Case Dismissed for Fraud in Large Grocery Chain Personal Injury Case.
Miami attorneys Kate Spinelli and Nicole Ona defended a large grocery chain in a case involving plaintiff who alleged paralysis of her legs and right arm resulting from an unwitnessed slip and fall in the clients restroom. Upon receiving the matter, Spinelli and Ona immediately obtained surveillance footage showing the plaintiff using her extremities, directly contradicting her sworn deposition testimony and written discovery responses.
Based on this evidence, Ona drafted a compelling Motion for Fraud on the Court, which Spinelli argued during a two-hour in-person evidentiary hearing. During cross-examination, Spinelli’s questioning led the plaintiff to change her story again, this time claiming she had no recollection of the fall. Spinelli also introduced evidence establishing that the plaintiff’s family had provided false statements regarding her injuries.
Opposing counsel attempted to argue that the plaintiff suffered from mental illness, but the Court rejected that argument, stating, “If this isn’t fraud on the court, I do not know what is.” The Court then granted dismissal with prejudice in favor of the client.