A Dallas County jury decided a drunken driver should pay more than $18 million to the family of a Houston lawyer who was forced to retire from practice after suffering a traumatic brain injury in a wreck with the defendant.
John Scott, his wife Kathy Scott and son Patrick Scott were visiting family in Dallas for Christmas when Henry Weatherby Watson crashed into their vehicle on Dec. 26, 2020, trapping Kathy and throwing John from the car, said their lawyer Ben C. Martin of Ben Martin Law Group. A jury deliberated about two and half hours Friday before returning its verdict, awarding damages to all three who were injured in the wreck.
The family feels civil justice was done, Martin told The Texas Lawbook.
“They thought justice was accomplished and they think that, at this point, it’s possible that the driver will take some accountability,” Martin said.
The trial began June 25 and lasted four days in 192nd District Judge Maria Aceves’ court. At the heart of the dispute, Martin said, was whether John Scott’s cognitive problems resulted from the crash. Scott, 68, is currently in a memory care facility in Houston, Martin said.
The defense argued Scott suffered from a brain condition called frontotemporal disorder, which can be hereditary, to dispute his cognitive issues were caused by the wreck, Martin said.
Watson’s lawyer, Bruce Moon of Brown Proctor & Howell, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The biggest part of the case was the fight on whether or not John Scott had suffered a traumatic brain injury in the collision,” Martin said. “This jury verdict would have been much different if the jury had not believed that he had suffered his strike to the head that then led to the cognitive issues he’s had.”
Dr. Paul Schulz, a professor of neurology at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston who treated John Scott, testified by deposition about two and a half hours for the plaintiffs.
Jurors told lawyers after the verdict that his testimony was persuasive.
“The jury told us that they believed the science and the medicine, which the plaintiffs brought to them, and disbelieved the sort of guesswork that the defense seemed to be focusing on,” Martin said.
The driver previously admitted to driving drunk, Martin said, so the plaintiffs did not present evidence about his blood alcohol concentration. Photos from the wreck were shown to the jury.
In criminal court, Watson pled guilty to second-degree felony charges of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury and served 30 days in the county jail, court records show. He entered a pre-trial intervention agreement with the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office that will allow him to avoid a conviction if he completes the terms of the agreement.
Prior to the wreck, John Scott was a fulltime trial lawyer at Scott, Clawater & Houston, a firm he co-founded more than 25 years ago, Martin said. In fact, Scott was delayed from joining his family for the holidays in 2020 because he was taking a deposition, Martin added.
Scott’s practice focused on legal and medical malpractice defense, commercial disputes and administrative licensing proceedings before the Texas Board of Medical Examiners, according to his firm bio.
Scott previously worked for Andrews & Kurth (now Hunton Andrews Kurth), where he became a partner in 1989, his firm bio states.
Kathy, 68, also has a law degree and works as a real estate agent, according to her husband’s firm bio.
The couple, along with their son, who Martin said is a 32-year-old screenwriter in Los Angeles, were visiting their two daughters and grandchildren in Dallas. Two small pet dogs were killed in the wreck, Martin said.
The Scotts were also represented by Caio Formenti and Thomas William Arbon of Ben Martin Law Group. The case number is DC-21-10651, John Patrick Scott et al vs. Henry Weatherby Watson, in the 192nd District Court.