Alexander Fisher

Congrats to Alexander Fisher on obtaining a favorable jury verdict for a national restaurant client and wins further hearing forcing plaintiff to pay Counsel fees!

In a just concluded week-long jury trial in Mercer County, New Jersey, gartner + bloom, P.C. partner Alexander Fisher secured a favorable jury verdict in a claim where the plaintiff had sought several hundred thousand dollars for dental injuries.

The Firm’s client, a national restaurant chain, admitted that a toothpick had been inadvertently left inside a piece of food when it was served to plaintiff. The restaurant also admitted that plaintiff’s gum had been punctured by the toothpick. Prior to trial, plaintiff had demanded $500,000 to settle the case.

The trial centered on plaintiff’s alleged damages, including the claim that from that one-time event, plaintiff sustained multiple broken teeth in a separate area of his mouth requiring extractions and implants. (Plaintiff did not make complaints about these teeth until months or some cases years after the alleged incident.)

Alexander utilized a forensic odontologist at trial to argue that none of plaintiff’s teeth could have been broken by a toothpick, and further, that the delays in plaintiff’s complaints were inconsistent with traumatic tooth fractures.

After a four-day trial, the jury returned a verdict awarding plaintiff nothing ($0) for his pain and suffering, and only negligible medical costs.

Notably, when attempts to settle the case before trial were unsuccessful, Alexander filed an Offer of Judgment. The jury’s verdict was significantly less than the amount offered in the Offer of Judgment, which now permits the client to seek recovery from the plaintiff of most, if not all, of the trial costs and attorney’s fees.