News Blog | Schmidt Kramer

Scott Cooper on Pennsylvania UM/UIM Arguments Over Regular Use Exclusion

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on May 26, 2023 in News

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard intense arguments this past Tuesday over the validity of regular use exclusions in certain UM/UIM policies. Should insurance companies be able to exclude this coverage on vehicles used regularly by policyholders if they do not own or insure them? The other question is whether regular use exclusions violate Pennsylvania’s Motor […]

Schmidt Kramer May 2023 Newsletter: Exciting Things Happening at the Firm!

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on May 22, 2023 in News

Summer is nearly here, but before that season begins, be sure to read about the spring events that have been happening at Schmidt Kramer! So what will you find in our May 2023 Schmidt Kramer newsletter? For starters, check out the full scoop – photos included – on the Dauphin County Bar Association President’s gala! […]

Seven Schmidt Kramer Lawyers Selected as 2023 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on May 19, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer is proud to announce that in 2023 and for a third year running, seven attorneys at our firm have been selected for inclusion as Pennsylvania Super Lawyers®. Two of the seven were selected as Pennsylvania Rising Stars. Congratulations to each of these attorneys for their dedication to excellence, their outstanding professional achievements, and […]

Schmidt Kramer Partner Scott Cooper Designated as Next Vice Chair of the CRPC

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on May 15, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer law firm in Harrisburg, Pa is proud to announce partner Scott Cooper has been designated as the next vice-chair of the Civil Procedural Rules Committee. This committee, informally known as the CRPC, was established in 1937 and falls under the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. It is the oldest of the Supreme Court’s seven procedural […]

Personal Injury Lawsuit Filings Are Still Below Pre-Pandemic Levels in Philadelphia

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on May 03, 2023 in News

This year, there has been an increase in medical malpractice lawsuits filed in Philadelphia. However, other types of personal injury legal filings have still not recovered from the decline caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Data sourced from the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas shows there could be 10 percent fewer filings involving motor vehicle accidents […]

Schmidt Kramer Proudly Sponsors the Braves for the 2023 Cumberland Valley Youth Baseball Season

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on April 20, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer is the proud sponsor of the Braves, a Cumberland Valley Youth Baseball team for the 2023 spring season. Attorney Jessica Mitchell has another good reason to cheer this team on as her son William takes an at-bat for the team! The CVYB is open to players living in the Cumberland Valley School District […]

Scott Cooper – Selected For Central Penn Business Journal’s 2023 Power List

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on April 14, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer would like to congratulate partner Scott Cooper for his selection to the 2023 Central Penn Business Journal Power (CPBJ) List for Law! Those recognized on this Power List for Law and Lobbyists are considered industry leaders in their communities. As lawyers, these individuals fight to protect, maximize and utilize legal foundations to improve […]

Congratulations Aisha Kamara! Our 2023 Schmidt Kramer College Essay Contest Winner

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on April 12, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer is pleased to announce Aisha Kamara as the winner of our 2023 Schmidt Kramer Annual Scholarship for Academic Excellence. Each year, a scholarship of $1,500 will be awarded to a Pennsylvania student who is actively enrolled at an accredited university or college and has a minimum GPA of 3.0. For an opportunity to […]

Schmidt Kramer Attorney Abbie Trone – It Has to Be Now

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on February 23, 2023 in News

Schmidt Kramer Attorney Abbie Trone spoke to the Legal Intelligencer regarding a special session in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives that began on February 21, 2023. The purpose of this session, which is scheduled to continue through Friday, is to implement changes to existing legislation to benefit adult survivors of childhood abuse. Despite ongoing efforts […]

Schmidt Kramer February 2023 Newsletter: Learn What Has Been Happening at the Firm

Posted on behalf of Schmidt Kramer Injury Lawyers on February 07, 2023 in News

The February 2023 edition of the Schmidt Kramer newsletter is now on our website. In it we discuss what has been happening at the firm over the last few months. Our firm has been included in the 2023 edition of U.S. News and World Report’s Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” in six categories. Partner Scott […]

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$10,043,952.13 Personal Injury
Schmidt Kramer, P.C.partner Gerard C. Kramer won a personal injury action for $10,043,952.13 in Northumberland County on behalf of a volunteer firefighter who was the victim of Intentional Tort. The 50-year-old volunteer firefighter was seriously injured when a barn collapsed, causing a spinal injury which left him a paraplegic. The claim was brought against the arsonist who intentionally started the fire. It is believed that the verdict is the highest ever in Northumberland County.
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$4,034,000.00 Personal Injury
Yesterday a Judge in Union County (Lewisburg, PA) awarded a couple from New Berlin, Pennsylvania, over $4,000,000 because the husband was shot while turkey hunting.You might ask yourself, how does a turkey hunting accident end up with that type of verdict? In order to understand the verdict you would have to know our clients. They are good people who had their life wrecked. Plus, you would have to know the defendant, who should not have been hunting with a gun because he was prohibited after a previous criminal conviction.It is a good verdict, because the Judge was able to do two things with his decision. First, he communicated to two very good people that their losses were something that those of us on the outside could appreciate and value. Mike Hobbins (our client) is a 51 year old guy who lost his sight because a convicted felon --who should not have even possessed a gun-- went hunting illegally, and broke with impunity the most fundamental rule in hunting: identify your target before you pull the trigger. The Judge accepted the financial loss Mr. Hobbins' suffered, but listened closely to the evidence of less tangible losses. When Mike broke down on the stand, because his daughter would end up walking him down the aisle at her wedding, as opposed to how it was supposed to go, the Judge was listening. When Mike could not keep it together, because of how emasculating it was for him not to be able to provide financially for his family, the Judge was listening. It was facts like these that the Judge cited to support the $2,000,000 award for non-economic damages. Second, the Judge wanted to send a message. Union County is a hunting county. Many of the residents hunt there, and people from outside the area come to Union County to hunt. It was my impression, from the Judge's statements as he rendered his decision, that he wanted to send a message to the people in Union County to protect them in their sport. The rules in place to restrict people convicted of crimes not to have a gun are not to be broken. Hunting is serious and you have to identify your target before you shoot. When you turn your back on the rules that are set to provide safety in a sport, you risk being an example. Here, the $1,000,000 punitive damage award sends that message loud and clear.When it really comes down to brass tacks, the right action was taken against a Defendant who may never truly appreciate what kind of impact his reckless choices caused.At Schmidt Kramer, we are injury lawyers. That means we work with people who were hurt in car accidents, who were hurt by the neglect of nursing homes, or those that were seriously injured because of the reckless, thoughtless acts of others. If you or a loved one have been injured in Pennsylvania, we may be able to help. While the verdict yesterday is not one that is representative of every case we do, it does show that serious and dedicated representation can bring good results.Joe ChapmanJanuary 18, 2013
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$2,200,000.00 Auto Accidents
On Monday, January 6, 2014, Schmidt Kramer accident lawyer Scott Cooper obtained a verdict on behalf of his client who is the widow of a man who died in a fiery crash on Interstate 78 in Lebanon County. The awarded verdict of $2.2 million was in a nonjury proceeding before a federal judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. That verdict includes $100,000 in punitive damages assessed against the owner of the trucking company.Kamilah Claxton won summary judgment in November after the defendants, Sukhwinder Singh and the trucking company for which he worked, failed to file a brief in opposition to Claxton's motion, which was made in September. The verdict in Claxton v. Singh was issued after the court held a non-jury assessment of damages earlier this month."Mr. Sukhchan Singh, the employer, is liable on the basis of respondent superior, but was also grossly negligent in failing to maintain his vehicle in compliance with state and federal law, particularly with regard to having required safety inspections and correcting defects in its braking equipment," said U.S. District Judge William W. Caldwell of the Middle District of Pennsylvania in his opinion accompanying the verdict."He was also grossly negligent in entrusting his vehicle to Sukhwinder Singh, an inexperienced truck driver who had failed the written test and driving test multiple times before finally earning his commercial driving license," Caldwell said.
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$1,200,000.00 Personal Injury
A Dauphin County jury has awarded a $1.2 million verdict to the parents of a 5-year-old who had an anoxic brain injury and stopped breathing after he had a tonsillectomy.2012-06-26 10:00:00 AMDate of Verdict: June 19. 2012Court and Case No.: C.P. Dauphin County No. 2009-CV-14003-MMJudge: Scott EvansType of Action: Medical malpracticeInjuries: Anoxic brain injuryPlaintiffs Counsel: Terry S. Hyman, Schmidt Kramer, HarrisburgPlaintiffs Experts: Dr. Anna H. Messner, liability; Lucille Packer, Pediatric Otolaryngology, Palo Alto, Calif.; Terry P. Leslie, vocations and earning capacity, Lancaster; Dr. Hilary B. Berlin, pediatric psychiatry, Great Neck, N.Y.Defense Counsel: Andrew H. Foulkrod, Darlene K. King, Foulkrod Ellis, Camp Hill, PADefense Experts: James C. Reilly, Pediatric Otolaryngology, Wilmington, DEComment: A Dauphin County jury has awarded a $1.2 million verdict to the parents of a 5-year-old who had an anoxic brain injury and stopped breathing after he had a tonsillectomy.The entire verdict came against Dr. Andrew M. Shapiro, the doctor who plaintiffs Reginald Graham and Tykeisha Metz alleged chose to have the boy monitored at a pediatric ward. The plaintiffs argued Shapiro failed to tell nurses caring for the baby about, and how to care for, the boy's enhanced risk for respiratory failure.The jury came back on June 19 and awarded Reginald Graham and Tykeisha Mets $500,000 in non-economic damages and $686,170 in loss of future earning capacity, according to the plaintiffs counsel.According to the statement, the baby's mother brought him to Shapiro because she was "'afraid that he might stop breathing during his sleep,'" the plaintiffs' pretrial statement said. Shapiro performed a sleep study and observed the baby's Apnea Hypopnea Index to be 43 — four times higher than what's considered severe. A tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy were performed.According to the plaintiffs, the baby's sleep study results put him at an increased risk for post-operative respiratory complications. Despite this, they argued in the statement, Shapiro ordered the pediatric nurses at the Harrisburg Hospital general pediatric ward to observe the boy as they would any other patients — about once every four hours.The pretrial statement said that one in four children who have an AHI in the 40s and oxygen desaturation below 80 have some type of respiratory problem. The younger the child, the greater the risk of a respiratory problem, the statement said.According to the statement, Shapiro took off the child's pulse oximeter, the finger-mounted device used to measure blood oxygen, and ordered a heart and respiratory rate monitor. The child was 11 months old at the time.The plaintiffs pled that the baby was last seen at 4 a.m. There was no record of his oxygen saturation for the next hour and 45 minutes. He stopped breathing a 6:40 a.m., and his brain was without oxygen long enough to cause demonstrable injury on an MRI."Immediately prior to his surgery, [the child] was a normal child, who could say mama, eat finger foods, and was just on the verge of walking," the statement said. "After his code, [he] was like a newborn. He could not lift his head or sit up. He could not talk. He could not move."In his pretrial statement, Shapiro argued that he recognized the child's pre-operative sleep study showed he was driven to breath by decreased blood oxygen saturation, which he said was typical in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.He argued the American Academy of Otolaryngology dictates that admission to the intensive care unit is not the standard of care. In the statement, he said nurses did not observe signs of respiratory distress. No alarms sounded until the child arrested, the statement said.He said the baby likely arrested as a result of hypoglycemia and/or an acute aspiration, which he argued would not have been identified by blood oxygen saturation.— Ben Present, of the Law Weekly
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$1,024,040.80 Auto Accidents
Scott Cooper settled a wrongful death case on behalf of the widow of a police office who was killed in a car accident in the line of duty for $1,024,040.80. The claim against the other driver was amicably resolved before suit was filed for the entire available policy limits for the other driver. The case took place in Adams County, PA.
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Testimonials

My family and I would like to personally thank you and Schmidt Kramer for everything you did and provided to us, as well as a big thank you for taking and reviewing our situation and taking on our case. We cannot express how satisfied and how much we appreciate your guidance and leadership on how you handled the case and updating us on what was going to happen next and the updates within our case as they became available. In closing, we wish you the best in your career and in life. Wherever it takes you, you will succeed and we are fortunate to have met you and those we met at Schmidt Kramer. As I continue my journey, I hope I continue to heal from minor issues associated with the accident and keep moving forward. My family appreciates everything you have done, even though you may feel you may only have been doing your job. Thank you and take care.
Chad S., Workers' Compensation Client of Jessica Mitchell from Manchester, PA
Thank you for your excellent service and assistance during a very overwhelming time for me. Your assistance was much appreciated!
Josh D., Client of Gerry Kramer
Thank you for all your assistance, even coming to our home. Keep in touch.
David R., Client of Scott Cooper from Mechanicsburg, PA
From start to finish, everything was outstanding.
Robert B., Dog Bite Client of Gerard C. Kramer
Very nice people to work with.
Connie D., Auto Accident Client of Scott Cooper