Twitter Activity Believed to Have Negatively Impacted Damage Award
Attorneys in a recent case related to injuries stemming from a car accident are blaming the reduced damage award on the plaintiff’s Twitter activity. In the case of Daniels vs. Atlanta Refrigeration, Ms. Daniels sought over $1 million, including about $800,000 for pain and suffering and $300,000 in diminished earning capacity and medical expenses related to a car accident.
While the jury found in Ms. Daniels favor, the damage award was significantly lower than hoped. This may have occurred due to her Tweets about attending parties and posting pictures of her activities, which were introduced as evidence at trial to refute her claims of ongoing injury, pain and suffering. Social media is increasingly be utilized for such purposes.
Renee Howdeshell
Renee Howdeshell is a founding member of Fulcrum Inquiry, an accounting, finance and economic consulting firm that performs damage analyses for commercial litigation, forensic accountings, royalty & distribution audits, financial investigations, and business valuations. Ms. Howdeshell holds a degree in Finance and Marketing from the University of Virginia's McIntire School of Commerce and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). She has testified as an expert witness in federal court, CA state court and arbitration regarding the results of her work. She can be reached at (213) 787-4112 and her resume is available at www.fulcrum.com.
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Attorneys in a recent case related to injuries stemming from a car accident are blaming the reduced damage award on the plaintiff’s Twitter activity. In the case of Daniels vs. Atlanta Refrigeration, Ms. Daniels sought over $1 million, including about $800,000 for pain and suffering and $300,000 in diminished earning capacity and medical expenses related to a car accident.