NWR WTF - Who sues their 12 year old nephew?!

madamerwin

I just found this article: https://www.yahoo.com/celebrity/news/manhattan-woman-sues-12-old-nephew-accidentally-breaking-183752156-us-weekly.html

Honestly, who sues a child for something they did with zero intention when they were either years old, let alone your own nephew?! And how does something like this make it to a jury trial? I really hope the case is thrown out and she's stuck with all the legal fees. Just another example of gratuitous lawsuits, something I could rant about all day…

Carry on.

OliveOilsMom

I just read this article.  The only thing I can think of is that in order for her to have her medical bills paid, she had to sue the person who caused the accident.  It could also be her medical insurer suing on her behalf, whether she wants it done or not.  There really isn't enough information in the article to gain the full story. 

As for how it made it to a jury trial, if the nephew's father's homeowners insurance is representing the nephew, they may not have wanted to settle, so to trial it goes.

madamerwin

I would totally understand her wanting the family to pay her medical bills, but $127K? That's preposterous. 

And maybe I'm jumping to conclusions here, but there is no mention of insurance companies being involved, which seems like big factor to leave out. It's not like she suffered serious trauma that cost her insurance company some ridiculous sum that they are trying to recoup - at least, there's no mention of lasting damage other than not being able to hold her hors d'ourves plate. 

If my insurance company sued on my behalf, I would make damned sure that everyone knew I was not the one behind it or encouraging it. Yet she doesn't mention anything to that effect.

But you're right, who knows - there are probably details missing. All I know is that if I fell and broke my wrist as the result of one of my nephews jumping on me, it wouldn't result in a $127K lawsuit.

madamerwin

And apparently the jury agrees that this was ludicrous - they rejected her claim (clicky). 

julieanne912

Ummm, I fell down a flight of stairs, broke my arm just below the shoulder joint, had surgery that required a hospital stay, and it cost less than $30,000.  And somehow, I still managed life when I lived in a 2nd floor walk-up in Chicago during that time.

I feel like there's more backstory to this.  Why wait 4 years?  Why do this to the poor kid after his mother died last year?  I wonder if it has to do with some weird family feud thing going on w/ the mom's death.  

julieanne912

Also my favorite complaint "I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."

madamerwin

julieanne912 said:

Also my favorite complaint "I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."

This is what killed me. You'll elicit no sympathy from me for not being able to hold your plate of fancy hors d'oeuvres. Also, I didn't realize that breaking your wrist made walking up three flights of stairs so difficult.

huskypuppy14

How does she expect an 8 or 12 year old "take responsibility"? She sounds like a horrible woman.

lyndausvi

I read this early. I'm like WTF?  The kid lost his mother a year ago (the accident was 4 years ago).  How cold can you be?

There is a reason why minors are well...... minors and can't be held responsible for their actions.  Well for the most part.  There are criminals who go to ju-vi, but not sued in civil court.

hellohkb

julieanne912 said:

Also my favorite complaint "I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."

I had to laugh at that but feel bad admitting it. Oh the horror, she can't hold her hors d'oeuvre plate!

WinstonsGirl

Yeah, to sue (and win), you need to be able to prove negligence on the part of the other person/group.  8 year olds can't be held responsible for being negligent.  Good this he doesn't have to get a paper route now.  

kimmiinthemitten

i keep hoping there is more to the story like with the McDonalds coffee lawsuit but I'm just not seeing it. Like PP said, if the insurance company was forcing the lawsuit (which they sometimes do) I feel like the aunt would make sure everyone knew that.

sparklepants41

julieanne912 said:

Also my favorite complaint "I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."

Talk about FWP.

Maggie0829

This woman is a fucking bitch.  Period.  Karma always comes around and I can't wait until it bites her straight in the ass.

emmaaa

She is just a horrible person.

Heffalump

I read some speculation that since the poor kid's mom has passed away, there may be an inheritance that she's trying to get a chunk of.  I really, really hope that's not the case here.

What she needs is a helper monkey, to hold that hors d'oeuvre plate for her.

fyrchk

"I love you." That's what the kid said as he "jumped."

Dude, my nephew jumps up on me all the time because he's excited. It makes me feel so good that he loves me that much. Poor kid. I bet this has scarred him.

lyndausvi

Heffalump said:

I read some speculation that since the poor kid's mom has passed away, there may be an inheritance that she's trying to get a chunk of.  I really, really hope that's not the case here.

What she needs is a helper monkey, to hold that hors d'oeuvre plate for her.

The accident happened in 2011.  Mom died last year.  Not sure when the suit was filed.   

lovesclimbing

"Attorneys: Law forced woman to sue nephew over medical bills"

http://apne.ws/1QsBPCY

sarahufl

I would feel so bad if this happened with my nieces. I would feel bad FOR THEM, not for myself. I am an adult and I can understand and deal with my own issues. They aren't. Can you imagine how confused the kid must have been? How bad he felt? I LOVE when my niece runs and jumps on me. Granted, she is 2 and short but still.

It sounds to me like she has a vendetta against the father. But yeah, I cannot fathom $127k in damages. 

kimmiinthemitten

lovesclimbing said:

"Attorneys: Law forced woman to sue nephew over medical bills" http://apne.ws/1QsBPCY

Did they also force her to testify under oath that at the age of 8 he is old enough to know better than to run and jump and therefore should be held liable for his actions?

monkeysip

Maybe this sounds callous or something, but I just don't see home insurance being responsible for these kinds of things.  To me, home insurance is more like "someone slipped on my deck" not "my 8 year old was a little rowdy".  I'm sorry for this woman's incredible medical bills and her injury, but I kind of have to file this under "crap happens".  I just can't see how this little boy, his family, or the home owner's insurance is liable for a simple accident like this.

kvruns

I saw the most recent update where it is about getting insurance money and that she had to do it but I still think that if that were really the case then it should have been included in all of the articles about it. Although if that were that case it wouldn't be the viral click bait of the other articles where everyone is appalled.

OliveOilsMom

monkeysip said:

Maybe this sounds callous or something, but I just don't see home insurance being responsible for these kinds of things.  To me, home insurance is more like "someone slipped on my deck" not "my 8 year old was a little rowdy".  I'm sorry for this woman's incredible medical bills and her injury, but I kind of have to file this under "crap happens".  I just can't see how this little boy, his family, or the home owner's insurance is liable for a simple accident like this.

Homeowners insurance is for any person who is injured while on your property, even if someone trips over their own feet on your sidewalk.  If a non-resident at the party was the one who hurt this woman, it still would have been the homeowners' insurance that was responsible to pay for the medical bills. 

lyndausvi

She and her nephew on just on the Today Show.    They say it was because of insurance.  Which I can see.  Our medical system is so messed up that  one insurance is going to do whatever to get another company to pay.   

Sadly, $127K doesn't seem a lot.  DH spent 2 hours in an ER and it costs over $9K.  Then follow up was another $3-5K.    He didn't even have surgery or PT.   This woman has had 2 surgeries already.

banana468

Yeah. It makes sense that it was an insurance issue. Something like that happened when DH was a kid and injured himself at a friend's home. The health insurance refused to cover it and forced the homeowner to pay. Ultimately FSIL had to threaten to sue.

kimmiinthemitten

All of that is great, but she still chose to testify.  That's what I can't get over.

My cousin just had to "sue" my uncle over a dog bite.  They never had to attend court or testify.

lyndausvi

kimmiinthemitten said:

All of that is great, but she still chose to testify.  That's what I can't get over.

My cousin just had to "sue" my uncle over a dog bite.  They never had to attend court or testify.

Sorry, but court cases are NOT one size fits all situations.   

banana468

kimmiinthemitten said:

All of that is great, but she still chose to testify.  That's what I can't get over.

My cousin just had to "sue" my uncle over a dog bite.  They never had to attend court or testify.

You never know.   That could be the insurance company forcing it.   I don't want to knock anyone who works for an insurance company but they can be assholes.   I have a good friend who was in a terrible car accident with an uninsured driver.   She now has seizures that are recurring due to the trauma sustained.   Despite having the uninsured motorist coverage, she still had to sue her own insurance company and they grilled her in testimony despite all the documentation. 

OliveOilsMom

kimmiinthemitten said:

All of that is great, but she still chose to testify.  That's what I can't get over.

My cousin just had to "sue" my uncle over a dog bite.  They never had to attend court or testify.

If she was given a subpoena, she has to testify or could face jail time.  If she showed up to court and refused to answer any questions, again she would be faced with jail time.  As Lynda said above, no case is cookie cutter to the next. 

In the 2nd article linked above, it said the homeowners insurance wanted to settle for $1, but she had already had 2 surgeries with the potential for another one.  I'm sure that $1 would have come in handy to pay all those medical bills from the surgeries.

kimmiinthemitten

lyndausvi said:

kimmiinthemitten said:

All of that is great, but she still chose to testify.  That's what I can't get over.

My cousin just had to "sue" my uncle over a dog bite.  They never had to attend court or testify.

Sorry, but court cases are NOT one size fits all situations.   

Sorry, I posted quickly and should have better elaborated. Obviously that's true. I saw the Today Show interview this morning too. She was very quick and specific to point out that per Conneticut Law the homeowner had to be named in the lawsuit and therefore she had to name her nephew also. I just watched the whole thing and still thought, but you didn't say why you testified that you believed he was reckless beyond his age.