US: Lawyer who suffered brain injury receives landmark $66m compensation payout

Brooke Taylor

Brooke Taylor, partner in the Seattle, Washington office of litigation firm Susman Godfrey LLP and a member of the firm’s executive committee, was left unable to practice law after her car was struck by a Seattle Fire Department ambulance in 2016.

Over the past two-and-a-half years, she has undergone brain surgery and extensive inpatient rehabilitation and received round-the-clock care, Above the Law reports.

Ms Taylor’s family sought compensation for her injuries, including reimbursement for lost future income.

The lawyer was 38 years old at the time of the crash and recognised as a national rising star. Susman Godfrey claims that it has, in recent years, “achieved the best profit-per-partner results in the nation”.

The city of Seattle said Ms Taylor’s income history was a “significant factor” in the $65.75 million settlement, the largest in Seattle’s history and thought to be the largest in Washington state history.

According to Above the Law, it is likely among the largest ever personal injury settlements paid to an individual in the US.