Vol. 57 No. 4

Trial Magazine

Verdicts & Settlements: Motor Vehicle Liability

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Failure to perform adequate background check

April 2021

Marikate Maggio, an 18-year-old student, was driving a MINI Cooper on a highway when she came to an intersection with a traffic light. She attempted to turn left when a tractor-trailer operated by Miguel Garcia-Moreno collided with her vehicle. She suffered traumatic injuries and died 20 minutes later. Maggio is survived by her mother.

Maggio’s mother, individually and on behalf of her estate, sued Garcia-Moreno’s employer, 48Forty Solutions LLC, alleging negligent retention and failure to perform a proper background check on Garcia-Moreno or provide him with adequate supervision and training.

The plaintiffs asserted that dash-cam footage showed Garcia-Moreno had run a red light. They also alleged that the defendant had written up Garcia-Moreno three times for preventable collisions—in addition to other preventable incidents that allegedly occurred while he was working for other trucking companies.

The defense argued that Garcia-Moreno was a good worker and that it had performed a proper background check on him and provided adequate supervision.

The parties settled for $9 million.

Citation: Maggio v. 48Forty Solutions LLC, No. 2018CI24231 (Tex. Dist. Ct. Bexar Cty. Nov. 16, 2020).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Thomas A. Crosley and Shawn M. Mechler, both of San Antonio.

Plaintiff experts: H. David Feltoon, counseling, Austin, Texas; Keith Fairchild, economics, and Michael Rangel, accident reconstruction, both of San Antonio; and Peter Sullivan, fleet operations, Houston.

Defense experts: Lane VanIngen, truck fleet operations, Daphne, Ala.; and Helen Reynolds, economics, Dallas.