Type of action:
Negligence - Premises Liability -- Fallen Window

Injuries alleged:
Closed-head injury

Amount of settlement:
$350,000

Other useful information:
On May 19, 1992, the plaintiff was struck by a window which fell from a shelf while shopping at defendant's home products warehouse store in Danvers. By the time the plaintiffs' attorney received the case, the Danvers store had been closed. There were no photographs or diagrams of the accident's location or the way that the windows were stacked, other than those produced by the defendant.

It was the plaintiff's contention that the merchandise was stacked dangerously, overstocked and without safety barriers or other measures to prevent merchandise from falling upon customers. The defendant contended that there was no negligence; that the windows were stacked properly; and that the plaintiff may have handled the merchandise improperly.

The plaintiff was apparently hit on the head. He suffered either no loss of consciousness or at best a fleeting moment of loss or alteration of consciousness. He walked to the customer service desk to report the incident and then drove himself home, later experiencing headaches and nausea. He went to the local emergency room but was not admitted in spite of complaints of headaches, nausea, disorientation and difficulty concentrating. All neuro-radiological tests were negative. The plaintiff was ultimately diagnosed with "mild" traumatic brain injury, but he claimed to be totally and permanently disabled as a result of his injuries.

The case settled just prior to trial for $350,000.