Aggressive Investigation And Surveillance Leads To A Favorable Settlement

September 20, 2018

Patton & Ryan recently obtained a favorable settlement by utilizing surveillance to convince a Plaintiff to settle his claim. A 48-year-old iron worker sustained an elbow injury at work. The Plaintiff possessed a quality liability argument and wage-loss claim after it was objectively determined he could no longer engage in iron work. Plaintiff’s experts claimed he was unemployable and would never work in any capac­ity again. Through aggressive investigation, Patton & Ryan obtained records from the Illinois Secretary of State in which the Plaintiff represented he was working six days per week as a handyman. Patton & Ryan followed-up with dedicated surveillance and obtained video of the Plaintiff engaging in work. The resultant settlement reflected only the diminution in earnings capacity rather than a complete and total wage loss.