Mike Lombardi & Associates - April 2020

Mike Lombardi & Associates - April 2020

LombardiLawOffice.com Office: 401-751-6100 Cell: 401-654-0000

April 2020 Lawyers

Working For You Los abogados que trabajan para usted

Protect your future, protect your family, andmost of all, protect your body - call Mike Lombardi!

Law Is a Marathon, Not a Sprint What I Learned From a 7-Year Case

Ever since 2020 started, I’ve been pouring a lot of my personal time and energy into fitness. If you’d told me a year ago that I’d be getting up at 4 a.m. three times a week to work out, I would have told you that was impossible, but here we are! When the new year hit, it was like a switch flipped, and my motivation finally kicked in. My go-to gym is a spot that offers circuit training with exercises like rowing, weights, and running. My endurance has improved a lot since I started there, and with the Boston Marathon coming up this month, I’ve been toying with the idea of taking on a similar challenge. A marathon is still far off for me, but I could see myself gearing up for a half-marathon at some point. Building up my endurance in the gym has gotten me thinking a lot more about endurance in general, and specifically how it applies to other areas of my life. We all deal with challenges that require mental and emotional endurance — endeavors that are marathons, not sprints. Parenting, for example, is a marathon that lasts a lifetime. My work is another example. While my cases aren’t as long term as fatherhood, they’re often not sprints, either. Being a good lawyer takes endurance, and sometimes so does being a successful client. Recently, my team and I wrapped up a case that really drove that point home. It took our client’s mother and me a total of seven years to get justice, but in that time, she never wavered, and in the end, her endurance paid off. This all started back in 2013 when our minor client and his mother were struck by a drunk driver. They were in her vehicle, stopped in the breakdown lane of Route 3 North in Braintree, when the other driver careened into

As our client and his mother found out, endurance, patience, and trust pay off. Not all lawyers would have been willing to take on that kind of case and go all-in for seven years, but my team knows that law is a marathon, not a sprint. In the end, seeing the joy and relief on our clients’ faces is always worth it, no matter how long the fight! If you’re locked in a legal battle that looks like it could drag on for months or years and you’re starting to give up hope, don’t —we can help. Call my office today at 401-751-6100, and we’ll lace up our best marathon shoes.

them. Paramedics rushed our client to Boston Children’s Hospital, where he was diagnosed with a left femoral diaphyseal fracture and soft-tissue swelling. He had surgery the next day, but dealing with the mental and emotional fallout from the accident — including PTSD symptoms and a fear of traveling in cars — wasn’t so simple. Counseling helped, but the whole ordeal significantly impacted his life. At first, our client’s mother tried to fight the case alone. But when the statute of limitations was nearly up and a settlement was on the table, she turned to us for help. The initial settlement offer was just $70,000, $30,000 short of the $100,000 limit we could obtain from the drunk driver. We knew our client deserved the full amount, so for the next three years we fought for him to get it, and in 2017 we finally won the full $100,000, opening up the possibility of going after a second $100,000 from our client’s underinsured insurance policy. After another two and a half years of rejecting lowball settlement offers, we pulled through and won that as well for a grand total of $200,000.

-Mike Lombardi LombardiLawOffice.com • 1

Published by The Newsletter Pro • www.newsletterpro.com

SOMETHING IN THE WATER WHY ROB BILOTT TOOK ON DUPONT

property provided water for all the cattle and wildlife in the area. Since the sale, the stream had become frothy and discolored, and the animals that drank from it were sick, malformed, or dead, including 153 of Tennant’s 200 cows. When Bilott stumbled upon a letter from DuPont to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the real horror story began to emerge — one that went far beyond the boundaries of Tennant’s farm and into the drinking water of every American. The letter mentioned a mysterious chemical called PFOA, and Bilott requested documentation from DuPont to find out more about it. However, the company refused, so Bilott requested a court order. Soon, dozens of disorganized boxes filled with thousands of 50-year-old files arrived at Bilott’s firm.

Rob Bilott never should have agreed to represent Wilbur Tennant’s case.

The cattle farmer had presented evidence of the strange malady plaguing his cattle to lawyers, politicians, and veterinarians in Parkersburg, West Virginia, but no one took Tennant’s case seriously.

in the mess of documents, but soon, his time as an environmental lawyer helped him see the bigger picture. It became clear that DuPont had orchestrated a massive cover-up regarding their use of PFOA. PFOA is used in the manufacturing of Teflon, and the company had knowingly exposed workers and the Parkersburg water supply to it. Bilott filed a class-action suit as a medical monitoring claim on behalf of the people of Parkersburg, and, as of 2011, a probable link between PFOA and six health conditions, including two types of cancer, has been found.

But when Bilott saw the evidence for himself, it was clear that something was wrong.

The videos and photographs Tennant had collected showed cattle with patchy fur, growths and lesions, white slime coming from their mouths, and staggering gaits. Tennant told Bilott that the abnormal behavior and physical deformities had started after his brother Jim sold his property to DuPont, a chemical company with a big presence in Parkersburg. Jim’s property bordered on Wilbur’s, and a stream running from Jim’s

He was worried he wouldn’t be able to find anything incriminating or even conclusive Because of the medical monitoring claim, plaintiffs can file personal injury lawsuits against DuPont. So far, 3,535 people have. If it weren’t for Bilott and Tennant, the public might have never known the dangers of PFOA. DOYOUR PART TO KEEP AMERICA BEAUTIFUL And Maintain Green Living Spaces for Everyone

jogging and picking up litter, which takes care of your health and keeps your community clean. Anybody can do it: Just throw on your running shoes, grab a bag, head out the door, and pick up any stray bits of trash you see on your morning jog or evening walk.

to better the place you live in. Here are three ways to show your appreciation for a green America this month.

Have you ever walked through a park and seen a plastic bottle or wrapper lying on the ground? If so, did you pick it up and properly dispose of it? You might not have realized it, but in that moment, you took a small step toward keeping your community — and, by extension, America — beautiful! April is Keep America Beautiful Month, and folks who celebrate aim to help each community in every state stay clean and green. Created by the nonprofit organization Keep America Beautiful, this holiday offers a perfect opportunity to roll up your sleeves and work

VOLUNTEER FOR THE GREAT AMERICAN CLEANUP.

IMPROVE RECYCLING THROUGH EDUCATION.

This event is one of America’s largest community improvement programs, with hundreds of thousands of people

An important goal during Keep America Beautiful Month is to spread awareness about recycling. There are various ways to educate those around you about recycling and encourage them to do their part. At work, for example, you can volunteer to lead a recycling initiative by printing off guides and fostering discussions on why recycling is so essential. At home, you can make a commitment with your family to fulfill the three R’s of recycling: reduce, reuse, recycle. To discover more ways to participate in Keep America Beautiful month, visit their website at KAB.org today!

participating each year. In 2019, over 550,000 volunteers participated in the GAC to bring natural beauty back into their communities. 2020 marks this event’s 22nd year, and you can be a part of it this month! Volunteer your time with a local Keep America Beautiful affiliate or another community improvement program close to home. Do your part to clean up your parks and spread awareness today.

START PLOGGING.

If you’re passionate about staying active and cleaning up your neighborhood, then this is the perfect activity for you! Plogging combines

2 • Office: 401-751-6100 | Cell: 401-654-0000

TAKE A BREAK

Few things change faster than the internet, and how we connect with the internet is constantly evolving. When it comes to wireless capabilities, fourth-generation (4G) networks have been the norm for 10 years. But 4G couldn’t meet demands forever, and there’s already talk of a fifth-generation (5G) network taking center stage. So, what makes 5G different from 4G, and how will it affect consumers and their internet-enabled devices? Simply put, 5G is the fifth generation of wireless technology that enables mobile devices like cellphones and stationary devices like desktop computers to send and receive >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4

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