$3.5 million settlement is won by a Decorah lawyer in a case involving a State of Iowa snowplow

A Decorah law firm has announced a $3.5 million settlement with the State of Iowa in a car accident case involving a state-owned snowplow. According to the State of Iowa's legal counsel, it is the largest personal injury settlement ever entered into by the State of Iowa in a civil case. 

The case involves a State of Iowa snowplow driving westbound on U.S. Highway 30 in Carroll County. The plow driver failed to raise his wing snowplow before crossing abridge.  The plow blade struck the guardrail of the bridge, sending it across the highway, hitting a car being driven in the opposite direction by 36-year-old Nathan Thompson of Glidden.  He was taken to the hospital with a cerebral hemorrhage as well as multiple fractures including his ankle, foot, toe, and wrist.    

"This is a clear-cut case in which a plow operator failed to perform his job duties in accordance with policy and training,"said lead trial lawyer Nick Rowley of Decorah. The settlement with the State of Iowa was reached two weeks before the case was scheduled to go to trial.