RECENT RESULTS
FIRE AND LIFE SAFETY / PLUMBING AND FLOW CONTROL LITIGATION

In the recent past, the following results have been achieved in cases where Whitney & Bogris was retained to review ongoing matters handled by other law firms:

·         Voluntary abandonment of major subrogation claim as a result of refinery fire in Crosby, Texas.

·         Dismissal of Arbitration action arising out of significant water damage to a newly constructed hotel in Reno, Nevada.

·         Dismissal from Arbitration action stemming from discharge of a deluge system in airplane hangar in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; and stay of companion action in U.S. District Court.

·         Partial summary judgment in subrogation action in U.S. District Court, E.D. Tennessee, eliminating contract theory of liability in a claim involving installation of a paint booth dry chemical system which allegedly failed to a suppress lacquer fire in a manufacturing plant.

·         Summary judgment in Wayne County, Michigan, as to a claim for approximately $179,000 in property damage arising out of a sprinkler discharge in municipal airport hangar. Upheld by Michigan Court of Appeals. Request for leave to appeal to Michigan Supreme Court denied.

·         Settlement of $10,000 for a mold case involving damages to a newly constructed high school in Hidalgo County, Texas.

In cases where Whitney & Bogris was retained at the outset of litigation, we have achieved the following results:

·         Summary judgment on Third Party Complaint in $1 million wrongful death action in Erie County, New York, involving claim that failure of smoke detectors in apartment unit and common area resulted in spread of smoke from kitchen fire and death of elderly apartment resident.

·         Compulsory non-suit at close of plaintiff's case in jury trial in Northampton County, Pennsylvania case claiming $101,000 in water damage to home allegedly caused by inadequate warnings on hot water heater temperature and pressure safety valve that discharged in the home.

·         Voluntary non-suit in Henrico County, Virginia, case claiming property damage from allegedly defective polyethylene water tubing.

·         Voluntary non-suit in Harris County, Texas, arising out of an elevator malfunction, with plaintiff sustaining over $300,000 in medicals and lost wages.

·         Voluntary dismissal of a $200,000 subrogation action in Hamilton County, Ohio, relating to the tripping of a deluge sprinkler system in a lumberyard/home improvement center.

·         Voluntary dismissal of a $213,000 subrogation claim filed in the U.S. District Court, Kansas, relating to the freeze-up and bursting pipes at Hampton Inn, allegedly due to improper installation and inspection.

·         Prevailed at Arbitration in Henrico County, Virginia, on $11,500 subrogation claim based on an allegation of negligent maintenance of the sprinkler system.

·         Partial summary judgment eliminating negligence action in Wayne County, New York, in $49,000 subrogation claim based on a sprinkler inspection contract.

·         Prevailed in Arbitration in Brookfield, Wisconsin, involving a sprinkler head activation during hydrostatic testing resulting in $71,000 in damages.

·         Prevailed in Arbitration in Baltimore, Maryland, in matters involving a sprinkler head discharge in a shopping mall.  Defeated claims of $26,000 and $43,000.