CIVIL
Liquor Liability
Michael Gillis chairs the nation Liquor Liability Litigation Group (LLLG) for the American Association for Justice (AAJ), formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America (ATLA), the largest trial bar in the United States. Some of his representative cases in this area include the following:
On Thanksgiving night, in an American Veterans hall, a patron who was served too much alcohol became belligerent, got in an argument with another patron, went to his car, got a knife, came back into the bar, and stabbed and killed a G&B client. The decedent had two children, a young teenage daughter and her little brother. Suit was brought against the hall and the patron for serving too much alcohol to the patron, failing to properly supervise the bar and its patrons, and for assault and battery. During litigation, a settlement was reached with the hall, and the court awarded a judgment against the individual defendant in excess of 15 million dollars. The individual appealed, and the appeal has now ended. With interest, the settlement and judgment combined exceed 17 million dollars.
At a fundraiser for the local high school hockey team, a mother, upset upon hearing that her husband would be away at sea during Christmas due to work, drank too much. After she was shut off, she and others were then invited downstairs to a private bar at the Legion Hall where they were allowed to continue to drink at the member's bar. She later left the members bar, and, knowing she could not drive, left her car and took a ride with her sister's boyfriend. Unfortunately, the boyfriend had also been shut off and then allowed to drink further, should not have been driving, and subsequently struck a tree causing a head injury to the mother, who had two young boys.
Defendants tried to raise the issue of the Massachusetts Charitable Cap which limits charities to only $20,000 in damages. G&B lawyer Michael Gillis was able to prove that the funds raised by the hall at these functions were primarily commercial in nature as they paid the majority of the costs of the hall for the year. The case was subsequently settled for $800,000.00.
A deaf minor was drinking at a deaf club with a deaf adult and become intoxicated. He left the deaf bar and struck a pedestrian college student crossing the street. The college student was thrown over the vehicle and suffered substantial facial injuries. Once again, the defendants tried to limit recover to $20,000.00 citing the Massachusetts Charitable Immunity Cap. G&B attorney Michael Gillis successfully argued that the sale of alcohol at the deaf club was commercial in nature and not within the charitable purpose of the hall. The case settled for $400,000.00.
A Boston resident working in Keene, NH, was returning from work late at night. She was distraught due to personal issues she was facing, and she stopped to get a drink at a Chinese restaurant on Route 2 on the way home. The bartender, sensing that the woman was distraught, continued to server her nine strong mixed drinks hoping the alcohol would make her more friendly towards him. When it became apparent to the bartender that the female patron was not interested in him, even after the drinks, he told her she to leave. She was too intoxicated to drive, but, being far from home and no local transportation available, she attempted to make the drive. She was less than a mile from the restaurant when her vehicle left the road and she suffered spinal injuries affecting her lower body. In rare cases, Massachusetts allows bringing an action against a restaurant for injuries caused to oneself, but oonly upon the showing that the conduct of the bar was "willful and wanton gross negligence". G&B attorney Michael Gillis was able to show that the conduct of the bartender met the standard, and the case was resolved for $900,000.00.
A G&B client working as a chef in Boston's Chinatown area left work on foot and was crossing Kneeland Street when he was struck by a hit-and-run vehicle. The driver was subsequently found and charged. The client's fist attorney collected a settlement from the operator of the vehicle but did not bring claim against the establishment where the operator had been drinking.
After extensive investigation, the operator who had divorced, moved, was not employed, and was not easily located, was found, subpoenaed, and subsequently gave testimony concerning the evening. Further discovery determined that he was in the fishing industry and was using the bar at a nearby hotel as his "office" in order to speak to vendors at the convention and buy them drinks. During the day and evening, he consumed more than ten scotches and ten red wines. Subsequently, since he left his car with the hotel valet, the hotel, when the bar closed, gave him his keys back so that he could drive his car, with which he subsequently struck the G&B client After discovery concluded, the case against the hotel resoled with a significant six figure settlement.
Products Liability
G&B attorney Michael Gillis formerly was a member of the Tire and Litigation Group, a national group which worked on removing defective tires and rims from the marketplace. In one illustrative case, a Connecticut auto mechanic suffered two fractured wrists and minor head injuries when a tire he was filling with air exploded. At the jury selection process, the judge described to the jury that the G&B client "put too much air in the tire and it blew up", which was not an accurate statement of the case. Six of the eight jurors who ended up serving on the jury asked in jury selection how the "plaintiff could be that stupid."
When the jurors actually listened to all of the evidence, much of which detailed how the wheel and tire manufactures knew for many years of this common "mismatching" issue where a 16.inch tire could fit on a 16.5 inch rim, and when inflated, if the tire was defective, it could explode causing serious injuries. Not only did the jury return a verdict of $600,000.00 for the G&B client, it found that punitive damages were warranted, which, under the local jurisdiction, were determined by the judge. This was the first time that punitive damages were awarded against this international tire company. The particular judge had never had a punitive damages award in his court and certified the questions for the state's highest court to determine certain issues relating to the awarding of the punitive damages. The case was settled while on appeal for a confidential amount. The case was tried by G&B attorney Michael Gillis. The manufacturer of these types of wheels have since stopped manufactured them.
Medical Malpractice
An 86 year old man suffered a heart attack and was admitted to the local hospital. After a 10 day stay, when he was about to be released, he was transferred to a different section of the hospital where he was awaiting release. On his last day, the nurse, who mistook a hanging "g" from the line above for a "0" prescribed 300 mg of a medication for the patient instead of 30mg. The patient subsequently died from the overdose.
The case was handled and settled by G&B attorney Michael Gillis. As a condition of the settlement, the hospital agreed to install new software so that this medication error could not occur again. Specifically, were this prescription written today, the computer software at the hospital pharmacy would alert the pharmacist that this medication was not to be prescribed in this dosage. Additionally, the forms at the hospital were changed, with more space between lines, so letters could not hang down and be mistaken on other lines. Additionally protocol was changed at the hospital so that two pharmacists now have to sign off on these types of medications.
A child was born with multiple medical conditions, not the least of which was an eye injury that required immediate cataract surgery at just three weeks of age. The doctor doing the surgery also conducted all the follow up treatment for the eye injury which included the placing and removal of contact lenses. The doctor's failures in prescribing hard lenses and leaving them in for longer than was prudent resulted in a deprivation of oxygen to the baby's eyes causing them to "fog over" This failure caused permanent blurred vision. The case was settled for a confidential amount. The case was handled by G&B attorney Michael Gillis.
Automobile Accidents
A husband and father of two boys walked to the local bus stop and took two buses to work each day so that his wife and children could use the car. While on the way to the bus station one morning, the father was struck by a hit and run driver and killed.
G&B attorney Michael Gillis brought suit against the hit and run driver who was later identified but fled the country after the accident. A Plymouth County judge found in favor of the family and awarded in excess of one million dollars in damages.
G&B attorney Michael Gillis tried an automobile accident case in which a prison guard was injured when a car full of teenagers turned in front of him on his way to work. The insurer refused to put any offer on the table until just before trial, and the offer was minimal. The jury found for the guard and awarded in excess of $34,000.00 in damages. G&B attorney Michael Gillis subsequently brought suit on behalf of the client against the insurer for the teen ager who struck him for unfair and deceptive insurance practices for not making a reasonable offer. Mr. Gillis subsequently had to recuse himself from the case when named as a witness. The G&B client was subsequently awarded double damages and attorney's fees due toe the insurer's bad faith.
A Norfolk County jury awarded a G&B client $85,000.00 in damages to a minor who had been drinking with his friend in his friend's basement and subsequently was injured when his friend hit a tree while driving him home. The case was significant as the defendants argued strenuously that the plaintiff should not receive any damages because he contributed to his injuries by drinking with his friend in the basement. Plaintiffs argued that the contributory negligence of the minor did not exceed that of the driver who know, or should have know, whether he was able to drive based upon the amount of liquor he consumed. The case was tried by Michael Gillis
Premises Liability
A Boston Police officer on detail was patrolling a downtown parking garage on foot. He walked over wooden boards which covered a trench when the boards gave way. The officer immediately put his arms out to grab the edges of the trench to prevent his falling into the trench which was on the 8th floor of the garage. He suffered a torn rotator cuff as well as a scrape to his leg which subsequently became badly infected and required hospitalization.
The insurer for the parking lot aggressively defended the action and even alleged that the officer was never on the premises on the day in question. There was no offer until just before trial, and the offer was negligible. After a five day trial, the Suffolk County jury awarded the officer, with interest, approximately $225,000 in damages. The case was tried by G&B attorney Michael Gillis. Subsequently to the trial, G&B brought an action against the insurer for bad faith. A six figure offer was offered before the matter was handed over to subsequent counsel when G&B attorney Michael Gillis was named as a witness in the action and recused himself from the case.
Business Litigation
A local clothing company with an exclusive arrangement with a manufacture learned that the manufacture was selling the same clothes to a competitor, in violation of the agreement, for less money. G&G attorney Michael Gillis represented the clothing store, obtained from the court an order to cease and desist from selling to the competitor, and a jury awarded damages to the G&B client for lost business due to the violation of the agreement.
A business owner who leased a new Jaguar suffered an eye injury which prevented him from driving. When he was first starting to drive again, the vehicle was stolen, set on fire, and destroyed.
The insurer refused to pay the loss alleging that the business owner caused the care to be stolen and destroyed. At the time, the value of the vehicle was $15,000 less than was owned on the lease.
G&B attorney Michael Gillis took over from other counsel who were unsuccessful in resolving the case. First, he was successful in having the "GAP" insurer pay to Jaguar the difference between what was owed on the lease and the value of the car. At trial, the jury agreed that the owner did not cause the vehicle to be stolen and awarded damages for the full amount of the lease which, with interest, equaled double the amount of the vehicle.
A local business owner sought a broker to sell his business. The broker was unable to find a suitable buyer. After the brokerage agreement expired, the owners found their own buyer. The buyer's attorney, who was related to the business broker, informed the business broker who subsequently sought a commission as he had shown several stores to the eventual buyers. Suit was brought against the G&B client who owned the store. After a year of litigation, G&B attorney Michael Gillis was successful in having the case dismissed and no damages paid by the G&B client.
A G&B client was the manufacturer's representative and did some construction on multiple homes built on Nantucket. The homes were largely pre-fabricated to save on costs, and the windows on the homes were pre-installed by a well known window company. Five of the purchasers of the homes brought suit against the G&B client as well as several other companies involved in the construction alleging that the windows were faulty and allowed water into the walls during rainstorms with high winds. To exacerbate matters, the insurer for the G&B client reserved coverage stating that the damage was not covered under the policy.
The matter proceeded in Nantucket Superior Court for five years as the superior court only meets two weeks in May and two weeks in September. Additionally, there were several mistrials as the court was unable to find enough jurors who did not know the parties and could be fair and impartial. In the end, a settlement was agreed to with the plaintiffs, and the defendants and their insurers then litigated who was responsible for what portion of the damages. In the end, the G&B client was the only party who did not have to contribute to the settlement of either the plaintiff's claim or any of the claims amongst the defendants and their insurers. The matter was handled by Michael Gillis.
Real Estate Litigation
The seller of a home, after signing an offer to purchase, refused to sign a purchase and sale agreement. G&B attorney Michael Gillis brought suit on behalf of the purchasers, and the seller then agreed to sign the purchase and sale. Subsequently, the seller refused to attend the closing and would not sign over the property. While suit was pending, the seller refused to pay his mortgage and let the property go to foreclosure. The buyers ended up buying a better home in the same neighborhood, and they lived in a rented home in the interim.
At trial, the court awarded the G&B clients over $250,000.00 in damages resulting from the sellers' failure to go forward with the sale. The damages awarded by the court included damages for the loss of opportunity for a lower mortgage rate (even though rates subsequently went down), the appreciation of the home that the clients contracted to purchase, as well as out of pocket expenses for their rental property.
A G&B client sold property that he owned in order to purchase waterfront property. He recently entered a relationship with a woman and had begun living with her. Because she had a better credit rating, she applied and received a mortgage, and the house was put in her name. Subsequently, the relationship soared, and he asked her to leave the premises. She obtained a restraining order against him alleging abuse and refused to relinquish the premises as it was in her name and she alleged that she paid a share of the expenses.
At trial, the jury found her claims of abuse not to be accurate. The court awarded specific performance to the G&B client allowing him to regain title in his house upon payment of a nominal amount and upon his obtaining a mortgage so that the former girlfriend's mortgage could be paid off and her name removed from the deed.
Wages and Tips Litigation
After eight days of a bi-furcated trial, four days on liability and four days on damages, a G&B client was awarded minimal damages along with a declaratory judgment ordering a major Boston hotel to cease and desist in certain practices in distributing gratuities at banquet functions. In the first trial on liability, the court found that the hotel violated the state wage laws by distributing gratuities to captains who received compensation from several functions which took place at the same time. This practice was ordered to be, and has been, discontinued. On the second trial for damages, the court awarded only nominal damages, however, because it found that the hotel violated the wage statute, it ordered the hotel to pay all of the clients legal fees which exceeded $150,000.00. The hotel appealed the decision, and the court found that the plaintiff, proving even one violation, had prevailed and was entitled to attorneys fees, and it remanded the case to further determine the appropriate fee. The case was subsequently settled for a confidential amount. Shortly after the award of attorneys, the hotel settled claims with twenty-two other wait staff and bartenders at the hotel who became G&B clients after watching the liability trial. G&B attorney Michael Gillis represented all of the clients in each case.
CRIMINAL
For more than 25 years, G&B attorney Michael Gillis has successfully handled district court criminal matters. The overwhelming number of cases resolve favorably before trial or are dismissed before trial. Of all the cases that have gone to trial, there have been only two convictions against G&B clients in all those years, one for a first offense operating under the influence of alcohol, and another where the client was charged with a third offense operating under the influence of alcohol, which carries a substantial mandatory jail sentence and a lenghty loss of license, but was convicted of only a first offense, which carries a much less sentence. Through an aggressive investigation of the case, appropriate motion practice to suppress evidence, preclude witnesses, or dismiss matters, and a good working relationship with the assistant district attorneys of the local counties, G&B clients regularly receive exceptionally fair resolutions of criminal matters as well as professional counsel should the matter be forced to trial
