LONG ISLAND, NY — Congratulations to Partner Maryanne Kolenovsky, serving as lead trial counsel, with Zabeen S. Rahman, Of Counsel, serving as second chair in securing a defense verdict in a chiropractic malpractice case tried before a jury in Nassau County Supreme Court.

The plaintiff alleged that the defendant chiropractor caused two meniscal tears in his right knee while performing a hamstring stretch during the course of treatment. Plaintiff attributed both injuries entirely to the chiropractic manipulation.

The defense successfully established, through the testimony of two experts, that it was biomechanically impossible for a hamstring stretch of the type performed to cause tears to the menisci of the knee. Expert testimony was presented by both a chiropractor and an orthopedist, who collectively demonstrated the anatomical and mechanical impossibility of the alleged mechanism of injury.

The defense further presented compelling evidence of plaintiff’s extensive pre-existing medical history, including prior joint injuries, prior joint replacement surgery, and a documented diagnosis of osteoarthritis, conditions that provided an independent and alternative explanation for any knee pathology plaintiff claimed to have sustained. Ms. Rahman conducted the direct examination of the defendant’s orthopedic expert witness and argued all Motions in Limine.

Following trial, the jury deliberated for approximately three hours before returning a unanimous verdict in favor of the defendant. The result reflects the strength of the expert testimony presented and the effective cross-examination of plaintiff’s witnesses.

This verdict reflects the exceptional skill, diligence, and professional acumen brought to bear by both members of the trial team. Ms. Kolenovsky and Ms. Rahman’s ability to anticipate and neutralize plaintiff’s theory of liability, anchoring the defense in sound biomechanical principles and the plaintiff’s documented medical history, were instrumental in securing this outcome.