractice

A 72-year-old Navy veteran developed diverticulitis and required surgery; he underwent surgery to remove the diseased portion of his colon, resulting in a temporary colostomy.

After he healed from this initial surgery, he required a reversal surgery to reconnect his colon and reverse the colostomy. During this reversal surgery, the surgeon negligently perforated his bladder, and instead of reconnecting the two ends of his colon, his colon was connected to his bladder. This surgical error could not be corrected, and he was left with a permanent colostomy and the need for a urinary catheter. The surgeon denied any negligence and instead argued that this was a risk of the surgical procedure due to his distorted anatomy. D’Amico Pettinicchi retained multiple colorectal surgical experts to prove that this surgical mistake was negligent and not simply an acceptable risk of the surgery. We reconstructed a video presentation showing how the surgery went wrong and also demonstrating how the surgery should be done correctly. After 3 years of hotly contested litigation, D’Amico Pettinicchi reached a multiple 7-figure confidential settlement which compensated him for economic losses including any future medical care expenses as well as a substantial non-economic award for pain, suffering, and ongoing limitations.

Nursing Home Medication Error Wrongful Death Case

D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers represented the family of a 70-year-old man who died after a medication error at a short-term rehabilitation facility.

During the resident’s stay, changes were made to his medication regimen. The case centered on allegations that a combination of medications created a significant interaction risk and that appropriate safeguards involving prescribing, pharmacy review, and nursing care failed to identify the medication interactions..

The resident died shortly after the dangerous medication changes.

Because several healthcare providers and entities were involved in the medication-management process, determining how the error occurred and which parties bore responsibility required extensive medical investigation, expert analysis, and discovery.

A Medication-Management Failure Involving Multiple Levels of Care

Medication administration in a nursing home can involve several healthcare professionals and organizations.

Depending on the circumstances, responsibility for a resident’s medications may involve prescribing providers, nursing staff, consulting or dispensing pharmacies, and the long-term care facility itself.

In this case, D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers investigated the roles of multiple parties involved in prescribing, reviewing, dispensing, and administering the medications at issue.

A central question was whether appropriate safeguards should have identified the potential drug interaction before the resident suffered fatal harm.

Why This Case Was Complex

The case involved multiple healthcare defendants with different responsibilities for the resident’s care.

The litigation required the legal team to address:

• Nursing home standards of care
• Medication prescribing and administration
• Pharmacy review and medication safety
• Drug-interaction risks in an older adult
• Medical causation
• Multiple defendants and disputed responsibility
• Apportionment of liability
• Separate insurance interests
• Extensive expert discovery
• Numerous fact and expert depositions
• Mediation and preparation for trial

Building a Multidisciplinary Medical and Medication Case

D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers worked with experts from multiple medical disciplines to evaluate how the medication event occurred and whether the care provided met applicable standards.

The firm’s expert analysis included professionals with experience relevant to:

• Internal and hospital medicine
• Nephrology
• Pathology
• Pharmacology and medication safety
• Medical toxicology
• Advanced-practice nursing standards
• Medical causation

This multidisciplinary review allowed the legal team to examine the case from several perspectives, including how the medications interacted, whether the risks should have been recognized, how the resident’s condition changed, and whether the medication regimen contributed to the death.

The Confidential Multi-million dollar Result

D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers secured a confidential multi-million-dollar resolution.

The result followed extensive medical investigation, multidisciplinary expert review, discovery, depositions, mediation, and trial preparation.

To protect the family’s privacy and comply with confidentiality requirements associated with the resolution, identifying information concerning the resident, family members, facility, pharmacy, healthcare providers, insurers, specific medications, dates, and other unnecessary case-specific details has been withheld.

D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers represents Connecticut families in serious nursing home negligence and wrongful death cases involving medication errors, inadequate supervision, pressure injuries, falls, and other failures in long-term care.

If you believe a loved one suffered serious harm or died following a medication error or other possible negligence in a Connecticut nursing home or long-term care facility, contact D’Amico Pettinicchi Injury Lawyers for a free consultation.

Commercial Truck Collision

A 43-year-old woman suffered serious injuries when a commercial box truck struck the rear of her pickup truck on a Connecticut interstate, causing her vehicle to be pushed off the roadway and roll over. She sustained significant lumbar spine injuries that ultimately required surgeries. She also incurred substantial medical expenses and was left with limitations affecting her daily activities.

D’Amico Pettinicchi brought claims against both the commercial driver and the company responsible for the truck. The case involved allegations that the driver was distracted, was operating the truck while using his cell phone, failed to maintain a proper lookout, followed too closely, failed to maintain control of the commercial vehicle, and failed to take appropriate action to avoid the collision.

After nearly three years of complex litigation, including extensive discovery, analysis of the truck’s internal dash cam video, analysis of how the collision occurred, evaluation of the client’s future medical needs, and preparation for trial, D’Amico Pettinicchi secured a confidential six-figure settlement. The recovery compensated the client for her injuries, medical treatment, pain and suffering, and the lasting impact of the collision on her life.

$4.25 million settlement on behalf of a 24-year-old woman who was seriously injured when her vehicle was rear-ended and subsequently collided with another vehicle while traveling on the New Jersey Turnpike.

$4 million dollar settlement for a 59 year old man who suffered multiple bodily fractures when his car was negligently struck by a truck.

$3,975,000 jury verdict on behalf of an 18-year-old woman who was a passenger in a vehicle which was rear-ended, causing the plaintiff’s vehicle to collide with the vehicle in front of her causing serious facial injuries.

$3.38 million dollar settlement for an elderly man for premises liability causing a fall, serious lower extremity fractures, and partial leg amputation.