Legal News

CTI whistleblower will get his check

James Marchese, the former Cell Therapeutics sales representative who accused the company of illegally marketing a cancer drug, will finally get $1.575 million for his role in alerting the government to the alleged fraud.

A judge ruled in December that Marchese was entitled to 15 percent of the $10.5 million Cell Therapeutics paid to settle the government's case, but both sides then appealed the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Government lawyers had argued that James Marchese, the whistleblower, should receive no money since they charged that he had planned and initiated the fraud, while Marchese argued that he should receive 25 percent of the money.

(Read a story I wrote on the case here.)

Last week, the government withdrew its appeal and Marchese's lawyers at Stathis & Leonardis in Edison, N.J., followed.

"There are mutual motions to dismiss the appeals, which I would expect would be granted," said Nicholas Leonardis, Marchese's attorney.

"We really didn't get much of a reason as to why (the government) appealed and to why they withdrew it," he said. "Quite honestly, from our standpoint, we were pleased with the judge's decision. ... We didn't have a problem with withdrawing the appeal."

As for the money, Leonardis said, "They normally will wire the money to the attorney's trust account and then we'll disburse that."

Posted by Joe Tartakoff at May 12, 2008 12:57 p.m.
Category: Cell Therapeutics

Original article found at:
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/thelifesciencesblog/

Family of Four Settles for $3.4M In Suit Over Delivery Van Crash

Leonard v. J.M.B. Linen Management: Four members of a family who were injured while passengers in a delivery van agreed on July 24 to a settlement worth $3.4 million.

The van's owner, J.M.B. Linen Management, of Rahway, will make a combination of cash and annuity payments to Louise Leonard, a student from Rahway, and her three children.

J.M.B. employee Charles Bullock, of Perth Amboy, was delivering linens to Boston in September 1996 when he allowed his girlfriend, Leonard, and her children to join him. The children rode in the van's cargo area. On the return trip, Bullock fell asleep at the wheel and the van overturned on Pelham Parkway in the Bronx. Leonard's son, Shelton, was partially ejected through a side window.

Plaintiffs' attorney Nicholas Leonardis, a partner in the Edison firm of Lombardi & Lombardi, says that Shelton, now 9, suffered extensive scarring to his right arm, which was trapped under the weight of the van, and that he has undergone three skin grafts.

Leonard and her sons filed suit against J.M.B. and Bullock in Middlesex County and reached a settlement just before trial was set to begin in May. Superior Court Judge Mark Epstein's approval came after a friendly hearing on July 24.

Shelton Leonard received a settlement of $350,000 for pain and suffering in a structured settlement that is expected to pay $3,362,420 over his lifetime. His older brother, Dondell Leonard, now 11, who sustained scars

to his knee, was awarded $35,000 in a structured settlement that will pay $70,000. The youngest boy, Altyreek, now 7, who sustained minor injuries in the crash, receives $5,000 in cash. Louise Leonard, now 28, who also sustained neck and back injuries in the crash, was awarded a cash payment of $37,500.

Kemper Insurance of Long Grove, Ill., was J.M.B.'s insurance carrier. J.M.B. was represented by Michael McCaffrey, an associate at the Bedminster firm of Purcell Ries Shannon Mulcahy & O'Neill. McCaffrey declined to comment on the case.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Charles Toutant

 

Passenger Injured in Car Rear-Ended by Municipal Garbage Truck Wins $2.3M

The Plainfield Municipal Utilities Authority agreed on June 4 to pay $2.3 million to a passenger injured in a car rear-ended by a garbage truck.

Michael Bucceroni, now 44, of Old Bridge, suffered neck and back injuries in the collision at a light on Rt. 1 North in Edison on Dec. 2, 2005.

Buccerroni, a sprinkler installer, can't work because of his injuries, and his economic damages alone were worth $425,000, says an expert hired by his lawyer, Nicholas Leonardis of Stathis & Leonardis in Edison.

Defense lawyer Nicholas Caruso of Leitner, Tort & DeFazio in Edison did not return a call.

Leonardis says the defense did not contest liability but its expert testimony suggested that normal degeneration contributed to Buccerroni's condition and that he could return to work. The case is Bucceroni v. Plainfield Municipal Utilities Authority .

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Henry Gottlieb

$850,000 for Auto Injuries

Shapiro v. Vaidhinathan: A Middlesex County woman accepted $850,000 on March 3 for back injuries suffered in a collision while driving a car for her employer, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

Esperanza Shapiro, now 54, of Edison, claims she was driving north on Woodbridge Avenue in Edison on Nov. 18, 2003, when an Enterprise rental car struck her car from behind. She suffered a disc herniation, spinal cord compression, bowel and urination difficulties, and cognitive problems, says her attorney, Nicholas Leonardis of Stathis & Leonardis in Edison.

Her medical bills were $239,081, lost wages $30,000 and future lost wages $400,000, and Shapiro was declared disabled and terminated from her job as an administrator and event coordinator, Leonardis says.

The rental car was driven by Balamurag Vaidhinathan, 30, of Iselin. The rental company, Enterprise Rental, d/b/a Elrac Inc. of Ronkonkoma, N.Y., which had argued that a pre-existing back condition caused the damage, will pay the settlement.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Maria Vogel-Short

$745,000 for Fall at Supermarket

Urugutia v. Supremo Food Market: A Plainfield woman who was injured in a supermarket fall settled her Middlesex County suit for $745,000 on June 15.

Sonia Urugutia, now 39, fell at Supremo Food Market in Plainfield on Sept. 19, 2005, when she slipped on water leaking from a meat case.

She suffered torn meniscuses in her knees, requiring arthroscopic surgery, and underwent an endoscopic discectomy on her back. Urugutia, who had no health insurance, sought reimbursement for her $235,000 medical bill.

Her attorney, Nick Leonardis of Stathis & Leonardis in Edison, says he sought video footage of the spot from one hour before and one hour after the fall and after the store said only 15 seconds was available, he filed a spoliation motion, which was pending at the time of the settlement.

Defense lawyer Brian Smith of Smith & Newman in New York claimed that the store had no notice of the condition, though Leonardis cited a repairman's report two days after the accident of a clogged meat-case drain.

The parties settled after mediation with former Superior Court Judge Douglas Wolfson , now at Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis in Woodbridge.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Henry Gottlieb

Middlesex Jury Awards $545,000 for Pedestrian Hit AfterGetting Bum Steer

Lupo v. Macauley: A Middlesex County jury awarded $545,000 on Feb. 11 for a pedestrian hit by one motorist after an unidentified motorist waved him across the roadway.

The award was reduced to $327,000 because plaintiff Jason Lupo, of Kendall Park, was found 40 percent liable for the Sept. 22, 2000, accident on Route 27 in Franklin Park.

Lupo suffered a fractured left leg below the knee that required the insertion of a rod, says his attorney, Nicholas Leonardis of Edison's Strathis & Leonardis. He also underwent six surgeries because the bone failed to heal properly. Now 25, Lupo only recently returned to work at his supermarket job.

Most of the judgment will be paid by the insurer of the driver that hit Lupo, Cyril Macauley of Franklin Park. Because an unidentified motorist was involved, Leonardis also filed claims against Lupo's homeowner's carriers, the Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. and Allstate Insurance Co.

Those carriers and Macauley's carrier, New Jersey Manufacturer's Insurance Co., argued that Lupo alone should have been held liable since he was not using a crosswalk and had not checked to see whether another car was approaching.

Leonardis argued that Macauley should have seen Lupo crossing the road.

The jury found Macauley 50 percent liable, Lupo 40 percent liable and the unidentified motorist 10 percent liable. With interest, Lupo's total will be $358,590.

Macauley was represented by Joseph Pinto, an associate at the Princeton law office of Walter Bliss; Allstate by Lynn D'Agostino, an associate at the Cranford law office of Doreen Ryan, and Liberty Mutual by Denise Tunney, an associate at Somerset's Sherman & Viscomi. All three were away from their offices and were unavailable for comment.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Michael Booth

 

$500,000 for Slip and Fall

Leonardis v. Edison Glen Condominiums, et al.: A Middlesex County jury awarded an Edison woman $500,000 on Nov. 6 for injuries suffered from slipping on a patch of ice at her condominium complex.

The award was supplemented by the two defendants' insurance carriers by $21,328, who had agreed to cover a Medicaid lien if the jury returned with a verdict in her favor.

Teresa Leonardis, 73, was injured on Jan. 5, 2001, as she was walking to her unit at the Edison Glen Condominium complex. She sustained a fractured hip, which had to be replaced. Her attorney, Nicholas Leonardis, a partner at Edison's Stathis & Leonardis, said the ice she slipped on which was covered by a thin dusting of snow was caused by an outdoor spigot with a hose that had been left slightly on.

Superior Court Judge George Nicola presided at the three-day trial. The jury found the condo complex 75 percent negligent and a property management company, Midlantic Property Management, 25 percent liable.

Before the trial, Judge Amy Piro Chambers ruled that if the defendants were found to be negligent, Midlantic would not be required to indemnify since Edison Glen had a nondelegable duty to insure that the property was safe.

It was not determined who was responsible for leaving the spigot on and creating the icy condition, Leonardis said.

The condominium's insurance carrier, the Quincy Mutual Fire Insurance Co., retained Gary Price, a partner at South Plainfield's Buttafuoco, Arce & Price, to represent the condominium. Price says he will move for a new trial and for reconsideration of Chambers' ruling against indemnification.

Midlantic's carrier, OneBeacon Insurance Co., retained Michael Dolan, a partner at New Brunswick's Hoagland, Longo, Moran, Dunst & Doukas.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Michael Booth

$450,000 for Fall in Store

Biernacki v. Wawa: A Wawa market agreed on July 9 to pay $450,000 to a patron who fell and tore his knee.

Cezary Biernacki of Lakewood, then 35, was walking away from the self-service coffee table at a Wawa in Bayville on June 13, 2005, when he slipped on coffee spilled by another patron, according to his Middlesex County suit. A witness who saw the fall was prepared to testify that store personnel had been alerted to the spill, says Biernacki's lawyer, Nicholas Leonardis of Stathis & Leonardis in Edison.

Biernacki needed reconstructive surgery and post-operative rehabilitation for a torn ligament, Leonardis says.

The case settled after retired Judge Edward Seaman mediated. Defense lawyer Francis McDevitt of Naulty, Scaricamazza & McDevitt in Marlton did not return a call.

Leonardis says the defense would have argued that if the spill was noticed by the patron who reported it, Biernacki should have seen it, too.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Henry Gottlieb

$350,000 for Slip and Fall

Celii v. Home Depot: A Middlesex County jury awarded $350,000 on Feb. 20 to an Edison man who hurt his back when he tripped and fell in a Woodbridge store.

Vito Celii was shopping for a snowblower at the Home Depot on Feb. 10, 1998. The machines were displayed in two rows, linked together by a cord a few inches above the floor. When Celii tried to get a closer look at a machine in the back row, he tripped over the cord and fell, says his lawyer, Nicholas Leonardis, a partner with Lombardi & Lombardi in Edison.

Celii felt immediate pain in his back but did not report the incident, says Leonardis. He was driven home by co-worker Hans Palmblad, who testified at the trial that he witnessed the accident. Two days of bed rest left Celii with increasing back pain that sent him to the emergency room of John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Woodbridge where X-rays revealed no broken bones.

The fall had aggravated a preexisting disc herniation at L5-S1 from an earlier car accident, says Leonardis. After physical therapy and a series of five epidural injections over the next three years failed to alleviate the pain, Celii underwent a lumbar discectomy in August 2001. The operation was successful, but Celii, now 33, still has residual pain and must be careful when bending and lifting.

Celii's case against Home Depot was tried before Superior Court Judge Mark Epstein starting on Feb. 14. The jury deliberated about half a day before finding $378,000 in damages for pain and suffering and $34,303 for medical expenses, for a total of $412,303. Leonardis says Celii could not recover lost wages because he was unable to establish a wage history for his work as a self-employed ceramic tiler. The jury found Celii 15 percent liable, however, reducing his recovery to $350,457.64.

Joseph Lombardi, of the Edison-Metuchen Orthopedic group, the orthopedic surgeon who performed Celii's discectomy, was his medical expert.

Home Depot's lawyer, Timothy Beck, an associate with DiFrancesco, Bateman, Coley, Yospin, Kunzman, Davis & Lehrer in Warren, did not return a call seeking comment. According to Leonardis, the company disputed the occurrence of the accident because Celii did not report it and attributed any back problems to Celii's pre-existing condition. Home Depot, which is selfinsured, offered $35,000 to settle, says Leonardis.

Originally published in the New Jersey Law Journal;
written by Mary Gallaher