Michael Pisanchyn Jr.

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Michael J. Pisanchyn, Jr. (December 21, 1974 - ) is an American lawyer best known for his skilled, compassionate, and aggressive representation of victims injured as a result of others' negligence and recklessness. Pisanchyn is an honest, truthful, and most of all, a fearless advocate who is willing to stand up for what is right as opposed to doing what is easy. Pisanchyn has had thousands of hearings and has tried numerous cases to verdict, including notable verdicts against Hope Enterprises, Inc., General Motors, Glade Run Lutheran Services, Lippmann Milwaukee Inc., and more.

In one of his first cases, Pisanchyn represented a defendant accused of attempted murder. After a skilled cross-examination, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

Pisanchyn obtained a more than $3 million dollar verdict for the family of a former Hope Enterprises resident, Barbara Maines, in 2012. Maines, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and unable to speak, was under the care of the group home when she was involved in a van accident that left her with a lacerated liver. Police were not called, and the accident was not reported to Maines' family or her medical team until days later—when it was too late. Maines died as a result of the liver laceration. This outrageous conduct is what led the jurors to award $3,118,628 in damages, including $7,284 for funeral costs, $11,343 for medical expenses, and $100,000 in punitive damages. A documentary-style film was created in an effort to mediate the case and has shed light on the conduct of Hope Enterprises.

In the Maines case, the insurance company refused to offer very much to settle the case, stating how much would a jury award a person who was disabled and did not have any “economic damages.” Pisanchyn, who took major issue with this analysis, led the cross-examination and trial presentation. After the verdict, he said that the case was about "trust and betrayal." The verdict was appealed by the defense, but the bid to minimize the wrongful death recovery was upheld by the Superior Court in 2013.

In 2013, Pisanchyn and his firm filed suit again against Hope Enterprises after the choking death of a 30-year-old resident—Nathan McHenry—in January 2011. The suit asked the jury to award the man’s mother more than $600 million in damages from the caretaking agency.

The Barbara Maines case inspired Pisanchyn to give back and help the intellectually and physically disabled, motivating him to start a charity a few years after the trial. Band-Aids, a 501c3 non-profit organization, aims to support children and adults with special needs who have a love of music by providing them once-in-a-lifetime experiences, according to its website.

The first recipient of Band-Aids' opportunities was Austin Davis. Davis' dreams came true in February 2017 when he not only got to attend a Brad Paisley concert, his favorite artist, he also met Paisley in person. His parents, when interviewed by the local news, described what a dream come true it was for their son. Since then, several other recipients have gone to get the full VIP treatment on behalf of Band-Aids—including limo rides to and from the show, private show concierges, and private meet and greets with artists such as Lady Antebellum and Luke Bryan. Luke Bryan has participated in the charity's mission on two separate occasions, even giving one Band-Aids VIP a special shout-out from the stage.

When interviewed by a local publication, Pisanchyn said the driving force for creating these experiences is creating an equal opportunity for those with special needs at these venues. “It’s unfortunate that accommodations for medically fragile individuals are so far away from the stage. We really try to not only get our VIP’s front row, but also bring attention to this issue in an effort to change it. I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t want to be front row at their favorite artist’s concert, but for some people, that’s simply not an option.”

Pisanchyn and his firm took on General Motors in 2016 after a faulty part caused the death of a Dunmore man. GM acknowledged having been aware of the ignition switch issues in many of its models before it issued a recall in February 2014. The ignition switch problem unexpectedly shut off Louis McHale's (decedent) car, causing the steering to become impaired, which led to the crash that ended his life. GM agreed to settle the suit, the terms of which are confidential. However, the settlement negotiated comes from a fund GM set up to compensate victims of the defective switch. According to public documents related to the claims process, at least $1 million in damages, plus $300,000 for each dependent, is paid to family members of victims. That equated to at least $1.9 million for Mr. McHale’s family.

Throughout history, trial lawyers have been critical in ensuring corporations do not put profit over safety. Pisanchyn is one of these passionate advocates, and, like many have said before, sees the courtroom as the great equalizer. In court, and with a skilled attorney by their side, individual citizens can take on large corporations to obtain justice. Keeping with this premise, Pisanchyn represented the family of a 15-year-old resident at Glade Run Lutheran Services in Zelienople, PA, whose family hired Pisanchyn and the Pisanchyn Law Firm to file suit on behalf of their son after allegations of abuse at the hands of other residents were ignored, in May 2016. According to the suit, the center’s employees allowed it to happen and responded to his complaints with verbal abuse rather than reporting it to the police. The suit was filed after state inspections uncovered a litany of abuse, neglect, and disregard for the residents the center was charged to care for. The state found evidence of children engaging in sexual activities with other children on campus—of which Pisanchyn's client was one. After the investigation, the center was stripped of its license. Despite the egregious findings of the state's inspection, no charges were filed. Mandated changes such as removal of staff, bringing on new employees, and adding security cameras were put in place.

Pisanchyn's suit argued that these changes were not enough to protect the children under the center's care. According to an attorney at Pisanchyn's firm, the young client was only excited at the thought that the center would cease to exist after his case. The license for the center was officially revoked in November 2016, granting the wish of Pisanchyn's client. After implementing the state-mandated changes, Glade Run was given a provisional license but came to lose that license after the state cited two more cases where the supervision had not improved.

In total, Pisanchyn and his firm filed three separate suits against the center on behalf of three victims. The latest suit was filed in January 2019.

The initial case filed against Glade Run was confidentially settled in late December 2018, but reports indicated that the settlement would enable the family to adequately care for the victim and his needs for the rest of his life.

A fierce advocate for victims of tractor-trailer accidents, Pisanchyn filed suit and obtained a $1.5 million settlement on behalf of a man who lost his life in a tragic motorcycle-tractor-trailer accident. The family hired Pisanchyn and his firm to represent them in the matter. Thomas M. Burke Sr., was riding his 2004 Harley Davidson motorcycle on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Carbon County on October 4, 2013. The driver of a tractor-trailer owned by Lily Transportation Corp. of New Jersey moved into Mr. Burke’s lane and struck his motorcycle, pushing it into a barrier. Mr. Burke was pronounced dead at the scene. Of the settlement, Pisanchyn said the following:

“The Pisanchyn Law Firm believes that this settlement sends a message to other trucking companies that if they do not follow the rules … putting our community in danger, there will be severe consequences.”

2017 was a busy year as usual for Pisanchyn as he obtained several millions of dollars for clients in settlements and verdicts while still filing suit on behalf of several other injury victims.

In July 2017, the firm fought for justice on behalf of the family of a physician who took his own life after wanton disregard by Wilkes-Barre General Hospital staff. Dr. Steven Allan Azaravich detailed his suicidal ideations to hospital staff during a psychiatric evaluation just two days before taking his own life. On July 20, 2015, Azaravich called 911 to report he was suicidal and was taken to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital. Once at Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, Azaravich stated that he had been contemplating taking his own life for weeks. In spite of this confession, the hospital staff did not contact his treating psychiatrist in Virginia, or any member of his family, and discharged him on his own recognizance roughly eight hours after initial admission. The morning of July 22, 2015, Azaravich's parents found he had hanged himself in the basement. The lawsuit alleges gross negligence on the part of the providers, who failed to properly diagnose Steven Azaravich, failed to get him proper help, and failed to alert his family and psychiatrist of his suicidal thoughts.

In a statement about the case, Pisanchyn said, “Inexplicably and despite all the signs and symptoms that were relayed to the doctors and specifically documented in the medical records, a few short hours later patient Azaravich was discharged by the physicians and hospital.”

Pisanchyn obtained more than $300,000 for the victim of a drunk driving accident in September 2017. The Lackawanna County jury sent a message to the defendant in the case by awarding over a quarter of a million dollars for his “outrageous conduct.” Specifically, the jury awarded $311,498.45, with the largest portion ($200,000) toward punitive damages. It took just one day to present the case and about one hour of deliberation by the jury to come to this award.

Another drunk driving accident victim obtained justice thanks to Pisanchyn’s representation. In 2009, Pisanchyn’s client was struck by a drunk driver whose “extreme” level of intoxication caused this collision and consequently irreparable harm to the plaintiff—back pain and ongoing cervical spine issues that were listed by a physician as caused by the accident. The defendant’s blood alcohol level was .225. The defendant was also found to be on duty during the time of the accident, enabling Pisanchyn and his firm to seek compensation for the pain and suffering caused from not only the defendant, but his employer for their negligence. The trial was held in Luzerne County, PA, and resulted in a $900,000 verdict.

Lippmann Milwaukee and B.S. Quarries Inc. agreed to a combined $6.5 million settlement to the family of a young man who was brutally killed in a rock crusher while on the job. Lippmann Milwaukee, the manufacturer of the rock crusher, agreed to $2.5 million, while B.S. Quarries agreed to pay $4 million. The biggest piece of evidence of negligence in the case was Pisanchyn's star witness—a former employee of the quarry, who testified in depositions that employees were required to climb over the mouth of the rock crusher. Wesley Sherwood—the deceased plaintiff—fell into the crusher while performing this action. The former employee went on to testify that the quarry held a secret meeting instructing employees to say they did not see how Sherwood fell into the machine.

In a statement after the settlement, Pisanchyn said, “Pisanchyn Law Firm is hopeful that even though Wesley Sherwood’s family had to endure all of this pain and suffering, hopefully the amount of this award will send a message to both the rock crushing industry and the quarry industry as a whole that it must do a better job to protect common workers who operate these crushing machines at quarries throughout the United States.”

In September 2018, Pisanchyn filed suit on behalf of a 2-year-old boy that was viciously attacked by a wolf-hybrid dog. The dog and its owner had already run into trouble previously in another attack. According to the suit that was filed, Cannon was sheltering a “dangerous dog” that aggressively attacked Hayden Davis. The result of the attack left Davis with a broken arm, and cuts and puncture wounds that required reconstructive surgery. The complaint went on to explain that “despite knowledge of the animal/dog’s violent propensities and history of attacks, (Cannon) failed to put in place reasonable safeguards to protect the plaintiff and persons like them,” the complaint says. “As a result of (Cannon’s) outrageous and reckless conduct, (Hayden) was attacked by (Cannon’s) animal/dog and suffered injuries and damages.”

Bethany Children’s Home found itself the defendant in another of Pisanchyn's cases to protect those most vulnerable—residents of group care homes. In this case, a 16-year-old girl who was placed under the care of the home was able to flee the residence due to a lack of supervision, ultimately leading to her death. In court, Pisanchyn argued that Bethany employees were negligent for allowing Carley—the victim—to leave the grounds without being supervised as required under the law. After a 12-day trial in Philadelphia, the jury awarded Carley's father $2.9 million due to the neglect and disregard for her life shown by employees at Bethany Children’s Home. ^]  The Philadelphia Legal Intelligencer stated this was in the top 25 verdicts obtained that year.

In early 2020, Pisanchyn obtained another multi-million dollar ($2.3 million) order for the family of a man that was killed by a drunk driver. This case was unique in that Pisanchyn sought compensation from the bars that overserved the driver—in addition to the driver—under Dram Shop Law.

Dram Shop Liability is a statute in 30 different states—Pennsylvania being one—that allows liquor-licensed establishments to be held liable for selling or serving alcohol to individuals who cause injuries or death as a result of their intoxication.

Scott Bitler—Pisanchyn's client—was injured in a crash involving a drunken driver on May 15, 2016, and was paralyzed until his death on February 19, 2019, at the age of 60. According to the order, employees of the Sunbury Social Club and Bob Washington's Tavern overserved Cody McCollum on May 15, 2016. According to court documents, Sunbury Social Club and its bar personnel must pay $280,000; Bob Washington's Tavern and its personnel must pay $15,000; McCollum must pay $100,000; vehicle owners Susan and Ben McCollum must pay $250,000; Sunbury Social Club director David Ross must pay $100,000; Sunbury Social Club Director Gregory Hoffman must pay $1.3 million; Progressive Insurance must pay $250,000; and Tuscaror's Wayne Insurance Company must pay $30,000. The money can be paid through insurance policies, if applicable, according to court documents. This was said to be the largest settlement obtained in Northumberland County history.

After courts reopened post-COVID-19 outbreak, Pisanchyn obtained a history-making verdict in Bradford County for a drunk driving victim. The verdict was one of the very first post-COVID plaintiff's verdicts. At $500,000, it was also one of the largest verdicts returned in Bradford County Court history, especially because the victim was 66 years old, had no minor children, died very shortly after the accident, and there was no economic claim, only damages for pain and suffering. Despite all of these practically insurmountable odds, and as he has done with numerous other cases, Pisanchyn presented the case before the jury and won.

Pisanchyn has also represented persons and families out of the State of Pennsylvania. He filed notice that, on behalf of his clients, he intended to sue the state of Maryland and potentially group home LifeLine, Inc. in Maryland after the corporation's negligence led to the death of a 10-year-old boy (Damand Martin), and caused the severe illness of another resident, 19-year-old David Davis. Per the notice, and as reported by the Baltimore Sun, Pisanchyn stated, "that the death of 10-year-old Damand Martin and the infection that 19-year-old David Davis contracted were “caused as a result” of Maryland’s continuing to “fund, license, contract” with LifeLine “when [the state] knew or should have known the LifeLine provided woefully inadequate care to its residents.” The Baltimore Sun investigated the group home and found that, in addition to Pisanchyn's clients, five disabled adult residents also died in the company's care. The state of Maryland continued to fund the home, despite citing the corporation for inadequate care and shutting down the facility after two incidents in 2010 and 2011.

Pisanchyn currently is a principal at the Pisanchyn Law Firm and continues to represent clients throughout Pennsylvania and the United States, depending upon if he believes the case to be of significant importance.

References

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