Chicago Injury Lawyers Blog

The deadly train/car crash involving Katie Lunn at a Canadian National Railroad crossing in University Park, Illinois on April 16, 2010 raises serious questions about the safety systems in place at the international railroad company. At 9:42 p.m., Katie's vehicle was struck by a Amtrak train on Stuenkel Road near Governors Highway. The crossing is controlled by gates and lights. Witnesses to the crash have told police that the gates and lights were not working at the time of the crash. Canadian National has confirmed that its workers were working at the crossing earlier that day. The railroad has not verified the witnesses version of whether the gates and lights were working.

This incident is not the first involving malfunctioning gates and lights at Canadian National crossings. In 2001, Tim Cavanagh represented the Velarde family in the landmark case entitled Velarde v. Canadian National Railroad Company in the Circuit Court of Cook County. Mr. Cavanagh was the lead attorney that obtained a $55 million verdict for the victims of the crash. Evidence obtained by Cavanagh revealed that the railroad had known of malfunctioning gates and lights at the Army Trail Road crossing for weeks. The railroad instituted a "stop and flag" procedure at the crossing. However, a dispatcher wrongly told the engineer operating the train that the gates and lights had been fixed. Instead of the train stopping at the crossing and flagging cars to stop, the train barrelled thru at 50 miles per hour striking the Velarde vehicle.

Mr. Cavanagh also obtained a $9.1 million settlement in Ajmeri v. Chicago Central and Pacific Railroad Company only three months before the Velarde incident. On the day of the crash, an unusually harsh snow storm caused crossing lights at the Schmale Road crossing to be obscured. The crossing was owned and operated by the Canadian National. Hanifa Ajmeri was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her friend when their car was struck at the crossing by a CC&P train. Police found a crossing gate on the ground that had clearly been knocked down by a car. Railroad representatives initially claimed that the Ajmeri vehicle knocked down the crossing gate. In documents unearthed by Cavanagh in discovery (following Cavanagh's insistence on an emergency protective order of all evidence), it was revealed that the Canadian National dispatch center received a call notifying it that a crossing gate was knocked down at the Schmale Road crossing. The call was made 45 minutes before the crash. An audio tape of the call revealed that the dispatcher received the call and was required by Federal Rules to institue a "stop and flag" procedure. A "stop and flag" procedure, when implemented properly is a fail safe procedure that will avoid high speed train car crashes even at crossings with malfunctioning gates and lights. However, communication is critical. The information has to be conveyed to all approaching train crews. In the Ajmeri case, deposition testimony revealed that the dispatcher forgot to radio the trains crew. Instead of the train stopping at the crossing, the train barrelled thru at a high speed causing head and hip injuries to Mrs. Ajmeri.

The Ajmeri case was advanced to trial at the behest of Cavanagh. When opening statements were set to begin, the railroad finally succumbed and settled the case for a state record amount of $9.1 million. That record would be broken one year later when Cavanagh won the Velarde case.

Cavanagh Law Group is pleased to announce that Benjeman Nichols has joined the firm as an associate. Mr. Nichols concentrates his practice in plaintiff's personal injury law, including medical malpractice, product liability, premises liability and wrongful death. Before joining Cavanagh Law Group, Mr. Nichols defended physicians, hospitals, and corporations with the national law firm of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. Mr. Nichols experience representing doctors and hospitals will benefit the clients of Cavanagh Law Group, who have been the victims of medical malpractice.

Mr. Nichols earned a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Valparaiso University in 1999 and was a music educator in the Chicago Public Schools. He received a Fulbright Scholarship to research East German Lutheran church music in Dresden, Germany, where he worked and studied for several years. He is fluent in both English and German. Mr. Nichols returned to the United States to attend law school at Loyola University Chicago, where he was a Corboy Trial Team Advocacy Fellow, a Joan Marie Corboy Advocacy Scholar, an editor of the International Law Review, and a frequent member of the Dean's List. Mr. Nichols was also twice a judicial extern to the Honorable Blanche Manning in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

In addition to his legal practice, Mr. Nichols serves on the Board of Directors for Vox 3 Collective, Inc., a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization which is committed to arts education.

In the early morning hours of Friday, March 5, 2010, a bus operated by Tierra Santa Tours, Inc. rammed another vehicle, crossed the center line and rolled over killing six and injuring sixteen in Arizona. The bus was transporting passengers on its trip from Mexico to Los Angeles. The crash occured on interstate 10 in Pinal County, south of Phoenix. Federal investigators have determined that the California bus company was operating the bus illegally because it didn't have the authority to operate over state lines.

The attorneys at Cavanagh Law Group have decades of experience handling transportation negligence cases in Illinois and around the country. Tim Cavanagh and Matt Rundio, partners at the firm, have teamed up to win numerous record setting verdicts. In Velarde v. Canadian National, the lawyers were the lead attorneys in winning a $55 million dollar verdict in a train/car crash. The verdict was recognized by the National Law Journal as one of the top 100 verdicts in the nation in 2002. In 2009, the lawyers obtained a $13.7 million wrongful death verdict in Czapski v. Maher. Cavanagh has also obtained several record setting settlements including $9.1 million in Ajmeri v. Illinois Central , $4.1 million in Barnes v. Berry Electric Company and $4.5 million in Taylor v. Daimler.

Chicago injury lawyer, Tim Cavanagh, founding partner of Cavanagh Law Group applauds Senator Richard Durbin on his stand against the discrimination of victims of medical malpractice. On February 25, 2010, Senator Durbin made the following statement during President Obama's Health Care Summit:

Mr. President, I've been biding my time throughout this
entire meeting. I thank you for inviting us on the issue of medical
malpractice. Before I was elected to Congress, I worked in a
courtroom. For years, I defended doctors and hospitals, and for years
I sued them on behalf of people who were victims of medical
malpractice. So I've sat at both tables in a courtroom. At least
many years ago, I think I kind of understood this area of the law
better than some.

Tom Harkin is right. Why do we continue to discriminate against
people when we know that each one of us is only one accident or one
diagnosis away from being one of those unfortunate few who can't
afford or can't find health insurance.

Chicago Injury Lawyer Tim Cavanagh has received the highest possible ranking by Martindale-Hubbell ("A.V.") and Avvo ("10 Superb") in 2010. Cavanagh has been ranked A.V. by Martindale-Hubbell for nearly 20 years.

On April 4, 2009, Lois Poole was stopped in traffic on Harlem Avenue at Lexington Avenue in Oak Park, Illinois. Ryan Haggerty, while driving a vehicle owned by his family's auto dealership, Jerry Haggerty Chevrolet, Inc., failed to stop his vehicle in time and slammed into the rear of Poole's car. On February 18, 2009, Cavanagh Law Group filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Cook County. The case is titled Lois Poole v. Ryan W. Haggerty, et al., No 10 L 2141. The lawsuit alleges that the defendant failed to keep a lookout and was using a cell phone at the time of the crash. This marks the fifteenth lawsuit filed by Cavanagh Law Group because a driver was using a cell phone while driving. Lois now suffers from a disc injury in her lumbar spine which will likely require surgery to repair.

On February 9, 2010, a vehicle crossing the railroad tracks at River Road and Northwest Highway in Des Plaines, Illinois was struck by a Metra train. The collision between the Crystal Lake bound No. 657 train was at 8:10 p.m. during the most significant snowfall of the year. Both the 71 year old driver and the 68 year old passenger were taken to Lutheran General Hospital. The driver was listed in fair condition but the pasenger was pronounced dead. The Des Plaines police are investigating.

Cavanagh Law Group is a leader in transportation litigation in Illinois and throughout the country. The firm's founder, Timothy J. Cavanagh, has obtained numerous multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts in railroad crash cases and other transportation cases. Mr. Cavanagh obtained a $55 million verdict in the Velarde v. Canadian National Railroad case that was upheld on appeal. He secured a $9.1 million settlement in the Ajmeri v. Illinois Central Railroad Company case in 2000. In April, 2009, he obtained a $13.7 million verdict in the Czapski v. Maher wrongful death case.

On February 8, 2010, Tim Cavanagh will file a personal injury and wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of Amy Alanis and Joshua Molina. On February 1, 2010, Mr. Molina was driving his car westbound on Parker Street (on the northwest side of Chicago) with four passengers in the car, including his girlfriend Amy Alanis and their toddler son, Joshua.

Unbeknownst to them, Putiporn Kaewmooka, had been involved in a collision with another car moments earlier at the intersection of Belmont and Cicero. Kaewmooka fled that scene and was travelling well in excess of the speed limit without headlights on when he crashed into Molina's vehicle at Parker and Cicero Avenues.

Living every parent's worst nightmare, their 13 month old son, who had been strapped in a carseat, was ejected from the vehicle and rushed to Children's Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Molina's two friends, Orlando Rodriguez and Also Maldonado, were also killed in the crash. Kaewmooka has been charged in both crashes.

Local newspapers and television stations have reported that at least one video of the crash (from a local auto dealership's camera) has been viewed by the police.

Once the lawsuit is filed on February 8th, Mr. Cavanagh will file an Emergency Motion for a Protective Order so that he will have immediate access to all evidence including the video of the crash.

"This was a real tragedy," Cavanagh stated. "Amy and Joshua's Christmas baby has been taken from them by a man recklessly fleeing the scene of a minor car crash. I have told the family that I will get them answers as to why the defendant was so intent on leaving the scene of a crash that he endangered others by speeding through an intersection at night without his headlights on."

Timothy J. Cavanagh, Amy Alanis and Joshua Molina will be made available to speak to the press at 1 p.m. on Monday, February 8, 2010.

Mr. Cavanagh has successfully prosecuted numerous cases arising from transportation related incidents. In 2000, Cavanagh won a $9.1 million settlement for a woman injured in a train/car crash. In 2002, Mr. Cavanagh obtained a verdict of $21.3 million for two passengers of a SUV injured in a collision with a freight train. In 2003, Mr. Cavanagh obtained a $4.5 million settlement for the passenger of a van killed in a collision with a semi tractor-trailer. In 2009, Mr. Cavanagh obtained a $13.7 million verdict for the parents of a 21 year old boy killed in a two vehicle car crash.

The press conference will take place at 200 W. Madison St., Suite 2050, Chicago on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. Mr. Cavanagh can be reached on his cell phone at 312.315.2554 or by email at tjc@CavanaghLawGroup.com.

On January 1, 2010, an Illinois law went into effect that bans texting while driving. The law recognizes the extreme hazard associated with using handheld devices while driving a vehicle. Illinois became the 19th state to ban texting while driving.

The attorneys at Cavanagh Law Group have prosecuted numerous cases where car crashes were caused by the driver using a cell phone, handheld device or Blackberry. In the Barnes v. Svec case, Dorothy Barnes was seriously injured when her car was struck by a truck. Dorothy sustained devastating orthopaedic injuries and a cervicial fracture that nearly rendered her paralyzed. One of the witnesses to the crash claimed that Dorothy had run the red light while other witnesses claimed the truck ran the red light. The truck driver and his employer denied liability. While the lawsuit was pending, it was discovered by Tim Cavanagh that the driver was using a Blackberry handheld device at the time of the crash. This significant fact had escaped the attention of the investigating police officers. On the eve of trial, Tim Cavanagh and his client demanded that the driver and his employer admit that the truck driver caused the collision. It was made clear that only an admission of liability by the defendants and a significant monetary settlement could stop the case from proceeding to trial. On the morning of trial, the defendant made a formal admission of negligence and the case settled for $4.1 million.

Cavanagh Law Group is proud to announce that Stacey Feeley Cavanagh has joined the firm as a partner on December 1, 2009. Stacey will concentrate her practice in personal injury, medical malpractice and wrongful death cases.

Prior to joining the firm, Stacey was a partner at Ungaretti & Harris ("U&H") where she worked from 1998 to 2009. At U&H, Stacey specialized in defending corporations in cases involving product liability, mass tort litigation and commercial litigation.

Stacey earned a B.A. in English from Boston College in 1992. She graduated from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1995 where she received the American Jurisprudence Awards for both Conflicts of Law and Advanced Legal Research. Stacey is a member of the Chicago Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, Women's Bar Association of Illinois and Illinois Trial Lawyers Association.