Nov 13, 2002

Ritz-Carlton Agrees to Pay Paralyzed Executive $17.5 Million in Diving Accident
The Associated Press

MIAMI (AP) - An insurance executive paralyzed in a scuba diving accident has
reached a $17.5 million settlement with the Ritz-Carlton's Jamaican resort.
Brian Schiner, a partner with an insurance agency serving wealthy clients, was
with a boatload of divers who paid for a dive to a depth of 60 to 70 feet in
Montego Bay, but ended up at 160 to 170 feet.

Schiner, then 41, of Glenelg, Md., passed out soon after surfacing from the
January 2001 dive. He was hospitalized for nearly 200 days last year and is now
a paraplegic.

The Ritz-Carlton was sued over its contract with dive operator Aqua Sun Sports.
Attorneys notified a Miami federal judge of the settlement last week.

Projections of Schiner's lost earnings ranged from the hotel's estimate of $15
million to the victim's figure of $70 million, Ritz-Carlton attorney Joel Adler
said Wednesday. He said the Ritz-Carlton was "very pleased" with the final
amount.

"It's an enormous relief" for Schiner's family, said Stuart Grossman, Schiner's
lawyer.

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Mike Wallace
Huntsville,Ala