The bicyclist was riding her bicycle northbound on North Wood Street when she came upon a Dodge Intrepid parked on North Wood. As the bicyclist approached, the motorist suddenly opened the driver’s door of his vehicle directly into the path of the bicyclist. With no time to react, the bicyclist violently crashed into the open vehicle door and her right arm sustained significant trauma as she crashed into the door. As a result of the impact, the bicyclist was thrown from her bike to the pavement on her right side and ultimately ended up in the middle of North Wood Street.
The lawsuit alleges that the motorist, and by extension, his insurance company, are liable for compensating the bicyclist for her injuries because of the motorist breaking the Rules of the Road. Section 11-1407 of the Illinois Vehicle Code and Section 9-80-035 of Municipal Code of Chicago provide that:
“No person shall open the door of a vehicle on the side available to moving traffic unless and until it is reasonably safe to do so, and can be done without interfering with the movement of other traffic, nor shall any person leave a door open on the side of a vehicle available to moving traffic for a period of time longer than necessary to load or unload passengers.”In addition, the motorist was uncooperative with the reporting police officer when asked to go to the police station and initially refused to cooperate with the police investigation.
Due to her severe injuries, the bicyclist was taken to the emergency room at Rush University Medical Center immediately after the collision. She was diagnosed with an injury to her spinal cord which has required ongoing treatment with a neurosurgeon and also suffered a permanent injury to her upper arm that resulted in a "crease" in the muscle mass of her arm. She continues to receive treatment for her injuries.
Illinois Bicycle Lawyer Mike Keating stated as follows regarding the filing of this lawsuit:
"Few people willingly want to participate in a lawsuit. However, sometimes in instances like this where there is an uncooperative defendant and that defendant's insurance company refuses to negotiate in good faith, we are left with no choice but to file a lawsuit to protect our client's rights. We are always willing to do whatever it takes to make sure our clients have the absolute best chance of receiving justice after being the victim of a bike crash."
Keating Law Offices is the premiere law firm in Illinois representing the interests of injured bicyclists. The firm represents client in Cook County, the collar counties of DuPage, Lake and Will, as well as throughout Illinois. The firm is a national leader in the field of bicycle litigation.
If you have any questions regarding this post or an issue involving Illinois personal injury law, contact Illinois Bicycle Attorney Mike Keating at 312-239-6787 (Office) or 312-208-7702 (Nights or Weekends) or Mike@KeatingLegal.com 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All e-mails and phone calls are returned promptly. All initial consultations are confidential and free.
