Adam Princenthal tells jurors a rear-end collision forced his client, Roy Martin, to undergo a spinal fusion. 

Lawrenceville, GA—Attorneys Monday debated whether a fender bender delivered career-ending back injuries to a postal carrier, as a seven-figure trial opened against the driver at fault for the wreck. Martin v. Van Horn, 14C-03260-S5.

A deft cross-examination can critically undercut an opponent's case in the eyes of a jury and turn the tide of a trial. In Blatnik v. Youngblood, a cross-exam by Waldon Adelman Castilla Hiestand & Prout’s Adam Smith likely proved the tipping point to a defense win in a six-figure car crash case.

Adam Smith delivers his closing argument on behalf of Keely Youngblood, accused of responsibility for neck and back injuries Michael Blatnik claims he suffered when Youngblood rear-ended him. Jurors cleared Youngblood of responsibility for the injuries. 

Decatur, GA—Jurors Wednesday rejected a Georgia man’s claim that he suffered long-term neck and back injuries from a rear-end crash with a distracted driver. Blatnik v. Youngblood, 15A56329.

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Decatur, GA—Trial opens Monday for a Georgia man who says he suffered serious injuries when his car was rear-ended in a metro Atlanta-area crash. Blatnik v. Youngblood, 15A56329. 

a plaintiff can recover “the full value of a deceased’s life” in a Georgia wrongful death suit. However, where the bulk of a damage claim is for non-economic value, or what made the lost life at the heart of a case special, the damages argument becomes more complicated. In a wrongful death case involving a 22-year-old hairstylist and mother of two, Trent Speckhals’ closing argument emphasized the importance of non-economic damages and helped deliver a hefty award. Mitchell v. The Estate of Otis South, 09A03669.