Larry Curtis - Maurice, Louisiana Wrongful Death Lawyer

July 17 2005 - Farmers Loses Judgment; The insurer must pay $9.9 million to two women it chose not to defend in a liability suit.

07/19/2005

A Los Angeles jury has awarded a $9.9 million verdict to two women whose insurance company, Farmers Insurance Group refused to defend them when a neighbor was injured by a garage door at their condominium complex.

The two women, Linda Williams and B.J. Walker, who share a condo, were sued by their neighbor Juanita Watson after she fell in from of their garage in 2001 and broke her hip.  The homeowner association at the condominium complex where the three women live carried liability coverage with Farmers.

Wasson, who was 85 at the time, sued the homeowner association and Williams and Walker for reimbursement of $60,000 in medical bills, including surgery. Wasson alleged that Walker was at fault because she remotely opened her electric garage door before looking to see whether the driveway was clear.

Farmers defended the condo association in the case, but the insurer filed a cross complaint against Walker and Williams alleging that Wasson's fall was due to Walker's negligence.

Walker and Williams filed a bad-faith suit against Farmers.

Williams and Walker, who have lived in the complex for 13 years, were worried they would lose their home if they lost their liability case.

The women, who had already maxed out their credit cards to hire a lawyer, borrowed $6,500 more from friends to settle with Wasson for a portion of her medical expenses

"I guarded my credit all my life," Walker recalled Monday, "but we were just about tapped and I was so scared."

In a May bench trial, Superior Court Judge James R. Dunn ruled that Farmers had breached its insurance contract by failing to defend the two women.

And in a damages trial that ended Friday, a jury awarded $1.5 million to Walker and Williams for emotional distress, $8.3 million in punitive damages and $52,000 in contract damages.

In a statement, Farmers said, "We ... disagree with the verdict." The company said it was considering whether to ask for a new trial or to appeal.
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Larry Curtis, Personal Injury Attorney handles all types of Personal Injury cases including: Automobile Accidents, Maritime Accidents, Spinal Cord Injuries, Traumatic Brain Injuries, Wrongful Death, Insurance Bad Faith, Airplane Accidents, Drunk Driving Injuries, Large Truck Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, School Bus Accidents, Slip and Fall Accidents.

Larry Curtis, Personal Injury Attorney serves the following Louisiana areas: Southern Louisiana, Lafayette, Acadia Parish (Crowley), Allen Parish (Oberlin), Ascension Parish (Donaldsonville), Assumption Parish (Napoleonville), Avoyelles Parish (Marksville), Beauregard Parish (DeRidder), Bienville Parish (Arcadia), Bossier Parish (Benton), Caddo Parish (Shreveport), Calcasieu Parish (Lake Charles), Caldwell Parish (Columbia), Cameron Parish (Cameron), Catahoula Parish (Harrisonburg), Claiborne Parish (Homer), Concordia Parish (Vidalia), DeSoto Parish (Mansfield),East Baton Rouge Parish (Baton Rouge), East Carroll Parish (Lake Providence), East Feliciana Parish (Clinton), Evangeline Parish (Ville Platte), Franklin Parish (Winnsboro), Grant Parish (Colfax), Iberia Parish (New Iberia), Iberville Parish (Plaquemine), Jackson Parish (Jonesboro), Jefferson Parish (Gretna), Jefferson Davis Parish (Jennings), Lafayette Parish (Lafayette), Lafourche Parish (Thibodaux), LaSalle Parish (Jena), Lincoln Parish (Ruston), Livingston Parish (Livingston), Madison Parish (Tallulah), Morehouse Parish (Bastrop), Natchitoches Parish (Natchitoches), Orleans Parish (New Orleans), Ouachita Parish (Monroe), Plaquemines Parish (Pointe a la Hache), Pointe Coupee Parish (New Roads), Rapides Parish (Alexandria), Red River Parish (Coushatta), Richland Parish (Rayville), Sabine Parish (Many), St. Bernard Parish (Chalmette), St. Charles Parish (Hahnville), St. Helena Parish (Greensburg), St. James Parish (Convent), St. John the Baptist Parish (Edgard), St. Landry Parish (Opelousas), St. Martin Parish (St. Martinville), St. Mary Parish (Franklin), St. Tammany Parish (Covington), Tangipahoa Parish (Amite), Tensas Parish (St. Joseph), Terrebonne Parish (Houma), Union Parish (Farmerville), Vermilion Parish (Abbeville), Vernon Parish (Leesville), Washington Parish (Franklinton), Webster Parish (Minden), West Baton Rouge Parish (Port Allen), West Carroll Parish (Oak Grove), West Feliciana Parish (St. Francisville), Winn Parish (Winnfield)

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