Success Stories

$1.7 million dollar recovery in wrongful death plane crash, Volusia County

On February 6, 2003, the Plaintiffs 19 year old daughter was killed when the small plane she was riding in crashed in rural South Carolina. The decedent was survived by her mother and father.

The decedent was a graduate of a local public high school and was attending community college at the time of her death.

She had been invited by her boyfriend to go on a trip that was to begin and end in Volusia County, Florida. Plaintiffs counsel alleged that the crash occurred because the pilot negligently chose to fly into inclement weather which included icing conditions.

The Plaintiffs brought suit against the owner of the plane and the pilot, who was uninsured. Plaintiffs contended that the owner of the aircraft was liable for the negligence of its pilot under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine. The aircraft owner's counsel responded by claiming that the owner's permission and consent to fly the plane had been withdrawn on the date of the incident in question and that Florida's Dangerous Instrumentality Doctrine had been preempted by Federal law.

Both parties had filed Motions for Summary Judgment which were pending before the court at the time the claim was settled.