Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Personal Injury & Medical Malpractice Law

Toll-Free: (888) 797- 4242

510 Walnut St

Philadelphia, PA

Of counsel:

Levin, Fishbein, Sedran and Berman

Case Results

For more than 30 years we have fought to obtain justice and fair compensation for our clients. The results listed below were achieved through endless hours of preparation and hard work. We owe this to our clients, who rely on us in their time of need. We are honored by their trust.

We consider the actual monetary amounts to be sensitive information. In the best interest of our clients, we have chosen not to disclose dollar figures on this website. Most if not all of these figures can be found in newspaper archives or on public record.

We always strive to ensure that the proceeds of any case will be used as intended, i.e. to provide for health care, maintenance, education and support of the victim, and affected family members. In doing so we utilize the services of health care providers, vocational counselors, life care planners, and financial planners.

The following is a partial list of verdicts and settlements achieved by The Abelson Law Firm:

Chiropractic malpractice. Resolution of a wrongful death claim brought against a chiropractor for causing a dissection of the carotid artery of his young patient, while performing a neck “adjustment” to treat the patient’s back pain. The decedent is survived by his young wife of 17 years. Cervical manipulative techniques employed by chiropractors can be unreasonably dangerous when performed without adequate examination, systems review and a proper history obtained from the patient. Inappropriate force may also be used. While the medical literature is clear that chiropractic cervical manipulations carry the risk of a life threatening vascular accident, there appears to be no scientific proof that these neck manipulations are appropriate to treat the myriad of symptoms with which patients present. The public has a right to be informed about this risk/benefit analysis of cervical manipulation.

Wrongful death settlement against the operator and owner of an improperly loaded 18 wheeler truck which turned over onto a passenger vehicle while rounding a curve, crushing the driver of the car. The decedent’s wife and son were riding as passengers in the car, and they survived. This case involved a young family which had recently immigrated to our country from Equador. The family has lost their husband/father who was their sole provider. Proceeds of the settlement provide for maintenance of his widow, and for the education of their young children.

Settlement for a teenaged girl whose ovaries were wrongfully removed by surgeons. Moreover, she was not told that this had been done, i.e. that she was now sterile. As a result, the child was immediately thrown into menopause without comprehending why she was undergoing hormonal changes, which of course affected her physically and psychologically. Her grades suffered and her mood changed, affecting the family unit. Until she had met with our law firm and medical consultant, the child and her parents were unaware of what had happened to her; she had been deprived of the medications which she badly needed. The chief operating officer of the hospital eventually apologized to the family. The proceeds of the case have been structured so that she receives the proper medical attention which she will require throughout her lifetime, to include the opportunities for in vitro fertilization.

Our law firm has most recently established new law which places hospitals and doctors on high alert that, under some circumstances, health care providers owe a duty of care not only to their own patients, but to members of the general public as well. This result was obtained in the United States District Court for Washington DC. A hospital's medication error caused its own patient to lose conscious control of her vehicle, which then crashed into the vehicle in which our client was riding as a passenger.

Our client suffered, among other injuries, traumatic brain damage with the need for life-time attendant and medical care. As a result of our efforts (we worked on this case for over five years), our client's family now has the monetary funds to allow her to live the remainder of her life with dignity, and with the attendant and medical care she needs to survive.

[ ]* settlement on behalf of a young physician who was permanently disabled when his car was struck by a 50,000 lb. dump truck which had defective air brakes. The evidence disclosed that a state inspection station negligently failed to inspect the brakes when it issued an inspection certificate for the truck. The settlement was structured with the support of financial advisors utilizing top rated insurance annuities in order to provide for his lifetime care, as well as maintenance for his wife and the educational needs of his children.

Jury finds GU hospital negligent in misdiagnosis of doctor's cancer.
"A D.C. Superior Court jury found yesterday that Georgetown University Medical Center was negligent in diagnosing and treating breast cancer in one of its residents in emergency medicine and awarded the dying woman [ ]* in damages…" – The Washington Post

[ ]* settlement (product liability) against rental car company which admittedly maintained a dangerously defective Firestone tire on its vehicle, resulting in wrongful death.

[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) against hospital for allowing a bacterial infection in a newborn baby to progress and worsen, causing permanent mental and physical disabilities.

Window Washer Awarded [ ]* in D.C. Fall.
"A 43-year-old Baltimore man who fell 12 stories in March 1984 from a window-washing scaffold attached to a building at 1333 H St. NW was awarded [ ]* yesterday by a federal court jury…" – The Washington Post

[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) against a U.S. government military hospital for negligently instructing the mother of a child with mild seizure activity to withhold medication for an unreasonable length of time, resulting in permanent brain damage to the child.

NRA Hit with [ ]* Verdict
"A D.C. Superior Court Jury yesterday ordered the National Rifle Association to pay [ ]* to a 34-year-old window washer who fell six stories from the NRA building…" – The Washington Times

[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) against a physician and hospital for their failure to perform a timely cesarean section, resulting in permanent neurological and physical deficits to the newborn child.

[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) for a 35-year-old engineer, who underwent spinal surgery performed by an unsupervised resident without his consent. The unsupervised resident negligently cut into his spinal canal and severed eighteen (18) spinal nerve roots during the performance of an L-5, S-1 laminectomy procedure, causing him to suffer permanent loss of all bowel, bladder and sexual functions.

[ ]* jury verdict (medical malpractice) against physicians and hospital for the wrongful death of a 42-year-old electrical engineer who died of a pericardial infection, caused by his premature hospital discharge and their failure to timely diagnose and treat the infection.

Police Officer Awarded [ ]*
"...A federal court jury here awarded [ ]* yesterday to a D.C. vice officer whose hip was crushed when the car, in which he was a passenger, was hit head-on by a Metro bus..."

The Washington Post
-[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) for a 47-year-old high school guidance counsellor who suffered a stroke after her HMO failed to properly medicate her and admit her to the hospital, following multiple visits over a number of years with complaints of headache, uncontrolled hypertension and hyperlipidemia.

[ ]* settlement (medical malpractice) for a newborn child who was negligently delivered by an unsupervised first year resident obstetrician performing a mid-forceps delivery.

[ ]* (assault and battery) settlement for a 47-year-old construction superintendent who was badly beaten by the employee of a subcontractor following a job related dispute.

Man Impaled on Bar Settles Civil Suit for [ ]*
"A subcontractor working on the Washington Navy Yard Metro station settled a civil lawsuit Thursday for a construction accident in which an inspector was impaled on an iron bar…" – The Washington Times

Confidential settlement (ski slope design) for the wrongful death of a young woman who was killed at a Pennsylvania ski resort. The ski area operator negligently designed a trail which diverged in a "Y" pattern towards two separate ski lifts. The fall line of the trail led directly towards a steep, hidden and unfenced ditch between the lifts, which contained the steel waterpipes that fed the resort's snowblowing equipment.

Hypnosis Wins Case in a Civil Suit
"In a unique strategy, attorney Mike Abelson's client underwent hypnosis recently to ascertain what happened in a head-on collision a year ago last September. Following expert and lay witness testimony, attorney Abelson easily overcame the initial skepticism of the jury which found in favor of his client yesterday in the U.S. District Court." – The Washington Post

[ ]* settlement (high rise window cleaning) during jury deliberations for a 29-year-old window washer against a building owner and its management, which failed to provide a safe place for him to work. The window washer was using a descent control device attached to roof anchors which were designed and intended for use with a 2 point suspension scaffold system.

[ ]* jury verdict (automobile collision) for an automobile salesman whose vehicle was struck by a tow truck.

[ ]* jury verdict (medical malpractice) for a 42-year-old restaurant owner who was misdiagnosed by a local hospital with "sinusitis," despite presenting on three separate occasions to the same hospital with signs and symptoms consistent with viral encephalitis.

Confidential settlement (negligent hiring, screening and supervision) in favor of a young girl who was sexually molested in a care facility, which failed to screen the background of the assailant before hiring him, and failed to supervise him on his critical first day on the job. The care facility also failed to address the trauma it had caused to the child and her family when it had a duty to do so.

[ ]* jury verdict (construction site) for the widow of a truck driver who was electrocuted on a jobsite, when the general contractor negligently failed to de-energize the overhead high voltage power lines.

[ ]* settlement (highway construction) following jury verdict in favor of a 19-year-old college student badly injured in an automobile collision, when a highway construction contractor negligently blocked the sight-line visibility of motorists at the intersection where he was injured.

[ ]* settlement (product liability) during trial for a 20-year-old tree cutter who was severely injured when a stumpgrinder he was operating suddenly jumped back towards him, causing muscle and nerve damage to his leg. Evidence at trial showed that other men had been more seriously injured in similar incidents, including several amputation injuries. Despite this knowledge, the manufacturer callously refused to recall the machine and/or modify its dangerously defective design, blaming each and every injury on the "careless worker."

[ ]* Set for Teen Hit by Train
"A 17-year-old District youth whose legs and left arm were severed four years ago when he was struck by a train in the Conrail yard near Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue NE was awarded [ ]* yesterday by a federal jury…" – The Washington Post

Driver Gets [ ]* for Insurance Firm’s Actions (insurance bad faith)
"...Nationwide Insurance Company must pay its insured [ ]* - exactly one hundred times the amount for which the claim could have been resolved - had Nationwide chosen to deal fairly and in good faith with its insured. Mike Abelson, attorney for the insured, explained that Nationwide could have originally settled the matter for [ ]*. Abelson explained that Nationwide chose not to protect its insured, but chose rather to invite a lawsuit to be filed against her. The lawsuit resulted in a verdict in excess of her policy limits, causing her to suffer financially and emotionally. According to the Insurance Information Institute, a trade group, there has been only a handful of similar cases nationwide. 'It is well known that insurance companies blame lawyers who represent people for filing too many lawsuits,' Abelson said. 'To the contrary, this case points out that insurance companies, by failing to protect their own insureds, are actually forcing lawsuits to be filed. These are the same lawsuits that give rise to verdicts, which the insurance companies then use as a further excuse to raise premiums.' " – The Washington Post

* We consider the actual monetary amounts to be sensitive information. In the best interest of our clients, we have chosen not to disclose dollar figures on this website. Most if not all of these figures can be found in newspaper archives or on public record.