Texas Jury Finds No Permanent Injury, No Damages Awarded in Rear-End Crash

A collision occurred when a defendant's vehicle rear-ended a plaintiff's car, which was stopped at a stop sign. The defendant asserted her car slid on "black ice," but the court later directed a verdict for the plaintiff on liability. The plaintiff, who owned and operated a day-care center, subsequently filed a lawsuit alleging accident-related injuries, including a herniated disc, which she claimed necessitated two lumbar surgeries and required her to hire an assistant. She sought approximately $75,000 in lost past and future earnings and an additional $75,000 for past and future medical expenses.

The plaintiff's orthopedic surgeons testified that she sustained a herniated disc at the L4-L5 level requiring discectomy and subsequent surgery for recurrent fragments. The plaintiff contended any prior back injuries, including one from a ladder fall two years earlier, had resolved. The defendant's orthopedic surgeon, however, opined that the plaintiff's MRI pathology was consistent with preexisting degenerative disc disease. The defense argued the impact was light, causing, at best, a temporary aggravation of a preexisting condition, not the lumbar disc herniation or the need for surgery. Records from a chiropractic visit approximately a year before the accident showed the plaintiff was still symptomatic at that time, according to the defense. Prior to trial, the court precluded the defendant's bioengineer from testifying as an expert on injury causation.

The jury ultimately found that the plaintiff did not sustain a permanent injury as a result of the accident. It awarded her $1,116 in damages, representing a portion of her claimed medical expenses. However, a collateral source setoff reduced the final award to zero. The case had been previously tried, resulting in a $3,000 award for the plaintiff, before a new trial was granted. Following the verdict, the defendant waived attorney fees in exchange for the plaintiff's waiver of appeal.