Featured Verdicts
New and noteworthy verdicts and settlements from around the country, selected by VerdictSearch editors.
Find out about the case most relevant to your practice, with complete details on awards and settlements;
injuries claimed; experts, attorneys, insurers and judges involved; and more.
Click on a state to view the latest featured verdicts by state:
Illinois Verdicts
Find out about the most important recent Illinois cases, selected by VerdictSearch editors. Coverage includes Cook County.
Subscribe to VerdictSearch Illinois for access to all Illinois verdictsPricing Options
Jury attributes 50/50 liability to Transit Authority and pedestrian
A jury determined that the damages of a pedestrian who tripped and fell on a sidewalk at the Cumberland Blue line train station in Chicago totaled $350,000. However, the award was reduced by 50 percent due to the jury’s comparative negligence finding. Donald Reidelberger had claimed he tripped over an elevation in the sidewalk paneling caused by a height differential. He argued that the Chicago Transit Authority should have remediated the defective condition or somehow warned pedestrians of the elevation difference. The defense denied the existence of a height differential and asserted that Reidelberger actually fell in another location along the sidewalk than what he had claimed.
Reidelberger v. Chicago Transit Authority
Cook County
Rear-ended SUV driver agrees to $825K pretrial settlement
A settlement of $825,000 was reached in a case involving a rear-end motor vehicle accident. Diane Edelhauser, whose SUV was rear-ended on an I-90 exit ramp, claimed hip and spinal injuries as a result of the crash. She and her experts claimed a post-accident hip replacement was related to the crash and that Edelhauser would likely require future revision or a second replacement. According to Edelhauser, she walks with an impaired gait because her right leg was rendered shorter than the left leg due to the hip replacement and she is unable to walk long distances or sit for long periods of time. The driver who rear-ended her, Josef Matuschka, made no stipulation with regard to liability, but agreed to settle the case prior to trial.
Edelhauser v. Matuschka
Cook County
Hospital receives defense verdict on slip and fall claim
A jury found for Advocate Health & Hospitals Corp. on the injury claim of a man who slipped and fell while entering Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. James Womersley alleged he fell due to the presence of melted snow in the vestibule of the hospital. Womersley, who fractured his ankle in the fall, argued that floor mats should have been placed in light of the wintry conditions and also that the hospital should have posted warning signs regarding the slippery floor. The hospital claimed Womersley was responsible for the fall in that he entered the vestibule in a hurried manner, and, therefore, failed to exercise due caution and care upon entering the hospital.
Womersley v. Advocate Health & Hospitals Corp.
Cook County