$435,000 Settlement for Lead Poisoning

Richard Villanova represented a nine-year-old boy who resided with his mother in Jersey City, New Jersey in a home that was shown to have peeling, flaking, and chipping lead paint in every room. As a result of ingesting lead base paint, the child was diagnosed with severe cognitive impairment, borderline IQ and educational problems. He was evaluated as being below grade in all educational areas and is classified as learning disabled. Richard worked with both a pediatric neurologist, a neuro-psychologist, as well as an employability expert, and was able to show that the child would have an impaired earning capacity once his schooling was completed. The case was litigated and after the depositions of all the parties, the matter was referred to mediation where it ultimately resolved for $435,000. The settlement was placed in a Special Needs Trust for the benefit of the child’s future needs.