Case Results
Schechter helps secure over $2.9 billion in settlements for Texas and its local governments.
The opioid epidemic has wreaked havoc in Texas. Thousands have died and tens of thousands (or more) have become addicted. Richard Schechter was in the vanguard of lawyers filing suits against the manufacturers, distributors and dispensers of prescription opioids. Appointed by the Court to serve on the Texas Opioid Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee, Schechter and a small group of lawyers from around the State teamed up to lead the prosecution of claims made by Texas cities, counties and hospital districts. Thus far, this small band of lawyers has helped recover over $2.9 billion for the State of Texas and its local governments, and continues to prosecute claims against several remaining defendants.
Schechter recovers confidential settlement for Harris County from Juul, Altria and other defendants.
Youth use of tobacco products has skyrocketed during the past decade due in significant part to the introduction of vaping. Richard Schechter, P.C. was retained by Harris County to file suit against Juul Labs, Altria and other defendants for their targeting of minors by use of a deceptive marketing campaign which mirrored that of the tobacco industry. Schechter was able to help the County recover the second largest settlement made by local governmental entities in the United States.
Schechter breaks new legal ground and obtains confidential settlement for family injured in international airplane crash.
For decades, the United States courts have interpreted the international Montreal Convention as preventing recovery for post-traumatic stress disorder because the treaty only allows for recovery for physical damages. After Richard Schechter, P.C. was retained to represent a family that was seriously injured in an international plane flight, Richard went to work on researching and understanding post-traumatic stress disorder. Through his efforts and research, he was able to prove to the trial judge that PTSD is the result of a physical injury to the structure of the brain, and thus a recoverable element of damage in an international plane crash. After the trial judge announced his decision in favor of Schechter’s clients, the defendants increased their settlement offer seven-fold.
Schechter secures executive and his family a settlement for $6 million dollars after executive fell from golf cart and sustained a traumatic brain injury.
Suit was against operator of the golf cart and his employer for allowing the executive to stand on the back of the cart and for taking a turn at an excessive speed. After repayment of his $733,251.00 health care lien, the plaintiff and his family cleared $2,614,888.10.
Schechter secures multi-million-dollar verdict for parents of football star.
Richard Schechter obtained this jury verdict against an apartment complex owner and management company for the parents of a high school student who drowned in an apartment pool due to an improperly grounded pool light. The verdict is one of the largest in Harris County, Texas for the death of a teenager since the passage of tort reform legislation in the 1990s. The parents received $1,732,576.50 for their share of the verdict and settlements.
San Antonio jury finds for Plaintiff in tire failure case.
Richard Schechter was able to prove that the Firestone tire failure which led to a vehicle rollover and the death of a corporate lawyer who was the mother of two children, was primarily due to the failure by two different repair facilities to properly patch the tire. One repair facility settled prior to trial while the other only offered $100,000 before trial and then opted to go to the jury. After the jury returned a multi-million-dollar verdict, the case settled for a confidential amount. The monies recovered by the family were in addition to the confidential settlement obtained from Firestone.
Schechter recovers for family in death of ship repairer.
The client’s husband, a ship repairer, was hired to repair a control system in the pump room of a vessel. The vessel owner isolated the lines being worked on, but failed to evacuate the workers. When the repairer opened the line, he was exposed to hydrogen sulfide gas and died within moments. In a ruling that was the first of its kind in Texas, the district judge held that a wife could recover for loss of her relationship with her husband in a maritime death case. Plaintiff and her two children received $2,030,864.54 for their share.
Failure to maintain trailer leads to $1.3 million verdict.
A truck driver who underwent back surgery due to the failure of a leasing company to properly maintain the trailer he was pulling, obtained a jury verdict of $1.3 million from a Fort Worth jury. The case ultimately settled for $950,000.00, with the plaintiff receiving $492,715.82 in addition to the $103,105.29 repaid to his workers’ compensation insurance company.
Schechter wins supply boat captain $987,500.00 verdict from federal judge
Injuring his back in the Gulf of Mexico while attempting to secure a load that had come loose on the deck, this Mississippi supply boat captain cleared $596,023.37 after trial. The Defendant blamed the captain for failing to make sure the load was properly secured, and offered only $200,000.00 to settle prior to trial.
Schechter settles for $580,000 in death of a patient due to doctors’ failure to diagnose.
A retired Dallas County resident complained of chest pain, shortness of breath and burning when eating spicy foods for two years. His doctors diagnosed his condition as a reflux disease and never performed the key tests to determine whether he had heart problems. He died of heart failure. The widow and her sons received $299,258.00 for their share.
Schechter retained for mild head injury sustained by teenager in auto collision, recovers $400,000.00.
A 17-year old teenager was injured in an auto collision in New Mexico. Although her physical injuries were relatively minor, she complained of frontal lobe injuries that affected her ability to succeed in college academically. This is only one of several significant settlements the firm has made for individuals who have suffered closed head injuries in car accidents. Plaintiff received $217,204.00 for her share.
Schechter defends architectural, engineering and construction firm in contract dispute.
When this international architectural, engineering and construction firm with over $1.5 billion dollars in annual income was sued for breach of contract for allegedly underpaying an employee, it retained Richard Schechter, P.C. Schechter was able to persuade a Harris County judge to award less than $6,000 to the plaintiff.
Captain injured in sinking of lift boat receives confidential settlement.
The collapse of one of the legs of the MISS NEVELYN off the coast of Trinidad spawned significant litigation in federal court in Houston. Richard Schechter successfully prosecuted the captain’s case against the vessel owner of this lift boat and the repair company that allegedly fixed the lifting mechanism that failed, obtaining a significant confidential settlement for his client.
Railroad worker wins confidential settlement arising out of wheel assembly failure.
A Houston railroad worker was injured when his car was struck by a wheel assembly that came off a truck. Before the railroad worker hired Richard Schechter, P.C., the truck owner had the truck repaired and sold. Proving whether the failure was caused by lack of maintenance or a road hazard, which is what the trucking company contended, was a challenge. Schechter was able to obtain a significant confidential settlement.
Brownsville Navigation District v. Izaguirre, 829 S.W.2d.159.
Richard Schechter fought all the way to the Texas Supreme Court to preserve a hard-earned victory he won for his clients from a Cameron County jury. Schechter represented the wife and children of Epigmenio Izaguirre, a warehouse worker who was killed when the trailer he was helping to unload rolled over, and he was pinned under a large roll of steel coil. At trial the jury found several defendants to have been at fault. On appeal the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment against the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company and the Missouri Pacific Truck Lines, while reversing the judgment and holding that the Brownsville Navigation District could not be held liable. Under the law in effect at that time, the Missouri Pacific defendants were liable for all damages after the settlement credits.
Schechter wins significant jury verdict for plant worker.
A Liberty County plant worker received a jury verdict for his injured low back. The defendant claimed that the accident, which was unwitnessed, never happened, and that the injury was caused by a condition the plaintiff was born with. The Chambers County jury unanimously rejected defendant’s evidence, including videotaped surveillance of the Plaintiff, which the plant owners argued showed the Plaintiff could perform his old job. The case settled after the jury verdict and entry of judgment for a confidential amount.
Family of iron worker killed in fall receives confidential settlement.
Richard Schechter obtained a significant confidential settlement for the wife and child of a Fort Worth area iron worker who fell to his death from a building under construction.
Schechter represents small oilfield service company.
After purchasing a family-owned oilfield service company, the buyers were dismayed to learn that some of the family members were breaching their covenant not to compete and were actively soliciting business from former clients. Schechter was retained to sue the family members who were violating their agreement for breach of contract as well as theft of trade secrets. Additionally, other companies in the oilfield were sued for tortious interference with a contract.