Summary
upholding jury award of $800,000 for future pain and suffering ($941,255.46 adjusted for inflation) to fifty-five year-old tailor who broke both wrists as the result of a slip-and-fall, requiring two surgeries and resulting in reduced range of motion, ongoing tenderness, reduced grip strength, and traumatic arthritis
Summary of this case from Cedeno v. Broan-Nutone, LLCOpinion
No. 3517.
October 28, 2010.
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Paul G. Feinman, J.), entered May 6, 2009, insofar as appealed from as limited by the briefs, upon a jury verdict, awarding plaintiff $800,000 for future pain and suffering, unanimously affirmed, without costs.
Wallace D. Gossett, Brooklyn (Lawrence Heisler of counsel), for appellant.
Kahn Gordon Timko Rodriques, P.C., New York (Nicholas I. Timko of counsel), for respondent.
Before: Saxe, J.P., Acosta, Freedman, Richter and Abdus-Salaam, J J.
Plaintiff, a 55-year-old tailor, sustained painful fractures to both wrists after falling on uneven stairs leading into a subway station. The fracture to the left wrist was a comminuted intraarticular fracture of the distal radius and ulnar styloid, which required reduction surgery and a second surgical procedure to remove the metal hardware inserted into his wrist. Following a course of occupational therapy, plaintiffs fractures healed but he had reduced ranges of motion, tenderness and reduced grip strength, and traumatic arthritis causing pain in both wrists. Under the circumstances presented, the award for future pain and suffering did not deviate materially from what is reasonable compensation ( see Karwacki v Astoria Med. Anesthesia Assoc., E.C., 23 AD3d 438; Hayes v Normandie LLC, 306 AD2d 133, lv dismissed 100 NY2d 640; Cabezas v City of New York, 303 AD2d 307; CPLR 5501 [c]).