This Week's Most Notable Personal Injury Stories

Happy Friday! ?? Welcome to this week's edition of Enjuris Briefs. Our team of dedicated attorney editors has hand-selected the most notable—and notably amusing—personal injury stories from the past week.

Top Legal Stories

Uber Crash Lawsuit Hits a Roadblock Over Pizza Order

A New Jersey couple’s effort to sue Uber after a car crash may be derailed by an unexpected twist—a pizza order placed by their 12-year-old daughter. Georgia and John McGinty were severely injured when their Uber driver T-boned another car, but their personal injury lawsuit faces an uphill battle after a New Jersey appeals court ruled that their daughter’s acceptance of Uber’s terms of service through the Uber Eats app binds the family to arbitration.

The McGintys argue they never saw or agreed to arbitration terms, blaming their daughter’s quick click for ordering pizza. However, the court found that the family had previously agreed to arbitration clauses when using Uber’s services, making their case another example of how those ubiquitous terms-of-service agreements can play a critical role in legal battles.

Learn more here.

GSK Settles 80,000 Zantac Cancer Lawsuits for $2.2 Billion

British pharmaceutical giant GSK has agreed to pay up to $2.2 billion to resolve approximately 80,000 lawsuits from users of the heartburn drug Zantac who claimed it caused cancer. The settlement covers 93% of state court cases, most of which were consolidated in Delaware.

The deal, expected to be finalized by mid-2025, follows similar settlements from other pharma companies, including Sanofi and Pfizer. Plaintiffs are set to receive around $27,500 each. Additionally, GSK will pay $70 million to resolve a whistleblower complaint, which accused the company of lying to the FDA about Zantac’s risks.

Zantac was pulled from the market in 2020 after the FDA confirmed that its main ingredient, ranitidine, could form a probable carcinogen under certain conditions.

Diddy’s Lawyers Accuse DHS of Leaking Assault Video to Media

Lawyers for Sean “Diddy” Combs, who faces federal sex-trafficking charges, have accused the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of leaking a 2016 video of Combs assaulting singer Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura to CNN. The defense claims the leak was part of a government scheme to damage Combs' reputation and influence public opinion ahead of his trial.

The surveillance footage, which shows Combs kicking and dragging Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel hallway, is central to the prosecution’s case. Combs' legal team is fighting to have the video excluded from trial, accusing the government of a “strategic leak” to prejudice potential jurors. Combs, who denies the charges, is expected to seek bail again this week, with his trial potentially beginning in spring 2025.

Georgia Court of Appeals Revives Wrongful Death Suit Against Solo Cup

The Georgia Court of Appeals has reopened a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Taurus Andrews, who was fatally shot by coworker Cameron Golden at a Solo Cup factory in Conyers, Georgia, in 2019. The incident stemmed from a dispute after Andrews found a bag of identification cards and turned it in to a supervisor, who discovered it belonged to Golden. Golden accused Andrews of stealing money from the bag, leading to the deadly altercation.

Solo Cup argued that Andrews’ act of returning the bag was part of his job duties, making the claim subject to Georgia’s workers' compensation law, which bars lawsuits over workplace injuries. While the lower court agreed, the appeals court reversed that ruling, stating that the underlying dispute over the alleged theft was unrelated to Andrews' work duties. The case will now proceed, with the Andrews family alleging that Solo Cup was negligent in hiring and retaining Golden and failed to ensure a safe work environment.

Supreme Court to Hear Case on U.S. Gunmakers' Liability for Mexican Violence

The Supreme Court will consider whether U.S. gunmakers like Smith & Wesson and Beretta can be held liable for violence in Mexico. The lawsuit, brought by the Mexican government, accuses firearms manufacturers of contributing to cartel violence by allowing guns to be smuggled across the border. Mexico argues that the companies should have implemented stricter controls on sales, asserting that their products fuel criminal activity.

Gunmakers, however, claim the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act shields them from such lawsuits. While a federal court initially dismissed the case, an appeals court revived it, and now the Supreme Court will decide if the suit has standing in U.S. courts. This decision could have far-reaching implications for holding manufacturers accountable for violence abroad.

Teen Driver's Reckless Pass Led to Fatal Illinois Chemical Spill

A federal report had found that a 17-year-old Ohio girl caused a tragic tanker-truck crash in Illinois last year, which resulted in the death of five people and a toxic chemical spill. The incident occurred on Sept. 29, 2023, when the girl attempted to pass the tanker on U.S. 40 near . The truck, carrying anhydrous ammonia, was forced off the road to avoid a head-on collision, causing it to jackknife and puncture its tank, releasing thousands of gallons of the hazardous chemical.

The crash resulted in the deaths of three family members who were near the scene, along with two others, and led to the evacuation of about 500 people. The driver of the minivan, who admitted to speeding and misjudging the distance during an Illinois State Police interview, acknowledged her fault, stating, "It was totally my fault," after reviewing dash-cam footage.

Watch the dash-cam footage here.

Georgia Lawyers Rally to Aid Communities After Hurricane Helene

When Hurricane Helene devastated parts of Georgia, Ira Foster, general counsel of the Georgia Legal Services Program, packed his SUV with supplies and drove from Atlanta to hard-hit Augusta. Describing the scene as "mind-blowing" and "like a war zone," Foster delivered much-needed food and water to legal professionals impacted by the storm. His SUV, along with two others, was filled with donations from the State Bar of Georgia's SOLACE Committee, which quickly mobilized to help colleagues in need.

Foster noted the overwhelming gratitude from recipients, many of whom had been without power or water for days.

Read more here.

Amusing Legal Story

Lawyers Sanctioned for Blasting Recording of a Woman Screaming in South Philly Neighborhood

A federal judge has ordered lawyers representing Termaine Hicks to issue formal apologies after they blasted a recording of a woman screaming at 122 decibels in a South Philadelphia neighborhood for over an hour. The test, conducted at 5:30 a.m. near a daycare, was part of Hicks' case against the City of Philadelphia to determine if he could have heard a woman screaming from two blocks away the night he was allegedly framed by police.

Hicks claims he heard the woman screaming, went to help her, and was then shot by police, who later framed him for the crime. The defense challenged whether Hicks could have heard the screams from that distance, making the "scream test" crucial to his version of events.

The recording, played at 5:30 a.m. near a daycare center, startled residents, many of whom feared a real assault was occurring. Some community members, including a man with a baseball bat, confronted the lawyers on site. Despite the uproar, the lawyers continued the test until police intervened.

While the court found no bad faith, Judge Murphy ruled that the lawyers' poor judgment caused significant distress. Rather than excluding the evidence, the court ordered the lawyers to write apology letters to affected residents and personally deliver them to homes in the area.

Read the ruling here.

Quote of the Week

"I got a f- - -ing list. Do you want to talk s- - - in front of me now?” - Connecticut attorney Robert Serafinowicz

Connecticut lawyer Robert Serafinowicz has been suspended for one year after a dramatic courthouse confrontation where he slapped attorney Edward Gavin, followed by a “destructive and harmful” campaign of harassment against a former friend. The suspension, ordered by Judge Barbara Bellis, requires Serafinowicz to undergo five years of mental health treatment, though he will be allowed to return to practice without reapplying for his law license.

The slap, which left Gavin with a contusion and bleeding ear, was the climax of a heated altercation in which Serafinowicz unleashed an expletive-filled tirade. “No, I’m not calming down; this is all coming out, and everybody knows that. And I got a f---ing list. Do you want to talk s--- in front of me now? Do you want to f---ing apologize?” Serafinowicz demanded before striking Gavin. The two had barely spoken in nearly a decade, but Serafinowicz believed Gavin had been making snide remarks for years.

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