CHICAGO – QPWB Chicago Senior Partner Alan Bernover and Partner Melissa Zhang successfully secured a complete defense victory in a high-exposure personal injury matter. Facing claims stemming from an elevator door impact, the defense team moved decisively early in the litigation, resulting in a Motion to Dismiss being granted as a matter of law, which was subsequently affirmed on appeal for a final monetary award of $0.00.
Overview of the Case
The litigation arose from a personal injury lawsuit filed by a Plaintiff alleging negligence after her left shoulder was struck by a closing elevator door at a condominium complex in Illinois. The Plaintiff sought recovery for physical trauma and ongoing complications from the defendants, an international elevator manufacturer and its alleged agent.
Key Difference-Makers
Claims Made Against Our Client
The Plaintiff pursued recovery under theories of negligence, alleging that the elevator manufacturer had performed repairs on the system earlier on the day of the incident and that its negligence directly caused the door to strike and injure her shoulder.
Because the personal injury lawsuit was filed beyond the two-year deadline, opposing counsel attempted to invoke the “discovery rule” to toll the statute of limitations. They aggressively maintained that the Plaintiff suffered from preexisting, chronic cervical spine issues that effectively masked the new shoulder injury, arguing that she did not legally discover she had sustained an actionable injury until she visited a doctor weeks later, which would have made her filing timely.
Defense Strategy
In response to these claims, Bernover and Zhang executed a defense strategy centered on strict statutory timelines rather than litigating complex medical disputes regarding the onset timeline of the Plaintiff’s shoulder pain. The defense team filed a section 2-619(a)(5) motion to dismiss, arguing that the Plaintiff’s lawsuit fell entirely outside the strict two-year statute of limitations for personal injury actions under 735 ILCS 5/13-202.
To counter the discovery rule, the defense framed the elevator door impact as a “sudden, traumatic event.” By focusing on the objective, physical nature of the incident rather than the Plaintiff’s subjective medical timeline, the defense established that the occurrence legally triggered immediate notice of an injury, thereby activating the two-year statute of limitations on the date of the incident.
Impact on Final Outcome
The strategic decision to focus on the mechanics of the incident as a matter of law completely neutralized the Plaintiff’s subjective timeline at the outset. Relying on established Illinois precedent that traumatic external forces negate the discovery rule, the circuit court granted the motion to dismiss with prejudice, successfully terminating the litigation at the pleadings stage.
The Plaintiff subsequently appealed the ruling, seeking to overturn the dismissal. The Illinois Appellate Court fully adopted the defense’s framework, agreeing that regardless of any preexisting conditions, the sudden impact of the elevator door caused immediate pain that placed the Plaintiff on notice of a wrongfully caused injury on the exact day of the incident. By affirming the lower court’s dismissal, the appellate court solidified a definitive defense victory and secured zero-dollar exposure for the client.
Unique Aspects of the Case
The most unique element of this litigation was the Plaintiff’s creative, yet ultimately unsuccessful, attempt to use her own chronic, preexisting medical conditions to invoke the discovery rule. The opposition argued that her previous, chronic pain effectively hid the new trauma, an argument that the defense successfully dismantled by sticking strictly to the physical mechanics of the incident.
Predicting the Future
This dual victory reinforces QPWB’s reputation for executing highly efficient, cost-effective defense strategies. By securing an early dismissal at the pleadings stage and successfully defending it on appeal, QPWB continues to demonstrate to insurance carriers and corporate clients that it actively identifies avenues to dispose of claims swiftly through strict statutory defenses, avoiding years of expensive discovery and trial preparation. For future clients facing personal injury claims, this precedent prevents Plaintiffs from utilizing the discovery rule to excuse late filings following sudden, traumatic incidents.
Key Actions in This Case
- Statutory Defense Application: Successfully utilized 735 ILCS 5/13-202 to establish that the lawsuit was time-barred, barring the Plaintiff’s claims at the pleadings stage.
- Strategic Incident Framing: Shifted the legal narrative by framing the accident as a “sudden, traumatic event,” which legally presumes immediate notice and negates subjective discovery timelines.
- Appellate Defense: Anchored the trial court’s dismissal through the appellate process, utilizing established state precedent to secure a final victory.
About QPWB
Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A. is one of the fastest growing law firms in the United States providing a different focus on what it means to provide responsive service to clients and team members. With a national presence of 60 offices and a comprehensive scope of over 130 practice areas, QPWB delivers legal representation in litigation, regulatory, and corporate matters to a diverse range of industries. This scope and rapid expansion has attracted unique legal talent from all different backgrounds and experiences which has made them the largest minority-owned law firm in the country.