Plaintiff nets 7 times what arbitrators had awarded
As reported in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin

The arbitrators awarded him 30,000 for an eye injury he sustained at an Oak Forest nightclub.  But Bradley Bothwell rejected the award, took his case to trial in the 1st Municipal District and won a jury verdict of $210,242 on Friday.  It is only the third time since Cook County Circuit Court officials instituted mandatory arbitration in 1991 that a jury has awarded $200,000 or more to a plaintiff who rejected an arbitration panel’s award, said John L. Kirkton, editor of the Cook County Jury Verdict Reporter.  “What generally happens with the arbitration is the juries are more tight-fisted than the arbitrators,” Kirkton said.  In Fact, most of the jurors in this case wanted to give Bothwell even more, according to William S. Wojcik, an Oak Lawn attorney who represented the computer and copier salesman.  Bothwell claimed he was battered on March 22, 1997, by a bouncer at the Xtremz nightclub, after he attempted to climb over a railing at the suburban nightclub to join his wife on the dance floor.  The nightclub is located at 5540 W. 159th St.

“The jury had … settled on $300,000,” Wojcik recounted.  But, as attorneys for the parties later learned, one of the 12 jurors opposed the $300,000 figure, Wojcik said, and the jury compromised by reducing the amount to $210,242.  The award decided Bothwell’s battery claim against Xtremz bouncer Greg Trenter.  The nightclub was held liable for Trenter’s conduct on an agency theory.  Circuit Judge Robert E. Gordon, who presided over the trial, directed a verdict dismissing nightclub owner Douglas Engberg, who had faced a negligent supervision claim.

Bothwell, who was 25 at the time of the incident, did not miss any time from work and can still drive, Wojcik stated.  However, the salesman now has a permanent disability – double vision in the periphery of his sight.  The defense in the case was hampered by conflicting accounts from Engberg and Trenter, according to attorneys for both sides.  Trenter said he was working in the nightclub when Bothwell was injured but claimed the plaintiff was injured in a fight with another patron.  Engberg, however, said Trenter was not working when Bothwell was hurt.

John H. Wilhelm of Bodach, Wilhelm & Mahoney in Naperville represented Xtremz.  He said Monday that he had not yet discussed with his client whether to appeal the verdict.  However, Michael L. Bolos Jr. of Joliet, who represented Trenter, said he is considering seeking a new trial.  Bolos cited as one basis for a retrial the judge’s initial decision to allow into evidence a 5-year-old misdemeanor conviction against Trenter, suggesting “that the guy had a propensity to beat on people.”  Although the judge later instructed the jury to ignore the evidence, the conviction was “so prejudicial that I don’t think there’s any way the jury could have been unbiased,” Bolos said.  Wilhelm was more philosophical: “We presented our case.  The plaintiff presented his case.  He asked for $391,000 and he got $210,000.”

Gerald J. Sramek of Barrett & Sramek in Palos Heights represented Engberg.  Bothwell’s case was transferred to the 1st Municipal District from the Law Division because his medical expenses were only about $2,000, Wojcik said.  The $30,000 awarded to Bothwell by the municipal court arbitration panel was the maximum allowed, Wojcik noted.
Bradley Bothwell v. Xtremz Inc., et al., No. 98 L 12964