Michelle Black v. State Farm Mutual Insurance Company
Court: Circuit Court for Prince George's County
Case Number: CAL 98-14328
Proceedings: Jury Trial
Judge: The Honorable Thomas P. Smith
Outcome: Jury verdict for plaintiff
Incident Date: N/A
Filing Date: N/A
Disposition Date: N/A
Plaintiff: Michelle Black
Plaintiff Attorney: Richard L. Jaklitsch
Defendant: State Farm Mutual Insurance Company
Defense Attorney: Charles C. Bowie, Jr.
Injury Claimed: Emotional injuries, breach of contract
Description of Injury: Emotional injuries and damages associated with with breach of contract.
Amount Sought: $5,000 in medical specials and $3,000 in lost income
Settlement Offer: $20,000
Award: $133,362
Location of Incident: N/A
Case Information: Plaintiff and her daughter were injured in an automobile accident when a suspect whom the police were chasing ran a stop sign and collided with plaintiff's car, severing the vehicle in half. As a result of the accident, plaintiff's daughter is confined to a wheelchair. Defendant State Farm Mutual was plaintiff's uninsured motorist carrier and had denied plaintiff's claim for damaged associated with emotional injuries and a lost wage claim for a period of time for which she took off from work to care for her daughter during her recovery.
Plaintiff alleged that defendant insurance carrier breached the insurance contract by denying plaintiff's damage claims for emotional injuries and lost wages sustained as a result of this accident.
Defendant claimed that there was no breach of contract as the policy did not cover emotional injuries. Further, it was not defendant's obligation to pay plaintiff's wages while she cared for her daughter.