Simon Law Wins $600K For Mercy Employee Who Broke Ankle During Fall On Ramp

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Missouri, Dec. 5, 2025 – A St. Louis County jury awarded a $600,000 verdict to a Simon Law client who broke her ankle while walking along a ramp at Mercy Hospital in Creve Coeur.

Michelle Wilson was walking along a wheelchair ramp during a light rain on Sept. 21, 2021 when she slipped and fell. She was on her way to work there as a medical assistant. Six days later, she underwent surgery to repair the damage.

In her lawsuit, Wilson alleged the ramp had been coated years earlier with Tremco 350/351, a textured coating intended to provide slip resistance. During roughly a decade, the aggregate within the coating had worn away, leaving the surface smooth. Mercy had never performed any maintenance on the ramp or recoated it.

“The defendant in this case failed to do basic maintenance on this wheelchair ramp that is supposed to make sure the hospital is accessible to people with disabilities,” said Simon Law Attorney Johnny Simon. “This failure caused our client to suffer extensive injuries to her ankle. It’s inexcusable and irresponsible and we are very happy the jury held Mercy accountable.”

Wilson had used this same ramp many times before — including in the rain — without incident, but her foot slipped as she stepped onto the ramp the day she broke her ankle. Her medical treatment concluded in 2022.

Wilson alleged that Mercy Hospital failed to properly maintain the ramp, allowing the slip-resistant aggregate to deteriorate, and that the condition violated the accessibility and safety standards of the Americans With Disabilities Act, rendering the surface unreasonably dangerous. She further argued that the surface should have been replaced or re-textured long before her fall.

“Our client will suffer the effects of this avoidable and preventable injury for the rest of her life,” said Katie St. John, Simon Law attorney. “The jury saw through Mercy’s victim blaming and gave our client justice.”

Simon Law attorneys did not present any medical bills to the jury during trial.

“We were only asking for damages for pain, suffering and the fear of future medical treatment,” St. John said. “So this verdict clearly is about accountability.”

Mercy denied liability, asserting that the accident occurred because it was raining and  Wilson was walking too quickly because she was late for work. Mercy also claimed compliance with Joint Commission inspection standards and retained an expert who conducted tribometer testing, offering opinions that the ramp met applicable slip-resistance thresholds and was reasonably safe at the time of the fall. Mercy challenged where Wilson fell, how she fell and the extent of her injuries.

Simon Law countered that the tribometer results did not reflect the true long-term degradation of the Tremco coating and that the loss of aggregate created a foreseeable hazard that ordinary rain only exposed — not caused.

Mercy asked the jury to find the fall a simple accident in the rain and give Wilson zero dollars. After approximately two hours of deliberation, the jury found in favor of Wilson, assigning 80% of the fault to Mercy Hospital and awarding $600,000 in damages.

Founded in 2001, Simon Law is a nationally recognized plaintiff’s trial firm based in St. Louis, Missouri. The firm partners with referring counsel across the country and has secured four nine-figure verdicts totaling nearly $2 billion in the past two years.

Media Contact:
Christine Byers
Simon Law Marketing Director
cbyers@simonlawpc.com