On a winter night in Southern California, a fully loaded semi-truck was cruising down a featureless desert highway. The driver failed to notice a Toyota 4Runner turning left onto the road ahead of his big rig. He slammed into the Toyota's rear end, throwing both vehicles into oncoming traffic. A woman in a sedan tried to veer away from becoming part of the crash, but she couldn't escape the catastrophe barreling towards her. Hers was the last of three cars that the truck effortlessly crushed before it finally came to a halt. Airbags and crumple zones were no match for the countless tons of steel now inches from her mangled body.
The victim was a 35-year-old mother with a newborn waiting for her at home. After being transported to a local hospital for emergency care, she learned that she had a concussion, a vertebral fracture, nine rib fractures, a pelvic fracture, and that she was six weeks pregnant. Atop obvious worries for the fetus's survival was a much more pressing concern: the baby she already had at home. Despite her catastrophic injuries, she walked out of the hospital of her own volition only a few days after the crash, determined to resume caring for her infant.
No amount of maternal toughness could help her overcome such life-altering injuries and her inability to work, so she contacted the injury lawyers at Sargent Law Firm. Accomplished trial attorney Derek Monzon was eager to take on her case and fight for the well-being of her growing family. Derek had previously worked for an insurance company on the opposite side of cases like hers, so he knew exactly how to get what she deserved. He began poring over her medical records and the police report for indications of negligence.
Law enforcement had completely blamed the driver of the 4Runner for the crash, so the defendant's insurance provider outright denied liability. Derek acknowledged that the defense had a strong argument, but he refused to accept that the trucker wasn't at least partially at fault. He stressed that the truck had fully rear-ended the 4Runner, meaning the driver must have had sufficient time and space to avoid hitting it. Furthermore, given the driver's barren surroundings and his cab being so high off the ground, he had a clear view of the 4Runner.
A significant obstacle to Derek's rationale was the sparse evidence of wrongdoing by the big rig driver. The trucker had the right of way, wasn't speeding, and didn't seem to have broken any laws. No witnesses attested that he had done anything plainly dangerous. The 4Runner's driver's insurance carrier had already accepted liability for the crash, but its coverage was minimal and unable to compensate the plaintiff in any meaningful way.
Derek exposed the defense's weakness when he deposed the trucker, who testified that he always hit the brakes at intersections. He claimed that, because other drivers could suddenly dart out in front of him for any reason, he had to be cautious. Incidentally, the trucker revealed that he hadn't even noticed the intersection or the 4Runner entering it. Derek hired a trucking expert, who confirmed that the trucker's speed and conduct had been unsafe. He also hired an accident reconstructionist to validate the visual aids he'd inevitably use to showcase the trucker's negligence. He contacted DK Global to produce an animated reconstruction of the accident and of the ways the driver could have avoided the initial crash.
The DK Global presentation began with a satellite view of the crash site, zooming into a 3D reconstruction of the intersection. Next, the animation depicted the truck slowing down as it passed through the first of two intersections. The clip that followed showed an SUV turning in front of the truck, and the multi-car pileup that ensued. A replay of the reconstruction slowed down the action and paused on explanatory captions. The reconstruction zoomed out to a bird's-eye view of the entire scene centered on the plaintiff. Another 3D reconstruction showed the accident in real time from her perspective. Photographs and video footage of the several vehicles destroyed by the crash followed. Finally, a what-if animation demonstrated the trucker slowing down before reaching the second intersection, averting the accident.
Throughout the litigation process, the defense's position never changed from their initial outright denial of liability. Before mediation began, Derek sent the defense an offer he believed was fair. They never objected or even responded to that offer. At the mediation brief, Derek raised his demands and included a link to DK Global's presentation. After the defense saw how serious Derek was about proving his case, they agreed to a settlement that was 20% higher than his highest demand. He was overjoyed to share with his client that her long battle was finally over, and she was equally happy with the outcome.
Derek Monzon is a trial attorney at Sargent Law Firm. He has been practicing law since 2014 and is licensed in four states. In California, Derek worked for a national insurance company as a defense attorney, where he learned how those companies litigate cases. Afterwards, he worked at a large personal injury firm in Los Angeles, where he and his team secured a multi-million-dollar verdict. In 2023, he received a $9.5 million settlement for another client. This case was deemed a "Top 20 Premises Liability in the US" and a "Top 50 Personal Injury Settlement in the US" that year.
