Results and Resolutions
When a person is injured, it can be difficult to show why that individual should recover monetary damages. The Law Office of David J. Heyer, Ltd. listens to clients and makes every effort to uncover the facts which often entitle our clients to the substantial awards they truly deserve.
These are just some of the noteworthy cases on which David J. Heyer has been able to recover substantial awards despite difficult evidentiary issues.
Cases resolved by the Law Office of David J. Heyer, Ltd.
35 Year old Woman dies of Undiagnosed HIV
A 35-year-old Woman suffering from low- white blood count and shingles was not tested for HIV and died of AIDS
Uninsured driver hits 45 year old man
A 45-yr-old man was killed in an automobile collision when the underinsured driver of a pick-up truck ran a red light. Cellular phone records showed that the pick-up driver was using both his personal and work cell phones within moments of the collision, although the collision occurred after work hours. The settlement was paid by the pick-up driver and his employer.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
4-month-old boy dies when infection is left untreated
4 month-old baby boy died after blood tests confirmed streptococcus pneumonia but the doctors failed to inform the family and did not give the baby antibiotics.
Wrongful Death » Medical Malpractice »
Scratch on foot leads to lost lower leg
57-year-old man lost his leg below the knee and three toes on the opposite foot when he walked into a workshop where a mechanic was repairing a motorcycle. The bike tire scratched his feet causing the man who had a vascular condition to develop an infection and gangrene.
2.5 Million- low speed collision aggravates arthritis
A 60 year man required a spinal fusion after being rear-ended in a car which caused only $500 in property damage.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Bus strikes pedestrian, causing serious arm injury
19-year old man with a blood alchohol level of .263 was struck by a CTA bus, sustaining a partial degloving injury to his right upper arm. Injured party was initially offered $50,000 to settle.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Woman slips on flyer in Kmart parking lot and has multiple knee surgeries
38-year-old woman sustained a knee injury after slipping on a piece of paper in a Kmart parking lot; required 7 surgeries and is left with grossly unstable knee, permanent foot paralysis and faces at least 8 more future surgeries
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
Unsafe machine causes permanent injury
A 57-yr-old man lost his arm in a food processing machine while greasing the machine without using proper safety procedures. Evidence was discovered showing that the machine could not be fully lubricated unless it was fully energized making safety measures impractical.
Product Liability » Personal Injury »
Infant dies after being discharged from hospial
Infant with apnea died after being discharged home
Wrongful Death » Personal Injury » Medical Malpractice »
Intoxicated salesman kills woman in drunk driving accident
35 year old woman killed by intoxicated motorist (wine salesman); award made against employer (wine distributor) by proving that motorist became intoxicated in the course of his employment, drinking with a customer after a sales call.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury » Wrongful Death »
Radiologist fails to report 7 cm Lesion on Kidney
56 year old woman with back pain referred for MRI. No report of abnormal findings made. Year and a half later same MRI Center reports 7cm lesion on kidney. woman now stage IV Kidney Cancer
Driver on cell phone is struck by truck driver
30-year-old woman sustained a fractured hip and sciatic nerve injury when a truck tapped her car on the rear bumper, sending her into a tailspin; the defense produced records showing she was on a cell phone at the time of the accident.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
15 year old boy drowns in Lake Superior on youth mission
15-year-old boy drowned in Lake Superior when Church counselors neglected to supervise or rescue
Personal Injury » Wrongful Death »
Traumatic brain injury as result of hospital negligence
46-year-old woman suffers traumatic brain injury as a reuslt of negligence from hospital.
Bicyclist struck, injured by truck driver
A 26-yr-old bicyclist suffered a crushing hand injury when he was struck by a truck as he passed the truck through a 2 foot gap between the truck and the curb. The truck driver admitted at trial that he was not sure if he checked his side mirror before turning into the bicyclist.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Patient suffers nerve damage after negligent injection
52-year-old man suffered sciatic nerve injury from negligent injection of Demerol into buttocks; received a $200,000 offer to settle
Medical Malpractice » Personal Injury »
42 Year Old Man Killed when car hit by Truck on Black Ice
A 42 year old man was killed when a truck crossed a median after hitting black ice resulting in policy limit recovery
Auto Accident » Transportation » Wrongful Death »
Older driver’s death results in policy limit recovery
80-year-old man was killed after being struck by negligent driver who failed to reduce speed and to yield to the right-of-way.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury » Wrongful Death »
85 year old woman dies in apartment fire
An 85-year-old woman was left in her apartment and was burned and later died when her clothing caught fire from an unattended pot of boiling water. The woman’s daughter had been boiling water for heat in the apartment due to faulty heating but had to out for groceries.
Woman sustains serious leg and ankle injuries in auto accident
79-year-old woman sustained ankle and leg fractures as a passenger in a car when another driver turned left in front of the vehicle.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
59 year old man aggravates arthritic spine
a 59-year-old man was struck at low speed but sustained whiplash and aggravation of his pre-existing spinal condition resulting in spinal fusion.
Late diagnosis of bladder cancer
Medical doctor failed to timely refer woman to an urologist. Diagnosis of her bladder cancer was delayed, necessitating surgical bladder removal.
Man rear-ended, suffers multiple injuries
A 53-yr-old man with congenital stenosis of the neck, had surgery after a rear-end automobile collision. He had not complained of neck pain for 6 weeks after the collision. His doctor testified that the absence of any complaint of neck pain was explained by the fact that the man had severe chest pain from broken ribs which distracted the man from his neck pain.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
8 year old boy hit by falling bricks off building
Bricks fall off building and 8-year-old boy suffered skull fracture with parietal hematoma and temporary neurological deficits.
Woman’s dies as a result of drug interaction, failure to monitor Digoxin levels
A 67-yr-old woman suffered heart arrhythmia and death when her cardiologist failed to monitor her level of Digoxin in her system which resulted in Digitalis Intoxication caused in part by a well-known interaction between Lanoxin and Calan.
Man suffers serious injuries from auto accident
90-year-old man suffered bulging disc and developed spinal cord syndrome which caused immobility, bedsores and eventually his death from auto collision.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Pedestrian hit by bus
54-year-old woman was at a crosswalk when she was struck and dragged by a bus. The woman had a knee surgery and other soft tissue injuries.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
48 year man slips in rain/fluid at work
A 48 year old man slipped in rain/hydraulic fluid in a loading yard. The man suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder an aggravation of his cervical arthritis leading to surgery.
Transportation » Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
70-year-old man has foot run over by CTA bus
A 70-year-old man was entering the crosswalk when a CTA bus entered on a yellow light and ran over his foot
Wreckless taxi driver injures his passenger
A 46-yr-old man suffered a head injury while he was a passenger in a taxi cab that was on its way to the airport. The cab made a u-turn in front of semi-tractor trailer in order to avoid a traffic jam.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Truck driver fails to signal, causing a fatal accident
A 21-yr-old non-documented immigrant was killed when the vehicle he was riding in slammed into a semi-truck at a speed in excess of 80 mph. The evidence showed that the truck driver should have seen the speeding car before the truck made his left turn in front of vehicle.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury » Wrongful Death »
Man injured by ladder fall; general contractor found at fault
51-year-old man fell off step ladder, tearing his rotator cuff; general contractor failed to provide eight foot ladder instead of four foot ladder.
Construction Accidents » Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
Woman rear-ended, aggravating an existing medical condition
A 40-yr-old woman with a pre-existing back condition was rear-ended at a low rate of speed. The medical evidence showed that an aggravation of her condition occurred which required a second surgery.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Man fell 10-14 feet from ladder
41-yr-old journeyman roofer in union training class fell 10-14 feet from ladder, which was improperly secured with a bungee cord; sustaining fractured leg that required surgery.
Personal Injury » Construction Accidents »
19 year old female aggravates arthritic hip and fractures femur
A 19 Year old Woman was thrown in her wheel chair when the van she was a passenger in was rear ended. She sustained a distal femur fracture and aggravation of hip arthritis.
Construction worker sustained shoulder and head injuries when material drops on top of him
34-year-old man sustained broken clavicle when a steel I-beam fell on his head and shoulder at a construction site
Personal Injury » Construction Accidents » Premises Liability »
Low speed impact - no damage - aggravation of disc disease
51-year-old man was rear-ended at 5 mph. The impact allegedly aggravated the man’s preexisting back condition that led him to require surgery.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Construction site injury
49-year-old man fractured his wrist when he tripped over a 2" x 8" piece of metal left in the floor at construction site.
Construction Accidents » Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
Patient misdiagnosed and discharged; passed away days later from Bacterial Meningitis
54-year-old misdiagnosed and discharged without follow-up instructions; passed away days later.
Church Volunteer climbs ladder to change light bulb and falls 20 feet
65 year old man Volunteered to changing bulb in parking lot of Church. Fell 20 feet causing wrist and femur fractures.
5 injured in auto accident
5 adults, traveling in a vehicle were struck by a driver that lost control of his vehicle. Injuries ranged from contusions to fractures.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Woman sustains serious burns
F-57 suffered third degree burns when a fire broke out in her apartment building. the defendants failed to properly maintain smoke alarms.
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
13 year old with spina bifida suffers serious burns at a children’s camp
A 13-yr-old boy with spina bifida sustained 2nd degree burns to his lower legs and penis when scalded by hot water during a shower at children’s camp
Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
83-year old man dies while undergoing medical procedure
An 83-yr-old man died when he became dizzy and fell while receiving a standing chest x-ray. The hospital never enforced its fall risk policy even though he was suffering from dehydration and had a doctor’s admitting order restricting his mobility. The man had said that he was okay to stand for the x-ray.
Medical Malpractice » Personal Injury »
Woman rear-ended by tow truck suffers neck injury, requiring back surgery
29-year-old woman sustained a neck injury, requiring surgical intervention and extensive physical therapy, when she was rear-ended by a truck
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Drywaller sustains aggravation of arthritic knees resulting in surgery
51-year-old drywall worker fell after the general contractor and subcontractor failed to maintain a raised floor which collapsed several inches in a computer room, resulting in the man having a bilateral medial meniscus tears and knee replacements.
Personal Injury » Construction Accidents »
Man sustained neck injury after falling in auto dealership
40 yr-old man sustained un-operated cervical injuries and a concussion after slipping on floor in service area of auto dealership.
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
Supervisor found negligent in work-site fatality
A 69-yr-old man died when he was backed over by a catering truck at a construction site. The previous lawyer settled the case against the catering truck but failed to pursue the general contractor who had no direct control over the catering truck which came to the worksite on its own. Recovery was made against the law firm who failed to preserve the case against the general contractor who was shown at trial to have allowed the catering truck to drive recklessly at the site many times before the incident.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury » Wrongful Death »
Mail man slips on homeowners front porch
57 yr-old mail man slipped on wet tile that was covering homeowners porch; sustaining right rotator cuff tear that required surgery.
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
low impact accident aggravates arthritis leading to surgery
A 64 year man had an L5-S1 fusion for an aggravated spinal arthritis.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
64 year old man aggravates back
A 64 year man was driving a car and was rear ended by truck. L5-S1 fusion was required .
Man aggravates pre-existing back injury when rear-ended
57-year-old man required spinal surgery after rear-ended by another vehicle
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Landlord found partially responsible for death
A 43-yr-old man suffered a fatal heart attack in his apartment. Paramedics were unable to immediately enter due to a defective door lock that the landlord had failed to repair despite several requests. Paramedics were delayed 8 to 10 minutes. The medical testimony established that the man would have had a 50% chance of survival at a severely impaired level if the paramedics had gained immediate entry.
Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
Woman suffers ankle /foot injury when truck runs red light
53-year-old woman sustained an ankle and foot injury when a truck collided with her vehicle, while attempting to make a left-hand turn.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Elevator mechanic fractures wrist after falling off ladder
35-year-old elevator mechanic sustained a fractured wrist when he stepped off a metal ladder onto an icy roof at a Chicago hospital while conducting elevator repairs. Mechanic was offered $0 to settle.
Construction Accidents » Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
Man rear-ended, requiring back surgery
A 39-yr-old man with pre-existing arthritis in his back had multiple back surgeries after a low speed rear-end collision. His employment records showed that he also had several unrelated back injuries at work, which also may have caused the need for the surgery.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Motorcycle passenger recovers against driver of Motorcycle and left turning car
50 year old female motorcycle passenger lost her leg below the Knee when an oncoming car made an abrupt left turn in front of the motorcycle. Left turning driver had only 100k policy remainder from Motorcycle driver.
Woman injured in grocery store
An 85 yr-old woman suffered a hip fracture from a fall at Jewel over a food pallet in the middle of the aisle used by a stockboy. The store’s incident reports and eye witnesses’ testimony showed that the woman was likely distracted while reaching for a carton of orange juice.
Premises Liability » Personal Injury »
Painter injured by homeowner's unsafe scaffolding
A 56-yr-old painter suffered a head injury when he fell from a scaffold owned by the homeowner which he used despite its unsafe condition while working as a painter. The painter had been instructed not to move the scaffolding by the homeowner.
Construction Accidents » Personal Injury »
4 injured in auto accident with on-duty tow truck driver
4 adults riding in vehicle were struck on passenger side by on-duty employee of tow truck company. Injuries ranged from lacerations to cervical fracture.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Bicyclist injures a pedestrian
A 42-yr-old woman was struck by a bicyclist while walking along the lakefront. She sustained a head injury. Witnesses had testified that the woman was listening to her iPod and walked right in front of the bicyclist.
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Pedestrian struck by bicyclist on Lake Shore Drive and sustained brain injury
A 42-year-old woman sustained a severe head injury when struck by bicycle while she was walking
Woman tripped on uneven sidewalk causing hip fracture
Elderly woman tripped/fell over an uneven sidewalk at shopping ccenter causing a hip fracture.
Developmentally delayed adult passes away from undiagnosed pneumonia
21-year-old developmentally delayed adult resident passed away after facility failed to refer patient for signs of pneumonia
Wrongful Death » Medical Malpractice »
Woman suffers aggravation of pre-existing condition from auto accident
56-year-old woman was rear-ended, causing aggravtion of pre-existing scoliosis.
Man injured after forklift driver fails to secure load
A 56-yr-old man fractured his wrist when material fell off a forklift jack onto his arm. He had been unloading his truck in a narrow lane of traffic on a busy loading dock. The forklift driver had not secured the material as required.
Construction Accidents » Personal Injury »
Brick Layer falls off porch roof, breaks neck and has cervical fusion
44-year-old man sustained a spinal injury when he fell off porch roof at construction site that was improperly constructed by general contractor
Personal Injury » Premises Liability » Construction Accidents »
79 year old diabetic man receives substandard care, causing severe ulcers
A 79-yr-old man sustained stage II decubitus ulcers on his sacrum and penis while he was a patient at three nursing homes. He was suffering from severe diabetes, vascular disease and had undergone a leg amputation prior to the development of bedsores.
Woman passed away from complications of bilateral hip fractures
88-year-old woman in nursing home facility dropped out of hoyer lift sustained bilateral hip fractures
Wrongful Death » Medical Malpractice » Nursing Home Abuse »
Passenger of vehicle injured when rear-ended by another vehicle
47-year-old woman sustained torn rotator cuff when the driver of the vehicle she was in struck another vehicle
Auto Accident » Transportation » Personal Injury »
Man required knee replacement after falling in nail salon
85-year-old man sustained knee injury, requiring knee replacement, when his foot got tangled in a cord lying across the floor in nail salon
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »
Boy suffers traumatic brain injury when riding lawnmower rolls over
17-year-old boy suffered traumatic brain injury when riding lawn mower rolled over
Personal Injury » Product Liability »
Patient raped in psychiatric hospital
13-year-old boy was sexually assaulted by a 14-year-old boy while admitted to Riveredge Hospital
Personal Injury » Premises Liability »