HSPRD has obtained a settlement that will pay out more than $4.6 million for injuries sustained by a six-year-old Wisconsin child, Alex Hook, whose skull was struck by a piece of metal rebar as he played on a school playground during recess.
HSPRD filed a lawsuit on Alex’s behalf in Kenosha County, Wisconsin against two primary defendants: (a) the concrete company that had left the rebar in a grassy median near the playground and (b) the landscaping company whose employee was operating a riding mower on the median during recess and who mowed over the rebar, throwing it in the air toward Alex.
Though both defendants initially denied liability, HSPRD secured the settlement by deploying forensic analysis of the school’s surveillance video to establish that it was the defendant’s mower that launched the rebar that caused the injury. HSPRD also obtained documents in discovery that connected the concrete company to the rebar that caused the injury.
Following the incident, emergency surgery saved Alex’s life, but he then faced a long and complicated recovery, requiring additional surgeries. Alex thankfully made a miraculous recovery but was left with a permanent scar on the top of his head.
“Though we are all grateful for the recovery Alex has made, he and his family have had to endure months of unnecessary pain, stress, and anxiety as a result of the defendants’ negligent conduct,” said HSPRD attorney Mark Dym, who represented Alex and his parents. “Alex is a fighter, and we are proud to have fought hard alongside him and his parents Caryn and Kirbey to achieve this settlement, which will provide Alex with financial security throughout his adult life.”
HSPRD’s team included Mark Dym, Mathew Piers, Derek Dominguez, and Justin Tresnowski. Steve Botzau of the Habush firm was local counsel.
