$3.55 Million Settlement in Vehicle vs. Pedestrians in a Crosswalk Collision

Friedman|Rubin and Farber Law Group clients Zachary and Ashley Adair settled all claims in a car vs. pedestrians in a crosswalk case for $3.55 million. The Adairs were walking to see a theater performance on Stone Way North when they crossed N. 41st Street, and were hit in the crosswalk, suffering serious injuries. The driver who struck the Adairs claimed she could not see them until just before impact. Multiple witnesses, including responding police officers, noted that the western portion of the crosswalk was very dark. In addition to inadequate lighting, a required advance crosswalk warning sign was missing, and the painted stripes marking the crosswalk were substantially obliterated in the lane where the collision occurred.


(A picture of the street where the incident occurred prior to crosswalk improvements.)

Local community members had been calling for a traffic signal or some kind of improvement to the crosswalk for years. Several serious collisions had happened in the years prior to the Adairs being struck. It was only after the Adairs were injured that the City made substantial improvements to the crosswalk, including the addition of a new street light, a flashing beacon, new painted stripes, and additional signage. Superior Court judge Beth Andrus ruled as a matter of law that the Adairs, who were walking within a marked crosswalk, were not at fault for the collision. A settlement was reached shortly after the Division One Court of Appeals denied the City’s motion for discretionary review of the Summary Judgment Order. David Roosa and Ken Friedman of Friedman|Rubin litigated the case alongside co-counsel Herb Farber of Farber Law Group.

This is the second pedestrian-in-a-crosswalk case that Friedman Rubin has resolved in 2017. The other settled for $5.6 million. A link to information about that case can be found here.