Joseph J. Packtor, Attorney

Joseph Packtor has been an active trial lawyer in Connecticut for nearly two decades. During this time he has devoted his practice to helping people who have been injured in accidents or by medical errors obtain full compensation for their losses. In addition to injury cases, Joe also assists clients to resolve complex and often bitter business and financial disputes.

In trials and mediations throughout Connecticut, Joe has recovered substantial verdicts and settlements for clients with serious injuries, and for families who have lost loved ones due to the negligence of others. Joe has amassed a success rate in jury trials of over 90%. His cases include the following: a multi-million dollar recovery for a child who received brain injuries following an assault by an improperly discharged psychiatric patient; a substantial settlement against a hospital for administering an overdose of epinephrine to an allergic patient; a $171,000.00 jury verdict for injuries in an auto accident where the insurance company refused to offer more than $21,000.00; a $512,000 jury verdict for the drowning death of a mentally handicapped woman at a local campground.

Joe grew up in Hamden, Connecticut. He served with distinction in the United States Army as a Reconnaissance Specialist for four years. He graduated from Duke University School of Law with honors in 1991, where he received the American Jurisprudence Awards in Contracts and Trial Practice. He joined the firm in 2000. Joe now resides in Cheshire with his wife and children where he enjoys coaching youth baseball.

Joe is a member of the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association and the American Association for Justice, formerly the American Trial Lawyers Association. He is licensed in the State of Connecticut and admitted before the United States District Courts for the Districts of Connecticut, and the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Significant representations:

• Obtained $512,000 jury verdict in wrongful death action arising from the drowning of a mentally handicapped woman at a Connecticut campground pond.
• Obtained $300,000 settlement in medical malpractice claim against hospital which gave accidental overdose of epinephrine to patient suffering from an allergic reaction; the overdose of epinephrine resulted in temporary cardiac arrest.
• Obtained $165,000 settlement from BJ's Wholesale Warehouse where client tripped over on empty wooden pallet and fractured her ankle.
• Obtained substantial settlement in a probate dispute concerning changes of beneficiary on annuities using a suspect power of attorney.
• Obtained $240,000 settlement for client involved in low-impact automobile accident resulting in lumbar disc injury requiring surgical repair.
• Obtained multi-million dollar settlement as co-counsel in medical malpractice action against psychiatrist and hospital which released an unstable patient who subsequently assaulted his infant son, causing massive brain injuries.
• Obtained substantial recovery in medical malpractice action against a psychiatric hospital arising from the wrongful death of a patient who was improperly restrained and suffered cardiac arrest.
• Co-counsel in a medical malpractice/wrongful death action arising from a botched cardiac catheterization.
• Obtained $275,000 settlement arising from slip & fall on defective steps resulting in serious ankle injury and multiple surgeries.
• Obtained $180,000 judgment against Macy's arising from trip & fall over security chain resulting in serious knee injury and surgery.
• Obtained $83,000 jury verdict for 18 year-old woman who suffered a lumbar sprain with a 5-7% permanent impairment in rear-end
  automobile accident; the last settlement offer from insurer during trial was $10,000.
• Obtained substantial settlement for trucker who was injured in multi-car highway accident involving two fatalities; Connecticut Insurance Guaranty Association was forced to step in after the insurer for wrongdoer became insolvent.
• Obtained $171,000 jury verdict for 49 year-old male who was injured in a side-swipe motor vehicle accident; client incurred $4,700 in medical bills, $1,000 in lost wages and was diagnosed with cervical radiculopathy, disc herniations and a 10% impairment to the spine; the last settlement offer from insurer prior to trial was $21,000.
• Obtained substantial settlement for woman who was thrown from horse-drawn carriage after horse was "spooked" by passing car.
• Obtained $90,000 jury verdict where school bus jumped curb and ran over student's foot resulting in a severe sprain and $7,500 in medical bills.
• Lead counsel for an international pipe and steel company in dispute concerning multi-million dollar sales which were claimed to be defective.
• Co-counsel for major real estate developer in action in which seller of commercial shopping centers alleged developer had made misrepresentations and had tortiously interfered with contract between seller and its employee. See Beckenstein Enterprises-Prestige Park, LLC v. Lichtenstein, 37 Conn. L. Rptr. 627, 2004 WL 1966863 (Conn. Super. Aug. 11, 2004).
• Lead counsel in successfully resolving multiple intra-family lawsuits stemming from the transfer of a family business.
• Lead counsel for a national insurance adjusting company in successfully obtaining a permanent injunction against its former employee and his new employer based on violations of employee's non-compete agreement, breach of fiduciary duty, tortuous interference with business relations, and violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA). See Custard Ins. Adjusters, Inc. v. Nardi, 2000 WL 562318 (Conn. Super. Ct. 2000).
• Lead counsel for the Connecticut Lottery in successfully defending a class action arising from a printing error in the manufacture of an instant ticket game. See Plourde v. Connecticut Lottery Corporation, 2000 WL 1918014 (Conn. Super. Ct. 2000).
• Co-counsel for land developer who obtained summary judgment against municipality for due process violation arising from the improper revocation of an inland wetlands and watercourses permit; multi-million dollar settlement achieved.
• Co-counsel for police officers accused of wrongful arrest; summary judgment obtained on basis of qualified immunity. See Lukos v. Bettencourt, 23 F.Supp.2d 175 (D.Conn. 1998).
• Counsel for the Connecticut Lottery Corporation in an action by holders of one winning Lotto ticket claiming that they were entitled to entire prize pool, even though another winning ticket had been sold, but was never presented; the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that ticket holders' share of the winnings is determined on the date of the drawing based on the number of winning tickets sold, and not the number of tickets presented. See Fullerton v. Dept. of Rev. Services, 245 Conn. 601 (1998).

• Lukos v. Bettencourt 1998

• Fullerton v. Dept. of Revenue Services, Gaming Policy Board 1998

• Custard v. Ins. Adjusters, Inc. v. Nardi 2000