Cases by Stephen C. Swain

Disclaimer: Every case is different and these verdicts and settlements, while accurate,
do not represent what we may win or settle for you in your case.

• $5,200,000 for a child with brain injury and a seizure disorder resulting from DPT vaccination
• $12,000,000 for the brain injury to a mother of 3 who was struck by a drunk driver in an intersection collision
• $5,000,000 for brain injury to a teenage girl riding her bicycle when struck by a newspaper truck
• $2,000,000 to a man for the loss of an eye when assaulted in a bar
• $9,000,000 for 3 men burned in an SUV that had a defectively designed fuel tank that ignited when struck by a truck. The claims were paid by the car and truck manufacturer and the truck company
• $1,500,000 against a truck driver for the brain injury to a limo driver when unsecured stone flew from the truck through the limo driver’s windshield striking him in the head.
• $2,750,000 in a medical malpractice case for a nurse patient who suffered brain injury during surgery because the doctors and nurse anesthetist did not recognize that she had lost blood and did not do CPR nor follow the code properly
• $1,350,000 in a medical malpractice case for the family of a patient against the obstetrician, anesthesiologist and labor and delivery nurses for death because they did not diagnose her blood loss following a cesarean section delivery which led to cardiac arrest.
• $1,500,000 for a brain injury to a man who was struck by a policeman improperly using his mag flashlight.
• $1,700,000 in an industrial accident in the workplace against the manufacturer of a defective hydraulic lift that collapsed to the ground and fractured the welder’s ankle.
• $1,100,000 for a trustee inmate who sustained a brain injury when a sheriff’s van transporting him to his work release location was struck by an 18-wheel truck.
• $900,000 for a pedestrian whose shoulder was broken by an out-of-control vehicle that was involved in an intersection crash in North Carolina.
• $650,000 for a man whose leg was burned in a small private plane crash caused by the pilot’s failure to maintain an adequate glide path following loss of power after switching to an alternative fuel tank.
• $650,000 in a medical malpractice claim for a woman who suffered an infection caused by a neurosurgeon who performed spinal surgery at the wrong level and had to repeat her surgery in North Carolina.
• $350,000 in a medical malpractice case in South Carolina for the death of an intoxicated man who was misdiagnosed by the emergency room doctor resulting in aspiration from failure to protect the man’s airway after being restrained.
• $450,000 in a medical malpractice case for failure to diagnose bladder cancer in a timely fashion
• $600,000 in a medical malpractice case for failure to diagnose colon cancer by the internist
• $450,000 in a medical malpractice case for failure to diagnose breast cancer by the gynecologist
• $600,000 in a medical malpractice case for failure to treat a heart attack appropriately in the emergency room.
• $1,000,000 for a shipyard worker who suffocated as a result of the discharge of carbon dioxide into the hold of a ship during fire alarm repairs
• $1,200,000 for a family in a trust and estate dispute against the fiduciary.
• $600,000 for a legal malpractice claim against a lawyer in a fiduciary position
• $2,200,000 in a product liability claim against a door manufacturer and the architect for negligent design of the electronic door that descended on a man at a manufacturing facility when the man rode a cargo tower through the door and the electronic device failed to detect him.
• $900,000 in an industrial accident against a manufacturer of a car-crusher conveyor belt component for failure to design an interlocking machine guard resulting in the loss of the man’s arm
• $750,000 in a workplace accident against the manufacturer of a highway construction conveyor belt machine for a woman whose leg was damaged when it was caught in the unguarded conveyor belt.
• $600,000 in a medical malpractice case for a woman’s family against a plastic surgeon and CRNA for failure to have an antidote on hand in the office surgical suite to counter the untoward effects of anesthesia resulting in malignant hyperthermia and for their failure to recognize the condition.
• $450,000 for an elderly woman neglected in a nursing home who developed a bed sore.
• $1,850,000 in a medical malpractice case for a child with brain injury cerebral palsy in North Carolina caused by the doctor’s and hospital’s negligence at birth. The obstetrician and labor and delivery nurses failed to recognize fetal monitoring signs of distress and did not resuscitate the baby nor proceed to Cesarean delivery, resulting in oxygen deprivation and brain injury.
• $520,000 in a medical malpractice settlement for a South Carolina man with diabetes for a below-the-knee amputation resulting from the failure of a podiatrist to obtain a vascular evaluation of the man's circulation prior to attempting toe surgery. Circulation was compromised, resulting in gangrene and leg loss.
• $1,000,000 for the family of an 18 year old passenger struck by a drunk driver on a North Carolina beach.
• $465,000 in a medical malpractice case for the family of a 19-year-old kidney transplant recipient who sustained oxygen deprivation and hypoxia that went unrecognized by a nurse anesthetist and the transport team as the patient was being transported from the operating room to the ICU for recovery.
• $600,000 in a medical malpractice claim for a 78-year-old women in North Carolina who sustained a ruptured disk in her lower spine. The neurosurgeon performed surgery at the wrong level and had to do a second surgery resulting in infection.
• $260,000 in a medical malpractice case for a seamstress against a hospital for failure to remove a sponge left in her abdomen following a hysterectomy. Follow-up surgery to remove the sponge resulted in scarring to her abdomen.
• $360,000 in a medical malpractice case for an infant with a birth injury -Erb’s Palsy- a shoulder impairment caused by an obstetrician from birth injury as a result of stretching and traction to the shoulder nerves during delivery.
• $1,200,000 in a medical malpractice case against the surgeon and hospital nurses for failure to remove a surgical towel left in the abdomen following abdominal surgery in Portsmouth, Virginia.
• $350,000 medical malpractice case for an infant with Erbs Palsy, shoulder impairment caused from a birth injury from stretching and traction to the shoulder nerves during delivery by the obstetrician.
• $450,000 medical malpractice case for an infant with Erbs Palsy, shoulder impairment caused from a birth injury from stretching and traction to the shoulder nerves during delivery by the obstetrician.
• $1,750,000 for a truck accident against a trucking company transporting an extra wide load at night without proper markings or proper authorization and for failure to determine the width of the roadway. The truck cargo struck a man traveling in the opposite direction at night causing him severe injuries.
• $2,500,000 jury verdict (reduced to $1,750,000, the legislative cap on damages in Virginia) in a medical malpractice case against a family physician who did not properly care for and treat a woman with diverticulitis. The woman developed an infection that led to a stroke and serious brain injury in Chesapeake, Virginia.
• $375,000 in settlement for a bicycle rider struck from the rear by an inattentive driver along Shore Drive in Virginia Beach. A second car then struck the bicyclist causing significant injuries.
• $390,000 for a man sustaining a back injury in a red light/green light automobile collision in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
• $235,000 settlement for a bicycle rider struck by a car turning left at an intersection in Virginia Beach.
• $900,000 for a bicycle rider for a brain injury when he was struck by a passing automobile mirror.
• $1,000,000 for a shipyard worker who received a brain injury resulting from an explosion onboard a naval ship in dry dock. Another contractor used volatile liquid to clean the deck surface within the ship in violation of shipyard rules and OSHA regulations and ship alt requirements. The fumes from the chemicals were not properly exhausted and ignited causing the shipyard worker’s injuries.
• $1,800,000 award in a workers’ compensation claim in Rocky Mount., North Carolina for an explosion of volatile fumes when a worker was using a torch to open a barrel. The injured worker’s employer’s insurance carrier had refused to pay medical expenses and compensation.
• $1,000,000 for the family of a woman driving along a roadway where road construction had recently replaced manhole covers. The manhole cover flipped up under the lady’s car when she passed over it causing her car to roll over in Richmond, Virginia.
• $350,000 for a woman who developed pressure ulcers and bed sores against a nursing home that failed to routinely examine and report this deteriorating skin condition to physicians.
• $1,000,000 against an automobile manufacturer for defective windshield design. During a collision with another car, the occupant was ejected through the window after the windshield blew out during the rollover causing extensive injuries.
• $1,500,000 against a car manufacturer for the family of a man who died in a car fire. The car manufacturer designed the van with the fuel tank built in the rear of the axle. The car was struck from behind by a drunk driver erupting in flames from a fuel tank rupture.
• $500,000 for seatbelt injuries to a passenger riding in the rear seat of a vehicle. The vehicle only had a lap belt and the occupant sustained internal injuries when the vehicle was involved in a collision with a cement bridge trestle.

Disclaimer: The verdicts and settlements listed here are intended to be representative of cases handled by Stephen C. Swain. These listings are not a guarantee or prediction of the outcome of any other claims.