Bruce Ramsey, left, and Gregg Hollander, right, deliver opening statements at trial against Boca Raton Regional Hospital over the paralysis Kathleen Silkworth, represented by Hollander, claims was caused by medical negligence.

West Palm Beach, FL—Attorneys sparred over whether a car accident or medical negligence paralyzed a South Florida woman, as trial opened Monday against the hospital that treated her following her late-night crash. Silkworth v. Boca Raton Regional Hospital, 2013CA013276.

Stock photo. 

Decatur, GA—Attorneys debated whether decades of job-related orthopedic stress or a rear-end collision caused a Snellville exterminator’s shoulder injury, as trial began Tuesday against the woman who crashed into him. Rush v. Mealor, 14A52556.

Alex Alvarex delivers his closing argument during the punitive phase of trial against Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds over the cancer and respiratory disease Mary Howles claims was caused by the companies' deceit. Jurors Tuesday imposed a $6 million punitive award, following the $4 million in compensatories they awarded a day earlier. 

Fort Lauderdale, FL—A South Florida jury imposed a $6 million punitive verdict on R.J. Reynolds and Philip Morris yesterday, completing a $10 million damage award against the tobacco giants for their role in a former nurse’s cancer and respiratory disease. Howles v. R.J. Reynolds, 2007-CV-034919.

Fort Lauderdale, FL—Jurors Monday found the nation’s two largest tobacco companies liable for $4 million in compensatory damages, as well as potential punitives, for the role they concluded the companies played in the cancer and emphysema of a former nurse who smoked for more than three decades. Howles v. R.J. Reynolds, 2007-CV-034919.

R.J. Reynolds executive Charles Garner testifies during the punitive phase of trial over the lung cancer death of Franklin Johnston. Jurors imposed a $14 million punitive award against Reynolds on Thursday, bringing the total award to $21.5 million. 

Sarasota, FL—R.J. Reynolds faces a $21.5 million total damage award for the part it played in the lung cancer death of a Florida Army veteran, after jurors hit the tobacco company with $14 million in punitive damages Thursday. Johnston v. R.J. Reynolds, 2014-CA-004023.2014-CA-004023.