Debra Bogaards, Esq.

• Plaintiff got into an auto accident and learned that she had no auto insurance as her insurance had lapsed. As a result, plaintiff had to hire a defense attorney to represent her in the ensuing litigation and settle the personal injury lawsuit in mediation. Then, plaintiff sued her insurance broker for negligence, alleging that her broker failed to put her on autopay so her insurance policy wouldn't lapse. The case settled at mediation for the amount of attorneys' fees paid and the settlement monies.
• This uninsured motorist claim arises out of a four-vehicle low impact rear end accident. The driver's parents, visiting from Vietnam, alleged a variety of soft tissue injuries resulting in a visit to the local emergency room as well as about 30 chiropractic treatments. This first party mediation resulted in a payment to each claimant. The UIM policy limits were six-figure. (The mediation hearing lasted only 20 minutes).
• Plaintiff, now age 18, was a backseat passenger in a stopped Tesla. The 16 y.o. driver of the VW Beetle behind the Tesla lightly tapped the Tesla when he was rolling to a stop. The sole property damage to the Tesla was a broken rear light reflector and to the VW Beetle was a license plate bracket. Photos showed almost no property damage. Plaintiff claimed migraines, neck, back and shoulder pain although she continued playing softball and soccer while in high school, and travelled to Ireland where she went ziplining and completed a ropes course. Treatment was quite sporadic, and mostly physical therapy. Both the IME doctor and treating rheumatologist diagnosed chronic fatigue syndrome/pain amplification syndrome or fibromyalgia although the defense doctor questioned causation. The case settled.
• Plaintiff, while working at 5 a.m., walked out between two parked cars into the street in a sleepy residential neighborhood, and was struck by a passing car. The defendant driver's insurance policy limits were offered to both the w.c. plaintiff and the individual plaintiff. The mediation focused on dividing up the policy limits between the w.c. carrier and the individual plaintiff. A waiver of credit was part of the negotiated settlement.
• Plaintiff, a cyclist, was hit by a car. Liability was stipulated. Plaintiff suffered a wrist injury which, after two years of conservative treatment, was going to require surgery. She also had knee and ankle complaints. She alleged that she is unable to work as a documentary film maker because she is unable to focus her camera and carry heavy camera equipment with her weakened wrist. While this was her passion and chosen career, now she has a sedentary job at a news station as a producer. The case settled.

• Plaintiff was stopped to make a left turn, when the defendant driver rear-ended her car at high speed, pushing it into a center divider and totaling her car. There were dramatic photos of the point of rest and the smashed car. Plaintiff underwent two years of conservative treatment, including a dozen injections. Finally, she underwent both back and neck surgeries. Plaintiff has been unable to work since. The Howell medical specials, worker's compensation lien, and additional wages were lost. The case settled for the mediator's proposal.
• Plaintiff, a 74 y.o. pedestrian, was hit in the crosswalk by the 30 y.o. defendant driver who fled the scene. Plaintiff suffered a subdural hematoma, multiple fractures and P.T.S.D. Plaintiff's dog, Lola, was killed in the accident. Unfortunately, defendant had a minimal insurance policy, earned a small salary and lived at home with his parents. At mediation, defendant was able to contribute out of his pocket to settle the case.
• Handled case brought by a Harley Davidson motorcyclist against a van making an abrupt left turn, thereby cutting him off. No comparative fault found by either expert. Motorcyclist suffered a below knee amputation and lung issues during Covid hospitalization.
• Mediated a claim brought by a day laborer/gardener gathering his tools out of the back of his truck parked at the curb in front of a house. A rideshare driver hit him, causing the day laborer a significant back injury requiring surgery as well as a mild TBI. Expert reports from the accident reconstruction expert, pulmonary functional capacity expert, orthopedic surgeon, life care plan expert and neuropsychologist were reviewed. The rideshare company asked for the mediator’s evaluation, after reviewing deposition excerpts of the parties and experts.
• Handled case involving an attorney who fell asleep at the wheel near her house after a long trip. Her car pinned a woman who was getting something out of the trunk of her parked car. Plaintiff suffered an above-knee amputation. The policy limits of the insurance as well as a significant cash contribution settled the case.
• Handled a case involving a drunk driver leaving a bar in the East Bay and driving his friend’s pickup truck, which he backed up into the rear of the pickup truck parked directly behind him in the bar’s parking lot, pinning another bar patron in between the trucks. The woman suffered a significant hematoma and leg injury requiring a year of repeated needle aspirations.
• Mediated a case involving a motorcyclist who was hit by a truck which made a u-turn. While liability was disputed, the motorcyclist had his leg amputated below the knee.
• Mediated a pedestrian hit by a car who suffered shoulder, hip, and knee injuries. A functional capacity evaluation was offered by plaintiff in support of $50,000 in Howell specials with no surgery.
• Mediated a wrongful death of a young woman whose pickup truck was struck by a tractor-trailer making a lane change, causing the pickup truck to veer off the road and down an embankment, striking a tree. Defendant disputed liability, alleging that the decedent is the one who made a last-minute decision to change lanes.
• Mediated a catastrophic injury case involving a construction worker who was washing his hands at the wash station inside a construction site when a semi-tractor suddenly drove forward and crushed plaintiff’s lower extremities, pinning him to the wash station.
• Mediated the case of two plaintiffs, who were passengers in their friend’s car, and on their way to a bar after consuming some whiskey at home. It was a disputed red light intersection case. One of the two plaintiffs suffered a catastrophic injury: TBI, colon injury, small bowel obstruction, hip pain, etc.
• Mediated complex liability case of security guard working at an evening event held on the pier. After the event, another company had its workers loading waste from the event to remove from the site. In the pier parking lot, a diesel generator that powered light for the event went out. The security guard drove his rental car to investigate why the light was out. The security guard hit one of the waste removal workers. Plaintiff suffered a TBI and orthopedic injuries. There were multiple defendants who questioned liability and the severity of the TBI.
• Handled a case of a pedestrian struck in the crosswalk by a private bus turning right. The plaintiff pedestrian suffered a Lisfranc injury with the need for surgery. Plaintiff had restrictions on her range of motion especially when playing with her young children and a visible limp.
• Mediated a cyclist hit by a left turning vehicle, suffering a wrist injury requiring four surgeries due to an infection from the spica splint. The defense disputed liability but the policy limits were very low.
• Handled a vespa scooter case involving a rideshare driver who came to a stop in the travel lane to let a passenger exit his car. The rideshare car blocked the scooter operator’s path of travel. The scooter operator suffered orthopedic injuries.
• Handled a left turning car that collided with an electric skateboard in the crosswalk, coming from the sidewalk on the edge of U.C. Berkeley’s campus. An accident reconstruction expert opined about when the electric skateboard could be seen by the driver of the car.
• Mediated a case involving the passenger in a taxi cab. The passenger was reaching for her purse in the backseat when the taxi cab was rearended. The impact allegedly propelled her forward into the cab’s divider. Plaintiff, the passenger, suffered a nasal fracture and underwent a rhinoplasty.
• Mediated a case of a box truck that made a left turn in front of plaintiff. Plaintiff suffered a blunt trauma to his chest, needed lumbar facet joint injections and future surgery, as well as a meniscus tear.
• Mediated a three-vehicle rear end accident. Plaintiff who suffered a shoulder injury had a subsequent bike accident before having her shoulder surgery.
• Handled a pedestrian case of an elderly woman who got off of the MUNI bus and crossed the street at night to go to the supermarket to buy her dinner. The parking lot of the supermarket had confusing signage to control traffic, and the city allowed jaywalking. The elderly woman suffered significant injuries. Plaintiff’s counsel had its accident reconstruction expert film for 24 hours the flow of traffic and pedestrians in the area to support its theory of liability.
• Handled a case where a pedestrian, actually sitting on a designated bench at a car wash, got hit by her own car that had been washed, and was being driven to the pickup area when the car wash attendant suddenly accelerated in reverse. She suffers significant injuries.
• Handled a pedestrian versus auto case that occurred when the plaintiff was crossing the street in the crosswalk, and a driver coming uphill hit her without stopping. She suffered a leg injury that required surgery and a long period of rehabilitation.
• Handled wrongful death case that occurred when a driver turned right into an area where traffic backed up on the railroad tracks for a red light. That driver was instantly killed. Her children sued Caltrans.
• Mediated auto versus pedestrian case where the driver made a right turn, hitting the pedestrian, who had already entered the crosswalk. The driver claimed the sun was in her eyes. The pedestrian suffered multiple orthopedic injuries.
• Handled a crash in Tahoe due to extremely icy conditions on the road when a driver crossed the double yellow line and hit an oncoming car head on. The family inside of the car, all suffered injuries, with the most significant being a broken nose and eye issues.

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• Mediated trip and fall case involving dangerous condition from planter boxes blocking the path on a sidewalk in front of two retail stores in Sausalito. Plaintiff suffered a significant ankle injury. Apportionment between the City, two store owners, and property manager was key to a successful mediation.
• Handled a claim against the City and nearby supermarket for the dangerous condition created by placement of the Haight Street bus stop on the sidewalk, too far from the pathway across the street to the supermarket. The elderly plaintiff was hit by a rideshare car at night when plaintiff got off the MUNI bus, and walked across the street to buy her dinner. Plaintiff suffered severe injuries requiring surgery.
• Handled a wrongful death case against the city caused by a diseased Eucalyptus tree on an isolated public walking path to the supermarket. Two young sons’ 40-year-old single mother died when a branch of the tree fell on her head. Both sides’ tree experts agreed as to the tree being diseased and, therefore, there was liability and settlement for the policy limits.
• Mediated a case involving a grandmother who was walking in the City of Larkspur and suddenly fell when a broken manhole cover on the sidewalk gave way. She suffered a severe ankle injury requiring surgery. Defendants claimed that work being done on nearby driveways by a construction company may have caused the manhole cover to break.
• Handled a case involving a woman walking on the sidewalk in Union Square in San Francisco who tripped and fell over a divot in the sidewalk, suffering an ankle injury requiring surgery. Recent laws shifted liability from the City to the retail store owner.

• Mediated lawsuit against public high school and the school district in connection with the repeated sexual assault and grooming over time of the tennis team’s star player by the popular tennis coach. Plaintiff claimed that the school district was negligent in its hiring and supervision of the tennis coach.
• Handled sexual abuse of a middle school young girl by her roommate due to the lack of supervision by the residential home.
• Mediated claim brought by a female patient against the private hospital for its doctor who masturbated behind the female patient on several occasions. The defense team brought the doctor, medical practice counsel, private counsel and criminal counsel. The defense team also insisted on an in-person mediation.
• Handled Sonoma University case involving a male student who videotaped without consent his sexual intercourse with his girlfriend who was passed out on his bed.
• Handled a case of a 13-year-old student whose significant self-harm, suicidal ideation, and depression led her for overnight hospitalization at the MGH, followed by a stint in a residential home. There, she was subjected to peer-on-peer abuse and forced into sexual acts with her older roommate due to lack of supervision.

• Mediated the case of a tennis rockstar who was sexually molested by his high school tennis coach when the statute of limitations was reopened. Defendant public school district had notice of the tennis coach’s molestation of many students.

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• Mediated a case of a serious cyclist who was riding with other cyclists on a casual weekend ride to Pt. Reyes. The driver of a car tried to pass, while plaintiff and a cyclist were riding two abreast. The driver of the car denied any liability. Fortunately, the cyclist’s injuries were modest. The cyclist and her counsel wanted to send a strong message to the driver about her conduct.
• Handled the case of a left turning driver in Menlo Park who hit a peloton of Sunday cyclists in brightly colored jerseys. Injuries ranged from slight to very severe.
• Handled the case of a cyclist in Oakland who was hit by a truck that decided to back up into a parking space.
• Mediated the case of a cyclist who was cut off by a right hand turning vehicle in the Mission district. The cyclist suffered clavicle and shoulder injuries.
• Handled the case of a cyclist hit as a car was waved on by stopped traffic to turn left. The cyclist suffered a bad wrist injury that got infected by the spica splint given to him by urgent care, that misdiagnosed his fracture. He underwent 5 wrist surgeries.

• Mediated the case of a cyclist who got doored in Sausalito.

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• A lovely 69 y.o. woman who has a below knee amputation was using her crutches to go into the local laundromat. She tripped and fell over a two inch lip on a threshold that was not visible. Her sprained wrist and swollen knee required physical therapy, occupational therapy, and other treatment. Liability was admitted but the value of the case was in dispute, as plaintiff had falls both before and after this accident. The case settled.
• Handled the claim against a private museum when an elementary school student suffered a partial finger amputation due to his curiosity with an interactive exhibit. There were stanchions and signage for adults, but not meant for children.
• Handled the wrongful death action of the baby of a young father/gang member who was shot during a party at an Airbnb home in Oakland.
• Mediated the trip and fall of a 91-year-old woman in a supermarket with disputed liability involving a femur fracture and surgery.
• Mediated the claim of a female plaintiff who jumped out of a limousine stuck on the train tracks as a wine country train came barreling towards the limousine. Apportionment amongst the four defendants was key, with an MSJ pending. The case had been mediated with another mediator for two full days without any offer.

• Mediated a case involving a traumatic brain injury of a young man working in the parking lot of Fort Mason after an event due to inadequate lighting.
• Handled case involving traumatic brain injury arising from a construction worker doing work inside of a dental office who stepped outside onto the deck for a break. The deck collapsed due to dry rot.
• Handled toxic tort case caused by scrap yard’s hydraulic oil line of its crane that ruptured, causing oil to spray onto the next-door neighbor marble store’s marble inventory held in its outside yard. In addition to monetary damages, the marble owner sought injunctive relief requiring the scrap yard to cease operating its scrap loader near the fence line.
• Handled a case involving ski collision at Palisades resort.
• Mediation involving a dance club in Oakland. Plaintiff was a female patron at the dance club. Patrons nearby started fighting behind her. She was struck on the head by the butt of a glass beer bottle. Plaintiff suffered a serious injury to her eye, facial scarring and PTSD.
• Handled case brought by a retired judge who tripped and fell on her way to volunteer at the League of Women Voters. She suffered a severe wrist injury, that necessitated surgery with an exterior rod.
• Handled case involving the trampling of a concert goer due to the lack of security at the venue for Kanye West’s concert, on the day he dropped his first album. Defendants included concert promoter, security company and venue.
• Mediated case of a customer at a retail store. As the customer was paying for her items, a heavy plexiglass Covid barrier with metal edging which divided the customer from the cashier fell hard onto her. Plaintiff claimed TBI, concussion and intractable headaches.
• Mediated a case involving homeowner’s insurance under a reservation of rights. Two couples whose husbands were old military buddies got together for dinner in one of their homes. The parties all engaged in sexual acts with one another that night. One couple filed this lawsuit for defamation after the other couple claimed they were raped and then contacted the employers of the other couple to report their rape.
• Mediated case for plaintiff, a professional personal trainer, who suffered a head injury when a cable broke on a machine at the gym, causing mild TBI, concussion and daily headaches. The gym failed to save the gym equipment.
• Mediated a case for plaintiff who went to a supermarket to buy a gallon of milk and then slipped on a puddle of water. She suffered an ankle fracture requiring surgery.
• Handled a case where a contractor left a tarp spread out on the floor in a front entry of a home. Plaintiff tripped on that tarp while coming downstairs in her home. She suffered a bad wrist injury which required surgery.
• Handled significant second-degree burn caused from extra hot coffee spilled down the chest of a 5-year-old girl. Her mother was paying with her credit card at the cash register at a book store’s café. The barista moved the coffee cup over the counter to the mother without first properly securing the lid. The hot coffee left scarring and hyperpigmentation on the Asian girl’s chest. The IME doctor who was the head of the hospital’s burn unit found areas of numbness in the healing burn area over one year later.
• A 91-year-old plaintiff’s trip and fall in a supermarket with disputed liability resulting in a proximal femur fracture requiring surgery for $350,000.

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• Mediated case involving pit bull that got loose when the property manager’s workers left through the defendant’s back gate without making sure the dog was secured. The dog bite a passerby.
• Mediated case involving an electric skateboard that was allegedly defectively designed and manufactured. Plaintiff, who was commuting on his skateboard to the bus stop so he could catch his bus to work, suffered significant injuries when plaintiff flew downhill and the brakes gave out.

• Handled a case brought by a young family who rented an old house on a ranch in West Marin. The wall heater allowed the emission of carbon monoxide poisoning while the family was sleeping at night. Fortunately, the family was taken by ambulance to the hospital for life saving hyperbaric chambers.
• Handled case of two sisters who stayed in an old hotel, and suffered carbon monoxide poisoning from an old heater.

• Plaintiff, a women in her late 80's, is a tenant for over 30 years in a rent controlled apartment in Santa Monica. She alleges in the last year that there is mold, causing her to be cognitively impaired, imbalanced and making her fatigued. She is in and out of hospitals and lives with her adult children rather than moving back into her apartment. There are mold experts on both sides, with negligible findings, if any. The treating physicians do not link the existence of mold to her medical issues. In fact, there is a decades long pre-existing history of these same medical issues. Before trial, this case settled for the mediator's proposal.
• An elderly man bought an investment property, an old single story home, in Oakland. He fixed it up to sell. Then, an old big tree on his next door neighbor's property was diseased and fell onto his home. He brought a claim against his insurance company and later filed a lawsuit in damage to the home. The insurance company alleges that the tree and its removal were not covered claims, the lost rental income was not covered nor was the diminution in value since he lost one potential sale of the house. Furthermore, there is a question whether the damage to the old home was due to the tree or to soil subsidence and settlement. Lastly, the elderly man did the repairs himself, or by paying laborers cash to help him. The obstacles to settlement were (1) the elderly man represented himself although he had an attorney and a separate paralegal in the background who did not understand the insurance policy and coverage, (2) the claims adjustor was not given an opportunity to conduct inspections of the tree and the home in a timely manner and (3) the elderly man had copies of checks and credit card statements, but not other proof. The case settled at mediation for.
• "Plaintiffs allege that their 87 y.o. father was neglected due to elder abuse and his wrongful death at the assisted living facility was due to untreated pressure sores. The assisted living facility where he lived for almost 5 years alleges that his health declined rapidly after a stroke and due to co-morbidities, and the pressure sores were developed in the hospital, not the assisted living facility. He passed away within days of leaving the hospital. Moreover, the death certificate didn't list pressure sores as a cause of death.
• Plaintiffs were wrongfully evicted from a duplex in Sacramento, the new owners intended to move in their parents but decided not to do so. additionally, the new owners didn't hire an attorney to draft the notice of termination of the tenancy so there were glaring errors with the tenant's preservation act. Fortunately for the defense, there was a low rent differential and moving costs. The case settled for the mediator's proposal.
• Mediated a rural rental home with habitability issues (roof leaks, water damage and mold). Defendant denied the existence of any mold, electrical, plumbing, heating, vermin or safety issues.

• Mediated a case involving a tenant alleging short term construction within a commercial unit of the building two floors below interfered with his tenancy.
• Mediated case of tenant claiming sewage leak, rat infestation and gas leak in the apartment building and flooding his apartment.
• Mediated combined habitability/personal injury claims of 18 families/units alleging inadequate heat, sewage back up, flooding, mold contamination, chronic moisture intrusion, electrical issues, assaults on the premises with demand of over $14 million dollars. Defendants included the property owner and property manager, with at least four insurance carriers, coverage counsel and defense counsel. There were several status zoom conferences before the full days of mediation.
• Mediated habitability and constructive eviction claim of tenant who claimed noise problems, race discrimination and rodent infestation. The tenant had some of the same complaints in his next apartment.
• Handled habitability claims of two families living in two separate apartments in deplorable conditions. The landlord was filmed breaking the bars on the bedroom window using a crow bar and slithering into the tenants’ bedroom window. The settlement included a buyout.
• Mediated habitability claims of tenant in an older rental house in a wooded area. The owner of the home had passed away, and his daughter inherited the home. This was her first rental. The tenant claimed a myriad of problems. The property manager that the daughter hired because the tenant was abusive to her kept detailed records of the repairs done.
• Mediated case of young tech couple who rented an apartment, claiming inadequate repairs and two months of mold issues before constructive eviction.

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• Settled dispute where female bartender alleges that the owner of the bar, assaulted her while at work, and owner claims self defense. There is a video that captured some of the assault, and plaintiff also alleges that owner called the female staff demeaning names.
• Plaintiff, the CEO of a new therapy center for students with behavioral disabilities, brought the lawsuit for wrongful termination (age discrimination) and sought profit sharing and equity interests per an employment agreement. The CEO and the owner of the center had been friends for many years before the abrupt termination. Impediments were the emotions of the parties (anger and indignation) as well as some legal challenges of a non-licensed medical employee. The case settled at mediation before the upcoming binding arbitration with AAA. The mediator's proposal was accepted by both parties within an hour.
• Plaintiff brought a wrongful termination lawsuit claiming ADHD discrimination. The employer provided written documentation in the form of emails and text messages between the CEO, HR and supervisor over the course of a month discussing plaintiff's poor performance leading to the decision to terminate and ultimately, the termination with no prior notice of ADHD. One minute before the termination notice was given to the employee, the employee sent an inquiry to HR asking how to apply for a mental disability leave. Plaintiff claims that two months earlier, when he had a one on one meeting with his supervisor, he admitted that he had been unable to meet his goals because he was dealing with computer and phone issues, affecting his "mental health". His employer understood that to be similar to saying "I lost my mind" having to deal with all of the hassle. The mediation settled because the mediator invited plaintiff's counsel to meet with the CEO, and review the P & Ls showing dire financial condition of the company.
• Plaintiff, an ironworker at CONCO in Concord, injured his back and was available for modified work duty for a year and a half. Plaintiff claimed that no accommodation was made nor was the interactive process initiated. Plaintiff thought he was fired. CONCO gave him leave for disability which is an accommodation and moreover, no modified work was available as the construction industry was decimated during the pandemic.
• Mediated a case of a plaintiff sexually harassed by two co-workers at a stone and tile showroom. The defense claimed that the co-workers were not her supervisors and plaintiff was in a consensual relationship with her co-workers. There were text messages and emails.

• Mediated wrongful termination and retaliation of c-level employee who was one of the original starters of the non-profit start up and was due significant past wages.
• Mediated case of employee at NPO whose CEO made unreasonable demands after plaintiff insisted that the letters to donors greatly overrepresented its staff size as well as the number of children served per year. The demands made the employee physically ill and she needed to work from home. Failure of the CEO to accommodate her disability led to retaliation and wrongful termination.
• Mediated case involving for profit organization that put on concerts for charities. Its owner had to let everyone go when the pandemic started. There were three left: the Owner/CEO, the owner’s boyfriend, and the CFO. When the CEO let go the CFO, the CFO turned around and sued for past wages and wrongful termination. There were highly charged emotions since the plaintiff and defendant used to be close friends.
• Mediated case in San Diego involving two female personal fitness trainers who sued the owners of a gym for sexual harassment and back wages. The owners were getting divorced and the deep pocket belonged to one of the owner’s relatives.
• Mediated the case of a female low-level employee who claimed wrongful termination.
• Handled case of female marketing director who was let go as part of a layoff while on her maternity leave.
• Handled case of racial and gender discrimination against a strong black female employee at a driverless start up.
• Handled case of a young employee of one of Elon Musk’s companies who was a whistleblower.
• Handled case of a female scientific writer and sales team member who was terminated after 20 years at her company due to being one of the highest paid employees. The company claimed she did not meet the new sales quotas. She sued for age discrimination.
• Handled the case of a female manager at a tech company who had a disability – ADHD - and was let go after some yelling and other incidents.

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