General Litigation
Whether it is business or general litigation, cases are won by meticulous attention to the evidence, knowledge of the law, and the ability to communicate the strengths of the case to the trier of fact. Representative examples of Hine’s general litigation experience include:In Smith v. Floyd County et al, Hine filed a class action in federal court on behalf of prisoners who were being held in the Floyd County Jail, originally constructed in the 1890’s. The Court found that the conditions at the jail violated several constitutional guarantees and enjoined the County from continuing to use that facility after a date certain to allow the County to build a new jail facility.
In Owen v. Norfolk Southern Railroad Company et al, Hine represented the Plaintiff who suffered a closed head injury in a car train collision. Hine established that the railroad intersection was not maintained on accordance with the appropriate standards and the case settled in mediation for a high six figure sum.
In Scott v. Floyd County et al, Hine represented the administrator of a prisoner's estate who died in the Floyd County Jail. The suit alleged that the medical care was constitutionally deficient and that the Jail’s medical director committed malpractice in failing to properly interpret EKG’s which reflected a serious heart condition which went untreated. The case was settled prior to mediation with a settlement in the mid six figures. The physician defendant subsequently left town.
In Haywood v. Brannon, Hine represented the Plaintiff in a suit for a partition by sale of approximately 300 acres. The Defendant answered and claimed that the Plaintiff had acquired title by fraud. The case was referred to a special master who upheld the Plaintiff’s title, and the property was sold at auction with the proceeds split between the parties.
In State v. Naugher, Hine was retained by Cola Cola Enterprises to represent its employee who was charged with misdemeanor manslaughter after a truck car collision killed a mother of two children. Hine proved that the accident occurred on the early morning of the Spring equinox and that the arc of the rising sun interfered with the driver's ability to see a newly installed traffic light at the intersection where the collision occurred. The jury awarded a not guilty verdict after fifteen minutes of deliberation.
