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Insured Driver Represented by Eastman & Smith Litigators Prevails on Summary Judgment in Motor Vehicle v. Pedestrian Collision
Why did the restaurant worker cross the street? The ATM. However, it is not so much, why he crossed the five lane street with 35 mph traffic, but why did he do so at nighttime, in dark clothes and outside of a nearby crosswalk. The result of his ill-fated plan was being hit by a car and suffering injuries. Fortunately for all involved, these injuries were not fatal ones.
Ohio law is clear on the rules of the road:
- a pedestrian may have the right of way within a crosswalk under Ohio Revised Code 4511.46 and 4511.13.
- per Ohio Revised Code 4511.18 every pedestrian “crossing a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right of way to all vehicles . . . upon the roadway.”
(Of course these statutes and the case law discussed below do not mean motorists are free to hit pedestrians who cross a road outside of designated areas.)
Plaintiff attempted to establish that because defendant driver caught a glimpse of him before the collision, it should be left to the jury to decide whether the defendant was comparatively at fault for failing to take evasive action to avoid the collision. Citing Leahy ex rel. Rhinebolt v. Richardson and quoting Higgins v. Bennett, the trial court found “‘[a] driver need not look for pedestrians or vehicles violating his right-of-way,’” and held the defendant had the right-of-way. The Court also found that it was undisputed the defendant braked when she noticed the plaintiff in her right-of-way and did not breach her duty of care toward him.
The driver was represented by Eastman & Smith attorneys Stu Goldberg and Claire M. Griffin. Mr. Goldberg is a member of the Firm concentrating his practice in the areas of product liability, fire, personal injury, commercial litigation, fraud investigations, insurance coverage and health care litigation. Ms. Griffin is an associate whose practice encompasses a multitude of areas.