Wolf and Pravato, P.A's Building Construction Case Results in $2 Million Jury Verdict
BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. (PRWEB) January 26, 2018 -- In the Case No. CACE 16 011472. the Jury verdict of $2 million was awarded to the family of Thomas Joseph Heike for wrongful death. The case was brought before the 17th Judicial circuit court in Broward County, Florida. The litigation team at Wolf & Pravato was able to prove that the stairwell was not built to code, was not properly permitted, was lacking required safety fixtures and fell well below the statutory standards regarding habitability. Thomas Joseph Heike fell down a defective stairwell where he suffered fatal traumatic injuries to his head and cervical spine.
As Wolf & Pravato alleged and would later establish in Court as a matter of law, the stairwell which claimed Tom Heike’s life was unfit for use. Once the Court determined fault, the next step was for the Wolf & Pravato trial team to present this tragedy to a Broward County jury for a determination of damages. Based on the Wrongful Death Statute in Florida, the only legal survivors were Tom’s four sons, who sought compensation for the loss of parental companionship, instruction and guidance, as well as for pain and suffering related to their father’s passing. At the close of trial, after about two (2) hours of deliberation, the jury awarded each son $500,000, and awarded the Estate of Thomas Joseph Heike $11,000 for medical and funeral expenses. The total jury verdict was for $2 million.
Following trial, lead counsel for Wolf & Pravato Brett Yonon was asked what this 2 Million Dollar verdict meant: “Seeing the family’s reaction as the verdict was read aloud in Court is something I will never forget. Nothing will erase this tragedy or bring Tom Heike back, but if his family felt even a small measure of justice from this verdict, we did our job.”
Wolf & Pravato, P.A. is a leading personal injury firm lead by Richard Pravato. Richard Pravato is a founding and managing partner of Wolf and Pravato, and he heads the firm's Litigation Department. He is a Board Certified Civil Trial Attorney, who has successfully litigated hundreds of cases in numerous Florida Courts. Richard has been aggressively involved in litigating personal injury cases since 1996. He has obtained substantial settlements and jury verdicts in a variety of cases, including: Wrongful Death, Product Liability, Automobile Accident, Premises Liability, and various other negligence cases.
Richard Pravato, Wolf and Pravato, P.A., http://www.wolfandpravato.com, +1 (954) 522-5800, [email protected]
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