October 11, 2006: John D. Daniels and Mark Winters of Sanchez Daniels & Hoffman LLP obtained a not guilty verdict for Allstate Insurance Company and its former General Counsel, Robert Pike, following a 4-day jury trial before Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Flanagan.
Plaintiff claimed to have sustained damage to his 5th cranial nerve as a result of a rear end automobile accident on the Kennedy Expressway in April 1998. Plaintiff alleged permanent injury despite the fact that no observable damage was done to his vehicle, which was contacted by the front of a second vehicle after defendant Robert Pike struck the rear of that second vehicle.
Allstate Insurance Company, the owner of the vehicle operated by Robert Pike, was granted a directed verdict. Plaintiff asked the jury for a verdict in the range of $850,000 to $1,250,000. The jury returned its “not guilty” verdict after 40 minutes of deliberation.
