Handshake gets out of hand for US lawyers

Florida attorney George Vallario Jr, 75, was celebrating the 11th birthday of his twin god-daughters when fellow lawyer Peter Lindley, 59, arrived with his teenage daughter.

Vallario Jr claimed the handshake between the two was made with 'such ferocity, force, strength, and violence' that he 'immediately shouted out and was in severe pain'.

According to legal papers served on Lindley, the 'uncalled for' handshake caused him injury and 'mental anguish'.

'The defendant's violent grabbing of the plaintiff's right hand was unexpected, unprovoked, uninvited, unauthorised and most certainly uncalled for,' the claim reads.

'As a direct result, plaintiff suffered bodily injury and resulting pain and suffering, disability, mental anguish, disfigurement, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, of a previously existing condition.

'The losses are either permanent or continuing and plaintiff will suffer the losses in the future.'

Vallario Jr argues the handshake left his right hand in pain for at least a year and is suing Lindley for $15,000 (£10,500).

He claimed that nobody had ever shook his hand 'so violently or forcefully as Lindley did' despite shaking 200 people's hands a night when he owned a night club in New York.

The victim alleges that Lindley was just 'showing off' and tried contacting him in the aftermath of the incident to no avail.

'He's not a mean guy, he's a pleasant man, he was my lawyer when I needed civil work done, he's a nice guy, but he wanted to show me how strong he was.

'All he had to do was do something nice, but he wouldn't, so I did sue, and the case is coming up one of these days soon.'

Last year, a New York woman failed in her attempts to sue her 12-year-old nephew over a birthday hug that left her with a broken wrist.

According to the woman's attorney, the claim was meant to be 'a simple homeowner's insurance case'. Could the same be at play here? Couldn't the two lawyers just resolve their dispute with a friendly handshake?