BEAUMONT - The Ferguson Law Firm started 2021 where it left off in 2020 – with another record-breaking result, this one a $4,000,000 settlement in a wrongful death premise liability case.
According to both local and national legal news outlets, this is one of the highest recoveries obtained for this type of case.
Cody Dishon, a partner at the firm, served as the attorney for a parent whose adult child was shot and killed while visiting a place of business. A wrongful death lawsuit was brought under a premise liability theory for failing to provide adequate security.
“I have represented several families across the country in these types of cases and they are notoriously difficult to win,” Dishon said. “But companies continue to ignore obvious safety concerns, cutting from the safety budget to maximize their corporate profits. Time after time, management does nothing to protect the community until you make them change. We made the defendants change their practices here by fixing all safety measures that were lacking at the time of the shooting. Now the community is safer. The sad thing is it took a young man’s death to get that safety.”
Dishon also added that others on his team helped contribute to the settlement.
“Jessica Burkett, my paralegal, and Javier Cabanillas, an attorney who recently joined the firm, were invaluable,” Dishon said. “This case was complex, had thousands of documents to review, and involved novel legal issues. Our team was prepared for every argument and this result would not have occurred without them.”
While the names, terms, and conditions of the settlement remain confidential, the amount of the settlement and that it arises out of a premises case are not confidential.
The $4 million dollar settlement included attorney’s fees and costs totaling approximately $1.65 million.
Currently, Dishon also represents a mother in a similar negligent security case in Atlanta, Georgia involving a high-profile death of a young man. Dishon had previously represented a mother who watched her then-pregnant daughter shot and killed while inside their car at their own apartment complex. That case resulted in a confidential, seven-figure settlement for the apartment’s lack of security.
The Ferguson Law Firm, LLP maintains its principal office in Beaumont.