A man has filed a lawsuit against a rehabilitation center after suffering injuries from a faulty chair on their premises. William Donald, the plaintiff, submitted his complaint to the Circuit Court of the Sixth Judicial Circuit in Pinellas County, Florida, on March 12, 2025. The defendants named in the case are Tierra Pines Property Holdings, LLC, doing business as Tierra Pines Center, and an unnamed general manager referred to as Jane or John Doe.
The incident that led to this legal action occurred on September 24, 2023. William Donald was visiting his wife at Tierra Pines Center when he sat on an unstable steel chair in her room. The chair flipped over, causing him to fall and sustain serious personal injuries. According to the complaint, Tierra Pines Center owed Donald a duty of care as a business invitee but failed to maintain safe premises and neglected to warn him about the dangerous condition posed by the faulty chair.
Donald alleges that both Tierra Pines Center and its general manager were negligent in their responsibilities. He claims that they failed to inspect and maintain furniture properly and did not provide adequate warnings about potential hazards. "Negligently failing to provide safe furniture in patient rooms so family and friends could safely visit with their loved ones at the facility," reads one of the accusations against Tierra Pines Center.
The plaintiff is seeking damages exceeding $50,000 for bodily injury, pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, medical expenses, loss of earnings capacity, and other related losses. He argues that these injuries are either permanent or ongoing and will continue to affect him in the future.
Representing William Donald is attorney Lauren M. Pcholinski from Morgan & Morgan Tampa P.A., based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The case is filed under Case Number 25-001190-CI in front of Judge Ken Burke at the Pinellas County Circuit Court.