At Pierce Skrabanek, we dedicate ourselves fully to our clients and always pursue the highest possible compensation. We work tirelessly to ensure that you receive the justice you deserve.
The verdict and settlement amounts listed below are just a snapshot of the results our efforts have yielded for clients.
If you or a loved one of yours has suffered an injury caused by another’s negligence, don’t settle for just any law firm. Make sure you select a law firm that has the experience for your case — and the track record to prove it.
The personal injury lawyers at Pierce Skrabanek have won numerous multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements for clients across the nation. We have been honored with multiple prestigious awards for success in litigating personal injury cases. These include induction into the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum and Million Dollar Advocates Forum.
When it comes to getting you results, we aren’t afraid to play hardball and prepare each case as if it were going to trial.
Over the years, we have stood by our clients and their families as they have faced drastic challenges, whether it be financial loss, physical injury, or a change in work or lifestyle.
Our clients choose us not only due to our remarkable success record but because we treat them like family. We’ve earned a reputation for providing zealous legal representation, as well as compassionate attention to injury victims and their families.
Contact us at (832) 690-7000 for a free, no-obligation consultation to speak with an attorney regarding your claim.
Award: $800 Million
Summary: Paul Skrabanek successfully represented over 100 clients in the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting that occurred October 1, 2018, at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. The lawsuit involved the clients bringing claims against MGM, Live Nation, and CSC for faulty security among other claims. Pierce Skrabanek, PLLC’s clients were among those parties participating in the $800,000,000 public settlement with MGM.
Award: $117 Million
Summary: Served as trial counsel in a case involving an automobile accident between an ambulance and a cane truck. The accident caused catastrophic physical injuries to a twenty-one year old mother of two. Discovery revealed that an Acadian Ambulance employed a driver who repeatedly fell below Acadian’s own minimum safe driving standards. At trial, plaintiff proved that Acadian’s driver dropped his keys on the floor and took his eyes off the road while traveling 60 mph, leading to a violent rear-end collision. The jury returned a verdict of $117 million, which is the largest single personal injury verdict in Louisiana history.
Award: $16.9 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney in a lawsuit alleging that a drilling company failed to provide sanitary water to its employees working aboard a drilling rig in the Persian Gulf. The Tillman verdict was the largest maritime verdict in Texas in 2014 and was featured in both Texas Lawyer and VerdictSearch Texas Top Verdicts of 2014.
Award: $14 Million
Summary: Settled a Jones Act case for $14 million two days before trial. Our client suffered a head injury on the Hercules 15 Inland Barge. The Hercules 15 was located in Lake Washington, Louisiana at the time of the incident. Hercules employees tack welded a three foot pipe to the derrick and then forgot to remove it before starting drilling operations. The pipe was jarred loose and hit the plaintiff in the head. The case was filed in Galveston County court in March 2008. The case was set for trial February 2, 2009. Hercules settled the entire case for $14 million on the eve of trial.
Award: $11.6 Million
Summary: Served as trial counsel and obtained an $11.6 million jury verdict in a Houston, Texas case involving a worker who suffered a catastrophic injury that resulted in the loss of most of the sight in one of his eyes. The jury deliberated for only a day and a half before finding the defendant liable for designing a faulty piece of equipment that led to the injuries. The pretrial settlement offer was less than $300,000.
Award: $11.6 Million
Summary: Mike Pierce was part of a trial team that obtained an $11.6 million jury verdict in a Houston, Texas claim. The case involved a worker who suffered a catastrophic injury that resulted in the loss of most of the sight in one of his eyes.
Award: $4.9 Million
Summary: After a week-long trial in the 157th Judicial District Court, a unanimous Harris County jury awarded $4.9 Million to a Driller Injured off the Coast of Brazil. The client was a driller working for Diamond Offshore off was 30 years old at the time of his accident, which occurred aboard the Ocean Yorktown. He sustained serious injuries to his left arm and back when he was unexpectedly hoisted over 20 feet in the air at which time his fall protection failed.
Award: $4.8 Million
Summary: After a three-day trial in Beaumont, Texas, a unanimous jury awarded $4.8 Million to the daughter of a deceased seafood processing plant employee. Specifically, the decedent was struck in the head while at work and his supervisors allowed him to lie in a break room for seven hours while bleeding from the head. Ultimately, he died after being rushed to the hospital.
Award: $2.4 Million
Summary: Paul helped an injured refinery worker obtain a $2.4 Million verdict in the 80th Judicial District of Harris County. The jury award was unanimous. Paul took three of the seven witnesses at trial and got a defense expert struck on voir dire during trial. The Plaintiff suffered second and third-degree burns to 20% of his body. His claims were against an engineering company that designed the equipment that caused his injuries. Defendant’s final offer prior to trial was $135,000.
Award: $4 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Mississippi resident who suffered an injury while working in a Texas refinery. There was an explosion at the refinery and ultimately the injured worker had to have surgery to repair a broken arm and herniated disc in his low back. Paul took all the liability and damages depositions in the case. This included heads of safety, operations, and maintenance, as well as operators. Paul also argued a portion of the case at the Court of Appeals.
Award: $3.3 Million
Summary: A worker aboard the Thunder Horse offshore rig was severely injured during the course of pumping quick seal negligently left in the rig’s tank by a previous worker. The injured party underwent surgery on multiple levels of his neck.
Award: $2.5 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a defectively manufactured steering mechanism for a boat motor. A non-party lost the alleged defective part before suit was filed. Plaintiff nevertheless prevailed on the defective manufacturing theory and obtained a total judgment of $2.5 million. Defendant offered no money to settle the case prior to trial.
Award: $2.25 Million
Summary: The worker suffered electric shock aboard an offshore platform that caused him to fall backward and also suffer physical injuries. Paul took all depositions on the case and wrote all of the briefings. The case settled the week before trial.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Served as lead counsel in an oil platform pressure release case. Plaintiff suffered a fractured heel as a result of being blown off of a tank when an operator inadvertently released pressure from a subsea valve. Plaintiff obtained a total settlement in excess of $2 million within a week of trial. Defendants in the case more than doubled their highest previous settlement offer in the days leading up to trial.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case concerning injuries suffered in an automobile accident. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in the amount of $2 million, which was approximately five times defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: The case settled after only one deposition. The Plaintiff, a resident of Brownsville, suffered a serious back injury while working aboard a vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. Plaintiff was instructed to move a heavy roll of gasket material, which caused the Seaman to sustain a serious back injury. Although Plaintiff reported the injury to his supervisors he remained offshore and did not receive proper medical care until a week later. Consequently, Plaintiff’s Orthopedic Doctors recommended extensive treatment and surgery.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Paul obtained a $2 million settlement for an 18-wheeler driver who was rear-ended by another 18-wheeler driver in Louisiana. The claims were against the Defendant’s 18-wheeler driver as well as the company that employed him. The Plaintiff underwent two surgeries as a result of the collision. The case settled after numerous depositions to the satisfaction of the client.
Award: $1.75 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff, from Dayton, Texas, was injured when he jumped from the cabin of a crane after part of the refinery in which he was working exploded. He suffered knee and back injuries.
Award: $1.75 Million
Summary: Paul represented a Jones Act seaman that suffered an injury when a toxic ammonia release occurred on a vessel that we have helping to service. The release overtook him causing him to fall and injure his back. He ultimately underwent surgery. Paul obtained a $1.75 Million settlement once the captain of the vessel transporting the chemicals admitted fault in a deposition Paul took.
Award: $1.72 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a crane accident that occurred at the bp texas city facility. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment of $1.72 million. The Tamez verdict was featured in VerdictSearch Top Texas Verdicts of 2010.
Award: $1.6 Million
Summary: The plaintiff suffered injuries to his neck and head when he was struck by a piece of metal grating. The plaintiff underwent neck surgery as a result of the injuries. Liability was hotly contested as well as elements of preexisting conditions and age as the cause of the plaintiff’s current condition.
Award: $1.6 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff owned an apartment complex wherein part of the complex burned. The claims were that the insurance carrier underpaid the damages. Paul took all of the depositions on the case and argued all hearings. The case settled the day before it was to proceed in Harris County.
Award: $1.5 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman that was struck in the face with a piece of offshore equipment. Paul took 15 depositions on the case and argued a number of hearings before the case finally settled.
Award: $1.5 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff owned an apartment complex in Dallas, Texas that suffered damage during a freak hail storm. The insurance company refused to pay and otherwise denied his claim. Paul filed suit and was able to show the Defendant through discovery that it had miscalculated the damages and that as a result the insurance company owed a substantial sum.
Award: $1.5 Million
Summary: Served as lead trial counsel in a case involving allegations that an offshore dispatcher physically assaulted a coil-tubing supervisor. Plaintiff claimed that the offshore dispatcher assaulted him when he returned to the dock following an offshore job. Despite the fact that multiple witnesses provided conflicting accounts of the incident, the plaintiff obtained a total settlement in excess of $1.5 million shortly before trial.
Award: $1.45 Million
Summary: The case arose out of a back injury and subsequent surgery. This was a great result considering the seaman had suffered a prior back injury that required him to undergo a prior surgery to the same part of his back.
Award: $1.25 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a near drowning accident, which caused the vessel captain to suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. After a bench trial, the court awarded plaintiff $1.25 million, which was more than three times greater than the defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $1.2 Million
Summary: The Plaintiffs, residents of Mississippi and Louisiana, suffered severe injuries while working aboard a vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. The vessel was traveling at a high rate of speed when it suddenly came to a complete stop after the Captain ran aground on the coast of Louisiana. As a result of the collision both Plaintiffs were thrown forward across the back deck and into the wheelhouse. One Plaintiff sustained injuries to his neck and back, and the other sustained injuries to his low back, knee, and foot. The Plaintiffs immediately began treating with orthopedic doctors.
Award: $1.2 Million
Summary: A temporary worker hired by a contractor doing work at a complex in Southwest Houston sexually assaulted a special needs young girl. Paul sued the Apartment Complex, Security Company, and Contractor. He obtained a combined $1.2 Million settlement in Harris County.
Award: $1.03 Million
Summary: The seaman, a resident of Arkansas, worked as a roustabout on a jack-up vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. He suffered severe injuries when a drill pipe rolled onto his foot while he was assisting the crane in transferring the pipes to another deck on the vessel. As a result of the injury, the seaman had to undergo two surgeries that ultimately resulted in the amputation of his big toe.
Award: $1 Million
Summary: The plaintiff witnessed one of his best friends die of electrocution while working as a seaman aboard an oceangoing vessel. He suffered from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Luckily, the plaintiff suffered no physical injuries.
Award: $1 Million
Summary: The worker was assigned the task of tack welding strips of metal in a machine that indexed backward and forward. On the date of his accident, the worker got caught in the machine as it closed. He suffered a crushed hip and broken leg. He remained conscious during the entire incident and was ultimately life-flighted to a hospital. He underwent a number of surgeries. This was a particularly good result for the worker as most of the fault fell on the employer for allowing the workers to get into the machine in the first place.
Award: $975,000
Summary: The seaman, a rigger on an offshore vessel, suffered a severe back injury transferring a tank from the vessel to a platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Due to the severity of his injuries, the seaman was required to undergo surgery to the lower area of his back. The defendants denied all responsibility for the accident and refused to pay maintenance and cure, claiming that his injuries were pre-existing.
Award: $925,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was an offshore worker who was shocked by a piece of equipment and fell into a hole. Paul took all six depositions in the case and undertook all briefing.
Award: $919,562
Summary: The clients were industrial workers who suffered the effects of an explosion on the job. The explosion caused the two plaintiffs to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as some physical injuries.
Award: $900,000
Summary: The plaintiff was on a personnel basket, going from a boat to a platform in foggy conditions, when the crane operator swung the basket into a handrail on the boat, knocking the plaintiff out of the basket. The client fell 10 feet to the deck of the boat, landing chest first and sustaining serious injuries.
Award: $900,000
Summary: Paul obtained a settlement on behalf of a burn victim against an apartment complex where the plaintiff’s ex-boyfriend threw gasoline onto her and lit her on fire. This was a successful recovery in light of the complex legal hurdles in the case.
Award: $875,000
Summary: The lawsuit arose because a fuel delivery company and oil company delivered diesel fuel to the worker’s job site that was contaminated with gasoline rendering the diesel fuel extremely volatile. The worker went to check the diesel level in a generator and the diesel ignited engulfing the worker in flames.
Award: $850,000
Summary: The clients suffered back injuries when they were struck by an 18-wheeler in East Texas. The case settled after 4 depositions.
Award: $810,000
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on a maritime accident case. Defendant claimed the accident never occurred and only offered $10,000 to settle the case pretrial. Plaintiff obtained a jury verdict of $810,000, which was later upheld on appeal.
Award: $800,000
Summary: The plaintiff was an electrician working on a barge docked in Port Arthur, Texas. He was working on a light fixture while standing on a ladder when he received a shock. As a result, he fell almost 20 feet, injuring his head, neck, back and leg. The defendant argued the accident was the electrician’s fault for not wearing proper fall protection and that his injuries were exaggerated.
Award: $800,000
Summary: The plaintiff was a laborer who suffered burns to his arm and neck when an arc fire started where he was conducting work. Paul took all of the depositions in the case and did all of the briefings.
Award: $750,000
Summary: A seaman suffered a severe back injury while working as an engineer aboard a vessel. The case resolved in less than 12 months.
Award: $750,000
Summary: The diver sustained a back injury while hoisting up diving equipment. The injuries required the diver to undergo lower back surgery. The settlement was successful, considering some preexisting back conditions that the worker had as well as a history of lower-wage earnings.
Award: $700,000
Summary: The seaman’s severe back injury was a result of a slip and fall accident, causing him to fall aboard a research vessel. Due to the severity of his injuries, the seaman was required to undergo surgery to his low back.
Award: $675,000
Summary: The offshore worker suffered injuries when co-workers dropped a piece of metal grating onto him. This was a particularly good result because the defendants raised the issue of whether the offshore worker was a Jones Act seaman. The offshore worker was engaged in plug and abandonment work on a platform at the time of his injuries.
Award: $650,000
Summary: Paul was hired in to litigate a death case in Louisiana where his client ran his boat in front of a moving barge and was run over. Tragically, the Plaintiff died as a result of drowning under the barge. This favorable settlement was obtained in spite of the strong evidence of the Plaintiff’s fault for running in front of the barge.
Award: $600,000
Summary: The plaintiff was working as a deckhand when he tripped and fell over a large hose lying in the middle of the deck. The plaintiff injured his neck as a result of the fall. The case was settled three months in advance of the trial setting and after only one deposition.
Award: $600,000
Summary: Paul obtained a successful recovery on behalf of a plaintiff against an apartment complex after an arsonist set the complex ablaze. The plaintiff had to jump out of a second-story window because all exits were blocked by fire. Paul took all of the depositions and did all of the briefing in the case.
Award: $600,000
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding an automobile accident. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in the amount of $600,000, which was upheld on appeal. The Shafiee verdict was featured in VerdictSearch Top Texas Verdicts of 2009.
Award: $565,000
Summary: Paul obtained a $565,000 settlement on behalf of Mary Berryman who was involved in a collision with an 18-wheeler in December 2010. The case was settled out of court at a second mediation the week before trial. Berryman filed suit against Jose Peralta and Scorpion Transport in Dallas County Court alleging that Peralta ran a stop sign and caused a collision with her truck. Peralta and Scorpion alleged that Berryman was in the best position to avoid the collision simply by going around him. Ultimately, Berryman, now 62, suffered a back injury that required her to undergo surgery. Peralta and Scorpion contended that the 62-year-old’s condition was related to a prior incident in 2007 where doctor reports showed herniations in her low back and neck. After the first mediation in the case, the mediator issued a mediator’s proposal, which was rejected by both parties. However, at a second mediation, the week before trial, the Defendants and their insurance carrier paid in excess of the first mediator’s proposal. Paul was the lead attorney on the case.
Award: $500,000
Summary: The plaintiff had suffered a low back injury during the picking up and moving of 100-pound sacks of drilling material. He claimed that his company did not provide him with (1) a safe means to move the sacks, (2) the proper personal protective equipment, and (3) the appropriate number of personnel to aid in the procedure. The case settled prior to the plaintiff undergoing surgery in his low back.
Award: $500,000
Summary: A Floorhand on an offshore rig suffered injury after picking up a piece of drill pipe.
Award: $500,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was working on an oilfield project with a number of other contractors. The Plaintiff decided to use the fork lift rented by another contractor. When he went to manually adjust the forks, the carriage assemble came loose and struck him in the chest causing him injuries to his back, chest, and arms. The Defendants contended that the Plaintiff did not do a proper pre-inspection check of the forklift, which would have revealed the problem with the carriage assembly. Paul argued that the rental company had improperly removed the safety pin, which caused the incident.
Award: $475,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman who sustained an injury to his right eye after being sprayed with a caustic chemical. The case settled the weekend before trial after Paul Skrabanek won almost all rulings at the pretrial hearing. He also took five depositions on the case.
Award: $415,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a yacht chef who had her pinky finger pinched off in a line handling accident. Paul took six depositions on the case before settlement.
Award: $400,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman that was injured in a lifting accident. The case settled prior to the Plaintiff undergoing surgery and after Paul Skrabanek took four depositions.
Award: $350,000
Summary: Paul obtained a $350,000 settlement for a Plaintiff who fell from a faulty ladder at work and injured her head. The case settled after one deposition. The case was pending in Harris County.
Award: $350,000
Summary: As the Plaintiff was leaving a hair salon in Montgomery County, Texas she fell down a set of stairs that was no readily visible as the Defendant property owner had not painted the nosing of the steps to make them distinguishable from the other portion of the sidewalk. Additionally, the set of stairs had a handrail that did not conform to industry-standard guidelines.
Award: $350,000
Summary: The Rig Worker injured his shoulder when he picked up a heavy piece of oilfield equipment unassisted. He underwent at least 4 shoulder surgeries as a result. Paul was able to make a case against the rig owner for negligently instructing the rig worker and rushing the job.
Award: $300,000
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on a maritime accident case where the plaintiff failed to report the accident and did not seek medical treatment for almost a year. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in excess of $300,000, which was more than two times greater than defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $270,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was passing an intersection when an 18-wheeler made a wide turn into him. Paul obtained a $270,000 settlement despite minimal property damage done to his client’s vehicle and no surgeries performed on the Plaintiff.
Award: $250,000
Summary: The Plaintiff had his leg amputated as a result of taking 2 shotgun blasts to it while visiting his girlfriend’s apartment complex. The case was difficult from a liability standpoint because there was a least some evidence that the assailants were intentionally targeting the Plaintiff. However, Paul obtained a favorable settlement after obtaining testimony from the apartment complex manager that it had not properly screened the shooter who also lived at the complex for a time.
Award: $250,000
Summary: A married couple was attending a wedding in South Texas and went out for a fun night of go-karting that turned bad. For some unknown reason, the go-kart attendants did not open the start/stop gate during the race causing the Plaintiffs to crash into the gate. The case resolved in Brownsville, Texas.
Award: $117 Million
Summary: Mike Pierce was one of the lead lawyers responsible for obtaining a $117 million recovery for a catastrophic injury to a twenty-one-year-old mother of two. The suit involved a serious car accident that occurred while an Acadian Ambulance driver was transporting the plaintiff to the hospital.
Award: $117 Million
Summary: Mike Pierce was one of the lead lawyers responsible for obtaining a $117 million recovery for a catastrophic injury to a twenty-one-year-old mother of two. The suit involved a serious car accident that occurred while an Acadian Ambulance driver was transporting the plaintiff to the hospital.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead trial counsel in a nonsubscriber liability case in which plaintiff claimed that he suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of automobile-pedestrian accident on defendant’s property. Defendant contended that no objective evidence supported plaintiff’s claim of a traumatic brain injury and relied on multiple negative CTs and MRIs of plaintiff’s brain. After one-week of trial, the defendant more than doubled their last pretrial settlement offer and agreed to settle the case for a confidential sum.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a medical malpractice case against a cardiologist and a cardiology practice group in a case involving allegations that the cardiologist performed an unnecessary heart catheterization on a patient with a contrast allergy, causing the patient to go into anaphylactic shock. Prosecution of the case included handling complicated medical issues as well as navigating a bankruptcy proceeding filed by the defendants during the pendency of the underlying medical malpractice case. The parties reached a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in medical malpractice case involving allegations that the defendant failed to properly check placement of decedent’s peg tube prior to feeding, which resulted in peritonitis and sepsis. Plaintiff obtained a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a medical malpractice case involving allegations that the defendant failed to properly evaluate and treat the decedent, causing her to develop decubitus ulcers and sepsis. Despite being in an unfavorable venue with medical malpractice damage caps, plaintiff obtained a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a limitation of liability proceeding. The plaintiff, a deckhand aboard the defendant’s tugboat, suffered a traumatic partial amputation of his foot when the vessel captain failed to discontinue a dangerous rigging operation. Defendant claimed that it was not responsible and filed a limitation of liability action to limit the plaintiff’s damages to the value of the vessel. Plaintiff established that the defendant’s captain operated the vessel under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident. Defendant agreed to settle the case for a confidential sum, which significantly exceeded the value of its vessel.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as first chair trial counsel on plaintiff’s case against multiple defendants related to a truck and trailer separation leading to a collision between the trailer and another vehicle. Prior to trial, plaintiff settled with the manufacturer of the alleged defective coupling device for a confidential amount. Plaintiff proceeded to trial against the defendant trucking company on a theory that defendant failed to use adequate secondary safety measures. Plaintiff obtained a verdict, which was four times greater than the amount of the defendant’s last settlement offer.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney in Jones Act case involving allegations that defendant failed to provide safe ingress and egress to one of its captains, leading to a fall while the captain was boarding his ship. Defendant claimed the accident never occurred or, in the alternative, that the captain was responsible for his fall. The parties reached a confidential settlement after several days of trial. The total settlement amount was more than three times the defendant’s last pretrial settlement offer.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel on plaintiff’s case involving the improper design and construction of a stairway aboard a Chevron offshore platform. Plaintiff suffered injuries to his shoulder, which necessitated multiple surgeries. Chevron agreed to pay a significant confidential settlement shortly before trial.
Award: $639,000
Summary: Paul Skrabanek and Mike Pierce tried a case for an injured motorist. There was a dispute as to whether the defendant driver was at fault. After a week-long trial, the jury returned a unanimous verdict in the 234th Judicial District Court of Harris County, Texas.
Award: $16.9 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney in a lawsuit alleging that a drilling company failed to provide sanitary water to its employees working aboard a drilling rig in the Persian Gulf. The Tillman verdict was the largest maritime verdict in Texas in 2014 and was featured in both Texas Lawyer and VerdictSearch Texas Top Verdicts of 2014.
Award: $14 Million
Summary: Settled a Jones Act case for $14 million two days before trial. Our client suffered a head injury on the Hercules 15 Inland Barge. The Hercules 15 was located in Lake Washington, Louisiana at the time of the incident. Hercules employees tack welded a three foot pipe to the derrick and then forgot to remove it before starting drilling operations. The pipe was jarred loose and hit the plaintiff in the head. The case was filed in Galveston County court in March 2008. The case was set for trial February 2, 2009. Hercules settled the entire case for $14 million on the eve of trial.
Award: $2.5 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a defectively manufactured steering mechanism for a boat motor. A non-party lost the alleged defective part before suit was filed. Plaintiff nevertheless prevailed on the defective manufacturing theory and obtained a total judgment of $2.5 million. Defendant offered no money to settle the case prior to trial.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: The case settled after only one deposition. The Plaintiff, a resident of Brownsville, suffered a serious back injury while working aboard a vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. Plaintiff was instructed to move a heavy roll of gasket material, which caused the Seaman to sustain a serious back injury. Although Plaintiff reported the injury to his supervisors he remained offshore and did not receive proper medical care until a week later. Consequently, Plaintiff’s Orthopedic Doctors recommended extensive treatment and surgery.
Award: $1.75 Million
Summary: Paul represented a Jones Act seaman that suffered an injury when a toxic ammonia release occurred on a vessel that we have helping to service. The release overtook him causing him to fall and injure his back. He ultimately underwent surgery. Paul obtained a $1.75 Million settlement once the captain of the vessel transporting the chemicals admitted fault in a deposition Paul took.
Award: $1.5 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman that was struck in the face with a piece of offshore equipment. Paul took 15 depositions on the case and argued a number of hearings before the case finally settled.
Award: $1.5 Million
Summary: Served as lead trial counsel in a case involving allegations that an offshore dispatcher physically assaulted a coil-tubing supervisor. Plaintiff claimed that the offshore dispatcher assaulted him when he returned to the dock following an offshore job. Despite the fact that multiple witnesses provided conflicting accounts of the incident, the plaintiff obtained a total settlement in excess of $1.5 million shortly before trial.
Award: $1.45 Million
Summary: The case arose out of a back injury and subsequent surgery. This was a great result considering the seaman had suffered a prior back injury that required him to undergo a prior surgery to the same part of his back.
Award: $1.25 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a near drowning accident, which caused the vessel captain to suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. After a bench trial, the court awarded plaintiff $1.25 million, which was more than three times greater than the defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $1.2 Million
Summary: The Plaintiffs, residents of Mississippi and Louisiana, suffered severe injuries while working aboard a vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. The vessel was traveling at a high rate of speed when it suddenly came to a complete stop after the Captain ran aground on the coast of Louisiana. As a result of the collision both Plaintiffs were thrown forward across the back deck and into the wheelhouse. One Plaintiff sustained injuries to his neck and back, and the other sustained injuries to his low back, knee, and foot. The Plaintiffs immediately began treating with orthopedic doctors.
Award: $1.03 Million
Summary: The seaman, a resident of Arkansas, worked as a roustabout on a jack-up vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. He suffered severe injuries when a drill pipe rolled onto his foot while he was assisting the crane in transferring the pipes to another deck on the vessel. As a result of the injury, the seaman had to undergo two surgeries that ultimately resulted in the amputation of his big toe.
Award: $1 Million
Summary: The plaintiff witnessed one of his best friends die of electrocution while working as a seaman aboard an oceangoing vessel. He suffered from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Luckily, the plaintiff suffered no physical injuries.
Award: $975,000
Summary: The seaman, a rigger on an offshore vessel, suffered a severe back injury transferring a tank from the vessel to a platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Due to the severity of his injuries, the seaman was required to undergo surgery to the lower area of his back. The defendants denied all responsibility for the accident and refused to pay maintenance and cure, claiming that his injuries were pre-existing.
Award: $900,000
Summary: The plaintiff was on a personnel basket, going from a boat to a platform in foggy conditions, when the crane operator swung the basket into a handrail on the boat, knocking the plaintiff out of the basket. The client fell 10 feet to the deck of the boat, landing chest first and sustaining serious injuries.
Award: $810,000
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on a maritime accident case. Defendant claimed the accident never occurred and only offered $10,000 to settle the case pretrial. Plaintiff obtained a jury verdict of $810,000, which was later upheld on appeal.
Award: $750,000
Summary: A seaman suffered a severe back injury while working as an engineer aboard a vessel. The case resolved in less than 12 months.
Award: $700,000
Summary: The seaman’s severe back injury was a result of a slip and fall accident, causing him to fall aboard a research vessel. Due to the severity of his injuries, the seaman was required to undergo surgery to his low back.
Award: $675,000
Summary: The offshore worker suffered injuries when co-workers dropped a piece of metal grating onto him. This was a particularly good result because the defendants raised the issue of whether the offshore worker was a Jones Act seaman. The offshore worker was engaged in plug and abandonment work on a platform at the time of his injuries.
Award: $650,000
Summary: Paul was hired in to litigate a death case in Louisiana where his client ran his boat in front of a moving barge and was run over. Tragically, the Plaintiff died as a result of drowning under the barge. This favorable settlement was obtained in spite of the strong evidence of the Plaintiff’s fault for running in front of the barge.
Award: $500,000
Summary: The plaintiff had suffered a low back injury during the picking up and moving of 100-pound sacks of drilling material. He claimed that his company did not provide him with (1) a safe means to move the sacks, (2) the proper personal protective equipment, and (3) the appropriate number of personnel to aid in the procedure. The case settled prior to the plaintiff undergoing surgery in his low back.
Award: $475,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman who sustained an injury to his right eye after being sprayed with a caustic chemical. The case settled the weekend before trial after Paul Skrabanek won almost all rulings at the pretrial hearing. He also took five depositions on the case.
Award: $415,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a yacht chef who had her pinky finger pinched off in a line handling accident. Paul took six depositions on the case before settlement.
Award: $400,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Jones Act seaman that was injured in a lifting accident. The case settled prior to the Plaintiff undergoing surgery and after Paul Skrabanek took four depositions.
Award: $300,000
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on a maritime accident case where the plaintiff failed to report the accident and did not seek medical treatment for almost a year. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in excess of $300,000, which was more than two times greater than defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a limitation of liability proceeding. The plaintiff, a deckhand aboard the defendant’s tugboat, suffered a traumatic partial amputation of his foot when the vessel captain failed to discontinue a dangerous rigging operation. Defendant claimed that it was not responsible and filed a limitation of liability action to limit the plaintiff’s damages to the value of the vessel. Plaintiff established that the defendant’s captain operated the vessel under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident. Defendant agreed to settle the case for a confidential sum, which significantly exceeded the value of its vessel.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney in Jones Act case involving allegations that defendant failed to provide safe ingress and egress to one of its captains, leading to a fall while the captain was boarding his ship. Defendant claimed the accident never occurred or, in the alternative, that the captain was responsible for his fall. The parties reached a confidential settlement after several days of trial. The total settlement amount was more than three times the defendant’s last pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $11.6 Million
Summary: Mike Pierce was part of a trial team that obtained an $11.6 million jury verdict in a Houston, Texas claim. The case involved a worker who suffered a catastrophic injury that resulted in the loss of most of the sight in one of his eyes.
Award: $900,000
Summary: Paul obtained a settlement on behalf of a burn victim against an apartment complex where the plaintiff’s ex-boyfriend threw gasoline onto her and lit her on fire. This was a successful recovery in light of the complex legal hurdles in the case.
Award: $600,000
Summary: Paul obtained a successful recovery on behalf of a plaintiff against an apartment complex after an arsonist set the complex ablaze. The plaintiff had to jump out of a second-story window because all exits were blocked by fire. Paul took all of the depositions and did all of the briefing in the case.
Award: $350,000
Summary: As the Plaintiff was leaving a hair salon in Montgomery County, Texas she fell down a set of stairs that was no readily visible as the Defendant property owner had not painted the nosing of the steps to make them distinguishable from the other portion of the sidewalk. Additionally, the set of stairs had a handrail that did not conform to industry-standard guidelines.
Award: $250,000
Summary: The Plaintiff had his leg amputated as a result of taking 2 shotgun blasts to it while visiting his girlfriend’s apartment complex. The case was difficult from a liability standpoint because there was a least some evidence that the assailants were intentionally targeting the Plaintiff. However, Paul obtained a favorable settlement after obtaining testimony from the apartment complex manager that it had not properly screened the shooter who also lived at the complex for a time.
Award: $250,000
Summary: A married couple was attending a wedding in South Texas and went out for a fun night of go-karting that turned bad. For some unknown reason, the go-kart attendants did not open the start/stop gate during the race causing the Plaintiffs to crash into the gate. The case resolved in Brownsville, Texas.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead trial counsel in a nonsubscriber liability case in which plaintiff claimed that he suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of automobile-pedestrian accident on defendant’s property. Defendant contended that no objective evidence supported plaintiff’s claim of a traumatic brain injury and relied on multiple negative CTs and MRIs of plaintiff’s brain. After one-week of trial, the defendant more than doubled their last pretrial settlement offer and agreed to settle the case for a confidential sum.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel on plaintiff’s case involving the improper design and construction of a stairway aboard a Chevron offshore platform. Plaintiff suffered injuries to his shoulder, which necessitated multiple surgeries. Chevron agreed to pay a significant confidential settlement shortly before trial.
Award: $117 Million
Summary: Served as trial counsel in a case involving an automobile accident between an ambulance and a cane truck. The accident caused catastrophic physical injuries to a twenty-one year old mother of two. Discovery revealed that an Acadian Ambulance employed a driver who repeatedly fell below Acadian’s own minimum safe driving standards. At trial, plaintiff proved that Acadian’s driver dropped his keys on the floor and took his eyes off the road while traveling 60 mph, leading to a violent rear-end collision. The jury returned a verdict of $117 million, which is the largest single personal injury verdict in Louisiana history.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Served as second chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case concerning injuries suffered in an automobile accident. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in the amount of $2 million, which was approximately five times defendant’s highest pretrial settlement offer.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Paul obtained a $2 million settlement for an 18-wheeler driver who was rear-ended by another 18-wheeler driver in Louisiana. The claims were against the Defendant’s 18-wheeler driver as well as the company that employed him. The Plaintiff underwent two surgeries as a result of the collision. The case settled after numerous depositions to the satisfaction of the client.
Award: $850,000
Summary: The clients suffered back injuries when they were struck by an 18-wheeler in East Texas. The case settled after 4 depositions.
Award: $750,000
Summary: The diver sustained a back injury while hoisting up diving equipment. The injuries required the diver to undergo lower back surgery. The settlement was successful, considering some preexisting back conditions that the worker had as well as a history of lower-wage earnings.
Award: $600,000
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding an automobile accident. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment in the amount of $600,000, which was upheld on appeal. The Shafiee verdict was featured in VerdictSearch Top Texas Verdicts of 2009.
Award: $565,000
Summary: Paul obtained a $565,000 settlement on behalf of Mary Berryman who was involved in a collision with an 18-wheeler in December 2010. The case was settled out of court at a second mediation the week before trial. Berryman filed suit against Jose Peralta and Scorpion Transport in Dallas County Court alleging that Peralta ran a stop sign and caused a collision with her truck. Peralta and Scorpion alleged that Berryman was in the best position to avoid the collision simply by going around him. Ultimately, Berryman, now 62, suffered a back injury that required her to undergo surgery. Peralta and Scorpion contended that the 62-year-old’s condition was related to a prior incident in 2007 where doctor reports showed herniations in her low back and neck. After the first mediation in the case, the mediator issued a mediator’s proposal, which was rejected by both parties. However, at a second mediation, the week before trial, the Defendants and their insurance carrier paid in excess of the first mediator’s proposal. Paul was the lead attorney on the case.
Award: $270,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was passing an intersection when an 18-wheeler made a wide turn into him. Paul obtained a $270,000 settlement despite minimal property damage done to his client’s vehicle and no surgeries performed on the Plaintiff.
Award: $117 Million
Summary: Mike Pierce was one of the lead lawyers responsible for obtaining a $117 million recovery for a catastrophic injury to a twenty-one-year-old mother of two. The suit involved a serious car accident that occurred while an Acadian Ambulance driver was transporting the plaintiff to the hospital.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as first chair trial counsel on plaintiff’s case against multiple defendants related to a truck and trailer separation leading to a collision between the trailer and another vehicle. Prior to trial, plaintiff settled with the manufacturer of the alleged defective coupling device for a confidential amount. Plaintiff proceeded to trial against the defendant trucking company on a theory that defendant failed to use adequate secondary safety measures. Plaintiff obtained a verdict, which was four times greater than the amount of the defendant’s last settlement offer.
Award: $639,000
Summary: Paul Skrabanek and Mike Pierce tried a case for an injured motorist. There was a dispute as to whether the defendant driver was at fault. After a week-long trial, the jury returned a unanimous verdict in the 234th Judicial District Court of Harris County, Texas.
Award: $11.6 Million
Summary: Served as trial counsel and obtained an $11.6 million jury verdict in a Houston, Texas case involving a worker who suffered a catastrophic injury that resulted in the loss of most of the sight in one of his eyes. The jury deliberated for only a day and a half before finding the defendant liable for designing a faulty piece of equipment that led to the injuries. The pretrial settlement offer was less than $300,000.
Award: $4.9 Million
Summary: After a week-long trial in the 157th Judicial District Court, a unanimous Harris County jury awarded $4.9 Million to a Driller Injured off the Coast of Brazil. The client was a driller working for Diamond Offshore off was 30 years old at the time of his accident, which occurred aboard the Ocean Yorktown. He sustained serious injuries to his left arm and back when he was unexpectedly hoisted over 20 feet in the air at which time his fall protection failed.
Award: $4.8 Million
Summary: After a three-day trial in Beaumont, Texas, a unanimous jury awarded $4.8 Million to the daughter of a deceased seafood processing plant employee. Specifically, the decedent was struck in the head while at work and his supervisors allowed him to lie in a break room for seven hours while bleeding from the head. Ultimately, he died after being rushed to the hospital.
Award: $2.4 Million
Summary: Paul helped an injured refinery worker obtain a $2.4 Million verdict in the 80th Judicial District of Harris County. The jury award was unanimous. Paul took three of the seven witnesses at trial and got a defense expert struck on voir dire during trial. The Plaintiff suffered second and third-degree burns to 20% of his body. His claims were against an engineering company that designed the equipment that caused his injuries. Defendant’s final offer prior to trial was $135,000.
Award: $4 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff was a Mississippi resident who suffered an injury while working in a Texas refinery. There was an explosion at the refinery and ultimately the injured worker had to have surgery to repair a broken arm and herniated disc in his low back. Paul took all the liability and damages depositions in the case. This included heads of safety, operations, and maintenance, as well as operators. Paul also argued a portion of the case at the Court of Appeals.
Award: $3.3 Million
Summary: A worker aboard the Thunder Horse offshore rig was severely injured during the course of pumping quick seal negligently left in the rig’s tank by a previous worker. The injured party underwent surgery on multiple levels of his neck.
Award: $2.25 Million
Summary: The worker suffered electric shock aboard an offshore platform that caused him to fall backward and also suffer physical injuries. Paul took all depositions on the case and wrote all of the briefings. The case settled the week before trial.
Award: $2 Million
Summary: Served as lead counsel in an oil platform pressure release case. Plaintiff suffered a fractured heel as a result of being blown off of a tank when an operator inadvertently released pressure from a subsea valve. Plaintiff obtained a total settlement in excess of $2 million within a week of trial. Defendants in the case more than doubled their highest previous settlement offer in the days leading up to trial.
Award: $1.75 Million
Summary: The Plaintiff, from Dayton, Texas, was injured when he jumped from the cabin of a crane after part of the refinery in which he was working exploded. He suffered knee and back injuries.
Award: $1.72 Million
Summary: Served as first chair trial attorney on plaintiff’s case regarding a crane accident that occurred at the bp texas city facility. Plaintiff obtained a total judgment of $1.72 million. The Tamez verdict was featured in VerdictSearch Top Texas Verdicts of 2010.
Award: $1.6 Million
Summary: The plaintiff suffered injuries to his neck and head when he was struck by a piece of metal grating. The plaintiff underwent neck surgery as a result of the injuries. Liability was hotly contested as well as elements of preexisting conditions and age as the cause of the plaintiff’s current condition.
Award: $1.2 Million
Summary: A temporary worker hired by a contractor doing work at a complex in Southwest Houston sexually assaulted a special needs young girl. Paul sued the Apartment Complex, Security Company, and Contractor. He obtained a combined $1.2 Million settlement in Harris County.
Award: $1 Million
Summary: The worker was assigned the task of tack welding strips of metal in a machine that indexed backward and forward. On the date of his accident, the worker got caught in the machine as it closed. He suffered a crushed hip and broken leg. He remained conscious during the entire incident and was ultimately life-flighted to a hospital. He underwent a number of surgeries. This was a particularly good result for the worker as most of the fault fell on the employer for allowing the workers to get into the machine in the first place.
Award: $925,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was an offshore worker who was shocked by a piece of equipment and fell into a hole. Paul took all six depositions in the case and undertook all briefing.
Award: $919,562
Summary: The clients were industrial workers who suffered the effects of an explosion on the job. The explosion caused the two plaintiffs to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as some physical injuries.
Award: $875,000
Summary: The lawsuit arose because a fuel delivery company and oil company delivered diesel fuel to the worker’s job site that was contaminated with gasoline rendering the diesel fuel extremely volatile. The worker went to check the diesel level in a generator and the diesel ignited engulfing the worker in flames.
Award: $800,000
Summary: The plaintiff was an electrician working on a barge docked in Port Arthur, Texas. He was working on a light fixture while standing on a ladder when he received a shock. As a result, he fell almost 20 feet, injuring his head, neck, back and leg. The defendant argued the accident was the electrician’s fault for not wearing proper fall protection and that his injuries were exaggerated.
Award: $800,000
Summary: The plaintiff was a laborer who suffered burns to his arm and neck when an arc fire started where he was conducting work. Paul took all of the depositions in the case and did all of the briefings.
Award: $600,000
Summary: The plaintiff was working as a deckhand when he tripped and fell over a large hose lying in the middle of the deck. The plaintiff injured his neck as a result of the fall. The case was settled three months in advance of the trial setting and after only one deposition.
Award: $500,000
Summary: A Floorhand on an offshore rig suffered injury after picking up a piece of drill pipe.
Award: $500,000
Summary: The Plaintiff was working on an oilfield project with a number of other contractors. The Plaintiff decided to use the fork lift rented by another contractor. When he went to manually adjust the forks, the carriage assemble came loose and struck him in the chest causing him injuries to his back, chest, and arms. The Defendants contended that the Plaintiff did not do a proper pre-inspection check of the forklift, which would have revealed the problem with the carriage assembly. Paul argued that the rental company had improperly removed the safety pin, which caused the incident.
Award: $350,000
Summary: Paul obtained a $350,000 settlement for a Plaintiff who fell from a faulty ladder at work and injured her head. The case settled after one deposition. The case was pending in Harris County.
Award: $350,000
Summary: The Rig Worker injured his shoulder when he picked up a heavy piece of oilfield equipment unassisted. He underwent at least 4 shoulder surgeries as a result. Paul was able to make a case against the rig owner for negligently instructing the rig worker and rushing the job.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a medical malpractice case against a cardiologist and a cardiology practice group in a case involving allegations that the cardiologist performed an unnecessary heart catheterization on a patient with a contrast allergy, causing the patient to go into anaphylactic shock. Prosecution of the case included handling complicated medical issues as well as navigating a bankruptcy proceeding filed by the defendants during the pendency of the underlying medical malpractice case. The parties reached a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in medical malpractice case involving allegations that the defendant failed to properly check placement of decedent’s peg tube prior to feeding, which resulted in peritonitis and sepsis. Plaintiff obtained a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Award: Confidential
Summary: Served as lead counsel in a medical malpractice case involving allegations that the defendant failed to properly evaluate and treat the decedent, causing her to develop decubitus ulcers and sepsis. Despite being in an unfavorable venue with medical malpractice damage caps, plaintiff obtained a significant confidential settlement prior to trial.
Understanding how to calculate a personal injury settlement can be challenging. The court will review various factors to determine the damages, including the severity of the injury, the other party’s degree of negligence, and state/local injury laws.
An experienced personal injury lawyer can review the evidence and propose a compensation amount that fully captures your losses and expenses. A competent lawyer will be able to determine the projected long-term costs of the injury.
There is no real average personal injury settlement amount, as each case will be unique. Ideally, your compensation should cover:
The amount of compensation you receive often depends on the skill of the attorney handling your case. Thus, you should only work with qualified attorneys who have proven results in obtaining favorable outcomes for cases similar to yours.
Most personal injury cases take anywhere from at least a few months to a year or even longer. Cases that involve multiple parties, complex legal issues, or difficult evidence matters may take longer.
At Pierce Skrabanek, you can rest assured that we will do all we can to keep your case moving forward. We also shoulder all the responsibilities of trial, so you can focus on your recovery.
Personal injury lawyers can provide you with a number of services that are required for successfully recovering a monetary damages award. Your attorney will:
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident and are seeking compensation for your losses, contact us at (832) 690-7000 to speak with a personal injury lawyer. Our attorneys are on hand to guide you towards your next steps for recovery.
