Third Trial of the Year

I had back to back trials recently. The second was a two-week trial in Federal Court against
General Motors on behalf of my client. We sued GM alleging their roof on GMC Savannah was too weak to protect
occupants in a rollover crash. We worked on the case for over 2 years prior to trial. Thousands of documents were
produced, many depositions taken and we fought really hard for an amazing and deserving client. Rollover cases can
be tough and their success depends on the vehicle, the strength of its roof, the snugness of the seatbelt and the
facts of the incident. Forces in a rollover can be serious, juries can be reluctant to blame a manufacturer, and
they are hard fought by the defendants.

I partnered with a large law firm and tried a rollover case against Chrysler back in 2006. We put a lot of work in that
case and tried it for 6 weeks in the City of St. Louis. At the end of the case, we asked for a large recovery for our
clients (2 deaths, one severe injured client and other minor injured) We lost – the jury returned a defense verdict. But
that crash was at 70 mph and involved many rollovers.

The case last week was deferent: 30mph roll on an exit ramp to rest stop; 2 rolls; 2 woman occupants and 4 dogs. But the
injuries were catastrophic- my client was paralyzed from her 6^th cervical vertebra down. She handled her
injury with poise, courage, and temerity. Her testimony was moving and her efforts to recover and live with her injury
have been heroic.  We had top notch experts and presented our case well.  We really burned the midnight oil and gave it
our all.  Unfortunately, the jury returned a defense verdict and no recovery was obtained.

Why write about it? Good trial lawyers don’t win every case. I am as proud of my work in this
case, or more so, as I am for other successes for clients I write about. It’s important to fight the good fight and
stand up for what is right.  And we hone our craft through trials and zealously representing our clients; we can
learn as much in defeat as in victory. 

As we progress in life we relearn the wisdom of the serenity prayer – We can only control our
actions and not the outcome of many things in life. It’s hard to truly accept the things we cannot change – or as my
client said on the stand. “I prayed for God to heal me, but whether He would, was up to Him.” As heartbreaking as
the loss was, I redouble my efforts in my other cases to do as well as I can. 

Some lessons: When defendant’s experts have testified a lot you don’t need OSI’s (other similar incidents) in a products
liability case – use their other cases; remember we are trying cases in 2016 and jurors often are numb to our client’s
plight and don’t look on lawsuits well. The public is also numb to corporate bad behavior – what was outrageous 20 years
ago is ho-hum now. In a product liability case, the plaintiff must show a defect was unreasonably dangerous when put to
anticipated use.  It seems like you have to show really bad stuff to win these days – unless you have the killer smoking
gun document or depot, you will have a tough time.  We have really good ways to do this, and I am psyched for the next
one.

Gary Burger

Founder | Injury Attorney
Gary Burger has dedicated his career to standing up against bullies. The founder and principal attorney of Burger Law | St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer has helped hundreds of Missouri and Illinois individuals and families recover th …
Years of experience: 30 years
Location: St. Louis, MO

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