$450K Secured by Attorney Jared Trachtenburg
When a car crash leaves barely a mark on your bumper, insurers often assume it cannot have caused real harm. That assumption can make it harder for injured people to prove how seriously an impact affected them.
Attorney Jared A. Trachtenberg of GGL Injury Lawyers proved otherwise when he secured a $450,000 settlement on the eve of trial in Ocean County for a woman who was rear-ended while stopped at a red light and ultimately required spinal surgery.
A Minor-Looking Crash With Major Consequences
Our client was doing everything right, waiting at a red light, when another vehicle struck her from behind. The physical damage to her car was almost nothing, little more than a faint smudge on the bumper. However, that small detail became the center of the defense used by our lawyer, Jared Trachtenberg, who ultimately obtained a $450,000 settlement.
What the low-speed label ignored was the client’s medical reality. Before the collision, she had undergone a laminoforaminotomy at the L4-L5 level of her spine and had been warned she might one day need a fusion. She recovered well, and her back pain settled down.
After the crash, her symptoms returned, and imaging showed that her preexisting spondylolisthesis had shifted significantly, by roughly 8 to 11 millimeters. She ultimately underwent the spinal fusion she had worked so hard to avoid.
How Did We Turn a Causation Fight Into a Win?
The defense never formally conceded liability, but its real fight was over causation. They argued that the fusion had been recommended before the collision and that her worsening spine was the result of natural degeneration rather than a low-impact hit.
This turned on one decisive factor: We convinced the court to suppress the evidence the defense was counting on. That ruling reshaped the case. Paired with objective imaging that documented the change in her spine, it made it much harder for the defense to convince a jury.
State law supported her as well. Under the limitation-on-lawsuit option, a driver must show a permanent injury backed by objective medical proof to recover for pain and suffering, per New Jersey Statutes 39:6A-8, and a spinal fusion is exactly that kind of injury. Consequently, our attorney, Jared Trachtenberg, was able to settle the case for $450,000 just before trial began.
Call Our New Jersey Injury Lawyers Today To Learn More About Jared Trachtenberg’s $450K Settlement
A minor dent and a preexisting condition do not have to defeat your claim. With the right medical evidence and a team that prepares every case for trial, strong results are possible even when an insurer insists your injury is not real, as proved by the $450K secured by Attorney Jared Trachtenberg.
At Garces, Grabler, & LeBrocq, we treat our clients like family and never undersettle. If you were hurt in a crash anywhere in New Jersey, call us today for a free consultation.