Helicopter Crash – Tragic Loss

Our hearts go out to the families of flight nurses Karen Hollis and Jim Dillow and pilot Andy Olesen of REACT.  These good people were killed when their medical helicopter crashed December 10, 2012 near Rochelle, Illinois.  I had the pleasure of meeting Nurse Hollis in 2011.  She was one of the flight nurses who responded to a motorcycle crash near Rockton, Illinois.  I represent the rider who suffered a severe head injury when her HJC motorcycle helmet failed during the crash.  I took Nurse Hollis’s deposition and found her to be very intelligent, professional and compassionate.  Her death is a huge loss not only for her family, but for the entire community.


Michael Gill
Pfaff & Gill, Ltd.

Pradaxa Lawsuit Pending in Southern District of Illinois

Pradaxa is a blood-thinning drug typically prescribed to patients with atrial fibrillation to prevent blood clots.  It was approved in October 2010 by the FDA for the prevention of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and was the first alternative to warfarin (Coumadin) approved in nearly 60 years.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already received over 500 reports of Pradaxa-related deaths.  Reported complications include over 900 reports of gastrointestinal hemorrhages, over 300 reports of rectal hemorrhages, and over 200 reports of cerebrovascular accidents.  The FDA is now conducting a safety review of the drug, which millions of people around the country take twice a day.

If you or a loved one suffered serious complications from taking Pradaxa, call (312) 828-9666 or e-mail Pfaff & Gill, Ltd. today. (Contact Us)

In Re: Pradaxa (Dabigatran Etexilate) Products Liability Litigations, MDL No. 2385.

Northwestern Destroys Sperm Samples

On October 15, 2012, Pfaff & Gill, Ltd. filed suit on behalf of a testicular cancer survivor against Northwestern Medical Hospital and Northwestern Medical Faculty Foundation.  Northwestern’s cryopreservation storage tank failed, destroying the sperm samples inside.  For more information see Chicago Tribune Article; Complaint at Law. 

JOHN ANONYMOUS is just one of many men whose samples were destroyed by Northwestern’s negligence.  Pfaff & Gill, Ltd. continues to investigate cases for others whose sperm samples were similarly destroyed.  The lawsuit was filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Law Division, case number 2012 L 11738.  This was the first case arising out of this failure to be filed in the Law Division.  Contact Pfaff & Gill, Ltd. if you received a letter from Northwestern advising that your sample was destroyed – (312) 828-9666.

$7,500,000 injury settlement in Peoria, IL

Bruce Pfaff was retained in March 2012 to take the lead in prosecuting a lawsuit for a worker who received a high voltage electrical shock. On the eve of a two week trial set to begin in Peoria this month, the case settled for $7,500,000. The case had been pending for more than two years and the defendant had offered only $2 million to settle the serious injury claims before Pfaff & Gill filed their appearance in the case. The firm devoted significant resources to the case, hiring three new experts, and taking additional testimony from employees of the defendant which helped to expose its liability. The injured worker was employed by a service company that was hired by a major manufacturing company to perform services in an outdoor area that had high voltage equipment. The worker entered into an unlocked gated area which, unknown to him, was always to remain locked. Electricity arced from a piece of equipment, entered his back and exited his feet. The defendant landowner maintained that the worker never should have entered the gated area because its dangers were readily apparent, even going so far as to hire a human factors psychologist to testify that the worker was contributorily negligent for walking through the gate.

“Our client was fortunate to survive but sustained serious injuries that will affect him throughout his life,” according to Bruce Pfaff, lead counsel. “His survival and good recovery are testaments to his strength of character which we know a jury would have readily appreciated.”

The suit claimed future medical needs expenses of $1 million and substantial damages for pain, suffering, disability and disfigurement. There was no claim for lost earnings. 

This settlement comes on the heels of a $13.55 million jury award in Tazewell County that Bruce Pfaff and Matt Ports obtained for an injured worker whose leg was crushed and later amputated. Pfaff & Gill, Ltd. practices throughout Central and Northern Illinois and limits its practice to representing those injured or killed by wrongful conduct. 

Welcome to our new associate, Emily R. Herrell

Pfaff & Gill is very glad to welcome Emily R. Herrell to the firm. Emily is a 2011 graduate of DePaul University College of Law. After she graduated, Emily worked as staff attorney for Judges Michael R. Panter and William E. Gomolinski of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Law Division, until she joined the firm on two weeks ago. Emily wants to become a great trial lawyer and we hope she achieves that goal with us.

Illinois Appellate Court 1st District Decision - Illinois Law Applies

On August 6, 2012, the First District Appellate Court ruled that Illinois law, not Michigan law, applied to our auto product liability action on behalf of a Chicago man rendered quadriplegic in a Michigan car crash.  The suit arises out of Chrysler's failure to utilize a roll bar or sufficiently strong A-pillars in the Sebring convertible.  Due to the Chrysler bankruptcy, the only remaining defendant is Mancari's Chrysler Plymouth, Inc., the Illinois dealership that sold the vehicle.  The plaintiff resides in Illinois and the car was purchased in Illinois.  The court's ruling is significant in that Michigan law is extremely biased towards auto manufacturers and against those injured by automotive defects.  The case should now proceed to trial in 2013.  Bruce R. Pfaff and Michael T. Gill will try the case for the plaintiff.  Mancari's is represented by Brian Bell and Mario Ivelic of Swanson Martin & Bell.

Follow link to read the Appellate Court's Order.

Firm Celebrates Recent Victory at Trial

Bruce Pfaff reached a successful mid-trial settlement of a legal malpractice case pending before Judge Clare McWilliams in the Circuit Court of  Cook County. Mr. Pfaff was prepared to present expert testimony that his client, W.J., had a substantial judgment entered against him because W.J.'s lawyer negligently failed to object to damages testimony that was inadmissible. Because of the defense lawyer's errors in the 2006 trial, the verdict was nearly twice as much as it should have been. On trial this month, Judge McWilliams made significant substantive rulings, including finding that had the lawyer objected to certain damages evidence in the 2006 trial, the trial court should have sustained the objection and excluded the evidence. After all of the rulings by Judge McWilliams and selection of a jury, the case settled for $700,000.