Trial Magazine

Thomas Dempsey, a 78-year-old man who suffered from longtime numbness and tingling in his feet, was driving his SUV on a busy four-lane roadway during a cross-country trip. He exited the roadway to use a restroom and approached a line of stopped cars. Dempsey was unable to take his foot off the accelerator and swerved his vehicle onto a grassy median, which caused the SUV to accelerate and hit a deep drainage ditch. This, in turn, caused the SUV to become airborne and eventually land on top of a truck driven by Boris Woodard, 59. The impact caused both the SUV and the truck to cross two lanes of traffic and roll down an embankment.

Woodard suffered eye injuries and bruising. He also suffered emotional distress from witnessing the injury to his 25-year-old daughter, Anna, who was his passenger. She fell into a coma and was hospitalized for nine days before she died of her crash-related injuries. A student who hoped to work in the ­childcare field, Anna is survived by her parents. Her medical expenses totaled hundreds of thousands of dollars.

A time-limited settlement demand was made to Grange Mutual Casualty Co., to recover on Dempsey’s $50,000/ $100,000 insurance policy. The demand required Grange to pay within 10 days of acceptance. The insurer sent a written acceptance on the day the demand was to expire; however, the funds did not arrive within 10 days.

Woodard, individually and together with his wife, sued Dempsey, alleging he failed to maintain his lane and was driving too fast for the conditions. The plaintiffs argued that Dempsey’s medical problems and his history of falling should have put him on notice that he should not have been driving cross-country. Grange filed a declaratory judgment, asserting that settlement had occurred in the case. The state high court later ruled that no settlement had occurred.

The parties settled for $6.75 million several days before trial.

Citation: Woodard v. Dempsey, No. 1:14-cv-03701-RWS (N.D. Ga. Jan. 26, 2018).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Michael Neff, D. Dwayne Adams, Susan Cremer, and T. Shane Peagler, all of Atlanta.