Outstanding Case Results
The law firm of Bisnar | Chase is dedicated to each client receiving the absolute best legal representation possible.
The cases set forth below are a sampling of results achieved for our clients. This is a partial list and does not constitute a promise of any kind. Please remember that these cases and the results achieved were determinant on many factors and results differ from case to case depending on the circumstances particular to each instance.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Products Liability case against Daimler Chrysler Motor Company and the rental car agency that rented a 15-passenger van to a group of friends going from Los Angeles to Las Vegas for a birthday party. The fifteen passenger, Ram 350, van rolled over, roof crushed, seat belts failed and passengers ejected. Multiple deaths and serious injuries.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Products Liability case against Ford Motor Company and the rental car agency that rented a 15-passenger van to a church group traveling from Southern California to Northern California for a church function. The fifteen passenger, F350, van rolled over, roof crushed, seat belts failed and passengers ejected. Multiple deaths and serious injuries.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Products Liability case against Ford Motor Company and the maker of a failed seatbelt, TRW. Negligence case against U-Haul the renter of the truck that caused the accident for negligent maintenance and failing to instruct the driver. Auto vs. Auto negligence case against the driver of the U-Haul truck. A minor child was paralyzed and eventually died as a result of a three vehicle collision involving two Ford Explorers, both rolled-over, a seat belt failure (false latching) and the failure of the roof of one of the Explorers. Driver injured due to roof crush.
$3 Million+
Motorcycle vs. Auto Accident. Client’s previous attorney insisted that client settle case for the $15,000 policy limit of the negligent auto driver. Case was eventually settled for cash up front, an annuity (a stream of guaranteed payments for life) and payment of the workers’ compensation insurance reimbursement rights. (See below for full story*).
Confidential Settlement
Auto Products Liability case against General Motors for the roll over and roof crush of a Tahoe resulting in the death of the driver and a passenger.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Products Liability case against Ford Motor Company for failure of front seat system which resulted in the death of a child rear seat passenger in a 30 mile an hour rear end impact auto accident.
$1,425,000
Auto accident caused by dangerous condition left on freeway by CalTrans (State of California) contractors resulting in the death of two teenagers.
$1,250,000+
Auto vs auto accident which included a failure of client’s (the driver) restraint system (seat belt anchor). Within fifty days of being hired and through the diligence and tenacity of the law firm’s staff, insurance policies were located and policy limit settlements were arranged. (this was partially due our reputation with the insurance companies and their attorneys). We are now proceeding against Nissan Motors on the products liability claim and seeking punitive damages. The seat belt anchor system was designed so weak that it evidenced “a conscience disregard” for the safety of the seat belt user.
$1,000,000+
Auto vs. Auto accident with two spinal surgeries. Collected defendant driver’s policy limit. Won a binding arbitration award for the policy maximum from the injured tow truck driver’s employer’s insurance company. Settled an “insurance bad faith” lawsuit against the employer’s auto insurance company for their failure to fairly handle the initial uninsured motorist claim costing the client nearly a year time delay in a resolution and costing him additional attorney’s fees and costs to prosecute the binding arbitration.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Product Liability case against General Motors for the death of an adult daughter killed when the roof of Chevrolet pickup crushed during a roll over accident in Mexico.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Product Liability case against General Motors for seat belt failure in a Chevrolet pickup resulting in a passenger being thrown through the front windshield when the truck went into a ditch. Concussion and facial scaring.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Product Liability case against Susiki Motors. Winds caused driver to lose control of Susiki Samuri resulting in the Samuri rolling over and killing a teenage passenger.
Confidential Settlement
Auto Product Liability case against General Motors for roof failure (roof crushed in on driver) and against a brake shop for brake failure in a Chevrolet pickup. Driver sustaining a spinal injury when the truck’s brakes failed and the truck went off the side of a mountain road and the roof crushed in on the driver’s head.
$825,000+
Bus vs. Pedestrian on-the-job injury. Concussion. Settlement also included Metro Link pay additional funds to reimburse workers’ compensation insurance company.
$750,000
Auto vs. Auto accident. Collected total of defendant’s insurance and then arbitrated client’s uninsured motorist claim. Her insurance company insisted that she was not entitled to the full policy limit until moments before starting the binding arbitration with the threat of an insurance bad faith case hanging over their heads.
$520,000
Auto accident where building materials from freeway construction site hit plaintiff’s car. CalTrans freeway construction contractor initially denied liability. Extensive discovered uncovered a cover up of evidence by the CalTrans contractor who then settled just before trial.
$500,000
Auto vs. Auto, clients previous attorney recommended settling for less than $200,000 after a surgery. Uninsured motorist claim settled for $650,000 with questionable causation and injuries plus recover from defendant driver
Confidential Settlement
Auto vs. Auto accident. Defendant was uninsured. Client’s uninsured motorist insurance carrier refused to pay her claim. We won a policy limit award at the uninsured motorist arbitration. Due to her insurance companies “bad fath” and negligence in handling her claim, we sued the insurance company. The “bad faith” claim was settled for a “confidential amount”.
$300,000
Auto vs. Auto accident. This elderly client had been represented by former attorney for over six months. We took over representation, conducted our investigation, gathered the evidence, made her claim and settled it for policy limits, twenty times more than she was expecting, in less than two months from beginning her representation.
$300,000
Road design defect against CalTrans.
$300,000
Auto vs. Pedestrian. Defense contended that our client was negligent in “J” walking, stepping out into the street in the face of an on coming vehicle and was attempting to commit suicide when he stepped into the street. The defense settled for their policy limit rather than risk us winning an even greater amount at trial.
$292,000
Wrongful death auto accident.
$200,000
Auto vs. Parked Commercial vehicle. Death of daughter passenger in auto that ran into illegally parked semi-truck. Parents refused to accept settlement offered during trial which was Multiple times higher.
$165,000
Auto vs. Auto accident.
$150,000
Auto vs. Auto - surgery.
$150,000
Auto vs. Auto - policy limit.
$145,000
Auto vs. Auto accident. Settled for total of multiple auto insurance policies that we were able to discover and then “stack”.
$140,000
Auto vs Auto. Settled auto claim on behalf of injured party for the $100,000 policy limit and then collected $40,000 additional for family member who was traumatized by witnessing injury (Dillon claim).
$137,000
Auto vs. Pedestrian.
$125,000
Auto vs. Auto - surgery.
$109,000
Auto vs. Auto
$108,000
Auto vs. Auto
$100,000
Auto vs Auto accident, policy limit. We have many dozens of case histories of $100,000 policy limit recoveries. Our systematic approach to cases in general and auto accident cases particularly, positions our client’s to recover policy limits by exposing the defendant’s insurance company to a judgment potential in excess of the policy limit, in which case they would be forced to pay the entire judgment, regardless of their policy maximum limits.
$100,000
Auto vs. Pedestrian, policy limit.
$100,000
Auto vs. Auto, policy limit.
$100,000
On-the-job auto vs. auto accident, policy limit.
$100,000
Auto vs. Auto -surgery recommended, policy limit.
$100,000
Auto vs. Auto, $1,200 property damage to plaintiff’s vehicle. Previous attorney insisted that client settle for the $7,500 being offered by defense insurance company.
$100,000
Auto vs. Auto, policy limit.
$100,000
Auto vs. Auto, policy limit on both third party and under insured motorist policy.
$93,703
Auto vs. Auto. $500 in property damage. Exposed policy limit and insurance company was forced to pay entire judgment, which was in excess of the auto insurance policy limit.
$75,000
Auto vs. Auto - Major pre-existing injuries.
$75,000
Auto vs. Auto.
$70,000
Auto vs. Auto, meniscus surgery.
$56,000
Auto vs. Auto accident - meniscus surgery.
Question: Does Bisnar | Chase handle cases with a value less than $50,000?
Answer: Not intentionally. Unless there are special circumstances, we only represent clients who have a legal and moral right to recover a sum greater than $50,000 to $100,000. The actual minimum amount depends upon the circumstances. The minimum for a clear liability auto accident case would be much lower than for an auto products liability case where car-to-car crash testing is necessary.
* Injured motorcyclist - $3 Million after his previous attorney advised that his claim was worth only $15,000.
On a normal, fully scheduled day, John Bisnar received an urgent call from a business associate, a local realtor. The caller frantically explained that her brother-in-law was in a Sacramento hospital, his doctors had recommended a complicated, risky surgery, and he was panicking about what would become of his family and about payment of the mounting medical expenses. She further explained that her brother-in-law was desperate to get answers from his attorney about these issues before consenting to surgery, that his attorney was not returning calls and his attorney had previously advised that his case was only worth $15,000, the maximum amount of insurance of the negligent automobile driver.
Mr. Bisnar immediately spoke to the injured man and quickly realized that this was not a consultation to have over the phone. Mr. Bisnar canceled the rest of his day and took the next flight to Sacrament.
Once Mr. Bisnar arrived at the hospital, the injured man explained that he was hit by a car while on his motorcycle in the course of running an errand for his employer. He said he had hired a nationally known motorcycle accident attorney and that the attorney advised him that the negligent driver's insurance limit was $15,000 and that was the total value of his claim. He went on to explain that his doctors had advised him that he could lose his leg (it was eventually saved).
After Mr. Bisnar answered his questions, advised him regarding his Workers' Compensation benefits and explained that his attorney probably was right about the $15,000 value of his claim. The injured man asked to hire Mr. Bisnar, explaining that he had received more information from Mr. Bisnar about his circumstances, his rights, his options and the probable outcome of his case than he had received from his present attorney after weeks of representation. Mr. Bisnar reluctantly accepted.
An immediate investigation uncovered that the negligent driver was a route salesman for a beer distributor and was probably on the job at the time of the accident (although the employer initially denied this). When the employer was advised of the results of the Bisnar investigation, the insurance company for the employer offered to settle the claim for a few hundred thousand dollars.
Mr. Bisnar did settle the claim with the beer distributor. The total recovery included $750,000 in up front cash, all medical expenses paid, Workers' Compensation liens satisfied, and an income for life (future value of the "income for life" exceed $2,000,000).
HOLDING WRONGDOERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE DAMAGES THEY CAUSE SINCE 1978
Bisnar | Chase 2006-2008 - Super Lawyers is a listing of outstanding lawyers from more than 60 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Bisnar | Chase has received this award for three consecutive years.
