Los Angeles, CA – January 25, 2023 – The California Court of Appeal for the Second District ruled in favor of a Singleton Schreiber client, overturning a summary judgment ruling in a catastrophic personal injury lawsuit.
In the initial lawsuit, a woman named Treasure Quarker was standing behind her parked vehicle when Aiman Ahmed Ibrahim drunkenly swerved into her. Treasure’s children and nephew were inside her vehicle at the time of the accident. As a result of the collision, Treasure lost her leg.
Treasure initially sued both Mr. Ibrahim and the City of Culver City, alleging a single cause of action for dangerous condition of public property. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Culver City finding no dangerous condition of public property and no causation. Accordingly, the trial court concluded that as a matter of law, plaintiffs could not prove a cause of action for dangerous condition of public property.
Singleton Schreiber partner Ben Siminou argued the appellate case before the court and obtained a reversal of that judgment. The court ruled that “evidence, when interpreted in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, supports the inference that a dangerous condition of public property existed and was a cause of the collision.”
“This is a great victory for our client and for attorneys fighting hard for people placed in dangerous situations through no fault of their own,” Mr. Siminou said. “Treasure is a tremendous woman who works hard to support her family. This drunk driver put her life in jeopardy, and Culver City’s failure to create proper lanes helped lead to this tragedy.”
The case is Treasure Quarker et al. v. City of Culver City, Court of Appeal of the State of California, Second Appellate District, Division One, Case No. B314109.
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