Trial Verdict 2015-31: Boston Partner Ralph Sullivan & Amy Parker

Boston Partner Ralph Sullivan, with the assistance of Amy Parker, won a defense verdict in a snow and ice case following an eight-day jury trial at the Middlesex Superior Court. The plaintiff, a tenant of the defendant landlord, claimed that she slipped and fell on black ice while on the walkway outside of her apartment building. She badly fractured her ankle. The plaintiff claimed that the walkway was not sanded properly given the weather conditions. Our weather expert noted that there had been a minimal amount of snow prior to the accident and that weather conditions were not conducive to the creation of black ice. Plaintiff’s counsel asked the jury to award $1.8 million in his closing argument; his final settlement demand was $750,000.