Attorney McManus obtained a jury verdict of nearly 7.8 million dollars for the estate of one of two men ejected from a van during a single vehicle rollover collision and killed. The estates of both men sued each other claiming that the other man was the driver. Attorney McManus’ client was listed as the driver of the van on the official police report because of a statement to the investigating officer by the men’s employer. The two lawsuits were consolidated, and a lengthy trial was conducted on the issue of the identity of the driver. At trial Attorney McManus was able to discredit the statement by the employer as well as multiple expert witnesses who testified that Attorney McManus’ client was likely the driver based on a model designed to calculate the trajectories of people ejected during rollovers. Attorney McManus hired the expert who designed the ejection model. He testified that the adverse experts had made fundamental mistakes in applying his model and that a correct application of his model was inconclusive as to the identity of the driver. Attorney McManus then convinced the jury that the facts and witness testimony demonstrated that his client was the passenger. The responsible insurance company refused to offer any money to settle the case before the verdict.
After the verdict, the insurance company refused to offer more than 1.5 million dollars to settle the case, so a second trial on the issue of damages was conducted. The second jury returned a verdict of nearly 7.8 million dollars after trial.