Cybex International, Inc., a leading manufacturer of exercise equipment, announced earlier this month that it has reached a settlement in the product liability litigation, Barnhard v. Cybex International, Inc.
As part of the settlement, Cybex will pay 31-year-old Natalie M. Barnhard approximately $19.5 million in exchange for her releasing the company from the existing and any future claims.
The incident occurred when Barnhard, 5-foot-1 and 110 pounds, was crushed when she did a shoulder stretch using a 608-pound Cybex leg extension machine. The machine was not secured to the floor, and thus fell on her. Barnhard was left a quadriplegic.
In December 2010, a jury awarded Barnhard a $66.5 million personal injury judgment. An appellate court later trimmed that award to $44.5 million.
“It’s not the full amount, but given (Cybex’s) precarious financial condition, we felt it was the right thing to do,” Kevin J. English, one of two lawyers from Phillips Lytle who represented Barnhard, told the media. “Natalie’s a great person. She had no desire to force a bankruptcy.”
Michael R. Law, also of Phillips Lytle, said the settlement “is certainly very close to the largest settlement in Western New York history.”
He added that Barnhard “is an amazing woman. She continues to work day by day, anywhere from three to six hours a day, trying to recover as much as she can. Her mental outlook rivals the best of the best.”
Cybex has reportedly offered her a seven-year consulting contract to help it develop exercise equipment for the disabled.
