A small law firm on the Northside recently made history, winning its plaintiff the largest judgment in Humphreys County history.
In November, a Humphreys County Circuit Judge awarded Timothy Stewart $14.3 million in damages related to an injury Stewart received while at work.
Stewart was an employee of Hankins Framing in Magee. In April 2013, he was installing equipment for Mid-Mississippi Heating and A/C, when he was injured.
He was represented by the Satcher Law Firm, a personal injury firm in Northeast Jackson.
“It’s a great accomplishment for our law firm,” attorney John Satcher said.
Satcher and his wife, Carolyn, are partners in the Satcher Law Firm. The firm’s offices are located at 3000 Old Canton Rd.
The couple merged their separate practices in 2015 and have been working together since.
John and Carolyn are graduates of the Mississippi College School of Law.
The two have one law clerk and a part-time receptionist.
The two took on Stewart’s case in 2016.
“I knew there was a need because he was not receiving his benefits … We want to make sure (our clients) get everything they’re entitled to,” he said.
On or about April 16, 2013, Stewart was installing equipment for his employer when he tripped over a fiberglass ladder and fell from his second-story work site and damaged his neck and spinal cord.
Satcher claimed the “lack of safety precautions, including but not limited to the absence of safety or guard rails on the raised second floor,” led to Stewart’s injuries.
Because of the injuries, Stewart was immediately taken in for surgery, and remained in intensive care for four months. He still requires 24-hour care to this date.
The firm was working on a residential construction site in the Wolf Lake subdivision in Yazoo City, records show.
“Defendant’s actions were a deviation from the safety standards and in violation of multiple OSHA requirements … the raised deck and areas immediately adjacent to the raised deck and open elevated areas were not roped off, restricted, or marked, nor were there any barriers to protect the workers from falling,” Satcher wrote.
Equipment and tools were also scattered at the site, contributing to the damage, court records show.
The judgment included almost $2.2 million for past medical expenses and benefits; about $11 million for future medical treatment; and $1 million for pain and suffering.
On December 8, the defendants asked the judge to vacate the judgment. Representing the defendants is William Vines, John Graham and Christopher White with Jernigan Copeland Attorneys.
