Jersey City, New Jersey (August 8, 2022) – In another victory for national civil defense firm Tyson & Mendes, a motion for summary judgment was granted by The Superior Court of New Jersey in favor of a Guttenberg condominium association, which was alleged to be liable after a garbage collector was seriously injured while picking up trash on the road outside the condo complex.

According to Danielle M. DeGeorgio, the New Jersey-based Tyson & Mendes attorney who argued the case (No. MID-L-7795-19), the plaintiff was injured after being pinned between a dumpster he was emptying and the co-defendant’s personal vehicle. The estimated damages ranged between $13 and $17 million, with Tyson & Mendes client Galaxy Towers Condominium Association being held responsible for at least half of that amount.

“We argued that the New Jersey law on ‘off premise’ liability demonstrated that the court should find no legal duty was owed by our client to the plaintiff,” DeGeorgio said. “There was simply no basis in fact, or law, to find that Galaxy owed a duty of care to the plaintiff. We were also able to prove that Galaxy did not create any dangerous conditions on its property that caused the accident.”

Additionally, DeGeorgio said she focused on the real cause of the accident: the actions of the co-defendant driver versus the hundreds of homeowners who make up the condo association. “We conveyed to the court that it was not reasonable to impose a duty of care on a group of homeowners and emphasized that if the court did do so, the ruling could apply to every New Jersey homeowner, thereby negatively impacting the public policy of our state.”

Ultimately, the court accepted DeGeorgio’s public policy arguments and granted summary judgment in Galaxy’s favor.

DeGeorgio noted the defense employed themes of common sense and reasonableness and addressed the plaintiffs’ pain and suffering directly while arguing the case.

“We remained sympathetic to the plaintiff, acknowledging that he sustained a serious and life altering injury, but also emphasized that he was still well-taken care of by the workers compensation carrier who had paid, to date, almost $1 million for his care and wages – so he was not left without compensation for his injury,” she explained.

Tyson & Mendes has spent 20 years protecting its clients’ interests and delivering justice both inside and outside the courtroom. The firm has established itself as a leader in driving down damages awards and reducing the likelihood of Nuclear Verdicts® – often defined as jury awards in excess of $10 million. Using a unique set of proven defense methods, the firm saved clients more than $667 million in 2021, and $397 million thus far in 2022.

For more information, visit tysonmendes.com.

About Tyson & Mendes LLP

Celebrating 20 years of taking back justice for all, Tyson & Mendes LLP is a nationwide, AV-rated litigation and trial firm specializing in insurance defense and protecting its clients from Nuclear Verdicts®. Robert Tyson and Patrick Mendes founded the firm in 2002 to defend corporations, insurance companies, and their clients in civil litigation matters. The firm has experienced tremendous growth in the past two decades, with offices across the U.S. serving clients in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

The firm is most widely recognized for winning the landmark Howell v. Hamilton Meats California Supreme Court case, which forever changed the state’s litigation landscape by significantly impacting the damages a plaintiff may recover. Robert Tyson is also the author of the Amazon Bestseller Nuclear Verdicts®: Defending Justice for All, the first playbook for the defense on how to avoid runaway jury verdicts. For more information, visit tysonmendes.com.

Media Contact: Ashley Bendas/Jean Walcher, J. Walcher Communications
ashley@jwalcher.com / jean@jwalcher.com, 619-295-7140

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