State Supreme Court OKs NJ as Venue for South African Accident Case
The State Supreme Court recently upheld a lower court decision by ruling that New Jersey was an appropriate venue for hearing a personal injury lawsuit concerning a South African motor vehicle accident involving U.S. citizens. (1)
The accident, which occurred in September 2006 about 75 miles southwest of Johannesburg, involved three U.S. citizens: David Edmonds, an employee of General Dynamics-Ordinance and Tactical Systems, Inc., and resident of Florida; and two New Jersey residents, Amin Yousef and Crane Robinson, both civilian employees of the U.S. Army. According to reports, Edmonds was driving a rented van in which Yousef and Robinson were passengers, when he allegedly ran a stop sign and crashed into another vehicle. (2)
Robinson required surgery in South Africa as a result of the accident and was later treated for leg and neck injuries when he returned to the U.S. Yousef, who was thrown from the vehicle, suffered severe head trauma. He was treated in South Africa for a month before returning to the U.S., where he continued to receive treatment for brain injuries for years. He is now legally blind, suffers cognitive and speech damages and is confined to a wheelchair. (2)