Fort Lauderdale East Partner Scott LeVine prevailed at an evidentiary hearing on our Motion to Dismiss based on Plaintiff perpetrating fraud on the court.
The Plaintiff claimed severe injuries based on allegations that he was at our client’s establishment when a portion of the ceiling fell onto his head, neck, back, and left shoulder and arm, and that a lighting fixture fell onto his left knee. He received treatment from orthopedic surgeons and a neurologist and incurred over $150,000 in medical bills. He provided sworn responses to our interrogatories confirming the injuries and produced all of the medical records and bills.
Mr. LeVine then took his deposition and locked in his testimony, in accordance with a prior court order. He provided the surveillance footage of the incident to the Plaintiff and his counsel so they could question him about the video, but they chose not to.
Mr. LeVine filed the Motion to Dismiss based on the surveillance footage of the incident showing that nothing fell on his head, neck, back, or left shoulder or arm. It also showed the lighting fixture barely grazing his left knee, and that he did not flinch or look up to see what happened, leaning over casually to look at the ground.
Mr. LeVine argued that the Plaintiff’s scheme to defraud the Court started on the date of the alleged incident. The Judge agreed that the video clearly showed the Plaintiff’s sworn statements were completely untrue, and that his perpetration of this narrative was deemed knowing, willful and on-going. Thus, the motion to dismiss was granted, and the case is dismissed with prejudice.
Special thanks go to: Legal Assistant Ermite Toussaint for support with the video and all other exhibits, Paralegal Lisa Sorge for making sure we received all the discovery to support the answers to interrogatories, and Associate Ari Bell for his technical assistance ensuring all of the exhibits and case law were timely and properly provided to the Judge in accordance with her stringent division procedures.
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