December 13, 2012

The family of a 20-year-old Pennsylvania college student has reached a settlement with both the University of Pennsylvania and a local Philadelphia business after filing a wrongful death lawsuit. According to Action 6 News, the family will receive around $4 million.

The lawsuit claimed that on January 1, 2011, the young man had illegally purchased alcohol at a Philadelphia retailer, which he then consumed at a party at the Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity house on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. At around 3:00 a.m., the intoxicated young man fell roughly 30-feet over a stairwell railing in the house. The impact of the fall left the victim with a traumatic brain injury that claimed his life four days after the incident.

His family filed the Pennsylvania Wrongful Death lawsuit a short time later, claiming that the railing inside the home was defectively low and was a hazard that directly caused the victim’s injuries. The suit also alleged under state dram laws that the store who sold the young man alcohol underage was also partially to blame for the young man’s death.

The family settled the case with the University for a sum of $3.4 million, while the store who sold the young man alcohol agreed to a $375,000 settlement.

The Pennsylvania Personal Injury Lawyers with Lundy Law hope the settlements will help bring closure on the tragedy to the family of the victim.