EAST ST. LOUIS – Jurors in U.S. district court cleared forklift maker Raymond Corporation of liability in a lower leg imputation trial on Nov. 11.
They deliberated for an hour and 41 minutes, after eight days of trial before District Judge Stephen McGlynn.
Plaintiff Adelaida Anderson claimed that defects in the design of a forklift caused her injury on her job at Federal Express in Effingham.
Her counsel Michael Warshauer of Georgia had filed eight other injury suits against Raymond Corporation.
Warshauer tried to present opinions of an engineer who previously worked for Raymond Corporation, but District Judge Staci Yandle excluded it.
The case passed to McGlynn when he joined the court last year.
Earlier this year Warshauer moved to add to Anderson’s complaint an allegation that Raymond Corporation committed spoliation by destroying accident reports.
He also moved for sanctions, but McGlynn denied both motions.
He found the case similar to one where a plaintiff suspected misrepresentation but didn’t confirm its suspicions before an amendment deadline passed.
He found Warshauer’s previous involvement in suits against Raymond Corporation tended to show he was aware of alleged spoliation long before the deadline passed.
Warshauer sought punitive damages, claiming Raymond Corporation could have designed a safety door but pursued profits instead.
He moved to exclude testimony of engineer Michael Rogers that a safety door would make a forklift less safe.
McGlynn allowed testimony from Rogers and rejected punitive damages.
At trial, Warshauer opened Anderson’s case with seven hours of testimony from six doctors on Nov. 2 and 3.
Jurors watched video of Jeff Anderson, husband and second plaintiff, for about two hours on Nov. 4.
Adelaida Anderson testified for an hour and 40 minutes on that date and ten minutes the next morning, and then she rested.
Counsel for Raymond Corporation moved for judgment and McGlynn denied it.
With engineer Rogers ready to open Raymond Corporation’s case, Warshauer moved to exclude portions of his opinion.
McGlynn denied it, and Rogers testified for three hours and 15 minutes.
Raymond Corporation rested on Nov. 9.
Warshauer argued for Anderson on Nov. 10, and Frank LoCoco of the Husch Blackwell firm in Milwaukee argued for Raymond Corporation.
Jurors retired ten minutes after noon and rendered a verdict at 1:51 p.m.
Margaret Heitkamp of Milwaukee represented Raymond Corporation along with LoCoco, and former district judge Patrick Murphy of Marion acted as local counsel.
Ryan Brennan of Belleville acted as local counsel for Anderson.