Former athlete wins lawsuit against Ford Motor Credit Co.

A former diving champion, Thomas Smolinski, who was paralyzed in a car crash ten years ago, was awarded $40 million by a jury last month. The verdict, which came after a four-week trial, was against Ford Motor Credit Co. and Smolinski’s older brother, Matthew. The jury held the Ford Motor subsidiary and the brother equally liable for the rollover of a Ford Explorer, owned by Ford Motor Credit and driven by the brother when the 1999 incident occurred.

Thomas Smolinski, now 33, suffered devastating spinal injuries from the accident. He was left paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair, having to rely on others for his daily care. At the time of the accident, the Plaintiff had just graduated from Cleveland State University with a degree in marketing and communication. He had achieved Academic All-American status in springboard diving in Division I athletics. Anne Beltz Rimmler, a lawyer from Buffalo, New York, represented the Plaintiff. While she did an outstanding job, I am not sure why Ford Motor Company wasn’t a party Defendant in the case.

Source: Buffalo News

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