The difference of a day was all it took to turn fortune into misfortune for our client – a gifted University of North Florida student. On January 17, 2005, he was full of fortune: known for his lively, loving personality and remarkable musical talents. Misfortune came to him a few minutes after midnight in a devastating roadway crash.

More than 600 individuals made claims against Hipps Road Landfill in the early 1990’s, claiming that toxins emitting from the dump site were causing a devastating loss of property value, a variety of detrimental medical issues, and the fact that the area’s cancer rate was six times the expected amount. A host of medical professionals testified that the range of ailments, including cancers, learning disabilities, neurological issues, birth defects, reproductive problems and many others, were due to the toxic exposure surrounding the site. Howard Coker and Charles Sorenson fought aggressively for more than 2 ½ years for their clients to receive justice, successfully winning a settlement of $18.25 million.

In February 2011, James Lightfoot was abruptly read-ended atop the Mathews Bridge. As a result of the collision, Lightfoot suffered permanent injuries to his neck and back, and would forever be plagued by excruciating pain due to the negligence of the driver who hit him. The injuries Lightfoot sustained required him to undergo a cervical fusion surgery in addition to recommendations that he would eventually need another cervical fusion surgery, a spinal cord stimulator, and pain management treatment for the remainder of his life, consisting of injections and radiofrequency ablations. Doctors also prescribed Lightfoot an electric wheelchair to assist him, especially for long distances.

Despite the other driver rear-ending Lightfoot, she still denied all liability for the collision. So, with mounting medical costs and nowhere to turn, Lightfoot knew he needed help.

You would think 50-year old Sandy Noe would have the worst luck.  This father of two boys in the US Army was rear ended not just once, or twice, but three separate times.  To make matters worse, the crashes that occurred on November 2012, October 2013, and October 2016, were by three uninsured motorists.  Noe brought his first two claims to his insurance company GEICO Insurance to use his uninsured motorist coverage to his pay for the damage to his cars and to help cover the cost of his injuries.  He was shocked when they denied that he was hurt and disputed the extent of his damages.  He was so frustrated that he changed his insurance to The United Services Automobile Association (USAA).

When an underinsured motorist struck the side of Bradley Correia’s vehicle, at Atlantic Boulevard and Ridgewood Place, he was left with a disc herniation in his spine and permanent aggravation of a degenerative lumbar condition. However, the underinsured motorist’s coverage would only cover $25,000 of his medical costs. Correia knew he needed help, so he called the attorneys at Coker Law. Attorneys Howard Coker and Dan Iracki took on the underinsured motorist’s insurance company, Amerisure Insurance Company. They fought to get Correia’s medical expenses covered and provide support for his family. Due to Coker Law’s determination, a jury awarded Correia more than $5.5 million dollars for his medical expenses, personal injuries, and pain and suffering.

A 68-year-old electrician working on a new building in Jacksonville forever had his life altered after falling four stories while working onsite. Sadly, the electrician had intended to retire and travel the world with his wife only months later. The glass company’s workers failed to install a required safety system on a window frame, and failed to tell the electrician that only a non-anchored frame remained. When the electrician leaned against the frame, he fell four stories to the ground below, producing horrific and traumatic injuries, mountains of medical bills, and a lifetime of pain.

Chris Stephenson wanted to be close to his family in Jacksonville so he traded a job driving a Northeast trucking route for a local assignment with Infinger Transportation Co. In the late and heavily rain-soaked afternoon of August 12, 2000, Chris was driving a gasoline tanker for Infinger and was at the base of Jacksonville’s Hart Bridge leaving downtown when motorist Jason Keiffer lost control of his automobile and swerved into Chris’ big rig.

A 66-year-old railroad conductor B.W. Cox said that CSX Transportation was to blame for his interstitial fibrosis diagnosis. After cabooses had been discontinued, Cox would follow behind the locomotives in a trailing unit where he was exposed to substantial diesel exhaust. Although CSX said that cabooses being discontinued posed no medical hazards, Howard Coker and other attorneys at Coker Law argued that CSX had not taken any preventative measures to limit exhaust exposure to their employee. CSX was found to be at fault for employer negligence and Cox was awarded $3.5 million dollars.

Sierra Tucker, 26, was driving in Lake City when an Ecosmart truck suddenly made an improper left turn across oncoming traffic and cut into her lane. Unable to avoid the collision, Tucker was hit head-on by the truck. She suffered a complex laceration of her right arm, a two-inch laceration to her forehead, and multiple sprains and strains. Tucker was unsure of how she would be able to pay for the damages to her vehicle and medical costs, so she turned to Coker Law.

On August 31, 2013, while driving her pick-up truck, Sequana Beale was violently rear-ended by the driver of a 2001 Toyota Camry, who was driving too close and too fast for road conditions. The force of the impact sent the Camry sliding underneath the bed of Sequana’s truck. Without the bumper to absorb the force of the crash, Sequana suffered serious and permanent injuries in the collision. Unfortunately, with no surgical option she has a possible lifetime of pain management treatment.

There was no way Monae Gadson could have anticipated the brutal collision that was about to happen to her on a spring day in 2013.  Out of nowhere, a vehicle driven by a negligent, uninsured/underinsured motorist slammed into Ms. Gadson, causing a terrifying T-bone collision.  She suffered permanent herniated discs in her neck and her low back as a result of the violent collision. When traditional medical care couldn’t stop the pain, Ms. Gadson sought the help of pain management experts, where she underwent painful radiofrequency ablations in her neck and epidural injections in her low back.

Ray Roebuck was delivered a heartbreaking diagnosis when a driver careened into the side of his car, sending him slamming into the guard rail on the interstate: surgery, a spinal cord stimulator and pain management treatment for the rest of his life. Having been offered no more than $50,000 from the insurance company, Coker Law fought back – for Ray, his employees that counted on him, and those cherished moments with his son on the golf course.

Charles Sorenson and Aaron Sprague recently negotiated a $2.2 million settlement for their client, Eric Geidel, and his wife, Patricia. Permanently disabled due to the negligence of a commercial trucking company, Eric’s case exemplifies the frequency and severity of trucking accidents on our roadways today.

His wife was a resident of a local assisted living facility, where she was being provided home healthcare services by Vitas Healthcare. While undergoing a bed bath in the care of a Vitas’ home health aid, she suffered blunt force trauma to her eye, causing a detached retina which left her permanently blind. This family experienced a horrendous ordeal. They waited patiently for their day in court to seek justice. The jury agreed with Coker Law that abuse of the elderly is not acceptable and will not be tolerated! Their decision holds Vitas Healthcare accountable and awarded the family a 2.4 million dollar verdict.

A 40-year-old woman had to undergo intensive cervical surgery and deal with a lifetime of issues due to an 18-year-old’s negligent driving. A fast change of lanes resulted in the defendant slamming into Martin’s vehicle and forcing her onto the median. Martin was left unable to ever return to work and did not know where to turn. She called Coker Law, where Howard Coker and Charles Sorenson fought for Martin to receive the justice she deserved. Due to the efforts of Coker and Sorenson, Martin received a settlement for $1.8 million dollars. 

When CSX employee Kevin Looney was visiting Jacksonville for meetings as a labor union representative, he never imagined he would return to his family in Tampa with lifelong pain, suffering, and permanent injuries due to the negligence of another driver. While traveling around Jacksonville, Mr. Looney was slowing for traffic when a negligent driver abruptly slammed into the back of his pickup truck. Due to the impact of the crash, Mr. Looney suffered injuries to his neck and mid-back that would require continuous medical treatment throughout the rest of his life. Severely injured in an unfamiliar city, overwhelmed by the mounting medical costs, and not knowing where to turn, Mr. Looney and his family knew they needed help.

25-year-old college student Samantha Justyn was riding her bike when all of a sudden, her whole world came to a crashing halt, quite literally.  While making a wide turn, a truck driver for Valleycrest Landscape Maintenance struck Justyn with the trailer, knocking her from her bike onto the roadway. She sustained serious cervical and spinal injuries, resulting in multiple painful and expensive treatments and a deluge of costly medical bills. ValleyCrest Landscape Maintenance hotly disputed liability and retained an engineer to claim that Justyn was at faulting for riding into their driver’s alleged “blind spot.” Therefore, they refused to cover the mounting costs of her medical needs.  With nowhere to turn, she called Coker Law.  Attorneys Howard Coker and Charles Sorenson fought for Justyn in an extensive trial. Thanks to their efforts and the Coker Law legal team, after a five-day trial the jury awarded Justyn $1.7 million dollars for her medical costs, pain and suffering and declared the defendant was 100% at fault.

A visit to the local stadium to watch football isn’t normally considered a life-altering event. But, for one young Jacksonville man it was just that. Matt White, a 24-year-old former professional drummer, sustained a serious, life-altering injury while attending a football game. Matt entered a stadium restroom at the beginning of the first quarter. At the end of the first quarter, Mr. White returned to the same restroom, which by this time was completely flooded. As he turned a blind corner on his way in, he slipped, fell and broke his right ankle. Alcohol and intoxication were not a factor in his fall. The restroom had become flooded due to an overflowing toilet and the defendant did nothing to warn, prevent or remedy the dangerous condition.

Darryl Waters was stuck in traffic on I-95 in Duval County, Florida, on Thursday, March 31, 2011.  He had two of his children in the car with him, daughters Darian and Khayla Waters.  A truck driver for Spa Crest Manufacturing, Inc., was hauling a trailer when he failed to stop for the traffic and plowed into the back of the Waters’ car. Darian, Khayla and Darryl were all injured from the brute force of the impact. Darian’s pain wouldn’t go away and three years later it was determined that her injuries would result in permanent damage to her spine.

In January 2010, Ms. Mahoney was rear-ended by another vehicle on Interstate-10 near the Luna Street exit in Jacksonville. As a result of the crash, Ms. Mahoney suffers life-long health problems. She sustained three herniated discs in her neck and was recommended for a future 3-level neck fusion surgery. The final verdict was $1.15 million with a final settlement of $1.4 million after an award of attorney’s fees and costs. The highest offer before trial was $75,000.

Jerry Garrett wanted to be a commercial jet pilot after retiring from his 22 year Navy career. Instead, he is paralyzed below the waist and in a wheel chair, the results of a fall at a construction site where he planned to work part time, to make some extra money. It was his first day on the job and he was asked to work up on a scaffolding some 13 feet in the air. He slipped on a too-narrow plank and fell to the ground, sustaining major and life-changing injury.

Professional golfer Rhonda Ferguson made the most of every day.  But that all changed on June 18, 2013, when a speeding driver lost control of their vehicle on the Buckman Bridge, sliding sideways into Rhonda’s lane – and her car.  Fractures to her foot, torn ligaments and a permanent bone injury to her ankle, along with painful herniated discs in her cervical spine, left her facing a life time of pain management and potential future surgeries.

You never know the day when your life will be changed forever.  For Daryl Gleaton, it was a November day in 2016.  He was struck by another vehicle at an intersection when the other driver didn’t yield to oncoming traffic. The force of the impact rolled Mr. Gleaton’s vehicle over almost three full times. His SUV was totaled, the windshield shattered, and glass was hanging from the car. When the police arrived, Mr. Gleaton’s crumpled SUV was still on its side, dangerously blocking traffic at the busy intersection.

During rush hour on July 1, 2005, David Akers was driving at a dangerous speed of 90 mph on I-10 near Cassat Avenue. He was under the influence of drugs and alcohol and collided with Deborah Whiddon’s vehicle. The violent collision caused lifelong medical problems for Whiddon. Akers’ admitted his negligence was the sole cause of the crash, but he fought her claim she was suffering from permanent injuries. Whiddon knew she needed help, so she called Dan Iracki, partner at Coker Law. Iracki fought for Whiddon and successfully proved her injuries would impact her for the rest of her life and that she needed to recover lost wages.  The jury agreed and awarded her $983,000.

On the way back to work from lunch on July 21, 2016, married father-of-two Majeid Bidel-Niyat was T-boned at an intersection. He was sitting in the rear passenger seat, which took most of the impact from the crash. This once-avid athlete now suffers from two disc herniations in his neck and a herniation in his back. Bidel-Niyat now has to receive pain management for the injury to his neck, as well as possible surgery to treat his back. Bidel-Niyat’s insurance company denied the full extent of his injuries and only offered $200,000. Knowing this wasn’t enough to cover the cost of his pain management, surgery, and his lost wages post-surgery, Bidel-Niyat’s attorney contacted the team at Coker Law. Coker Law has the experience and the financial backing to tackle tough cases like this one. Coker Law proved the full extent of Bidel-Niyat’s injuries and the case was resolved for $950,000.

In September of 2011, Jacqueline Smith suffered injuries to her lower back when a truck violated her right-of-way and T-boned her vehicle. The truck driver was underinsured, so Mrs. Smith filed a claim for her injuries through her underinsured motorist coverage with 21^st Century Insurance Company. 21^st Century Ins. Co. denied the collision caused all the injuries Mrs. Smith was claiming and tried to prove she was also negligent in the crash. Coker Law’s attorneys knew their client was in the right, so they fought 21^st Century Ins. Co. in an intense four-day trial. The jury agreed with Coker Law and awarded Mrs. Smith more than $940,000 for medical expenses and pain and . Because of 21^st Century Ins. Co.’s refusal to settle the case when given the chance, Coker Law is also going after 21^st Century Ins. Co. for attorney fees and costs.

*** Limited by amount of insurance/assets.

After four day trial, jury awards woman damages for lost wages and quality of life.

Pamela Kade* was grabbing lunch at a Golden Corral restaurant in March 2016, when she slipped on a puddle of water an employee had poured on the floor to clean something up, before leaving it unattended to fetch supplies. She fell to the floor, tearing the lateral meniscus in her left knee. Mrs. Kade had such excruciating pain that she needed three separate surgeries: an arthroscopy, a total knee replacement, and a manipulation under anesthesia.

Nicola Carter never imagined a trip to Jacksonville with her children would leave her with serious injuries, resulting in a lifetime of pain and total knee replacement surgery. As Mrs. Carter and her family were finishing breakfast at the Jacksonville Airport Aloft Hotel in August 2013, she got up to move her car to the front so it would be easier to load their luggage when they checked out. Unfortunately, unknown to Mrs. Carter, the hotel cleaning crew had just mopped the floors in the hallway behind her.

The car crash that left Cheryl Govea with life-long low back injuries was resolved by jury verdict concluding a 5-day trial in the new Duval County Courthouse on June 22nd. Cheryl was represented by partners Charles A. Sorenson and Howard C. Coker. The case was presided over by Circuit Judge Lawrence Haddock.

James Tennant slammed into the back of a semi-truck owned by Handi-House Mfg. after it stopped suddenly in the midst of a left-hand turn. Tennant sustained a traumatic brain injury with cognitive difficulties, disc herniations and spondylosis from the crash. Handi-House Mfg. said Tennant was at fault, and they would not assist with his medical costs. Tennant knew he needed a strong team to win the case, so he called Coker Law. Attorneys Howard Coker, Dan Iracki and Joel Harris fought to prove that the driver of the semi-truck did not have the proper knowledge or skills needed and created the conditions that caused the crash. Due to the Coker Law legal team’s aggressive efforts, Tennant received $450,000 to cover his medical costs.

Indemnity Only Settlement.

Terese Latham was driving down SR-600 when an uninsured motorist collided with her vehicle. The motorist had no insurance, so Latham filed a claim with her insurance company, USAA Casualty Insurance Company, under her uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits. USAA Casualty Insurance Company denied her request for compensation for her permanent bodily injuries and damage to her vehicle. She filed a complaint, arguing that USAA Casualty Insurance Company breached their contract by failing to fulfill its obligation to honor her claim. Latham turned to Coker Law for justice. Attorneys Howard Coker and Dan Iracki fought USAA Casualty Insurance Company so Latham could receive the benefits she rightfully deserved. The jury determined that USAA Casualty Insurance Company should pay for Latham’s losses, resulting in an award of $422,672.

Maribel Hernandez was eight months pregnant when a driver crossed the center line at the intersection of Talleyrand Avenue and 8^th Street, colliding with her vehicle. Hernandez started going into premature labor, but thankfully was able to hold off giving birth for another three weeks and delivered a healthy baby. However, as a result of the crash, she suffered numerous medical issues to her neck, back and head, as well as short-term memory loss, a cyst in her sinus cavity due to stress, blurry vision and sleep deprivation. The driver who hit her was uninsured and Hernandez needed help to cover her medical costs and lost wages. She called Coker Law in desperate need of someone to fight for her. Attorneys Howard Coker and Charles Sorenson battled her insurance company, Allstate Indemnity Company, to receive reimbursement for her lost wages and help with medical costs, in addition to compensating her for her pain and suffering. The insurance company only offered $25,000. Due to the efforts and determination of Coker and Sorenson, a jury granted Hernandez $299,777.21.

In January of 2006 Angie Vazquez and her then-fiancé, Chuck Kees, were excited about the opening of the film “King Kong.” The couple visited Jacksonville’s Regal Beach Theater to view the remake of the famous 1933 classic. They were unaware that the evening would cost them significantly more than the price of tickets and popcorn.

It made all the difference that my attorneys believed in me. I was taking on Bank of America, but I felt I was right and was not going to get pushed around by a giant corporation. Your team was there at my side every step of the way. They really cared and supported me. In court, they made certain that I got to tell the truth about how I got hurt. I am grateful and would highly recommend this firm to anyone who has been injured, especially if they have to fight a big company like I did.”

Summer Gilhousen was so excited to be a mom and was anxiously awaiting the arrival of her first-born child. After her water broke, she was admitted into a local hospital and administered an epidural. After Summer was admitted to the hospital, she received an epidural to help ease the pain from her contractions.  She fell asleep and it wasn’t for several hours until nurses discovered she had become unresponsive and was turning blue. Her oxygen levels had drastically dropped so she was rushed into the operating room for an emergency C-section.

Every parent wants the best for their baby.  So, when Diane and Ben* grew concerned and noticed their 20-month old was having trouble seeing, they wanted to see help. But with this being their first child, they thought they might be over reacting.  But as he grew and started becoming more active, they realized he couldn’t look up without raising his whole head.

When Heather Manning first felt the lump in her right breast, she wasn’t panicked; but she wasn’t going to waste any time either. She was well aware that early detection is key to surviving a breast cancer diagnosis, so she made an immediate appointment to see her gynecologist. To her relief, he assured her it was a benign cyst, nothing to worry about, she didn’t even need a biopsy. She was relieved and left the office grateful to have received such a confident response from her doctor. But the lump didn’t go away. It grew, and its shape started to change. She told her family she was worried…

Haley* had tried an extensive number of diets and exercise programs over the years, but she just couldn’t seem to lose the weight. When Haley was finally accepted into the bariatric surgery program at UF Health Jacksonville, she was elated. However, her excitement was short-lived. During her pre-check appointment to prepare for the surgery, the doctor who was supposed to help her through this process ended up sexually assaulting her.

On the evening of June 19th, 2013, Irene Cepeda was tragically killed while trying to cross the street. On the night of the tragic accident, the mother of three had just finished shopping at Walmart and was crossing Phillips Highway near Reba Avenue when she was hit and killed. A quick look at the circumstances surrounding her death could lead someone to say she was to blame for her own death, however, Coker Law partner Matthew Posgay believed there was  more to the story.

Yanisei Valdes was driving down SR-9A in May 2011 when she was abruptly rear-ended by another vehicle. Coker Law argued that the driver who hit Valdes was driving while distracted, failed to keep a proper lookout, did not yield the right-of-way and failed to take evasive action. Valdes needed compensation for her multiple injuries, loss of earnings and ability to earn money, medical expenses, property damage, pain and suffering, disability, and mental anguish. The defendant’s insurance company only offered $10,000 to Valdes before and during trial. Coker Law attorneys Matthew Posgay and Stefano Portigliatti fought in trial for Valdes to receive fair compensation. A jury agreed with Coker Law and awarded $200,715 to compensate her for her medical costs, loss of income and injuries.