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A boating accident in Ocean County that left a woman with debilitating back injuries settled recently for $430,000 in federal court on Dec. 3, 2020, after the woman sued her brother, the owner and operator of the 18-foot speedboat that sent her flying in the air after striking a wake.
In Garb v. Garb, Mindy Garb, now 59 and living in West Orange, sued her younger sibling Lawrence—known as "Larry"—after the summer 2016 accident.
Michael J. Paragano of Nagel Rice in Roseland, represented Mindy Garb.
Maritime lawyer James Mercante, a partner at Rubin Fiorella & Friedman's New York office, represented defendant Larry Garb.
The $430,000 settlement was reached on Dec. 3, 2020, during a settlement conference U.S. Magistrate Judge Lois H. Goodman of the U.S. District Court for New Jersey.
Paragano said Mindy received the funds on Jan. 13, 2021. Insurance carrier Progressive, which had a $500,000 policy limit with Larry Garb, covered the entire amount.
"We had significant liability obstacles, and [the defense] removed the case to federal court to limit their liability to the value of the boat," said Paragano in a phone call.
Paragano said Mindy Garb also had prior back surgery at the same level in 2012, four years before the boating accident, which became a factor in the settlement.
"So the number was very fair," Paragano said.
Mercante maintains that his client, Larry, now 51, wasn't liable, and that another vessel was at fault for the wake.
"It's unfortunate that no one was able to identify the other vessel that came speeding by and left the wake that the Garb vessel contacted," Mercante said in a phone interview. "Although no one on the boat felt unsafe or injured other than Mindy. And that's apparently because of preexisting issues that Mindy had.
"But nonetheless, we thought it was a fair and reasonable settlement and time to resolve it amicably as between two family members," added Mercante. "He [Larry] didn't do anything wrong in the operation of the boat. It was solely the fault of another vessel that came by at a high rate of speed. No one questioned Larry's speed or operation of the boat."
But Paragano contends that a boating accident report was never filed because no other boat was involved other than Larry Garb's.
On June 25, 2016, Mindy Garb, then 54, was seated as a passenger on a designated seat directly in front of the steering wheel and windshield of the speedboat that Larry was operating. On that day, she and Larry traveled through Barnegat Bay off Long Beach Island along with their cousin and her two children.
During the voyage, while operating the boat at an excessive speed, Paragano said, Larry Garb failed to avoid the wake, causing the boat to violently strike it. The impact sent Mindy flying into the air, eventually landing directly on her back on the windshield behind her, the suit said.
"As a result, Mindy sustained significant, debilitating and permanent personal injuries, primarily to her mid- and lower back," said Paragano.
Mindy was diagnosed with: compression fractures at the L1, L2 and T10 levels; bilateral lumbar radiculopathy at L5-S1; lumbar stenosis at L4-L5 and L5-S1; bilateral sacral radiculopathy at S1-S2; and peripheral neuropathy. Treatment for these conditions included both conservative care and surgery.
Paragano said on Oct. 28, 2016, Mindy underwent the first of two surgeries to treat her injuries —a kyphoplasty procedure at the T10 and L1 levels with Dr. Joseph Koziol, a neurosurgeon in West Orange.
On May 5, 2017, Dr. Koziol performed the second surgery, a three-level laminectomy in the form of left hemilaminotomy at L3 and L4, lateral recess decompression and foraminotomy at L3-L4, and right hemilaminotomy and foraminotomy, and decompression of the right lateral recess L4-S1. Additionally, Paragano said Mindy underwent physical therapy two times a week and had 14 injections to treat her pain over the course of a year.
Mindy was also diagnosed with a number of secondary issues, including major depressive disorder, anxiety, panic disorder/attacks, hair loss, and incomplete emptying of her bladder, the suit alleged.
"To date, despite the surgeries, Mindy is dramatically reduced in her ability to perform activities of daily living," Paragano said. "For example, although one of her joys is volunteering with children with autism, she has cut down on her volunteer work significantly since this accident due to her continued physical limitations."
Paragano said Mindy also lost most of her income: She had to sell a 50% share of a clothing business that she had owned for over 20 years, and currently doesn't have a job.
"She's been limited to income received from Social Security disability and doesn't work at all," said Paragano. "She's not doing very well and is still struggling with daily pain and limitations."
Paragano and Mercante confirmed that the siblings have no contact at all with each other. They settled the case entirely through their attorneys.
"They are not speaking as far as I know," said Paragano.
"Well, I wouldn't be either if my brother or sister sued me," Mercante said. "There's a reason they aren't on speaking terms. They were close, and she sued him."
Suzette Parmley
Trenton Correspondent who covers the N.J. Supreme Court, Governor, Legislature. She also contributes to The Legal Intelligencer and law.com. Suzette joined New Jersey Law Journal in Jan. 2019 from the Philadelphia Inquirer where she was a former Trenton Statehouse Correspondent and Business Reporter/Columnist. Awards: 1st Place for 2020 coverage of NJ Supreme Court; 2019 Specialized Writing Category, 5-time winner of the Business Financial Writing Portfolio Award from the New Jersey Press Association. Graduate of the Fels Center of Government/University of Pennsylvania. Email: [email protected] or follow on Twitter: @SuzParmley