Clawson Fargnoli & Utsey, LLC

01/01/2021

NEW YEAR! NEW PARTNER! We are thrilled to announce that Bert “Skip” Utsey has joined the firm and Clawson Fargnoli Utsey, LLC is officially open for business! Skip has more than 30 years of experience as an attorney. He is a highly respected trial lawyer, having tried over 50 cases to verdict, and obtained tens of millions of dollars in recoveries for his clients. Skip is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and the American College of Trial Lawyers, and the President-Elect of the South Carolina Association for Justice. He has spoken at seminars around the state on a variety of issues. Skip practices in all areas of personal injury law, but focuses on bad faith insurance actions, insurance coverage disputes, and medical malpractice. Skip’s extensive experience as a defense lawyer has afforded him a unique perspective that has proven invaluable to his plaintiff's litigation practice. Skip is often associated by other attorneys to handle complex personal injury cases and insurance disputes. We are excited to have Skip join the team at Clawson Fargnoli Utsey, LLC. Clawson Fargnoli & Utsey, LLC #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli Skip Utsey (No representation is made that the quality, service or experience of the Clawson Fargnoli Utsey, LLC attorneys is greater than the quality, service or experience of other lawyers. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located at The Presqu’ile House 2, Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

12/31/2020

12/17/2020

Clawson Fargnoli and Cantwell Law Firm recently settled a nursing home malpractice case against a skilled nursing facility for $500,000. The name of the facility and the venue are confidential per the terms of the settlement agreement. Our elderly client developed a reddened area on her stomach and was transported to the ER. The client required surgery to debride the area and was diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis. The client died after a two week stay in the hospital. We filed suit and alleged that the facility breached the standard of care for monitoring our client’s condition, noting relevant changes in her condition, and taking appropriate action in response to changes in her condition. The case was resolved after written discovery and prior to depositions being taken. Think of Clawson Fargnoli for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including nursing home malpractice and wrongful death cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

12/07/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a trip and fall case with the City of Charleston and the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Our client tripped and fell not once, but twice, on different sections of sidewalk in downtown Charleston. In the first instance, she tripped on a section of bluestone sidewalk where the stone had cracked and suffered a broken arm. In the second instance, she tripped on a section of bluestone sidewalk where the stone was raised and again suffered a broken arm. Both injuries required surgeries. Surprisingly, the City of Charleston denied liability for the accident, and tried to place blame on our client and on the SCDOT. This was despite prior testimony from representatives of the City in other cases that it is the City of Charleston, not SCDOT, that is responsible for properly maintaining the bluestone sidewalks in the City, despite the existence of an internal memo warning City employees to be vigilant in reporting defective sidewalks, and despite numerous articles in the Post and Courier about the City’s ongoing struggle with sidewalk repairs. The case was mediated and settled for an undisclosed amount. Think of Clawson Fargnoli for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including trip and fall cases and cases against government entities. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/30/2020

Clawson Fargnoli and the Frost Law Group recently settled a police pursuit case in Orangeburg County for more than seven times the medical bills. Our client was operating a four-wheeler when he made the unfortunate decision to flee a Town of Eutawville police officer who attempted to pull him over for a simple traffic violation. The police officer then attempted to block the roadway in front of our client, and possibly collided with the four-wheeler in the process, causing our client to run off the roadway and suffer a laceration on his leg. The officer’s actions were in direct violation of Eutawville’s policies and procedures regarding police pursuits, which explicitly prohibited officers from ramming, bumping, or colliding with a fleeing vehicle and from pulling alongside such vehicles in an attempt to force them off the road. Fortunately, our client was not seriously injured. We sent a pre-suit demand to the Town of Eutawville’s insurer and were invited to a pre-suit mediation, where the case settled for $75,000. Think of Clawson Fargnoli for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including police pursuit cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli Frost Law Group, LLC (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/24/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a Jones Act Seaman maritime personal injury case for $60,000. Our client, a chef on a yacht, suffered a finger injury while attempting to walk a dock cart filled with provisions down an inclined ramp. Liability was denied by the vessel owner, who felt strongly that all fault for the accident fell on our client. We retained an expert in maritime safety pre-suit and worked with the expert to develop multiple theories of liability for the vessel owner, including failure to properly train the crew, failure to properly supervise the crew, failure to properly man the vessel, and failure to issue the crew proper personal protective equipment. We then worked with defense counsel to negotiate a fair and reasonable pre-suit settlement for our client despite tough facts. Think of Clawson Fargnoli for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including maritime personal injury, boating accident, and Jones Act Seaman cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/19/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled an invasion of privacy claim against a skilled nursing facility for $250,000. The name of the facility and the venue are confidential per the terms of the settlement agreement. Our elderly client, who suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease, was photographed in the nude by one of the facility’s employees without her knowledge or consent. We presented the invasion of privacy claim to the facility, offered them the option to resolve it prior to filing a lawsuit, and a settlement was reached. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including invasion of privacy cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/12/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a motor vehicle accident case in Berkeley County for the at fault driver’s full policy limits. Our client was traveling through an intersection under a green light when the at fault driver disregarded a red light, resulting in a T-bone collision. The at fault driver admitted to the investigating officer that he had run the light because he was looking at his phone. Our client was transported via ambulance to the hospital for treatment of neck, back, shoulder, arm, leg, and knee injuries. Given the clear and aggravated liability, we sent a time limited demand for the policy limits and the at fault driver’s insurer complied by settling the case immediately. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including motor vehicle accidents. #creative #compassionate #relentless
Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/05/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a defamation case for $2,000,000 along with co-counsel Brewer Law Firm, LLC and Staubes Law Firm, LLC. This case arose from multiple alleged incidents of libel and slander. It was alleged that the defendant business owner was acting vicariously on behalf of corporate defendants, and/or was acting in the course and scope of employment with two businesses in which he had ownership interests, when he made false and defamatory statements about the plaintiffs on Facebook, via text message, on multiple signs placed throughout Mt. Pleasant, to the Department of Social Services, and to the Sheriff’s Office. The defamatory statements variously accused the plaintiffs of being child abusers, abusing prescription drugs, being bipolar, and being unfit for their trades and occupations, amongst many other false statements of fact. In addition to reputational damage, several of the plaintiffs suffered quantifiable economic loss due to the defamatory statements, including decreases in business revenue. While many of the statements were defamatory per se and actionable per se, the litigation was multifaceted, and required issues beyond liability, injuries, and damages to be addressed. Multiple coverage defenses were asserted by the defendants’ insurers and a spoliation of evidence issue arose after it was discovered that the defendants allegedly failed to preserve a computer that could have contained data relevant to the claims and defenses alleged. The cases were mediated and settled shortly thereafter. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including defamation cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/04/2020

Our recent settlement report in South Carolina Lawyers Weekly...

SETTLEMENT REPORT — DEFAMATION

Amount: $2 million

Injuries alleged: Damage to reputation

Name of case: King, et al. v. Elwood
Court: Charleston County Circuit Court

Case No.: 2018-CP-10-00478

Mediator: Thomas Wills of Wills, Massalon, & Allen in Charleston

Date of settlement: Aug. 19

Attorneys for plaintiffs: Barrett R. Brewer of Mt. Pleasant, Chris Staubes of Mt. Pleasant and Samuel R. Clawson Jr. and Christy R. Fargnoli of Clawson Fargnoli in Charleston

Attorneys for defendants: David Anderson of Richardson Plowden in Columbia and Robert Kneece of Turner Padget in Charleston

Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including defamation cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

11/02/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a grill explosion case for $201,000. Our clients were cooking on a propane gas grill in the pool area of an apartment complex when an explosion occurred . Fortunately, our clients only suffered minor burn injuries. We retained an expert to conduct a site inspection and determine the cause of the explosion. We then filed suit against the apartment complex owner, the company that connected the gas lines, and the company that installed the grill. The discovery process further solidified our expert’s theories of liability against the various entities responsible for ownership, maintenance, and installation of the gas grill. We then noticed the 30(b)(6) depositions of each defendant, and the case actually settled in the middle of the first 30(b)(6) deposition. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including premises liability and gas explosion cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

10/27/2020

Clawson Fargnoli Trial Lawyers

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a drunk driving motor vehicle accident case for $100,000. At issue was the at fault driver’s property damage coverage and the driver’s punitive conduct, as he was driving while under the influence of alcohol. The at fault driver’s auto policy had liability bodily injury limits of just $25,000, but liability property damage limits of $100,000. The insurer initially attempted to settle the case for just the $25,000 bodily injury limits, which we refused. Then the insurer tried to settle for the $25,000 bodily injury limits and just $10,000 of the property damage limits. We maintained our position and provided the insurer with a thorough brief of South Carolina law, which doesn’t allow for punitive damages to be apportioned pro rata between those sustained for bodily injury and those sustained for property damage under an automobile insurance policy. Ultimately, the insurer caved and agreed to pay $100,000, which was approximately ten times our client’s medical bills. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the state, including aggravated liability motor vehicle accidents and victim of drunk driving cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)

Clawson Fargnoli is a boutique personal injury law firm that represents individuals and businesses who have been seriously injured by the wrongful conduct of others. With more than twenty years of litigation experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants, we have the perspective and knowledg...

10/19/2020

Clawson Fargnoli recently settled a motor vehicle accident / negligent claims handling case in Greenville County for the full policy limits, even though the value of the underlying motor vehicle accident case was substantially less than those limits. Our client was a passenger in a vehicle and was injured when the driver of that vehicle caused a collision. We sent the driver’s insurance company a letter requesting that the insurer confirm amount of available insurance coverage. South Carolina law required that the insurer provide us with either a sworn statement or declarations page confirming the amount of policy limits. Instead, the insurer simply sent a letter that stated the amount of the liability coverage and stated that no additional insurance coverage was known to the insurer. We then sent the insurer a time limited settlement demand for the liability coverage limits. The insurer responded by sending us a letter setting forth a position that was critical of our client’s claim, but nevertheless stated that the insurer was willing to offer the liability limits to resolve the claim. This struck us as a very unusual letter, given the insurer’s previous representations regarding coverage, so we sent another letter demanding the actual declarations page. When we received the declarations page, we were shocked to see that, in addition to the liability coverage, there was also underinsured motorist coverage. We then sent the insurer a new time limited settlement demand that highlighted their negligent and improper claims practices – specifically the material misrepresentation of coverage – and informed the insurer that we would file suit against both the at fault driver and the insurer alleging fraud, unfair and deceptive trade practices, improper claims practices, negligent claims handling, and bad faith if both the liability and underinsured motorist limits were not received at our office within 48 hours. The insurer readily complied and we were able to secure a substantial recovery for our client. Think of Clawson Fargnoli, LLC for life altering personal injury and death cases across the country, including negligent claims handling and insurance bad faith cases. #creative #compassionate #relentless Sam Clawson Christy Fargnoli (Prior results do not guarantee similar future outcomes. Sam Clawson, Jr. is the attorney responsible for the content of this post and his principal office is located in The Presqu’ile House, 2 Amherst Street, Charleston, SC 29403.)