Jamie R. Lebovitz, Partner

Aviation Cases

• Corporate Airlines\American Airlines Flight 5966 Crash, Kirksville, Missouri
• U.S. Forestry Service Crash, Flathead County, Montana
• Air Evac Life Team Helicopter Crash, Boonville, Indiana
• Georgian Express Flight 126 Crash near Pelee Island, Ontario, Canada
• Singapore Airlines Flight 006 Crash, Taipei, Taiwan
• Alaska Airlines Flight 261 Crash, Los Angeles, California
• EgyptAir Flight 990 Crash, Nantucket, Rhode Island
• Swissair Flight 111 Crash, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• TWA Flight 800 Crash, Long Island, New York
• Valujet Airlines Flight 592 Crash, Miami, Florida
• Comair Flight 3272 Crash, Detroit, Michigan
• USAir Flight 427 Crash, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• USAir Flight 1016 Crash, Charlotte, North Carolina
• Delta Airlines Flight 7529 Crash, Carrollton, Georgia
• Continental Flight 795 Crash, LaGuardia Airport
• USAir Flight 405 Crash, LaGuardia Airport
• American Airlines Flight 1572 Accident, Hartford, Connecticut
• National Guard C-130 Crash, Evansville, Indiana
• Ryan International Crash, Cleveland Hopkins Airport
• USAir Flight 1493 Crash, Los Angeles International Airport
• USAir Flight 1966 Disaster, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
• USAir Flight 4743 Crash, Beckley, West Virginia
• Northwest Airlines Disaster, Detroit's Metropolitan Airport
• United Airlines Flight 232 Crash, Sioux City, Iowa
• United Airlines Flight 811 Disaster, Honolulu, Hawaii
• PanAm Flight 103 Crash, Lockerbie, Scotland
• United Airlines Flight 97 Disaster, Tokyo, Japan
• Delta Airlines Flight 810 Disaster, Los Angeles, California
• Arrow Air Flight 128 Crash Gander, Newfoundland
• Cessna P210N Crash, Salmon, Idaho
• Beech V35B Crash, Rock Hill, South Carolina
• Cessna 310 Crash, Willoughby, Ohio
• Mooney M20R Crash, Leesburg, Virginia
• Sikorsky Helicopter Crash, Jackson, Kentucky
• Mooney M20E Crash, Cedar City, Utah
• Beech BE-55 Crash, Elkhart, Indiana
• Piper Warrior Crash, Half Moon Bay, California
• Beech 33-35 Crash, Chesterfield, Montana
• Hughes 269B Helicopter Crash, Cleveland, Ohio
• Ryan Navion Crash, Pacoima, California
• Cessna 172 Crash, Bremerton, Washington
• Cessna T210N Crash, Vichy, Montana
• Piper PA-24-250 Crash, Farmington, New Mexico
• Piper Aerostar Crash, Chesapeake, Virginia
• Mitsubishi MU-2B Crash, Malad City, Idaho
• Beechcraft Baron Crash, Cleveland, Ohio
• Beechcraft Queen BE-65 Crash, Shacklefords, Virginia

Jury Trial Results

• Largest Ohio Jury Verdict in Airline Crash for $7 Million

Amount:	$7,045,000
Court:	Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas
Date:	July 1997
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Aviation Crash Plaintiff was a passenger in a Beechcraft Baron which crashed on takeoff from Burke Lakefront Airport into Lake Erie on November 19, 1995. The plaintiff sustained multiple compound fractures to left leg, right leg, spine, facial fractures, and other injuries. Verdict included $1,015,000 to plaintiff's wife for loss of consortium.
Jamie R. Lebovitz

Verdicts & Settlements

• Family of Woman Killed in Lake Erie Plane Crash Receives $1.4 Million Settlement

Amount:	$1,400,000
Court:	Pre-Suit Resolution
Date:	December 2005
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Aviation Crash On January 17, 2004, eight Canadian passengers and one passenger from the United States boarded a Cessna 208B Caravan aircraft operated by a Canadian carrier. The flight was scheduled to depart from Pelee Island, located on the Canadian side of Lake Erie, for a 20-minute flight to Windsor, Ontario. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft departed from controlled flight and plunged into the frozen waters of Lake Erie. All passengers and the pilot were killed. Nurenberg Paris represented the family of Jamie Levine, the only passenger who was a United States citizen and who resided in southern California. The Cessna 208B Caravan passenger airplane has a long history of fatal crashes associated with design flaws in the aircraft's wings. The Cessna Caravan wing is susceptible to aerodynamic stalling (that is, loss of lift capability) whenever there are trace amounts of ice on the wing surface. Although the Caravan is equipped with in-flight de-icing equipment, the lack of de-icing protection in the area aft of the wing's leading edge allows for the accumulation of ice in unprotected areas which the pilot cannot detect or remove once the plane is aloft. Due to this design flaw, it is critical that a thorough pre-flight inspection be conducted of the entire wing surface area and that all snow, ice, or frost be removed with de-icing fluid prior to takeoff. In this case, however, the investigation revealed that the pre-flight ice inspection was not properly carried out and the operator of the Caravan did not furnish any de-icing fluids. Ms. Levine, who was 28 years old at the time of the crash, was survived by her parents and brother. In the wake of this tragedy, a number of safety issues were identified and are expected to be addressed to prevent the recurrence of similar calamities. Among those safety actions taken are: the operator of the aircraft has installed de-icing equipment on Pelee Island; all flights will be operated with a second crew member to assist the pilot on flight duties; the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) requiring all airlines and operators of Cessna 208B Caravan aircraft to ensure that, prior to takeoff, pilots and flight crew use de-icing fluid to remove all traces of snow, ice, and frost from the aircraft wings and that they conduct visual and tactical examinations to determine whether any snow, ice, or frost contamination remains on the wings. Further, in the event of in-flight icing conditions pilots are cautioned to timely utilize de-icing equipment and to exit the icing environment as soon as practicable.
Jamie R. Lebovitz

• Family of TWA Flight 800 Passenger Settles for $1.5 Million

Amount:	$1,500,000
Court:	U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Date:	December 2000
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Wrongful death Wrongful death of a single, 44-year-old woman survived by her sister. Decedent was a passenger on board TWA Flight 800 which exploded shortly after takeoff from JFK airport in New York. The flight was destined for Charles DeGalle International Airport in Paris, France. The crash was the result of a defect in the design of the center fuel tank and its electrical systems.
Jamie R. Lebovitz

• Alaska Airlines Flight 261 Cases Resolved for More Than $300 Million Dollars* (*As reported in The Seattle Times July 4, 2003.)

Amount:	More Than $300 Million Dollars*
Court:	U.S. District Court San Francisco, Califorina
Date:	July 2003
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Aviation Accident On January 31, 2000, at approximately 4:21 p.m. Pacific Time, a Boeing MD-83 aircraft (originally manufactured by McDonnell Douglas) operating as Alaska Airlines flight 261 crashed into the Pacific Ocean just outside of Los Angeles, California, killing all 83 passengers and five crew members. The aircraft was flying from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to San Francisco, California, with a final destination of Seattle, Washington.
Jamie R. Lebovitz

• Family of Valujet Crash Victim Receives $4.5 Million

Amount:	4,500,000
Court:	St. Louis, Missouri
Date:	May 1998
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Aviation/Wrongful Death Plaintiff was a passenger on board Valuejet Flight 592 on May 11, 1998, when it crashed into the Florida, Everglades. This McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 took off from Miami, Florida, destined for Atlanta, Georgia. Shortly after takeoff, the flight crew reported smoke in the cabin and cockpit. Apparently, on the morning of May 11, 1996, ValueJet was loaded with many oxygen generators in the plane's forward cargo hold. The generators had been maintained by SabreTech, Inc., which failed to install shipping caps over the percussion caps to prevent accidental initiation of the chemicals. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the conduct of ValueJet, SabreTech, and the Federal Aviation Administration all contributed to this tragedy. Decedent was survived by a husband and two minor children.
Jamie R. Lebovitz

• USAir Flight 427 Defendants Pay $3 Million

Amount:	3,000,000
Court:	U.S. District Court, Western Dist. of Pennsylvania
Date:	September 1999
Plaintiff's Counsel:	Jamie R. Lebovitz
Description: Aviation/Wrongful Death Decedent was a passenger on USAir Flight 427, which crashed on approach to Pittsburgh International Airport on September 8, 1994. The cause of the crash remains undetermined. However, it is believed that the aircraft which was on final approach to Pittsburgh International Airport departed from controlled flight as a result of an uncommanded rudder deflection precipitated by design defect within the rudder power control unit. Decedent is survived by parents, brother, and sister.
Jamie R. Lebovitz