Law Offices of Mathys & Schneid Recovers a $39 Million Settlement for a Motorcyclist Who Suffered a Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

NAPERVILLE, Ill., March 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On January 5, 2023, a Cook County judge approved a $38,950,000 personal injury settlement for a 52-year-old man who sustained a life-altering traumatic brain injury when his defective touring motorcycle crashed.

Attorneys Mark T. Schneid and Mark W. Mathys, partners at the Law Offices of Mathys & Schneid in Naperville, Illinois, obtained this settlement against multiple Defendants and litigated the entirety of the case during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On June 1, 2019, the injured motorcyclist, the Plaintiff in the case, was on a group ride from Bolingbrook, IL, to Galena, IL, on his used 2001 touring motorcycle that he had recently purchased from a local motorcycle sales business.  Upon reaching highway speeds, his rear tire unexpectedly went flat, and his motorcycle began to weave. He carefully slowed down and began moving toward a safe place off the side of the road. At this time, the rear tire separated from the rim and was wedged into the motorcycle's frame. This flung him onto the roadway and caused him to sustain a complex subdural hematoma and subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Three businesses were named Defendants in the case based on theories of negligent maintenance and negligent sale of a dangerous product. These include the local seller that sold Plaintiff the motorcycle, the national company that sold the motorcycle to the local seller, and the national maintenance company that placed new tires on the motorcycle just prior to sale.

It was revealed during discovery that the maintenance company installed a rear tire that was not the recommended type for the motorcycle and that the rear air valve stem was improperly long. The local facility and national seller did not notice these defects and sold the motorcycle to Plaintiff in this dangerous condition.

Upon Court approval of the settlement agreement, Attorney Mark T. Schneid noted that "Changing a motorcycle tire and air valve stem is an easy job to do for a certified motorcycle mechanic, but if a mechanic carelessly disregards basic safety warnings from the motorcycle and tire manufacturers and just installs the cheapest available aftermarket parts, somebody will get killed or traumatically injured."

During the case, Plaintiff demonstrated that the improper air valve stem and tire combined to cause the accident and his injuries. Plaintiff's team of leading experts, including various engineers, motorcycle experts, and accident reconstructionists, aided this demonstration.

Attorney Mark W. Mathys stated, following the settlement, that "Our client's life has been changed forever, and he will require medical and nursing care plus adaptive housing and rehabilitation equipment for the rest of his life. This settlement will ensure that our client gets the best medical care available anywhere in the United States so that he can make the best recovery possible."

Contact:  Mark T. Schneid
Law Offices of Mathys & Schneid
1730 Park Suite 209, Naperville, IL 60563
(630) 428-4040
[email protected]

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SOURCE Law Offices of Mathys & Schneid