Sisters Victoria and Norma Velasquez-Cabrera were crossing Hillsborough Avenue on the 2500 block to get to Middleton High at about 7:15 a.m. on a recent Tuesday. A car in the center lane stopped to let them cross. But a car approaching from the far lane, driven by Deja Johnson, aged 17 and a fellow student, continued past. Johnson struck the two girls, and Norma passed away after a four-day coma.

Tampa personal injury attorney Robert Joyce calls attention to the fact that this is not the first fatal accident involving a Middleton student crossing six-lane Hillsborough Avenue.

“In 2011, a 15-year-old named Shenika Davis was killed while walking to Middleton as well,” Mr. Joyce says.

Tampa police have ramped up enforcement efforts in the area for both drivers and pedestrians. Both of the girls who were killed on their way to school were crossing between crosswalks. Police spokeswoman Andrea Davis says that, since November 1, 2013, police have issued 946 citations and 504 warnings to drivers and pedestrians.

Also, Middleton High held an assembly for all students with a 30-minute pedestrian-safety presentation imploring them to wear bright colors, cross at crosswalks and be alert.

Police say that a preliminary investigation showed Johnson had no fault in the accident. But Velasquez-Cabrera’s family wants to see the city do more to prevent similar tragedies in the future.

“It’s not a safe street,” Mauricio Guttierez, Norma and Victoria’s uncle, told the Tampa Bay Times. “How many more victims do we have to wait for?”

Mr. Joyce says that enforcement efforts should make a difference for as long as they go on, but may not have a lasting impact.

“Can the city afford to keep extra officers there indefinitely?” he wonders. “If not, enforcement may not solve the safety problem.”

If you need to speak with a wrongful death attorney or lawyer, Call Joyce & Reyes at 1.888.771.1529 or visit more of http://www.joyceandreyespa.com/.

While dropping insurance may seem necessary in the short term in order to meet other financial obligations, it could easily come back to bite them, should a large medical malpractice judgment force a hospital to declare bankruptcy. Many states do not require hospitals to carry malpractice insurance. In some area hospitals in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and Florida, the cost of malpractice can seem prohibitive to hospital executives, so they gamble and hope there won’t be dire consequences if they forego malpractice insurance.

New York State Department of Health surveyed “self-insured” hospitals in 2009 and found that one dozen New York-based hospitals acknowledge that they did not carry malpractice insurance and instead were partially self-insured or had some mix of primary coverage and excessive coverage. In addition, several hospital administrators stated that the house physicians had their own, subsidized insurance.

When they do not have malpractice insurance, some hospitals have a separate reserve of funds with which they plan to cover claims, but according to The New York Times, several hospitals investigated did not have sufficient funds in case of a large malpractice judgment, while two had no funds set aside at all.

Hospitals are cutting costs in other ways too, which sometimes means an actual denial of services. In Ohio, for example, some smaller hospitals no longer offer obstetric deliveries due to rising costs; malpractice insurance for obstetrics is particularly high. According to the Ohio Department of Health, there are 23 counties in Ohio that do not offer maternity units in their hospitals, with 19 separate hospitals no longer offering maternity services since 2004.

When an uninsured hospital becomes bankrupt, the creditors—which can include malpractice plaintiffs—often find they are unable to do anything but accept less of a payment than they were awarded via litigation.

Nathan Williams is a Brunswick personal injury lawyer, Brunswick divorce attorney, criminal defense and Brunswick DUI lawyer in Southeast Georgia. Visit http://www.thewilliamslitigationgroup.com or call 1.912.264.0848.

The EPA New England office has levied enforcement actions against 13 companies who have violated the Clean Air Act and distribute or warehouse chemicals. Companies that handle hazardous chemicals must comply with federal laws, not just OSHA Process Safety Management regulations for chemicals.

Hubbard-Hall stored chemicals that were incompatible very close together, and the EPA noted that if they were to spill or be released a violent chemical reaction could cause an explosion or fire. If this were to occur, the public and the environment could be seriously harmed. Hubbard-Hall also did not have a risk management plan in use at either of its locations. When large quantities of chemicals such as very concentrated hydrofluoric acid are stored, these RMP plans are a must.

RMP plans also help to outline how employees can prevent chemical releases and store chemicals properly. The RMP explains the risks with specific chemicals a company uses and can assist emergency responders when an accidental release occurs. Prior to the early February fine, the EPA had issued both Hubbard-Hall locations with administrative orders for violating RMP regulations and the Clean Air Act’s General Duty Clause.

Facilities that store or distribute chemicals must comply with the following regulations:
− Must stay at or below federal regulatory thresholds for chemical inventories
− Containment systems must be in good condition, in a stable way, and aisle space must be adequate for emergency responders
− Incompatible chemicals must be properly separated
− Facilities must be designed for safety with proper fire protections
− Inspections that occur on a routine basis to verify the integrity of chemical tanks
− Report chemical inventories via a Tier II Chemical Inventory Report to state authorities, local emergency planning departments, and the local fire department with jurisdiction over the facility

Serious injuries, environmental hazards and industrial accidents can happen when companies fail to take the necessary steps to maintain a safe environment. Not only could this affect workers, but toxic gases could hurt innocent people that need legal representation to uphold their rights and heal from extensive injuries.

Alexandra Reed writes for Connecticut personal injury law firm, Stratton Faxon. Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

A number of issues arise in connection with these loans including legal, ethical, Medicaid and practical concerns that must be considered in determining whether applying for such a loan is appropriate.

PURPOSE OF THE LOAN

The purpose of pre-settlement lending is usually to enable the injured party and/or his family to meet their living expenses during the period of time when the lawsuit is pending.

LOANS INVOLVING MINORS AND INCAPACITATED PERSONS

If the lending agreement is made directly with the injured adult plaintiff, it is much easier than if the lending agreement is made with parents on behalf of a minor child or an incapacitated adult plaintiff whether acting as natural guardian or legally-appointed guardian of the plaintiff. In cases involving a minor or incapacitated plaintiff, many courts will refuse to enforce the terms of the lending agreement, unless it can be clearly demonstrated that the funds were used for the direct benefit of the injured minor or incapacitated person. Excellent recordkeeping is critical.

For example, if a parent misses considerable time from work superintending a catastrophically injured child and falls behind in mortgage payments, a court may question whether a pre-settlement lending agreement used by the parent to bring the mortgage payments current was for the direct benefit of the child and, therefore, enforceable. On the other hand, if the parent is the injured party, unable to work because of the injury, and assuming the pre-settlement lending was used to make mortgage payments, there should be no enforceability issue based on the fact that the “borrower” does have an interest in the lawsuit.

BORROWER’S CREDIT

In most situations involving a loan, the borrower’s credit is paramount. Even if the loan is secured by a real estate mortgage, most lenders will want to see that the borrower is credit-worthy because of today’s sensitive lending environment. In pre-settlement lending transactions, the borrower’s credit is immaterial, because the pre-settlement lending company is looking to the proceeds of the lawsuit as collateral for the loan.

The Begley Law Group, PC has assisted individuals and families with their legal and financial decisions for more than 75 years. They are highly respected for their successful track record and attention to their clients’ needs first and foremost. Thomas D. Begley Jr., Esquire and CELA, has extensive experience in personal injury, disability law, special needs trusts, Medicaid planning and elder law.

For more information:

Begley Law Group

http://www.begleylawyer.com

509 S. Lenola Road, Building 7

Moorestown, NJ 08057
Tel: 800.533.7227

Fax: 856.273.1062

“Who hasn’t fallen at one time or another, picked themselves up, dusted off their hands and clothing, made a small joke and got on with their day? It’s easy to do. You maybe miss a step on the way up or down a flight of stairs or you didn’t see the coffee spill on the mall promenade. Falling hard, as the result of a slip, can cause untold problems either immediately or later, as we’re not made to slam into hard surfaces and not sustain some kind of injury,” said Charlie Donahue, a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer located in Keene. Donahue handles injury cases in New Hampshire and across the United States.

A person trips on an exposed brick in the sidewalk in front of a store. While a fall may not seem like a big deal when it happens, with the passage of time it might turn out that the kneecap that hit the pavement like a ton of hammers is cracked, impeding movement and causing agonizing pain. It’s time to talk to a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer about recovering damages to pay medical bills, which are likely going to be high as a result of surgery, therapy, medications and other tests.

What started out as a simple tumble has now taken on the proportions of a colossal uphill battle with the owner of the store whose sidewalk was uneven. “The owner knew about the brick, but had not gotten around to fixing it. That is unfortunate, however, it is his responsibility to fix it; to keep his premises safe for a person who comes onto his property. That includes the sidewalk in front of the store. Rather than argue with the owner, take your case to a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer and leave it in their capable hands. That’s their job; to get you justice from those who were negligent,” Donahue said.

It’s also the lawyer’s job to obtain a fair and equitable settlement that will cover the bills that accumulate during time off work as a result of medical treatments, tests, etc. Financially speaking, victims in many slip and fall cases have a hard road to hoe because they are losing money from being off work. That means not being paid or being paid a reduced amount, and in today’s economy, this may spell disaster for an injured plaintiff.

“If you want financial compensation to cope with your injuries, then you will need a personal injury lawyer to go to bat for you. Whether you tripped over an uneven brick or slipped on a slick puddle of coffee, the responsible party ought to have liability insurance that will pay your medical bills and time off work. Trying to secure a settlement on your own usually doesn’t work. That’s my job, my only job, and I don’t get paid until you do. If you have questions, give my office a call,” Donahue said.

To learn more, visit http://www.donahuelawfirm.com.

It’s not a secret that medical malpractice lawsuits are growing every year, despite some states capping a victim’s award. Companion cases to medical errors made by surgeons, doctors, nurses and dentists are pharmaceutical mistakes that are growing by leaps and bounds every year. In fact, close to 1.3 million people will die in the U.S. this year as a result of incorrectly prescribed or wrongly filled prescriptions.

“This is alarming, as just about everyone you may know has taken or is taking some kind of pills prescribed by a doctor. Taking drugs is a common daily occurrence for just about three quarters or more of the population. Consider what would happen if the drugs you are taking cause deadly side effects because the dose was wrong or it was the wrong drug? It’s happened, because humans make mistakes, whether they are medical professionals or not,” said Brooks Schuelke, an Austin personal lawyer with Perlmutter & Schuelke, L.L.P.

Those taking their daily medications might want to pause and read the label closely, just to make sure it is the correct drug in the proper dosage. They might also want to double check any prescription they are handed by a doctor to verify what they’re being told to take and why, and then check again at the drug store to see if the right drug is dispensed. It’s not too far-fetched to find that the drug in the bottle is not the one it is supposed to be, because they looked similar on the shelf.

Pharmaceutical errors happen just about anywhere within the medical system; in a hospital room, in a nursing home, at the drug store and in the doctor’s office. Medical professionals are human and humans make mistakes, despite their best intentions. Taking the wrong pill has the potential to cause grave side effects or even death. Once someone takes the wrong pill or wrong dose, it’s in the body and it can’t come out.

“The bottom line is that we trust our doctors and medical professionals to do what is in our best interests. We trust they understand the effects of the drug they want us to take and that they prescribe drugs that won’t harm us. In this day and age, it’s best to be your own advocate when it comes to keeping track of your medications. It’s your body, your health and your life and you want to get it right,” said Schuelke, the Austin personal injury lawyer.

For those who have suffered as a result of pharmaceutical negligence, consult with a seasoned Austin personal injury lawyer to find out about eligibility for compensation for pain and suffering and mental and emotional trauma.

Contact Perlmutter & Schuelke LLP at http://www.civtrial.com or (512) 476-4944.

“It never ceases to amaze me what people do when they are driving vehicles, which can easily kill someone if they are not paying attention to what they are doing. This case that I recently read about involved a school bus crash that took the life of a 9-year-old girl. While the case did not involve talking on a cell phone or the abuse of drugs, it hinged on two other negligent actions: listening to an iPod while driving and falling asleep behind the wheel while entrusted with a bus load of school children,” said Chicago injury lawyer Michael Osborne. The Law Office of Michael Osborne helps accident, wrongful death, and personal injury victims in Chicago, Illinois.

The bus was driving on a highway when it veered sharply on to the shoulder, smashing into a gravel truck parked doing mechanical maintenance. The bus continued on and hit a light pole. The driver did admit to police she was using an iPod and had likely fallen asleep, as she didn’t know what happened. There were 11 children on the 30-passenger vehicle and all of them sustained injuries that required them being taken to hospital by EMS responders.

There was no evidence of emergency brakes being applied or any form of emergency steering being used and the police opted to charge her with careless driving. The driver ultimately paid a fine and had her license suspended for 90 days. The consequences of her actions will haunt the family of the young girl who lost her life because of someone else’s recklessness; a family who may choose to file a wrongful death lawsuit in order to find justice for their daughter.

“Cases like this are never easy. The family needs to know what their rights are, how a court case will affect them and what they may expect while waiting for their case to be dealt with. They also need to know what kinds of damages they may ask the court to award and how long their case may take to settle. That is my job, should you come to me with a case similar to this. I am here to answer your questions and would be pleased to discuss your case with you should you call my firm,” Osborne said.

The Law Office of Michael Osborne helps accident, wrongful death, and personal injury victims. To contact a Chicago personal injury attorney or learn more, visit http://www.michaelosbornelaw.com or call (312) 315-1765.

“If you’re in the situation where you need to place a loved one in a nursing home, you want to know they will be safe, treated with respect and dignity and will be well cared for. The last thing you want to find out is that they are being abused. While you might not want to think about that, this does happen in a great number of nursing homes. Your loved one may be facing physical or emotional abuse on a daily basis. Are you aware of what is going on in the nursing home?” asked Michael Smith, an Arkansas injury lawyer.

Those who aren’t certain what is going on in a nursing home and whether or not their relative is indeed safe should watch for the sometimes-subtle warning signs. This is actually a very significant responsibility for those with family members in a home, as seniors are not throwaway people to be ignored and treated badly. They are people who deserve respect and protection. If they are not getting what they deserve, it’s crucial to consult with an Arkansas injury lawyer to put a stop to the abuse.

Physical abuse tops the list of atrocities that seniors may face every day; abuse that inflicts physical harm. This may involve slapping, hitting, pinching, shoving or other forms of direct physical contact. There is also a more subtle form of indirect abuse that may involve food deprivation or withholding needed medications. This kind of abuse virtually ensures long-term trauma for seniors who have to rely on the help of others while in the home.

“While it might seem obvious to say look for bruises, I don’t necessarily mean bruises on their hands and arms, although that is a common location. There may be bruising and welts in other locations as well. Be aware of their physical condition at all times, as any change may signal they are being abused. For instance, inner leg bruising may indicate sexual abuse. If you don’t know, don’t waste time arguing with management, contact a skilled personal injury lawyer and find out what can be done,” Smith said.

In some cases, abuse manifests itself as broken bones, sprains and dislocations in the hip area; usually a result of being shoved and pushed about by a caregiver. This causes hip dislocation and a possible fall. Shoulder injuries may also arise from rough handling.

“Look for broken glasses that may be a result of someone applying force to their face. Also be alert for rope marks on wrists, a sign of illegal restraint. The bottom line is, if the nursing home isn’t happy to have you visit your mom or dad or grandparents alone, be wary and alert,” Smith said.

Learn more by visiting http://www.Arkansaslawhelp.com

“This case that we read about recently involved a young girl who suffered severe birth injuries – brain injuries. It was interesting in that it proves that these kinds of cases are always radically different, just sometimes similar, and that to get justice, a plaintiff needs the assistance of a seasoned personal injury lawyer,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

The first jury that heard the initial case in 2008 handed down a “shockingly low” award, particularly given the extreme severity of the girl’s injuries, Ozcomert said. The first medical malpractice lawsuit was filed against the hospital in 2002. It took six years for a verdict.

The parents of the young girl stated that their obstetrician, an anesthesiologist and a nurse were negligent for not properly monitoring and managing the mother’s labor. This ultimately resulted in a delayed C-section, which in turn caused severe and permanent neurological injuries to the baby because she was deprived of oxygen.

The baby was 6 years old when the case went to court and the mother provided testimony that the child could not crawl (only wiggle and kick her feet), feed herself (she is intubated to be fed), speak or walk and that she would be in diapers her whole life. The child’s assessed cognitive age was set at between two and three months. The girl was diagnosed with permanent brain damage, cerebral palsy, spastic quadriplegia and developmental retardation. She couldn’t hear very well and had regular seizures. The pediatric expert witness at trial said no improvement is expected and that she may live until the age of 28 years old.

“The defense in this case tried in another state insisted the condition happened due to a prior in utero event that was so severe that earlier delivery wouldn’t have made any difference. While that may be hard to believe that something so drastic would have happened without the mother knowing, it was what the defense argued. In the final analysis, the jury found the doctor negligent and that her negligence was a significant factor that caused the baby’s injuries,” Ozcomert said.

“Here’s where things got a bit hazy as to reasoning for the award. The child was awarded $3,807,832 for future life care expenses, zero for the loss of future earning capacity and $150,000 for her pain and suffering and disability. The parents were awarded $527,284 for past expenses and $150,000 for past and future loss of their child’s companionship and society. These are very low awards, and both sides appealed,” Ozcomert said.

On appeal, the court agreed with the parents that the damage award was unreasonably low and shocking and a new trial was ordered. The child in this case is effectively frozen in time and unable to move forward and will never be more than an infant. The $150,000 award(s) were painfully low and abhorrent, as was the jury decision to not award money for lost earnings, according to Ozcomert. The new trial is yet to be scheduled.

“This type of case happens more often than you might think and in situations like this, it’s vital to have a skilled Atlanta personal injury lawyer handle your case. The family will need maximum compensation to care for their child. It’s just that simple and obvious. If you are in a situation like this and your child has been injured due to medical malpractice, you will have questions about your case. If you choose to call my office, I would be happy to explain the law to you and what your rights are,” Ozcomert said.

To learn more visit http://www.ozcomert.com.

Big rig collisions happen every day; a statistic many Americans would rather not entertain as a part of their daily news. Unfortunately, many families have either experienced a collision with a tractor trailer first hand or know of someone who was badly injured in one or who died. The statistics for 18-wheeler crashes are depressing, but still, they are a reality that drivers deal with every day when they take to the highways and byways across the country.

“This crash case involved two semis colliding with one another at an intersection. It came to our attention because it’s not often this kind of thing happens. It serves to point out that anything can and does happen when operating a big rig, but that the consequences, given the size of the vehicles, are usually far more devastating,” said a spokesperson for R.W. Lee Law in Austin, Texas.

Preliminary police reports indicated that one semi was westbound on a drive when it proceeded to make a left hand turn right into the path of an oncoming tractor-trailer headed east. Both rigs met in the middle of the intersection. Why the westbound semi thought it was safe to turn in front of an oncoming tractor-trailer is anyone’s guess. The police will attempt to sort that issue out before making any decisions about laying charges.

“This is another issue that many people don’t fully understand – that while an accident may look like one thing on the surface, it rarely is what they think. The police don’t jump to conclusions first and ask questions later. This is crucial as well when building a case for a client. We always make certain to know the complete details, particularly in situations involving semis, as these tend to be complex cases that involve a lot of people and entities, including insurance companies,” said the spokesperson for R.W. Lee Law of Austin, Texas.

As a result of the accident, one trucker was taken to the nearest hospital; the other driver’s injuries were not known and may be evaluated later. Both of the trucks sustained significant front end damage. The clean-up began when the dust settled from the collision. The driver that was injured may well have a case against the other driver once the details are sorted out as to how this accident happened in the first place.

For those who have been in an accident with a semi and lived to tell the tale, the smartest move to make is to secure the future financially by speaking to an Austin personal injury lawyer. Their expertise will ensure compensation for what may be lifelong, life-altering injuries that require continuous care.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

“Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents have increased over the last five years, largely due to the fact that many people have given up their expensive cars to save money,” said Scott Atkinson, a New Mexico personal injury lawyer and wrongful death lawyer with the Atkinson Law Firm, Ltd. “Whether or not the riders are wearing helmets doesn’t seem to matter much. What matters is that the increase in wrecks appears to be a result of inattentiveness and carelessness, usually on the part of other vehicles that don’t see the biker until it’s too late.”

At issue in cases such as a motorcycle wreck is not so much whether the biker was wearing a helmet, but if the individual is alive. Those who do make it out of a collision alive and are able to assist counsel with their cases usually find their resolutions are more successful. Their first-hand experience and demonstrable injuries usually help a jury to understand the ramifications of a motorcycle collision.

Even with devastating injuries, clients can assist legal counsel to put together a case by directing them to important medical records, police reports, eyewitnesses and other information needed to prepare a case. If a biker has been severely injured and unable to do much in the way of helping their lawyer, the lawyer virtually becomes the client in order to track down relevant and pertinent information.

“Typically speaking, the worse the accident, the higher the compensation; for the simple reason that someone who sustained life altering injuries will likely need care for the rest of their lives. What’s crucially important in any accident case, but perhaps more so in a car versus motorcycle crash, is the question of who is at fault. Fault and negligence go hand in hand. Once negligence is proven, fault is not far behind,” Atkinson said.

At trial, the goal in cases like this is to aim for the maximum compensation possible. There is often no other way for a critically injured victim to obtain funds to live out the rest of his or her life other than a court award or settlement. Motorcyclists who have been involved in a crash should not wait too long before seeking advice and considering filing a personal injury lawsuit.

“Most states have limits on the time a person can file a lawsuit, and if the person misses that limit – referred to as the statute of limitations – he or she loses the right to sue. This is not something an injured person would want to lose when his or her whole lifestyle is at stake,” Atkinson said.

“When an accident changes your life from something you once enjoyed; an active affair with millions of things to do, to the specter of living in a wheelchair or having limited mobility, it’s time to talk to an experience New Mexico personal injury lawyer. This is my job, to help those who have been hurt due to no fault of their own,” Atkinson said.

To learn more about Scott Atkinson visit http://www.attorneynewmexico.com

William Dotson of Hartford, a 34-year-old Connecticut man, filed suit on July 9, against Reverend Stephen Bzydra for sexually molesting him while he was an altar boy at St. Francis Church in New Haven, Conn. and Saint Hedwig Church in Naugatuck, Conn. between 1985 and 1990. Dotson was found to be entitled to a $10 million attachment based on demoralizing evidence of repeated and horrific sexual abuse in October 2010.

“William is very grateful that the court ruled in his favor supporting his case. The pedophile priest’s lawyer Hugh Keefe should be ashamed of himself for attacking William the way he did in court,” said Joel T. Faxon of Stratton Faxon, the trial law firm in Connecticut that represented Dotson. “The pedophile should come forward and take responsibility for his actions. The diocese and the Vatican should remove Bzdyra from his priestly duties immediately to protect the thousands of children of Connecticut from a Bzdyra attack. Bzdyra is able to troll around the parks and playgrounds of Connecticut with impunity. This disgusting monster should be in jail. We have already forwarded the judge’s decision to the State’s Attorney’s office in hopes that he can be criminally prosecuted.”

The Catholic Diocese placed Bzdyra, the accused priest, on administrative leave in August pending their investigation. He had served as priest and religious education teacher at St. Hedwig’s Church in Naugatuck during the mid-1980s and early ’90s.

“There was more than adequate evidence to support the plaintiff’s claim that Bzdyra sexually abused him when he was a young boy,” said Justice Robert Berdon after a contested hearing. “The court finds that the testimony of the plaintiff was credible and overwhelming. The court finds that the abuse included anal rape, forced oral sex with Bzdyra, that Bzdyra compelled the plaintiff to masturbate him and Bzdyra ejaculated in the face of the plaintiff. This conduct went on for several years.”

To learn more, visit http://www.strattonfaxon.com.

It’s obvious what kind of physical repercussion an attack can have on a victim, but most people have no idea how dog bite laws can affect them, too, such as the “first bite” or “one bite” rules.

Most states follow the “one bite rule,” which says that owners are not liable for a dog’s first attack provided the owner was not negligent in some manner. The rule, however, does not apply if the owner had previous knowledge that the dog was aggressive or dangerous, or had a propensity to harm people.

In Georgia, it can be difficult for dog-bite victims to prove that an owner was negligent. To do so, the incident must pass a two-part test.

“First, it must be proven that the dog had a previous tendency to bite or attack people and, second, that the owner had knowledge of such behavior,” said Robert Webb of the Atlanta-based personal injury law firm Webb & D’Orazio.

The other way to prove liability against a dog owner under the state statute is to show that the owner violated a local or county leash law when the event occurred.

Statistics show that when dogs attack, the most common victim is a child. Dog attacks cannot only bring physical scars to youngsters, but emotional ones too that lead to a fear of animals for the rest of his or her life.

“In the wake of a dog attack, it is important to understand the particular procedure that may follow, in regard to filing a dog bite lawsuit and seeking financial compensation for your injuries,” Webb said. “If you would like to discuss whether you may have grounds for a civil lawsuit against the owner of the dog that was responsible for your injuries, you should seek the advice of an experienced Atlanta personal injury attorney.”

To learn more, visit http://www.webbdorazio.com.

“What causes whiplash? Usually car accidents take the lead for the highest number of cases. However, they are certainly not the only way to wind up with whiplash. That can happen to anyone riding a bicycle, skiing, taking a spin on a motorcycle, riding a horse or even on skateboards. It gives one pause for thought, doesn’t it?” asked Charlie Donahue, a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer located in Keene. Donahue handles injury cases in New Hampshire and across the United States.

Take the case of a young man – henceforth referred to as Mike – who was skateboarding down a familiar trail one day, when all of a sudden he realized there were construction barriers up at the end of the trail. He hadn’t expected them to be there, because they weren’t there the last time he’d skated. Unable to stop his high-speed trajectory, Mike plowed into a metal barrier and did a complete, full stop-on-a-dime body stop with the metal bar in his mid-section. His head whipped forward and then backwards in a snapping motion and he crumpled to the ground. Did Mike suffer whiplash?

“Yes, he sure did, and it will take him a long time to recover. He first had just a dull ache in his neck, which rapidly progressed to shooting pains down his shoulders. A passerby took him to hospital where he was diagnosed with whiplash. It was thankfully a relatively mild case given his accident, but whiplash doesn’t differentiate grades when it comes to pain,” Donahue said.

One of the worst examples of whiplash is shaken baby syndrome. Cases like this make ER personnel and the police very angry. Things like that should not happen to kids. They deserve only the best in life. Being shaken violently usually happens to a small child, most often five years old or younger, when a caretaker wants them to be quiet. Believe it or not, this shaking action creates the same type of sudden acceleration/deceleration that a car wreck does.

“Let’s just say this isn’t pretty and the kids really go through a lot of agony,” Donahue said.

Whiplash symptoms may include blurred vision, memory loss, headaches, stiff neck and shoulders, difficulty turning either right or left, shooting pains down the torso, mood swings, the inability to concentrate and irritability. “Whiplash isn’t a lot of fun for the victim and what’s worse is that many insurance companies figure that if they can’t see it, then it’s not as bad as the victim is making out. In other words, they’ll try just about anything to reduce or deny a whiplash accident claim. This is one of the reasons you will want an experienced New Hampshire personal injury lawyer in your corner; to get justice,” Donahue said.

“Don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you feel OK the day of the accident, that you are OK. Many whiplash symptoms don’t show up right away. If you don’t deal with it when it makes itself known, you run the risk of having pain for the rest of your life, time off work and pricey medical bills. If you’ve been in a car wreck or hurt on a skateboard, give me a call. We’ll talk,” Donahue said.

To learn more, visit http://www.donahuelawfirm.com.

A very recent study on heart attack diagnosis released by the Physician Insurers Association revealed that malpractice in this area is quite high among family practitioners and general internists. They have the highest number of med mal claims and the highest average indemnity payments of any group of doctors.

“What this suggests is that heart attacks are difficult to diagnose because the symptoms can mimic a wealth of other conditions,” said Austin personal injury lawyer Brooks Schuelke, of Perlmutter & Schuelke L.L.P.

The study also indicates that acute myocardial infarction is the third most expensive medical condition that often ends up in claims against doctors, following closely behind birth injuries involving brain damaged babies and breast cancer. The numbers in this study reach back to 1985 and show that the insurance companies in the study paid out on 349 cases relating to heart attack misdiagnosis with a total indemnity of more than $91 million.

“There were 27 insurance companies that took part in this study, so if you extrapolate to include other insurance companies over the same period of time, the number of heart attack cases would be significantly higher, along with the final indemnity statistics. What that means is the rate of misdiagnosis for heart attacks is alarming and if you have had this happen to you, you will want to discuss your case with a skilled Austin personal injury lawyer,” Schuelke said.

The group with the highest number of claims filed (160 of 423 defendants) were general practitioners, often referred to as family doctors, followed by internal medicine medical professionals, who took the lead in indemnity payments, averaging roughly $252,100. The patient demographics indicated that at least one-quarter of the total payments (16 percent) were made to those under the age of 40, and 47 percent under the age of 50.

“For people in those age ranges, with a lot of living left to do, being misdiagnosed for a heart attack can and has resulted in fatal consequences,” Schuelke said. “The biggest concern is that the symptoms are clever mimics of other diseases. Having a heart attack and not being diagnosed correctly has become one of the most frightening situations to be in today, as the symptoms may be mistaken for gastrointestinal distress, a respiratory problem like bronchitis, asthma, anxiety or pneumonia.”

The best advice for someone who feels their heart attack was misdiagnosed as something else and that this medical error gravely affected their life is to speak to a seasoned Austin personal injury lawyer and find out precisely what can be done to move forward.

Contact Perlmutter & Schuelke LLP at http://www.civtrial.com or (512) 476-4944.

“Over the years that I’ve been practicing law, I’ve seen a fair number of traumatic brain injury victims. Each one has their particular story and each one manifests their injury in a different way. Typically speaking, some of the similarities amongst victims are loss of short-term memory, cognitive impairment, slowed reaction time, inability to make quick decisions, inability to express themselves and for some, slurred speech that may sound like they are drunk,” said Christopher Mellino. Mellino is a Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer of the Mellino Law Firm LLC, in Ohio.

Sounding inebriated is just the tip of the iceberg, as people who are not familiar with traumatic brain injury may mistake the person as being under the influence and treat them accordingly. Take the case of a Nova Scotia, Canada man who was involved in an extremely serious car crash 25 years ago. It left him with slurred speech and brain damage.

This now 52-year old gentleman was boarding a bus and the driver ordered him to the back, then turned to the rest of the passengers and made a comment about how he normally boots drunks off the bus. The man tried to explain he was not drunk, but instead had a speech impairment. No one on the bus listened and he was shunned for the remainder of his trip. This isn’t the first time the man has had difficulties making himself understood to others.

“As you may have already guessed, he has spent a night or two in a police lockup being ordered to take repetitive breathalyser tests and has had his car impounded for drunk driving. However, he doesn’t drink. People are not taking the time to realize what’s going on and instead jump to conclusions. There is a valuable lesson in this for juries who hear traumatic brain injury cases; that what you see is not necessarily what you get and you need to look deeper than the surface injuries,” Mellino said.

Chances are, if there were more awareness of the consequences of traumatic brain injury in areas where it counts – such as first line responders, police officers, teachers and other health care professionals, people would get a true picture of what a brain injury involves.

“There are at least 1.5 million people in the US alone who live with brain injuries and that means you may run into someone trying to deal with their radically altered life at any time,” Mellino said.

“If you have been in an accident and have sustained traumatic brain injury, call my office and we can discuss your case. There are many things you will need to know to move forward, and that’s my job; to help you get fair and equitable compensation for your injuries,” he said.

To learn more, visit http://www.christophermellino.com.

“If your doctor said that he or she was really sorry about what happened to you, would you perhaps make the decision to not sue them for medical malpractice?” asked Michael Smith, an Arkansas accident lawyer. It seems that might just happen in some instances.

This is a new approach to doing medicine being implemented in the University of Michigan health system and is a deceptively simple program that has resulted in a dramatic drop in medical malpractice lawsuits. “What does it involve? Well, oddly enough, the program promotes medical professionals taking complete responsibility for any medical error they made and acknowledging it was an error. Evidently, malpractice suits have dropped by 60 percent,” Smith said.

This new way to practice medicine is patterned after the Texas program dubbed “Sorry Works,” and it seems to be working well for the University of Michigan. The program sees those who have made medical errors admit to the error, say they are sorry for the mistake, implement procedures to avoid it happening again and offering reasonable compensation for any harm caused. This simple, yet effective approach has diverted a lot of malpractice suits.

“Stop and think about that one for a minute. If you had come to harm at the hands of your doctor and they in turn denied responsibility and liability for the error, how would you feel? Most patients would feel victimized and want to sue to recover compensation for their medical bills, pain and suffering, etc,” said Arkansas accident lawyer Smith.

“On the other hand, if the doctor came to you and said right upfront that they made a mistake and were very sorry for it and worked to ensure it never happened again and even offered you compensation, what would your reaction be?” he asked. Chances are, if a patient injured at the hands of a medical professional gets a heartfelt apology, they won’t sue. Human beings appreciate sincerity and honesty, even when it comes to medical mistakes that may have harmed them.

This kind of an open approach to dealing with malpractice is a refreshing change from the deny everything routine and hiring the best defense lawyers going to squash the claim and the claimant. All victims really want is for someone to take responsibility for their mistakes, and that includes medical professionals – who are, after all, human beings who can and do make mistakes.

When it’s evident a mistake has been made and the doctor/nurse denies it, many patients seek legal redress out of desperation and a sense of being wronged. “Which, when you mull that over, makes perfect sense. It’s being betrayed by someone you are supposed to trust and when they don’t take responsibility for their screw up, it hurts, angers, aggravates and drives people to sue,” Smith said.

Learn more by visiting http://www.Arkansaslawhelp.com

Each state in the United States sets its own statute of limitations, which can vary from one to six years. Here in the Peach State, the limit is two years from the date of injury. For a minor, however, the situation is different: The statute of limitations does not begin until the minor has reached 18 years of age. That means if a youngster is injured at age 14, he or she may file to recover damages up until the age of 20.

“Sometimes after an accident, it is immediately clear whether you are injured,” said Robert Webb, of the Atlanta-based personal injury law firm Webb & D’Orazio. “At other times, it is not. It is in your best interest to retain an attorney to help you settle your claim in a timely and efficient manner.”

Personal-injury accidents can be physically and emotionally damaging so it is important to find a lawyer who shows both zeal and compassion.

When considering filing a formal claim, there are several steps that one can take to help the claim process along. Many of these actions can be taken by the injured person’s attorney, too, of course. The steps include:

•Making notes of the incident. What happened? What are the injuries? What were the circumstances and conditions surrounding the incident? When did it occur?

•Keeping evidence of what caused the accident, if possible, and taking pictures to illustrate important details about the incident.

•Taking note of important witnesses who can verify what happened and help the injured person prove his or her case. Find out how an attorney can get in touch with them at a later date.

“If you or someone you know has experienced a personal injury, you should seek the advice of an experienced Atlanta personal injury attorney who can help you seek justice for your injuries,” Webb added.

To learn more, visit http://www.webbdorazio.com.

Misdiagnosis of breast cancer sometimes happens. And when it happens, the patient and the patient’s family are left with the devastation of the news of finding out that the disease is at its later stages and treatment will not help. Such things as misdiagnosis and the carelessness handling of diagnostic testing can lead to this kind of negligence.

“Mammograms are important in detecting the malignant tumor in the breast, and is why misreading a mammogram or inattention or neglect of the x-ray or other diagnostic tests are unfortunate determinants of a patient’s fate,” said Attorney Joel T. Faxon of Stratton Faxon, a trial law firm in Connecticut.

But finding a solid mass in the X-ray is one indicator of breast cancer. There are other diagnostic tests such MRIs, PET scans, lymph node biopsies and hormone tests, which determine whether the breast cancer has spread. Misdiagnosis in any of these tests can also be devastating. The breast lump might also be too small to even see or feel, or the patient may be experiencing symptoms that may resemble or mimic other diseases. Therefore, delayed treatment can occur, prolonging diagnosis and proper treatment.

According to Center for Disease Control, breast cancer is the most common form of cancer for women. It is the number one cancer killer in Hispanic women and number two for blacks, Caucasian, Asian/Pacific Islander and Native American women. In 2006, 191,410 women were diagnosed with breast cancer, and 40,820 women died from it. It is obvious from those statistics alone how early detection is imperative to prevent the progression of the disease which often times leads to death.

“If you suspect that you have been misdiagnosed and experienced delayed treatment because of misdiagnosis or misinterpretation of the tests, contact your nearest experienced medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible,” Faxon said. “Even if you are unsure, listen to your gut-feeling and do so immediately.”

To learn more, visit http://www.strattonfaxon.com.

“No one expects they’re going to go to the store and come home with a defective product, especially one that will harm you. You go to buy something that you trust will do the job. Say, for instance, a chainsaw. You want to take down some trees in your yard. You didn’t expect that the hand guard on the chain saw was so poorly attached that it could come off by accidentally banging it. That product ‘flaw’ just about cost you your hand,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

Unfortunately, defective products seem to take the lead in the marketplace. Goods made to last a lifetime were replaced by goods made to last for the shortest period of time possible. Thanks to inferior components, cutting corners, altering trustworthy designs and products made with cheap materials, the number of defective product cases in the U.S. is on the rise.

Granted, getting home and finding out a certain product doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do isn’t a big deal; after all, one can go get a refund. But what if the product is something used to seal caulking in the bathroom and the instructions on the spray can don’t mention it should not be used in a closed room?

“You use the product and wind up in ER with severe lung damage, having just squeaked by being dead instead. That product was not properly labeled and you have a right to sue the company for compensation for your injuries,” Ozcomert said.

“Would you want to talk to a lawyer about your accident and who would pay for your hospital bills? No doubt you would and while we’re at it, we would cover what your legal rights are with regard to compensation and what you may expect from manufacturers and defective products,” he said.

The bottom line in most, if not all, product liability cases is that if a manufacturer is providing a service or product to the marketplace and millions of consumers, they must stick to very strict guidelines for safety when making, labeling, selling and distributing their goods/services. If they fail in this task, they might well expect to be sued for compensation for medical bills, etc.

“More often than not, defective products tend to fall in to several categories. Consumers need to be alert and aware when it comes to product hazards and product recalls. Perhaps reading a product recall list is about as exciting as watching paint peel, but it may save a life – yours or someone in your family. Be on the lookout for defective products in the categories of surgical supplies, food contamination, medical equipment, cars, toys and cosmetic enhancements. An alert consumer is a safe one,” Ozcomert said.

To learn more visit http://www.ozcomert.com.

“While it’s great living in the U.S., it is amazing how many defective products on the market these days – products that are causing Americans minor to serious injuries or even death,” said Scott Atkinson, a New Mexico personal injury lawyer and wrongful death lawyer with the Atkinson Law Firm, Ltd. “There are rules and regulations in place to protect us, but who is enforcing them and who is paying attention to the flood of questionable goods in the marketplace?”

It would be one thing if an odd product here and there got recalled for a defect. However, over a dozen different products were recalled in September 2010 alone. These products include things such as tainted food, medications with previously unknown side effects, shoddily designed tools, vehicles with critical flaws (think Toyota) and toys that can cause children to choke or even poison them with lead.

Fortunately for the consumer, there are civil and criminal punishments on the books that are specifically designed to punish companies that knowingly violate accepted safety standards.

“You have to also realize that some entrepreneurs are not driven by the need to keep people safe, but instead, are driven by the need to make as much money as they can,” Atkinson said. Consumers who have purchased a product that harmed them do have a variety of options available, and one of them is to speak to an experienced New Mexico personal injury lawyer.

“The consumer needs to know his or her rights when it comes to situations like this,” Atkinson said. “The reason for that is just because a product does not work does not necessarily make it defective. There is a distinction to be made here and it’s important the consumer know this. Discussing the details of their accident or experience will let me outline the law to them and we can then discuss if they have a case or not.”

More often than not, the products that have turned out to be potentially dangerous to the public are prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications, tainted food (mostly produce and meat), childcare products or toys, auto parts and the cars themselves.

“Just pick up any local newspaper and chances are one of the headlines will be about yet another item being recalled. Does it ever end?” Atkinson said.

To learn more about Scott Atkinson visit http://www.attorneynewmexico.com

“If you were around in the ’70s, you may recall a study done on medical malpractice insurance. It was actually commissioned by the California Hospital and Medical Associations. It revealed that one out of every 20 patients suffered injuries as a result of med mal and furthermore, that one in 10 died. It was hoped at that time that the numbers would go down over the next 10 years or so,” said Christopher Mellino. Mellino is a Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer of the Mellino Law Firm LLC, in Ohio.

Unfortunately, the numbers crept up instead. When a similar study was done in New York by a Harvard team in the ’80s, it was found that of the 50 hospitals surveyed and the 31,000 medical records examined in detail, that one in four patients presented with possible medical injuries. “If you’re thinking the numbers are likely even higher now, you’d be right. Just about 100,000 people across the U.S. die every year as a result of med mal,” Mellino said.

The most common forms of med mal include birth injuries, surgical injuries, infection, septicemia, bleeding, failure to diagnose, misdiagnosis and medication errors. “That’s pretty scary stuff when you stop to think about it, because it covers a whole gamut of things that could go wrong when you are under the care of a doctor,” Mellino said.

Birth injuries are not just injuries to the baby; they also include the mother and may happen if the doctor does not provide adequate care prior to, during or after the birth. It may be that no blood tests were given to detect abnormalities, that fetal distress was not recognized in time, that a necessary C-section was delayed or that in a rush to deliver the baby, bones were broken.

“Any one of those errors or a combination of them could end in the baby being diagnosed with cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, a clavical fracture and facial paralysis. It’s not much wonder that mothers worry themselves sick over what may happen during birth,” Mellino said. “For the most part, doctors do a fine job of delivering babies. It’s just that sometimes, bad things happen, and when they do, something needs to be done about it.”

Operating room injuries are the subject of horror movies and indeed, many people who have been injured as a result of a surgical error certainly feel like they’ve been in a horror movie. After all, they trusted their doctor and thought they would get better. Instead, they may end up in worse condition than when they went into surgery or die on the table.

There are many things that can go wrong in the OR, such as the anesthetist giving the wrong dose of anesthesia at the wrong time, puncturing or cutting an internal organ, operating on the wrong body part or patient, leaving instruments or sponges in the patient on closing or failing to treat infections that may arise after an operation. This isn’t to say this happens all the time, but the numbers do indicate things like this happen with a greater frequency than we might like.

“If you’ve been there and done that and feel you have been the victim of medical malpractice, you will want to find out what your options are and what kind of compensation you may be eligible for from the courts. I’d be happy to talk to you about your case if you wish to call for information,” Mellino said.

To learn more, visit http://www.christophermellino.com.

In a 5-2 decision, Georgia’s Supreme Court rejected a constitutional challenge to a statute that exempts med mal cases from the rule that statutes of limitation are tolled for the mentally incompetent. “This particular decision upheld an earlier ruling that a plaintiff’s med mal lawsuit was barred by the two-year limit. The major distinction here is that the case that resulted in this decision was a medical malpractice case and not a general civil action,” said Christopher Mellino. Mellino is a Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer of the Mellino Law Firm LLC, in Ohio.

Ken Deen went to see a dentist in 2005, complaining of an infected tooth. He was sent to endodontist Dr. Randolph Stevens. Stevens indicated Deen needed a root canal and put him on antibiotics. Deen collapsed the next month and was diagnosed with brain infection. The infection left him mentally and physically incompetent. His wife, Linda, filed a medical malpractice lawsuit alleging professional negligence in 2008, and Deen died in 2009.

The endodontist’s lawyer asked for the case to be dismissed, as it was filed after the two-year statute of limitations for med mal actions expired, and that a section of the statute being argued by the plaintiff also applied to people who are legally incompetent. “The plaintiff’s attorney argued another section of the statute, which tolled the applicable statute of limitations due to mental disability, and further argued that applying the non-tolling statute was a violation of her constitutional right to equal protection by discriminating against the mentally incompetent,” said Mellino, a skilled Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer. Unfortunately, the section of the statute the plaintiff was relying on is only applicable in general civil actions.

The court’s ratio is best summed up by one of the justices, who wrote that Georgia state law typically tolls statutes of limitation for mental incompetence – except for a 1976 statute that expressly excludes med mal actions. It was, according to the court, clear that the legislature enacted the med mal exemption to avert the possibility of the cessation of medical services, to assist in stabilizing insurance and medical care expenses, to put a stop to outdated med mal claims and to, in general, ensure public safety, health and welfare.

The U.S. Supreme Court has also weighed in on this issue by rejecting the notion that any legislation affecting mentally incompetent people differently than others should be reviewed by courts on a “stricter than rational basis.” “Typically, the fewer exceptions a statute of limitations has, the further it upholds the original intentions of the legislature,” Mellino said.

“For those facing situations similar to this case, it’s best to take your legal matter to a qualified medical malpractice lawyer. Find out what the Statute of Limitations is in your state and don’t wait until it’s too late or justice may never be done. If you have questions, call me, I’d be happy to assess your case,” Mellino said.

To learn more, visit http://www.christophermellino.com.

Generally speaking, most consumer products are tested in many ways prior to being put on the market. Whether or not the testing is as complete as we’d like to think is another question. And, while dangerous products constantly stalk the marketplace, there are none more disturbing that those items made for kids. One wonders how hard it is to “think like a child,” and adapt toys or other product designs accordingly to be safer.

“Many of the product recalls for children’s items that we’ve witnessed over the past few years, weeks even, involve dangerous components or hazardous materials. Think small pieces detaching and choking a baby, sharp edges that shear fingers off, items with attractive cords posing a strangulation risk and toys with lead content so high it virtually sets off alarm bells,” said Christopher Mellino of the Mellino Law Firm LLC, in Ohio. Just about any scary scenario is a reality these days. While millions of items are recalled every year because of safety concerns, it’s typical that a recall is not instituted until someone has been harmed.

Recalls that have been launched because a concern was caught shortly after product dispersal are dangerous for several reasons. There may have been no incidents reported yet, because the recall action was launched quickly. But even if the recall was initiated rapidly, there is always the chance that the product in question was purchased by someone who will not know or hear about any recalls.

There’s a lot to be said about doing things right the first time, before sending a product out for millions of consumers to buy. This concern is even more valid given the global marketplace of the 21st century, where many items are made in other countries for U.S. businesses, thus lacking the quality control of home.

Many consumers these days are label shopping, and who can blame them? With the number of unprecedented recalls of items, it’s frightening to think that our lives are at the mercy of someone who makes a product with a potentially fatal flaw. It’s even more worrisome that product manufacturers, in their haste to make money, don’t stop and check things twice before promoting their products.

“For those who have been in a situation where a product you thought was safe wasn’t and it harmed you or your family, bring your case to me for an initial assessment. I’ll be able to explain product liability law to you as we discuss the details of your case,” Mellino said. “You may be eligible to obtain compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and, in extreme cases, the wrongful death of your child.”

To learn more, visit http://www.christophermellino.com.

In a criminal case, the person charged goes to a criminal court and is dealt with accordingly. They may be found guilty or not guilty. Either way, once that process is concluded, the person can also be sued again, but civilly. For the best example of a situation like that, think the O. J. Simpson case.

“Let’s say we’re dealing with the wrongful death of a loved one as a result of vehicular homicide. The criminal case has been dealt with, but the family wishes to recover compensation for the loss of their loved one. A wrongful death lawsuit is filed under a wrongful death statute and is the civil recourse for families whose loved one was killed because of the negligence/intentional acts of another. It is their route to justice outside of the criminal courts,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

While filing a wrongful death lawsuit will not bring the deceased back, it is a step in the grieving process that may help the family deal with their loss. By changing their focus to economic recovery, they may be able to handle the loss in a different light. Wrongful death suits also try to quantify the value of the deceased’s life by examining things like loss of inheritance, loss of earnings and potential earnings and medical and/or funeral costs.

“At best, the process to calculate the worth of a life is difficult, as there are things that defy being pegged successfully, such as the value of loss of comfort and companionship, emotional support and guidance. Thus, typically speaking, the compensation you would get from a wrongful death action may not be as complete as one would like, but it comes close in most cases,” Ozcomert said.

Most, if not all, wrongful death lawsuits need the assistance of qualified counsel. The process is complex and the lawyer knows how to proceed to get a family the most compensation possible given the circumstances of the case.

“Don’t wait too long to call a lawyer and ask about your case, as you may miss the deadline for the Statute of Limitations. If that happens, you lose your right to sue,” Ozcomert said.

To learn more visit http://www.ozcomert.com.

“Most people, when they hear the words ‘professional malpractice,’ think it refers to lawyers or doctors. While it may well refer to them, it is also a term used when talking about accounting malpractice. Simply put, accounting malpractice happens if any accounting professional is negligent in the performance of their duties,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

To further explain professional standards for various individuals who are certified to practice, it’s vital to know that the institutes that certify these professionals have a list that outlines what the standard of care is for their members to provide to their customers. The list says what standards of care need to be met to protect the public from harm, deceit, malfeasance, etc.

This isn’t to say that all accountants, lawyers or doctors will abuse their positions, because most professionals are trustworthy and reliable. If the standard of care is not met in a profession, this may be considered negligence.

“In a case involving accounting malpractice, the plaintiff has to show the defendant was negligent and didn’t meet the level of care expected – the common or customary care – in the accounting profession. An example of that would be the accountant not filing a client’s tax return on time or not properly filling out the return and it results in a financial penalty to the client,” Ozcomert said.

Generally speaking, there are four elements a plaintiff needs to meet to be successful in an accounting malpractice lawsuit. It must be shown that the accountant had a clear responsibility to the client; that the accountant didn’t act responsibly; that the client was injured and that the accountant’s actions were the proximate cause of the injury.

Not all cases are clear cut and straightforward and for this reason, if someone feels they have been financially harmed by the misdeeds of an accountant, talk to an Atlanta malpractice lawyer.

“You need to know your rights, what options you have and whether or not your potential case is actually malpractice or not, as some cases may not be malpractice. If you have questions about what you feel is a malpractice case, call me and we can discuss the details,” Ozcomert said.

To learn more visit http://www.ozcomert.com.

It’s the law that property owners are obligated to keep their property safe. It’s just that simple. Or is it simple? In some cases, it may not seem to be fairly straightforward, particularly if a trespasser is injured on the property and sues for damages. “While you might think they’d be out of luck, the truth is in some cases, if the owner could have anticipated someone may trespass, they may still be liable. Each case is different,” said Chicago injury lawyer Michael Osborne. The Law Office of Michael Osborne helps accident, wrongful death, and personal injury victims in Chicago, Illinois.

Generally speaking, when there are unsafe conditions on a property, owners are required to post warnings that there is a hazard. This applies even if it is private property. Since premises liability is considered to be a tort or a wrong, if someone gets hurt on another’s land, the end result may be a personal injury lawsuit.

“Having said that, you should also know that premises liability laws do vary depending on what kind of property you have. For instance, if it’s a private residence and you have really obvious hazards that no one could possibly miss, you don’t need to post a warning. But, less obvious ones – like if you step on a certain part of the porch, you’ll fall through – need to be posted. In a nutshell, if you have hidden hazards and don’t post, anyone may sue you, despite their status,” said Chicago injury lawyer Osborne. Status refers to whether or not the person is an invited guest or trespasser.

Let’s say someone owns a business and people come there regularly. If this property is open to the public, it must be maintained properly and there must not be any hazards. If there is a hazard present, for instance a puddle of water in an aisle, there must be a warning sign. “If you don’t put up a warning sign and someone slips in the water, trips over a loose tile or brick or falls over something that fell from a shelf, they may be able to sue for compensation for their injuries,” Osborne said.

“If you’ve been in a similar situation and have fallen and injured yourself, give me a call. I can explain how premises liability works and also talk to you about the various kinds of situations that are classified as falling under premises liability law. For example, toxic mold, staircase injuries, elevator malfunctions, swimming pools and lead paint. I’d be happy to talk to you about your case,” he said.

The Law Office of Michael Osborne helps accident, wrongful death, and personal injury victims. To contact a Chicago personal injury attorney or learn more, visit http://www.michaelosbornelaw.com or call (312) 315-1765.

Without a doubt, the trucking industry is a major backbone of the American economy. Without trucks, many goods could not be moved from point A to point B, vital equipment would not be delivered, homes could not be moved, gas would not reach the furthest corners of the nation and grain and other foodstuffs would never make it to market. This means 18-wheelers and heavy trucks of all sizes and shapes are on the roads virtually 24/7/365. It’s not much wonder accidents involving these behemoths can and do happen.

The major complication in trucking wrecks is often determining just who the defendants are in the case. “While you’d think this would be fairly obvious, as in it’s the truck driver, this isn’t always true. So, really, the answer to who is going to be sued in a trucking accident is kind of tricky at times. For instance, if the trucker works for a logistics transport company, they may be an employee of that firm or they may be considered to be an independent contractor. If the driver is an employee, that means the trucking company should be the defendant,” said Brooks Schuelke, an Austin accident lawyer with Perlmutter & Schuelke, L.L.P.

Aside from determining who the party at fault is in a big rig crash, there are other facets of accidents like this that need serious attention. While things may look one way at first glance, often probing deeper into the crash will reveal other things the lawyer needs to know to make a good case. This may include things like finding out if the trucker was speeding, driving aggressively, under the influence of a drug, driving while distracted or driving without enough sleep.

Take the case of the trucker who was watching a movie on his laptop while he was driving his big rig. He struck and killed a mother and her young baby as she was crossing the road. “No question the driver in that instance was negligent. These are the kinds of things we need to find out to take a case to settlement or verdict. It’s information like this that can drive up the amount of the damage award as well. For example, in the case of the trucker watching his laptop movie, there were punitive damages awarded, as well as compensatory damages,” Schuelke said.

For those that have been in a trucking accident and survived to tell their story, contact a skilled and dedicated Austin personal injury lawyer for help.

Contact Perlmutter & Schuelke LLP at http://www.civtrial.com or (512) 476-4944.

“When someone is hired for a job in construction, management doesn’t typically spend a lot of time talking about workplace injury claims or even workers’ compensation, other than to make sure the new hire gets signed up for it. Even if it’s not mentioned, keep one thing in mind for the future: if something happens to you on the job, keep very detailed records of everything that happens, including filing your accident report with management. You will also want in depth medical records that are easily accessible,” said Brooks Schuelke, an Austin accident lawyer with Perlmutter & Schuelke, L.L.P.

When a mishap does happen at a workplace, the employer is required by law to keep records of the details of the accident in an official accident report book. This is a part of the reporting procedure for disasters in a workplace. Ideally, the overall recordkeeping will indicate any inherent patterns to accidents and let management fix what’s wrong. “The crucial thing to remember is that if the accident is not recorded in the official record book, it may be more difficult to recover compensation,” Schuelke said.

Another thing workers need to know up front is that if they are going to file a workers’ compensation claim, they need to document all of their injuries at once. That, of course, means all the injuries need to be treated at the same time as well. “At this point, you need to also ensure all of your injuries and medical treatments are documented in full detail for future reference. This is so you have something to show a lawyer if you have trouble processing your workplace injury claim,” Schuelke said.

Keep every receipt for every medical test, surgery, therapy session, counseling assistance, medication, etc., because these things are needed when it comes to figuring out the amount of the claim settlement. “Ideally, if you have a witness, it certainly helps your case. That could be another worker, a supervisor or pedestrian who saw the accident,” he said.

While some workplace injury claims go well and things are settled to the satisfaction of both parties, this seems to be the exception, rather than the rule. For this reason, it’s a good strategic move to hire an Austin accident lawyer to make sure the case gets moved along promptly and that it doesn’t get bogged down in bureaucratic inertia.

Typically, compensation claims tend to come in at a lower settlement offer than one would expect. There is a reason for this. Workers’ compensation is insurance and insurance companies are famous for wanting to maintain their bottom line at the expense of those covered. This is one of the major reasons why hiring an Austin accident lawyer will, in the long run, be a benefit. That benefit will pay off in a higher claim settlement.

“Be aware that there is usually, by statute, a two year period to file on-the-job injury claims. However, having said that, don’t wait that long to do something about your claim or injury. The faster you deal with it, the quicker things get handled. Ideally, aim to process your claim within two months from the date of your accident, or sooner. Why? Because the details are still fresh in your mind. Have questions? I’m here to help you. Don’t hesitate to give me a call,” Schuelke said.

Contact Perlmutter & Schuelke LLP at http://www.civtrial.com or (512) 476-4944.

Some states do tend to differentiate between charges involving driving under the influence (DUI) and driving while impaired (DWI). In actual fact, these are the same offense and are not usually considered to be separate and distinct crimes.

There is a prevailing belief about the distinctions between DUI and DWI. Most believe that DUI means driving under the influence of something, which could mean drugs – either street or prescription – and that DWI means driving while drunk/impaired, since impaired is generally a term used in reference to drinking and driving.

Realistically speaking, the distinction is actually minimal, as the key here is being under the influence or impaired by something. Put another way, drugs or alcohol will impair a driver, making them “under the influence” of drugs or booze.

The bottom line here is that the terms DWI and DUI mean the same thing, and the charge is usually read as operation of a vehicle while intoxicated or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. When it comes right down to it, this is one of those instances where the difference is without distinction in the eyes of the law in some parts of the U.S., but not necessarily the public. The fact is, that even some states make a distinction between the severities of the crimes. This is one very good reason to discuss a case with a seasoned Austin personal injury attorney.

For instance, some states consider a DUI a lesser offense than DWI. Their reasoning is that there is a distinction between being under the influence and actually being drunk. Basically, they believe that it implies there is a different level of impairment going on affecting a driver’s motor skills and coordination.

In other states, DUI/DWI is one and the same, in that there is a legal limit for being drunk, and anyone blowing over the limit is treated the same way. The differences come in at the punishment stage in court, where a judge may have the discretion to take different levels of intoxication into consideration. Only an experienced Austin personal injury attorney can outline the possible outcome in court cases where there is a prior record of DUI/DWI.

If a driver lives in a state where DWI and DUI are separate and distinct, they are best off to hire a DUI attorney to get the charges pled down. If a bad driving record is a part of the pleadings, this will affect the sentence, and ultimately mean that the difference (in certain states) between a DUI and DWI lies in how much jail time each one may result in.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Surprisingly enough, burn injuries are not always the result of being burned by open flames or electricity. Many other burns happen as a result of things going wrong in the workplace. In fact, burns affect at least 1 million people very year; most of which are sustained on the job and should be discussed promptly with an Austin personal injury attorney.

Workplace burn injuries tend to happen in a variety of ways. For instance, anyone who works in an industry that uses fire to produce a product or to destroy a product is at risk for sustaining burns. Metalworking companies are prime locations for burns, since the materials they work with are melted down at exceedingly high temperatures to be molded into something new. While instances like this do involve open flames, other burn injuries don’t come from fire.

There are many other materials that have the potential to cause burns when they come into direct contact with the skin. Chemicals and acids may actually be even more dangerous than fire when direct exposure to the skin is involved. There are also some pharmaceutical companies that use highly caustic chemicals with deadly potential.

If workers are not properly trained on how to handle these chemicals and are not provided with the mandatory safety gear, there will be problems. Injured workers should seek counsel to recover compensation by hiring a seasoned Austin personal injury attorney.

Skin burns, acid ingestion, breathing in chemicals – all these things result in burns to various parts of the victim’s body. Inhaling dangerous chemicals burns the throat lining and the lungs; a pain so excruciating, the victim requires immediate medical attention. Whether the burn sustained was from flames from a fire, electrical shock, acid or other chemicals, the cost to treat these kinds of injuries is significant. It’s very rare that treating burns is a simple affair. Most cases are complex and require skin grafts and many years of surgery. The victim may never look the same again.

Generally speaking, it is the employer’s responsibility to provide all employees with a safe workplace, provide them with training on how to handle various dangerous chemicals/materials, make sure they are equipped with the proper safety gear, ensure fire protection procedures are in place and have clear and precise evacuation plans in the event of a fire.

For those who whose burns resulted from the negligence of someone else, make sure to contact a skilled Austin personal injury attorney and find out what rights a plaintiff has and how to file a lawsuit to recover damages/compensation.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

These people should be paying the bills for the victims. After all, the accident was their fault. While it may have been the other person’s fault, many people shrug off the responsibility of the consequences of an accident because of the money involved. In fact, the person or people at fault could even have been uninsured or underinsured, driving without a license or driving while suspended.

“Many people involved in an accident don’t want to get wrapped up in a court case that drags out and costs them money. They need a quick resolution to their claim so they can recover lost wages and/or pay their medical bills. Unfortunately, they can’t accomplish that on their own, as dealing with insurance companies is something best left to competent accident lawyer with experience in handling them,” said Michael Smith, an Arkansas accident lawyer.

Insurance companies are not accident victim’s friends. They are running a business. The bottom line of that business is to save money on accident claims and not pay it out in high amounts, whether the settlement is warranted or not. “If you have a lawyer working with you on your car accident claim, chances are you will get a much higher settlement because they know you are serious about going to court if the claims negotiation process does not work,” Smith said.

Those who think they can handle their own insurance claim often find out later that they signed something that they shouldn’t have – something that gave away their rights to sue. Unfortunately, once a claimant has signed away his or her rights, the insurance case file can’t be re-opened. It’s for this reason that it’s smart for the victim to not sign anything until he or she has spoken to an Arkansas accident lawyer.

“In fact, I’d suggest you bring any papers the insurance company wants you to sign to me. I will go over them and we can discuss precisely what they mean to your claim and how they may affect your rights,” Smith said. For example, a victim may well be entitled to current, past and future lost wages and medical bills for therapy. The claim may also apply to living expenses. Unfortunately, those trying to handle their own claims don’t think about these things and/or don’t know about them, and you can bet the insurance company won’t tell you about them, because they cost money.

“If you have an accident claim, let’s discuss it and see how to best ensure you get a fair settlement without having to deal with any of the runaround typically handed out by insurance companies. While we’re discussing your claim, I will also let you know what your legal rights are,” Smith said.

Learn more by visiting http://www.Arkansaslawhelp.com

Usually one of the first things that a criminal defense lawyer does when someone has been accused of committing a crime is to contact a private investigator. Ultimately, it is expected that this step will garner the accused the very best possible defense by finding additional facts and details pertaining to the case. But many defendants don’t know what the investigator does for them.

“More often than not, the private investigator digs deep to find hidden information about your case. They get a wide variety of facts from various sources, including using the computer to track files or a digital trail. These days, a necessary skill is the ability to tackle encrypted files, determine if passwords have been altered and/or if certain documents have been deleted. The 21st century has created an electronic milieu for everyone to conduct their activities. However, they leave traces of what they did and where they’ve been that may be tracked later,” said Robert Webb, of Webb & D’Orazio, personal injury lawyers practicing personal injury law, business law, and criminal defense in Atlanta Georgia.

A good detective looks at all the various angles of a case to see who else may be involved, who may be building a case against you, what they are looking for and any inconsistencies or holes the defense could utilize while in court. Public and private records are scoured from top to bottom in the search for evidence the defense may use. “And if we need a certain witness, the investigator will track that person down in order for us to build a solid criminal defense case,” Webb said.

While not all law firms use private investigators, they definitely have their use when it comes to helping a criminal defense lawyer build a good case for a person accused of a crime. Investigators work with witnesses, various types of surveillance equipment and work legally and ethically – or they could not present the evidence in court.

“If you need a tenacious criminal defense lawyer, give us a call. We’ve got your back and have ‘been there and done that’, so we know the system. Let’s talk about your case,” Webb said.

To learn more, visit http://www.webbdorazio.com.

Anyone who has ever been through some kind of medical treatment is likely aware that just one slip up, one small mistake, one misunderstanding can result in medical malpractice. Unfortunately, even though the medical profession does a fine job under difficult circumstances, bad things do happen and patients get improper treatment or the wrong treatment altogether.

The wrong treatment puts a patient’s health and welfare on the thin edge of the razor; a fine line to walk when dealing with another person’s life. The wrong treatment means the real cause of the illness is undetermined and untreated, which means the patient will get worse. The long-term consequences of this medical missed diagnosis may result in serious harm or death.

“Typically, improper treatment may happen in a variety of ways,” said Robert Webb, an Atlanta personal injury lawyer with Webb & D’Orazio in Georgia. “For example, the patient gets either not enough medication or too much or the individual is treated for the wrong illness/disease, because they were misdiagnosed.”

While there are other things that may happen to an unsuspecting patient, the other most common error is when a health services worker (doctor, nurse, charge nurse, etc.) makes a clerical error and a patient gets the wrong medication. “Of course, any of these scenarios may cause irreversible harm to someone or kill them and if you have been in a situation like this and lived to tell the tale, you will want to discuss your case with an Atlanta personal injury lawyer,” Webb said.

The major difficulty with not treating a disease is that it continues on its course unabated and may, over time, become untreatable. Those who have been victims of improper treatment may very well be entitled to financial compensation for their medical malpractice injuries. “If you have any questions about a situation you have been in, give me a call. I would be happy to discuss your case with you,” Webb said.

To learn more, visit http://www.webbdorazio.com.

Having a baby is not exactly stress or danger free, no matter what anyone tells you. Good labor or not, there is still the possibility of complications arising at any given point from start to delivery finish. The main thing is, it’s not just the baby that’s at risk during a birth; it’s the mother as well. While equipment such as forceps and vacuums may assist in the birth, if they are not used correctly, the mother may sustain damage to her womb or the baby may suffer any one of a number of birth injuries ranging from shoulder dystocia to cerebral palsy.

One of the more dangerous tools often used in delivery rooms is the forceps. In the hands of a skilled doctor, they make an enormous difference in the delivery. In the hands of an unskilled doctor, or one that is careless or negligent, the baby could sustain facial nerve injuries, or worse. Going through a delivery where various tools are necessary is downright frightening given the variety of things that could happen.

“Even though modern medicine has made giant leaps and bounds when it comes to the birthing process for the child and mother, mistakes still cause injuries. There is no way around that. If forceps are used incorrectly, the mother may sustain tissue tears in her womb and/or painful vaginal lacerations. Yes, the human body is a marvel at minimizing damage to itself, but when you toss in the intervention of another human armed with tools, the playing field isn’t level any longer,” said Charlie Donahue, a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer located in Keene. Donahue handles injury cases in New Hampshire and across the United States.

Forceps injuries usually occur if the doctor clenched the child’s face too tightly. If that happens, the forceps can impair the main facial nerve, the one that is responsible for motor functions in the eyes and lips. If the doctor’s mistake or negligence is serious enough, a botched forceps delivery can lead to facial paralysis and a permanent disability or disfigurement.

Head bruising is another injury that may result from the pressure of forceps or a tight passage through the vaginal canal. Generally speaking, a cephalohematoma fades over time, but it is also possible that this in an indication of a skull fracture that could turn into something far worse.

“If you suspect your child’s injuries are due to medical malpractice at the time of birth, give me a call. We’ll talk about your rights and how to defend them,” said New Hampshire personal injury lawyer Charlie Donahue.

To learn more, visit http://www.donahuelawfirm.com.

Most physicians and surgeons do a really good job and have hundreds of happy patients. However, doctors are humans and humans do make mistakes now and then. If the error is small, it’s forgivable and forgotten. If the error severely injures someone or his or her life, this is medical malpractice with negligence and it is grounds for a lawsuit.

“Take the case of a woman that we read about who had a partial knee replacement and the doctor never took an X-ray of her knee to see if the hardware was in the right spot until after the surgery. Despite what the X-rays showed, that there was some question about the placement of the hardware, nothing was done about it and the patient was waved on to go to physiotherapy,” said Charlie Donahue, a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer located in Keene. Donahue handles injury cases in New Hampshire and across the United States.

As time passed, the patient kept having severe problems with pain that would not quit. In desperation, the woman finally went to an orthopedist to find out what was wrong. He took an X-ray to see what was going on in the knee and lo and behold, it showed the hardware was in the wrong place. That meant the patient needed corrective surgery, less than three months after first having the initial operation.

“To say that the woman was not a happy camper would be an understatement, largely because while she initially went for a partial knee replacement, she now needed a total knee replacement,” New Hampshire personal injury lawyer Donahue said. The first partial knee replacement was intended to last for 10 to 12 years. However, because the first doctor didn’t do his job correctly and place the hardware in the right location, the woman needed surgery earlier than expected under general anesthesia.

In this case, the first surgeon didn’t do his job. He didn’t take an X-ray until the operation was over and then, even when he did take an X-ray and was questioning if the knee hardware was properly placed, he chose to do nothing about what he saw in the X-ray and sent the patient to physiotherapy. Ultimately, the agony she went through initially was a result of medical negligence.

“Does this lady have a viable medical malpractice case? Yes, and she should be able to recover medical expenses for both surgeries, pain and suffering, medications, therapy and other related costs. When things go wrong with your doctor and you wind up hurting, call me. I’d be pleased to assess your case, discuss your rights and outline how medical malpractice cases proceed,” Donahue said. “It’s your life, your body and your future. You depended on a doctor that let you down and changed how you will live the rest of your life. Things like this need to be talked about.”

To learn more, visit http://www.donahuelawfirm.com.

“Wrongful death lawsuits are not like the ones you see on TV, largely because those cases tend to deal with criminal offenses. In addition, nothing in the real world gets wrapped up from start to finish within an hour, minus commercials. In the real world, a wrongful death lawsuit is a civil lawsuit, not a criminal one, and it is a suit that is aimed at recovering compensation for the death of a loved one due to another person or entity,” said Scott Atkinson, a New Mexico personal injury lawyer and wrongful death lawyer with the Atkinson Law Firm, Ltd.

“Just about every state has a wrongful death statute, but their provisions differ, so it’s a good idea to find out from a New Mexico wrongful death lawyer what the statute in your state says,” he said.

“If you lost a loved one due to a homicide or manslaughter, the state (in the guise of the District Attorney) charges the offender and pursues legal action against them. They have complete control of the case. Family members need to file a civil lawsuit for compensation for their loved one’s death and they do so under the auspices of a wrongful death statute,” Atkinson said. Typically, most criminal cases are filed and dealt with first before a civil suit proceeds.

While no amount of money will ever bring back a deceased loved one, filing for compensation will allow the family to be able to continue on with their lives. By focusing on economic recovery, a wrongful death action quantifies the value of the deceased’s live by factoring in things like loss of earnings, loss of inheritance, loss of earning potential, medical and funeral expenses – to name a just a few things.

Trying to calculate what a person’s life is worth is extremely difficult, as there are a number of assumptions that need to go into the final figure. Frankly, most of the economic models don’t come close to capturing the complete value of a loved one’s life. Some of the factors involved include loss of comfort, guidance, emotional support and companionship; things that are just about impossible to quantify. Of course, there is then the risk that they won’t be included in the loss suffered by the survivors.

Ultimately, while economic recovery may come close to approximating what a life is worth, it’s not an optimal solution to a devastating loss. However, the family would at least have some recompense for their loss, to help them to get on with their lives and manage financially after the sudden death of the main breadwinner.

“In order to get a fair and reasonable settlement or verdict in a wrongful death case, you really need the competent assistance of New Mexico wrongful death lawyer who understands the pain and anguish you are trying to deal with as a result of your loss. Having a skilled lawyer on your side is very influential in terms of the outcome of your case,” Atkinson said.

To learn more about Scott Atkinson visit http://www.attorneynewmexico.com

“It’s one of those givens, that when a biker is involved in a motorcycle crash, that they tend to get ejected and thrown great distances. The result of the force of the impact and the impact of a hard landing usually results in multiple bone fractures, or worse. It’s not just being thrown that may break bones either. If the biker has to lay their bike down, fractures may result for that as well,” said Scott Atkinson, a New Mexico personal injury lawyer and wrongful death lawyer with the Atkinson Law Firm, Ltd.

Unfortunately, there are a number of different types of bone breaks. Knowing what kind of break is involved in the accident will give a New Mexico personal injury lawyer a good idea of how serious the injury is and what economic recovery may be possible. If the biker is lucky, they may sustain a simple crack; something that may be cast, if the break isn’t difficult to treat. In addition, as long as the bone is healing, it will not need to be re-broken. Arms and legs are relatively easy to deal with, but if a biker breaks a jaw or chin, the situation may become infinitely more difficult. Think wired jaws and drinking sustenance through a straw.

“Typically, there are two categories of bone fractures that we deal with when it comes to court cases,” said Atkinson. “Those are displaced and non-displaced; somewhat fancy terms for how the bones were broken. For instance, a displaced fracture is one where a bone snaps in two or more parts/pieces. You might be familiar with medical shows on TV that discuss comminuted fractures. This is when a bone breaks into many pieces.”

As for non-displaced fractures, this refers to a break where the bone cracks either partially or right through the bone. These type of fractures are referred to as either open or closed. Open means the bone came through the skin and is exposed; a very serious break that may lead to bone infections.

“As you can see, getting into an accident while on your ride may result in some very serious injuries that may be life-altering. Dealing with breaks as serious as some of the ones I have just discussed is a long and hard road to follow. If there was negligence involved in the accident, you stand a good chance of recovering compensation to pay for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, etc.,” Atkinson said. “If you will never be able to work again or walk properly without help, this may put you into a totally different compensation category for court. Give me a call if you have questions, I’d be happy to talk to you about your case.”

To learn more about Scott Atkinson visit http://www.attorneynewmexico.com

Getting sick means putting your trust in the hands of doctors, pharmacists and drug manufacturers. Sometimes that trust is betrayed in a way that results in serious injuries or death by taking defective drugs. If someone takes a defective drug, there are product liability laws designed to hold people responsible.

A defective drug is one that has severe adverse side effects. “It isn’t only a prescription drug, it may also be one sold over the counter,” indicated Jack Zinda, a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, in Austin, Texas.

In some instances, drug companies know about the side effects and market the drug anyway. In other cases, they find out about the side effects later and either choose to keep the drug on the market, or have it recalled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“The bottom line in cases involving a defective drug is that if the drug caused harm to a person, and the drug company knew about the dangerous side effects and chose to do nothing, they may be found liable for the consequences,” added Zinda. Drug companies are responsible to test their drugs for side effects before taking them to market. Additionally, they are required to advise people about those side effects.

“Despite the fact that the U.S. FDA is mandated to safeguard public safety and health, there are far too many instances where defective drugs with deadly side effects are approved and remain on the market despite reported severe drug reactions and deaths,” stated Jack Zinda, a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, in Austin, Texas.

The FDA doesn’t have enough manpower to keep track of all the drugs brought to the marketplace, and they often find out about the side effects later. This is often too late for people who took the drug(s) believing that they were safe.

If faced with a situation where a drug has caused devastating side effects or death, contact a defective product attorney post haste and have the case assessed. Jack Zinda, partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, in Austin, Texas, handles these types of cases.

To learn more visit Texasbusinessattorneys.net.

In some instances, a dog owner may face civil and criminal charges if their dog takes a bite out of someone. While it might not seem like a big deal, it may turn out to be that way.

Dog bite law is an interesting mixture of civil and criminal law and the laws vary widely among jurisdictions. If faced with a dog bite, it’s best to hire a competent dog bite attorney who will know what the law says in the particular jurisdiction where the incident took place. An important issue in dog bite cases is whether the jurisdiction follows the one-bite rule.

“The one-bite rule actually originated in English common law and generally speaking, protects a dog owner until he has actual knowledge his dog is dangerous/vicious. Once that becomes evident, the owner is strictly liable for any injuries inflicted by the dog,” explained Jack Zinda, a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin, Texas.

Most states are fairly consistent in saying that an owner is liable if any injuries were caused by negligence in handling the dog or by violating a strict leash law. “If a person happens to live in a state where an owner is considered to be liable by virtue of an existing statute because they own the dog, hiring a dog bite attorney is the smart thing to do,” added Zinda.

If faced with a dog bite situation, make certain to assist the victim to get medical attention if it is necessary. “Do not volunteer any information to the person about the dog or the dog’s habits or personality. Save this discussion to have with the attorney,” advised Jack Zinda, a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin, Texas. If the dog has unexpectedly bitten someone, or even if it was provoked to bite, immediately take all reasonable precautions to protect anyone else from a dog bite.

If there were any witnesses to the dog-biting incident, get names and addresses, etc. and call the insurance company to report the incident. This is to make sure that if there is a claim, the insurance company defends the owner in a lawsuit. If they are not aware of the incident, any claims filed later may be denied. “Here is one tip that most home owners don’t know about, and that is insurance companies will generally ask what breed of dog is on the premises because they will either charge higher rates or decline to insure at all,” said Zinda.

Jack Zinda is an Austin business lawyer with Heselmeyer Zinda, PLLC. To learn more about Austin business attorney Jack Zinda visit Texasbusinessattorneys.net.

Spinal cord injuries do not always take much of an impact to cause significant damage. The impact just needs to be in precisely the right spot. There are two types of classifications relating to spinal cord injuries – complete and incomplete, with the most severe category being a complete injury.

Many people make the mistake of thinking a complete spinal cord injury is the result of a cord being severed or broken. This is a myth. In fact, when there is a complete spinal cord injury, the cord is rarely broken or severed. A patient with a complete spinal cord injury will usually lose feeling and motor functions from the point of the injury down through the rest of the body. Unfortunately, statistics show that there is a less than 5% recovery rate for this type of injury.

Incomplete injuries fall into three further divisions. An injury to the front of the cord is called an anterior lesion. Secondly, an injury to the mid area of the spine is referred to as Central Cord Syndrome. Finally, if a victim sustains a blow to just one side of the cord, and that is the only location of the damage, this is called Brown-Sequard Syndrome. Paralysis may occur with any spinal cord injury. However, with an incomplete injury the condition is usually temporary.

It’s very difficult to accurately assess if a spinal cord injury is complete or incomplete until the secondary trauma(s) manifest themselves in order to clarify any potential diagnosis. For instance, swelling and inflammation may ultimately change the initial prognosis from one category to another. There is, however, the chance that secondary symptoms may not be as devastating as initially thought, and allow a partial or total recovery.

If you have been involved in an accident that was caused by someone else’s negligence and the diagnosis is a complete or incomplete spinal cord injury, contact a skilled personal injury attorney for a consultation. You may be entitled to receive compensation for your injuries, medical bills, therapy, long-term care, and pain and suffering.

Jack Zinda is an Austin business lawyer with Heselmeyer Zinda, PLLC. To learn more about Austin business attorney Jack Zinda visit Texasbusinessattorneys.net.

Most states have their own rules about helmets and if you have any questions about those laws, it is best to consult with a qualified motorcycle attorney with experience in this area. The laws are there for a reason, and that reason is to save lives, which may include yours. Of course if you happen to live in New Hampshire, Iowa, Illinois or Colorado there is no helmet law.

States that mandate riders must wear a full helmet are West Virginia, Washington, Virginia, Vermont, Tennessee, Oregon, North Carolina, New York, New Jersey, Nevada, Nebraska, Missouri, Mississippi, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Louisiana, Georgia, California and Alabama.

The other states have laws that exempt adult riders, meaning those that are 18 and over. Then there are seven states that insist adult bikers (18-20 years old) wear helmets. Texas is one of those states, which has raised some questions about possible discrimination issues.

Actually, the bottom line has nothing to do with discrimination, and everything to do with saving lives and protecting people from severe and debilitating injuries. The fact is that younger riders also do not have as much experience as older riders and tend to get into more crashes. It’s similar to the fact that younger drivers, particularly males, tend to get into more auto accidents.

The major reason for wearing a helmet has to do with protecting the brain from coup and contrecoup injuries. DOT approved helmets act as a cushion and reduce the chances of your brain getting slammed about inside your skull. While the skull may be tough, the brain is the most fragile organ in the whole body, and thumping it around causes severe problems, often for the lifetime of the injured biker.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a motorcycle crash that was caused by someone else, whether you were wearing a helmet or not, you may be entitled to compensation for your personal injuries and damage to your bike. Consult with a highly skilled motorcycle crash attorney who knows how to get you the settlement you deserve.

To learn more visit Texasbusinessattorneys.net.

Christine Marie Gritz, 32, of Palm Bay, was killed around 4:30 on the morning of June 26, 2009. The driver of the vehicle in which Ms. Gritz was a passenger, Itumus Mitchell, told crash investigators that Gritz reached across him and interfered with his driving, which caused him to lose control of his vehicle. Mitchell swerved into the southbound lane barrier (just south of Fiske Boulevard) causing the vehicle to overturn. Gritz was pronounced dead at the scene. “An interesting question of liability arises here,” said Orlando-based attorney Tony Francis, “Is the driver liable for failing to control his vehicle, even though it was his passenger who apparently caused him to lose control?”

A second crash occurred about two miles north of the first accident scene a short time later according to the Florida Highway Patrol. A tractor-trailer stalled in the traffic back-up from the first accident was slammed into by a second tractor-trailer being operated by Cecil Ray Couch, 63, of Georgia. Couch was killed in the accident, but the driver of the stopped tractor- trailer suffered only minor injuries.

“While you wouldn’t expect to come upon a tractor-trailer stalled in the middle of an interstate highway, a driver has to be alert and is responsible for maintaining control of a vehicle. Mr. Couch might have simply sneezed or took his eye off the scene in front of him for just an instant. Unfortunately, that’s all it takes sometimes to turn the routine of early morning travel into tragedy,” Francis explains.

Traffic was diverted to State Road 520 for 4 ½ hours until lanes were reopened by the Florida Highway Patrol. “I can recall an incident in the same general area where a similar series of accidents diverted traffic for almost eight hours,” Francis recalls.

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

The Florida Turnpike seems like such a safe road. The toll booths indicate safe passage and slightly below normal traffic loads in a large portion of the state. But early on the morning of July 3, 2009, before the sun came up to shine its light on orange and mango groves and the occasional billboard with its tourist attractions, four cars were involved in a serious accident on the Florida Turnpike.

Crucial actors in this real-life drama were Sheriff’s Deputy Shane Dickens, 23, of Orlando, and Kerry Velasquez, 22, of St. Cloud, whose vehicle had been stopped by Deputy Dickens at mile marker 252 of the southbound lanes of Florida’s Turnpike in the stillness just prior to dawn. Velasquez complied with the law enforcement request and pulled his late model Buick over onto the shoulder on the left by the median, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

“That’s significant,” explains attorney Tony Francis, of the Orlando-based Francis Law Firm, “Mr. Velasquez was definitely a law abiding citizen in that he was apparently in full compliance with the officer’s request.”

Dickens’ marked patrol car had all its emergency lights on and was parked in direct alignment behind the Buick.

“You’d think that both pulled over stopped vehicles would be relatively safe from oncoming turnpike traffic,” Francis asserts.

But safety was not in the cards on this wee hour in summer. A Ford Explorer driven by Christopher Schriefer, 32, of Kissimmee, was approaching in the southbound left inside lane and failed to move over as required by Florida law, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. As the Ford SUV approached the scene, Schriefer veered off the road onto the shoulder and struck the rear of Dickens’ patrol car.

The Ford then bounced back into the travel lanes and was sideswiped by a southbound semi-truck traveling in the right lane driven by Arturo Lopez, 55, of Oak Creek, Wisconsin.

“Mr. Lopez is a prime example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” says Francis.

At the time of the collision, Deputy Dickens was out of his vehicle conducting his traffic stop and standing beside the driver-side window of the Buick.

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

Michael E. Priester was only 53 years old when he died on the morning of February 21, 2009. He was on his way home on U.S. 17 North of Old Daytona Road in Volusia County when a pickup truck collided head-on with his motorcycle; he was wearing his helmet at the time of the crash.

His noteworthy career with Orange County Fire Rescue had spanned nearly 18 years, beginning on April 21, 1991. He’d been most recently assigned to the Special Operations Squad Unit at Fire Station 83. He will be sorely missed by his fellow firefighters and paramedics. He is survived by his wife. The cause of the crash was investigated by the Florida Highway Patrol, and it was determined that the pickup truck had swerved suddenly in to the stricken motorcyclist’s lane. Residing in Deland, Priester was very active in the local firefighter’s labor union and was revered by his colleagues for his lively sense of humor. He would loudly imitate “Curly” of the legendary 1930s Comedy Troupe “The Three Stooges,” while greeting loved ones or his many friends by having them pull his index finger straight out as if it were a living party favor. As a younger man, he would amuse friends by pursing his bushy eyebrows together into a “Groucho Marx” monobrow.

He would give small boys from the neighborhood rides on the “Big Red Engine” while being generous with his time. This fire truck with its hook n’ ladder was more than 60 feet long – a giant attraction to an awestruck boy.

He always loved motorcycles. A memorable “bike” was a GPZ that he handled with skillful aplomb. Another friend described Mike as “kind-hearted, always a smile on his lips, who loved his work. At Tallulah Park, he once performed CPR to save the life of an elderly woman, aged 97. He cherished other human beings, both old and young.

Tony Francis is an Orlando personal injury lawyer. His practice specializes in being an Orlando accident lawyer helping innocent victims get compensation for their losses. To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

When construction worker Steven Cofield and Police Officer Maurice Hensley reported for work at the construction site on I-4 near McIntosh Road late Sunday night, they had no idea they would be dealing with auto insurance and worker’s compensation insurance claims about to kick in.

At about 1:55am on the morning of July 13, 2009, an “18-wheeler” tractor trailer truck driven by Jack Duran of Orlando slammed into the back of a construction truck driven by Steven Cofield of Bradenton, creating a chain reaction crash with a police cruiser driven by Maurice Hensley of Tampa and a second construction truck driven by William Pettet of Valrico. The driver of the tractor trailer, along with the driver of the construction truck, Steven Cofield, and also Officer Hensley, were treated for potentially serious injuries as a result of the crashes.

The four-vehicle pile-up closed the westbound lane of I-4 for nearly four hours while police detectives conducted an investigation and victims were rendered aid and transported to various hospitals, including Tampa General, Saint Joseph’s, and Brandon Regional. Mr. Pettet was the only operator of a vehicle not transported to an area hospital.

All of the vehicles involved in the pile-up were lighted properly. Both construction vehicles had flashing arrow signals, and the police cruiser had its police lights in full ‘on’ mode as a warning to oncoming traffic.

While the immediate assumption of the victims and their families is probably that they only have auto accident insurance, they should know that a huge portion of the claim will have to be dealt with through worker’s compensation law. Since the construction workers, police officer and tractor trailer driver were all “on the job” at the time of the accident, both auto insurance and worker’s compensation laws now become somewhat intertwined in the application to this case, and can get relatively complex.

When faced with complex insurance claim issues, such as they appear to be in this case, and dealing with multiple insurance companies, it’s always a good idea to seek the advice of a competent attorney specializing in both worker’s compensation and auto or car accident injury law. Worker’s compensation claims come in a variety of guises.

Tony Francis is an Orlando personal injury lawyer. His practice specializes in being an Orlando accident lawyer helping innocent victims get compensation for their losses. To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

Stratton Faxon, based in New Haven, is a trial law firm dedicated to representing clients victimized by injuries often difficult to contemplate. “We represent plaintiffs who have suffered personal injury and loss in the most catastrophic ways,” says Joel T. Faxon. Often the large corporations, hospitals, religious and commercial entities they face in courtroom proceedings are interested in the bottom line – dollars and cents – while losing sight of the human equation that can lead to myriad forms of injustice. “We get to see a side of our society that can be very distressing to watch,” Michael A. Stratton explains, “Sometimes a glut of wealth and power is brought to bear against ordinary people in extraordinary ways that ruin families and destroy lives.”

It might be an accident or trauma whose root cause is neglect, or something more deliberate, with or without actual malice. But when a case is pursued, it can lead to high drama in the courtroom, and occasionally through the efforts of an excellent trial law firm, to a satisfying outcome. Experienced in the courtroom and recognized by their peers, the Stratton Faxon law firm is deeply committed to taking on the most difficult and egregious Connecticut personal injury and malpractice cases and bringing them before juries.

In 2006, Stratton Faxon won the highest personal injury verdict in Connecticut federal court history. Stratton Faxon was also ranked among the highest jury verdicts by the Connecticut Law Tribune. Michael and Joel have personally been named Connecticut “Super Lawyers” by the publishers of Connecticut Magazine for several years in a row.

The outstanding firm currently represents more than 250 families who have suffered injury due to Vioxx, Bextra, and Celebrex – defective Cox-2 inhibitor drugs used to treat arthritis pain but shown to possess dangerous side effects linked to clotting, heart attack, and stroke.

“The average person needs to know that without hardworking, authentic trial lawyers, it would simply be a world of might makes right,” Michael A. Stratton concludes.

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

It’s a broad term that is bandied about even by non-lawyers used to describe any treatment, lack of treatment, or other departure from accepted medical standards that result in injury or death to a patient. A medical malpractice claim may be made against anyone who provides medical or health care to a patient, including physicians, registered or other nurses, hospitals, dentists, nursing homes, and pharmacists. “It can actually be applied to other types of medical specialists too,” asserts Joel Faxon of the Stratton Faxon Law Firm based in New Haven, Connecticut.

The types of claims engendered in medical malpractice court filings are also myriad and diverse, often involving errors of reckless actions shown during a patient’s medical procedure or surgery. But it doesn’t necessarily end there. “Medical malpractice can also be failure to diagnose a disease or condition, or failing to prescribe proper medication, neglecting to inform a patient of available treatments, or perhaps continuing a treatment course that has proven ineffective,” says Michael Stratton of the Stratton Faxon Law Firm.

There is also a four element threshold that can substantiate grounds for medical malpractice. “A few givens have to exist in a civil society,” Stratton adds, “Health care providers owe a duty to the patient subsequent to instigating care. If the duty is breached, and the patient suffers an injury or the patient suffers damages to his/her person or economically, medical malpractice may have occurred.”

But if a breach is established and resulted in no harm to the patient, a claimant has no right to recovery. “In fact, even poor results can’t always be blamed on medical malpractice,” argues Faxon.

That said, if one develops a “gut feeling” or a sense of being a victim of medical malpractice, Stratton Faxon should be contacted immediately. “We can’t guarantee what will happen. Claims for medical malpractice require a considerable amount of time to conduct an appropriate medical and legal investigation and statutes do apply. But if you suspect you or a loved one were the victim of medical malpractice, we’d like to hear from you,” Stratton concludes.

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

In Hartford on June 17, 2009, a Superior Court jury in Michael Santopietro vs. Elizabeth Lach-Pasko, M.D. awarded $1.56 million to the plaintiff, 67-year-old Canton resident Michael Santopietro, finding that Dr. Elizabeth Lach-Pasko, director of the Department of Pathology at Charlotte-Hungerford Hospital, was negligent in her pathology findings, misdiagnosing the plaintiff with cancer requiring immediate resection and removal of a lobe of his lung when there was actually no cancer present.

Santopietro had recently retired from his job driving a handicap van for children with special needs in 2005 when he underwent a needle aspiration (biopsy) of his lung, which was submitted to the Department of Pathology at Charlotte-Hungerford Hospital where Lach-Pasko was a staff pathologist and pathology department director. Lach-Pasko issued a report the same day stating that the specimen of Mr. Santopietro’s lung was malignant and dangerously cancerous. Santopietro was immediately transferred to a cardiothoracic surgeon who quickly removed a portion of the left lung that Lach-Pasko had reported as cancerous.

While Santopietro was in recovery at Saint Francis Hospital after his surgery, their pathology department issued an updated report indicating that the lung specimen submitted from surgery showed “no evidence of malignancy.” Upon reviewing the findings, Santopietro’s primary care physician agreed: there was no tumor and no cancer. The amount of lung tissue removed was described during trial by Lach-Pasko’s own colleagues as “nearly half the size of a tennis ball in surface area.”

At trial, the jury listened to arguments posed by both sides for several weeks. It was determined that the plaintiff needlessly underwent a painful surgery and is now without a significant portion of a lung for no reason whatsoever. Charlotte-Hungerford Hospital had also refused to provide the lung tissue slides in question showing the misdiagnosis was withdrawn prior to trial. After the lung tissue was removed, Santopietro required constant supplemental oxygen and is now primarily confined to a wheelchair.

Santopietro was represented by Paul T. Edwards of Stratton Faxon Law Firm in New Haven, Connecticut.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

Beverly Eckert, a widow since the death of her husband, Sean Rooney, on September 11, 2001 – in the attacks on the World Trade Center on that date – was among 50 passengers and crew aboard Continental Connection flight 3407 departing Newark’s Liberty International Airport on February 12, 2009, that crashed less than 100 yards from its destination of Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. Her sister, Margaret Eckert, has filed a wrongful death suit against three airlines, including Houston-based Continental.

The flight was operated by Continental Airlines contractor Colgan Air, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tennessee-based Pinnacle Airlines Corp.

Margaret Eckert, the executor of her deceased sister’s estate, appeared in federal district court in Connecticut to file suit. She alleges that the plane was operating on autopilot with its wings loaded with ice, a condition that caused the aircraft to slow and stall immediately prior to the crash.

Just a week prior to her death, Beverly Eckert was at the White House with Barack Obama, part of a meeting the president had with relatives of those killed in the 2001 attacks and the bombing of the USS Cole to discuss how the new administration would handle terror suspects.
Spokespersons for Continental and Pinnacle declined comment pending litigation.

Colgan operates an average of 173 daily flights for Continental, serving 28 cities, according to Mary Clark, a Continental spokeswoman, a statistic representing 6.5% of the parent airline’s average daily flights systemwide.

From Continental’s Houston hub Colgan flies to a dozen destinations in Texas and Louisiana. From the Newark hub, Colgan flies to 16 East Coast destinations, including Boston, Pittsburgh, and Toronto.

Since the crash, there have been no changes in Colgan’s two contracts with Continental, one of which expires in 2010 and the other in 2018, according to Pinnacle spokesman Joe Williams. Margaret Eckert is represented by Stratton Faxon Law Firm in New Haven, Connecticut.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

To put this simply, premises liability is all about someone falling and injuring themselves due to the carelessness or negligence of a business or property owner. If this happens, the victim has a right to pursue compensation for those injuries.

Typically, the person who owns a business or operates it, is liable for dangerous conditions that they know about and either don’t deal with them, and/or don’t warn people about the potentially dangerous situation. The other side of the coin is that they “should” have known about the dangerous condition by regularly inspecting the property.

There is such a big emphasis on knowledge because it is critical to the imposition of liability. So in the above example, the notice a landowner/business gets may be constructive or actual. For instance, if the owner of the property is the one who creates the dangerous situation, they are deemed to have actual notice of it, because they created it.

On the other hand, if the owner/operator or the workers don’t create a dangerous situation, they may still be liable for constructive notice of the danger. This means that the bad situation was there for such a long time they should have seen it or done something about it by doing regular inspections.

Let’s use the example of someone spilling hot coffee on a floor and it is not cleaned up. The actual proof of how long that spill has been there lies in the condition of the spill. If it’s partially dry or has footprints tracking through it, it’s obviously been there for some time, and therefore, the owner/manager should have known and done something about it. This is a good example of constructive notice.

Of interest, is that the most common mistake a business owner makes is in not warning people that come to his or her property that there may be an unavoidable danger. Some businesses, just because of the nature of what they do, are considered to be inherently dangerous.

Those businesses need to have the premises posted with warnings. If the venture is something like a swimming pool and they have a wet deck all the time and warn people about it, then they are not necessarily required to fix the situation (difficult to do if it’s a pool deck).

There are many other rules and exceptions when dealing with premises liability law, including third-party liability, so it’s best to speak to an attorney who is intimately familiar with the ropes. They will help you build a solid case.

Tim Anderson works with Atlanta Personal Injury attorney, Stephen M. Ozcomert. The firm specializes in personal injury, malpractice, motorcycle accidents, and wrongful death. To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

Medical malpractice/medical errors don’t just happen in the hospital, although this is the association that many people have when they think about this term. In addition, it’s not just physicians that may make the errors. Those who may make an error in medical management include surgeons, dentists, nurses, hospital workers, eye doctors and general practitioners.

If you have questions about the statistics, then make it a point to check out the Journal of the American Medical Association. One of their most notable articles indicates that roughly 12,000 deaths happen yearly thanks to unnecessary surgery. Close to 7,000 fatalities were the result of medication errors in hospital and nearly 20,000 deaths were the end result of other errors in a hospital setting. The dollar amount that goes along with these errors is astronomical.

You may be wondering what kinds of errors happen in a hospital setting besides medication errors, which typically leads the list of mistakes. In fact, a recent study done by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies shows that at least 1.5 million people a year are harmed as a result of errors in medication.

There are actually a large number of things that may go wrong in a hospital, including surgical errors, medical experimentation, anesthesia errors, birth errors, misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis, wrongful death, and failing to take the correct medical action deemed appropriate. This is just the tip of the medical error iceberg too.

If you’ve been the victim of a medical error, you may stand to lose your job, lose wages, perhaps suffer a permanent disability which may affect the quality of your life, loss of future income, ever increasing medical bills, chronic pain and much more. These are also some of the things you may be able to seek compensation for when you speak to a qualified medical malpractice lawyer.

An experienced med mal attorney will strive to ensure you recover appropriate compensation for the various losses we have discussed in this article.

Tim Anderson works with Atlanta Personal Injury attorney, Stephen M. Ozcomert. The firm specializes in personal injury, malpractice, motorcycle accidents, and wrongful death. To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

The most crucial thing is to be able to distinguish between malpractice and other kinds of negligence. “Generally speaking the term malpractice refers to a set of circumstances when a professional (doctor, lawyer, dentist, accountant, etc.) fails to use the proper level of skill, diligence or care to perform their professional services. In failing to perform properly, this causes harm to patients or customers,” said Stephen Ozcomert, an Atlanta personal injury lawyer.

In general, a professional may be sued if s/he fails to perform their “professional” duties using the accepted standard of care, level of learning and skill one should reasonably expect from a person in their particular position. “Or to put this in simpler terms, the professional’s performance is held up in comparison to the performance standards of other professionals in the same field. So, if the level of performance is of a lesser standard than others, that person may be accused of malpractice,” added Ozcomert, who practices Atlanta personal injury law.

What a patient or customer needs to do to prove malpractice is show that they suffered an injury, damages or a loss because the person didn’t do their job properly. Malpractice charges may be laid against those practicing in a profession that is licensed or regulated by the state, which would include lawyers, surgeons, dentists and accountants. “There are other categories of professionals that cannot be held liable for malpractice, but may be held accountable for negligence,” outlined Ozcomert.

If someone feels they have been a victim of either malpractice or negligence, contact a highly qualified malpractice attorney and discuss the details of the case. “The lawyer will know the rules and regulations that need to be followed to file a proper malpractice lawsuit against another professional, even if it does happen to be another attorney,” commented Stephen Ozcomert, an Atlanta personal injury lawyer.

To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

The bottom line is that putting in a claim for compensation for personal injuries after an accident is pretty much an accepted right in the U.S. “While it may take some work to get the compensation for damages, it may well be worth it in the long-term, particularly if serious injuries have been sustained and a person’s life has been significantly altered because of it,” commented Stephen Ozcomert, an Atlanta personal injury attorney.

“Keep in mind that even though an insurance company may settle on a claim without anyone having to do too much to get it done, the settlement is generally much lower than it could be if the case were taken to court,” explained Ozcomert. This is why most lawyers will advise their clients not to take the first settlement offer that comes along. Insurance companies want to accomplish one thing, closing the case and spending as little as they can to accomplish it.

Most accident claims do require some work to obtain compensation, but if the injuries are serious enough, the work will be well worth it. The first thing an attorney will need to do is be able to prove that the other person in the accident was the party “at fault.” Use a cell phone at the scene of the accident, if need be, to get clear pictures of the damage. They may come in handy in court.

Remember to get all the information needed from any eyewitnesses, report the accident to the police, and also get a copy of the accident report. Don’t assume there are no serious injuries, as many of them may be silent and not manifest themselves until a later time with drastic consequences. If an ambulance is needed, call one immediately and then contact an Atlanta personal injury attorney.

While the accident may have been partially the fault of both drivers involved, the party laying the claim for compensation may still claim and receive some damages. “The proportion or percentage of negligence in cases where both drivers are at fault is usually determined by the courts using the doctrine of contributory negligence. That may mean compensation won’t be 100%, but instead a proportion thereof,” explained Stephen Ozcomert, an Atlanta personal injury attorney.

There a great many other details that go into mounting a personal injury claim, so ensure the lawyer hired is big on aggressive representation for their clients to obtain justice.

To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

Delivering a baby isn’t always a stress free job, particularly if there are problems that develop during the birth. If the doctor and medical staff do not take the appropriate action or delay taking action, the consequences may be birth injuries to the baby and possibly the mom.

One situation that has the potential to cause shoulder dystocia is when the baby’s shoulders are folded inward during the birth process, otherwise called mal-positioned. When that does happen, it makes delivery that much more difficult because it ripens the conditions for dystocia to take place. Mal-presentation, in other words, not presenting with the head down, is also a critical situation that may cause shoulder dystocia if something isn’t done to attend to this situation.

While the mother is in labor, there may be a good reason to give her an epidural – either at her request or at the discretion of the doctor. This of course is an anesthetic that helps with labor pains, but the contractions still happen, it’s just that they’re mostly pain free. The epidural causes the mom to lose all sensation of being able to push. This means pushing is not done in a natural way, which may cause the baby to descend improperly – a situation ripe for an impacted shoulder.

Birth injuries may also happen as a result of the improper use of forceps. Generally speaking, the forceps are used to help the baby be born. This instrument that looks like a pair of tongs, normally grips about the infant’s head to help with the birth. Although forceps do have their place in deliveries, if they’re used incorrectly, this causes problems. It may for instance turn the baby’s head in the wrong direction, impacting the shoulders, or they may wind up squeezing the baby’s head too tightly, thus causing injuries.

Also be aware that the incorrect use of a vacuum extractor has the potential to go wrong. In an ideal situation, the cup at the top of the extractor is attached to the baby’s head. The physician then uses vacuum pressure to get the baby into the right position to deliver. There is a risk of applying too much pressure and thus causing nerve damage that could result in brachial plexus palsy.

Anyone of the above situations may result in the parents of the baby filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. Speak to a highly qualified attorney who will assist in building the case for compensation.

To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

It’s likely that not many people have heard of invention scams or even rare item investment scams, but they exist and they are every bit as sneaky and underhanded as stock and securities fraud. Scams are on the rise, which makes sense in this dismal economy, and as a net result, millions of dollars is fleeced from customers every year.

To be on the alert and get wise to investment frauds/scams there is some warning flags that should go up that would hint that a person may be dealing with a potential scam. Of course, the first one is predicated on that old chestnut, “If it sounds too good to be true, then it likely is.”

Red flag number two would be a high-pressure sales person trying to use strong-arm tactics to get the potential investor to invest immediately if not sooner. If someone calls and starts a spiel about an investment opportunity when no one in the house requested information, it’s time to hang up. Some scam artists also have the nerve to ask for credit card information or even social security numbers. It goes without saying that this information needs to be kept close to the vest and not shared with anyone.

Although people are able to get fraud and scam information from the Federal Trade Commission and the state securities regulator, if common sense is utilized in a prudent manner, most scams of this nature may be avoided. On the other hand, if a scam was successful, and some of them are due to their very crafty believability, the victim needs to act fast to remedy the situation.

Don’t waste two seconds thinking that some fraudster took advantage of you and ripped off money or vital personal information. Just pick up the phone and call the police, the fraud has to be stopped in its tracks before someone else gets taken in. Give them as many details as possible about who called, how the contact was established, how any investments purchased were funded, and any information that might help. No detail is too small to mention.

The next person on the list to call would be a lawyer familiar with stock and investment fraud. It’s their job to assist in building a case against the person who perpetrated the fraud. It’s also their job to answer any questions about stock and investment fraud, how it works and what the chances are of recovering any money.

To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

Filing a medical malpractice lawsuit is a matter of personal choice, and whether or not the patient genuinely feels they have been the victim of medical malpractice. There are times when a patient gets to a point with their illness, or other medical situation, and looks back at how they got there and wonders what went wrong.

The first answer to come to mind doesn’t always happen to be medical malpractice. In fact, many people don’t even blame their doctors for making mistakes or figure no one could prove they made an error anyway, so why waste time filing a lawsuit?

While it’s true that proving medical malpractice is difficult, it is not impossible and this largely depends on the nature of the case. There are countless numbers of ways that things may take a turn for the worse when in medical situations and that would include the fact that different people react differently to various medical procedures as well as medications.

The simple fact here is also that physicians must make decisions based on what evidence they are able to see at the time, and then make decisions instantaneously. It’s not an easy job being a doctor.

Despite the difficult tasks doctors face, the mistakes they and other medical personnel have made are proven to be of significant harm or death to patients. Patients who have suffered at the hands of a medical mistake have the right to file a personal injury lawsuit (medical malpractice). The families of those who have lost a loved one also have a right to seek redress from the courts as well.

Those victims of med mal that are faced with long-term suffering should be able to seek compensation through the courts to be able to deal with the consequences of their injuries. This is actually one of the main reasons why people file med mal lawsuits – the financial difficulties a family will face trying to provide care for a patient who was a victim of a medical error. Money like that does not come from standard health insurance.

If you think you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice, medical error, misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis, contact a skilled personal injury attorney to take on your case.

Michael G. Smith is a Little Rock injury lawyer and Little Rock accident lawyer, practicing personal injury law in Little Rock Arkansas. To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

Generally speaking, the major cause for traumatic brain injury is car crashes, but this isn’t to say that other accidents might not happen that would also cause a TBI – for instance, slip and fall and hitting one’s head, diving, some form of sports, injuries sustained in a war zone and so on.

In some respects, a TBI is almost what might be called a silent injury, as no one “sees” it, often until it is too late. When someone sustains a traumatic brain injury, immediate medical assistance is crucial to deal with the consequences of a coup and contre coup injury.

In most cases, there are short and long-term symptoms to deal with daily. Thankfully, the short-term effects are mercifully short lived and may last only as long as a few hours to a few months, but do disappear. Unfortunately, long-term effects may last for years or ultimately wind up being permanent. The difficulty with TBI is that it is literally impossible to figure out which symptoms will last until a great deal further down the road.

The length of time for injuries like this to last is a major consideration when contemplating a personal injury claim. This is why it is best to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer to handle a complex case such as this. Damages in cases like this may run quite high for the simple reason that the injury is long-term and care ongoing.

When dealing with the symptoms of a TBI, the usual one that most people notice is they will suffer from amnesia for a variety of things, and they may even forget about their accident. This shouldn’t be too surprising, since the brain tissue has taken a hard knocking about and the memory will be affected.

TBI victims may feel very dizzy, nauseated and perhaps be disoriented as well. While the dizziness may recede, it may also hang on long enough to occur intermittently. This would largely have to do with how serious the injury happens to be. It also isn’t much of a surprise that memory loss is a long-term effect. Of course, the most common problems happen to be severe headaches, sensory changes and as we already mentioned, memory loss.

If you suspect or know that you have sustained a TBI, consult with a highly skilled personal injury attorney to discuss the merits of your case and what the potential is to recover damages to pay for inevitable long-term treatments.

Michael G. Smith is a Little Rock injury lawyer and Little Rock accident lawyer, practicing personal injury law in Little Rock Arkansas. To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

Despite more and better training, trucking companies are still facing an increase in the number of accidents involving their vehicles. “The media used to be rife with reports about tired truckers losing control of their rigs and causing a massive fatal accident. It seems like these days that it’s not tired truckers that are the problem (although it still remains a crash factor), but prescription drugs,” indicated Jack Zinda, a Texas Super Lawyer’s Rising Star, a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin.

Out of the roughly 141,000 big rig crashes a year, roughly 77,000 were directly attributable to the driver, and it wasn’t just because they were asleep at the wheel either. The fact of the matter is that over 26% of the accidents were as a direct result of the use of prescription drugs, not use of over the counter drugs, although that ranked at 18%.

Other factors that figure into big rig crashes are speeding, which came in at 23%, not being familiar with the road travelled (22%), poor surveillance (14%), being over tired ranked at 13%, employing an illegal maneuver was 9%, an outside distraction at 8%, inadequate evasive action at 7% and aggressive driving (7%). So much for the folklore of the highways about truckers with road rage aiming their huge machines down the middle of the road and daring everyone to get out of their way, or else.

It may be just a small sinus congestion pill, but the results of taking it ended up causing a severe crash. “Driver education about mixing prescription drugs with long distance driving is critical,” commented Zinda. It’s up to the trucking industry to take that bull by the horns and ensure that all 18-wheeler drivers understand the ramifications of driving while under the influence of prescription drugs.

“While most truckers know and agree that they should not drive while under the influence of alcohol or an illegal drug, many seem to think that because the drug is prescribed, that makes it acceptable. It doesn’t and the consequences may be worse than anything they expected,” added Jack Zinda, Texas Super Lawyer’s Rising Star, a partner at the firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin.

To learn more visit Hzfirm.com.

Usually during the course of our lives the average person will witness at least one major accident involving a big rig. It’s not a pretty sight and the debris from the accident is strewn up and down the highway as a silent testimonial to lost lives and injured victims. It’s not hard to imagine the devastation these behemoths leave behind, considering many of them are travelling at speeds up to 80 miles an hour and they are unable to stop quickly.

Interstate highways are teeming with 18-wheelers, and have become as familiar as the landscape on the way to work. Trucking is an ongoing concern across the US thanks to the demand for various goods that need to be delivered by truck. “Getting those goods to their destination on time and on budget is the driving force behind most trucking companies, sometimes to the detriment of the driver, who must log more hours than legally allowed to meet his or her deadlines,” outlined Jack Zinda, a Texas Super Lawyer’s Rising Star, and a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin.

When a collision occurs, the main question is “Who is liable?” Most would think the trucker is liable. In reality there are many people that may be liable. Many times in most lawsuits, other drivers are named as a responsible party because they were in control of a vehicle at the time of the crash. “It is also important to determine whether or not the truck driver was an employee, a private owner or driving for a company as an independent contractor. Each one of these situations makes a difference in determining who is liable for any injuries that result,” explained Zinda.

If the trucker is an employee for a company, the company may ultimately be liable for the accident and its subsequent damages. “This is usually applicable if the driver had a load for a company at the time of the accident and was not driving the truck on his or her own free time,” said Zinda.

The critical factor here is insurance. If the driver was determined to be driving for the company, his employer’s policy will be typically be involved in any subsequent lawsuit. If the driver was driving on their own, they will likely have their own insurance policy that will pay any damages recovered.

“Large truck accidents are very challenging. Hiring a highly skilled attorney is crucial in order for a victim to obtain justice and compensation for their injuries,” commented Jack Zinda, a Texas Super Lawyer’s Rising Star, and a partner at the law firm of Heselmeyer Zinda PLLC, Austin.

To learn more visit Hzfirm.com.

Searching for car crash statistics on the Internet is depressing when you realize just how many Americans are hurt or killed annually. It’s almost enough to make a person stop driving, but realistically this isn’t going to happen any time soon. The estimated number of fatalities as a result of the 6 million crashes ranks somewhere near 40,000.

There seems to be a wide variety of reasons why the crash totals are so high across the nation, ranging from running a red light to speeding. Throw in a few other creative causes such as trying to program the GPS on the dashboard, sending an email from the driver’s seat and checking the scores of the hottest football match on your cell phone. The consequences of this behavior are law enforcement having their hands full picking up the pieces from some very nasty accidents.

Most of the situations we just listed have one thing in common; lack of attention to road conditions. In large part, inattention plays a significant role in fatal crashes. There are a few other reasons for losing control of a vehicle that do not involve lack of attention, but inability to focus instead, even including driving while under the influence of a drug or alcohol.

One of the most frequently cited causes of collisions these days is talking on a cell phone while attempting to pilot a 3,500-pound machine through traffic. It just can’t be done with any great degree of success and the consequences for that split second of inattention range from a fender bender to a fatality.

Political response to this issue has been to ban the use of cell phones while driving. This doesn’t help solve some of the other problems such as peeking at a dashboard computer for the latest news update. While driver education remains a large part of reaching out to motorists, they have to ultimately be willing to accept responsibility for their driving.

A closer look at traffic accidents statistics shows that they are slotted into categories that refer to the part that hits another vehicle. E.g. head on collisions, being rear ended, side collisions and rollovers, etc. No matter how it happened, or what section of the vehicle sustained an impact, the fact is that someone will be badly hurt or killed.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a collision, speak to a highly qualified personal injury attorney who will advise you on your potential case. Ensure that any attorney you meet with has extensive expertise dealing with car crashes and knows how to obtain justice for injured clients.

Jack Zinda is an Austin personal injury lawyer. To learn more about Austin injury lawyer Jack Zinda visit Hzfirm.com.

While you may think that if two cars collide, one of them is obviously at fault because they did not obey the rules of the road, many times there are other reasons involved. In other words, things are not always what they may look like on the surface. A good car crash attorney knows this and will spend time digging for the information they need to make a case for their client.

According to the Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, collisions that happen at intersections are responsible for approximately 21% of the resulting fatalities. If these kinds of accidents were as straightforward as people think they are on the surface, there would be no need to hire a lawyer. Everyone would admit fault, discuss things rationally and get the case settled. Of course, too often this doesn’t happen in the real world.

Let’s take a look at the other factors that often contribute to wrecks at intersections, which include possible road construction, poor driving conditions (ice, slush, etc.), perhaps traffic lights that didn’t work properly, or a glitch in the timing sequences.

There are actually two methods to make the traffic lights work at an intersection. The older method is pre-timed or fixed to change after a set period of time. Vehicles in the intersection trigger these lights. Rather a hit and miss affair at times. The newer traffic lights are controlled by above and below ground sensors. Computers that calculate the flow of the traffic, the time of day and where certain vehicles are in the intersection, also monitor the sensors.

These are not the only things to factor into intersection collisions. Did you know that emergency vehicles might interrupt intersection light sequencing? Is the intersection properly designed? While you may think it odd, people who have driven the same route for years, often have an accident if the intersection they are used to is changed.

These are a just a few of the things a top notch personal injury lawyer will be asking when you discuss your case with him or her. Your attorney will also want to know if lights in other intersections close to where you had your accident were in good working order on that day. Faulty lights at one intersection may lead to problems at another. They will also closely question the police report of the accident and dig for witnesses for a potential court case. As you see, a “simple” accident might not be so simple after all.

Jack Zinda is an Austin personal injury lawyer. To learn more about Austin injury lawyer Jack Zinda visit Hzfirm.com.

“The biggest risk people take when they drive drunk in Georgia is losing their right to drive,” explained Robert Webb of Webb & D’Orazio, in Atlanta, Georgia. Being arrested for a DUI in the state of Georgia means the possibility of facing strict penalties; penalties that will follow a person for the rest of their lives.

Driving under the influence, while not a smart thing to do, does happen now and then, but even being caught once may wind up resulting in a one year license suspension, and this is for a first time offender (a person who has not had a DUI arrest in the last five years).

Unless there is a skilled DUI attorney involved in this affair, the penalties may be worse. Never make the mistake of thinking it’s just a “little” offense. “Make a call to a DUI lawyer right away and discuss the case with him or her. That one call may result in the case being dropped, the charges dismissed or the penalties mitigated,” outlined Webb.

For first time Georgia offenders being tagged with a DUI, a one-year license suspension is a significant blow to their lifestyle. This makes getting anywhere a major pain, so they may apply for a 30-day work permit that will let them drive to school or work, etc. While on the work permit, the first time offender may choose to complete a Risk Reduction Course and pay a fee. “Doing this may mean the reinstatement of the regular license at the end of the 30-day period,” added Webb.

The first time DUI offender isn’t just going to lose their license and that is the end of the matter. They may find themselves paying up to $1,000 plus other fees and court costs. This is yet another clear reason to hire a skilled DUI attorney who will go to bat for their client. While there may be no way around the minimum required one-day of jail time, sentences may range from 10 days to 12 months. “A good DUI attorney will be able to mitigate the terms of the sentencing to a certain extent,” said Robert Webb of Webb & D’Orazio, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta business law, Atlanta criminal defense at Webbdorazio.com.

The bottom line when it comes to accidents is that there are so many forms of potential personal injury accidents that over 80,000 Americans are killed or badly injured every year. Be it car crashes, medical malpractice, slip, trip and fall accidents, injuries on the job or wrongful death, there is a plethora of personal injuries that may see the courtroom before a year is out.

“The point is, when faced with injuries that have been caused by someone else’s negligence, there is the potential to be able to file a personal injury lawsuit,” said Robert Webb of Webb & D’Orazio, in Atlanta, Georgia. It means speaking with a skilled personal injury attorney and discussing the details of the case. Not every case goes to court, and this is something that a great many people don’t understand. They figure if there was an accident, then someone must be responsible for it, and that they need to pay for the injuries or any damage.

A personal injury accident is not as straightforward as 1-2-3 and there are usually many deviations along the road to justice. “The reason many cases do not go to court may vary, but some of them include filing a claim too late for the statute of limitations, not enough solid evidence to prove the other person’s negligence, or there was proportionate liability where those in involved in an accident were each 50% liable,” indicated Webb. Granted, that does not happen frequently, but the possibility does exist.

Let’s say that a case does make it to court. “What usually happens in personal injury cases is the plaintiff receives a settlement of some sort that may cover things like the cost of their medical bills, money for loss of wages, and damages for pain and mental and physical suffering,” outlined Webb.

The awards will vary depending on the severity of the accident, the degree of negligence, and several other factors that a top-notch personal injury attorney will explain prior to a case going to court. “Never make the mistake of thinking these cases are easily settled without the assistance of a good attorney,” added Robert Webb of Webb & D’Orazio, in Atlanta, Georgia. There are far too many pitfalls along the road to justice for the average person to be able to represent themselves in personal injury cases.

Learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta business law, Atlanta criminal defense at Webbdorazio.com.

Many people tend to struggle with the definition of a wrongful death suit. Simply put, it’s a death that comes about as the result of someone else’s negligence. That is the basic definition, but if you added in recklessness and irresponsibility, you’d have a fairly good idea of the foundation of a wrongful death suit.

The other factor that needs to be understood is that there are still grounds to file a wrongful death lawsuit even if the death was the result of the “lack” of necessary actions that caused a death and it was unintentional.

Who benefits in a wrongful death suit? It is not the deceased. In most instances, it is the family of the deceased who may receive compensation. The compensation awarded in cases of this type is for economic/financial purposes. E.g. the family is without financial support because of the death and thus, any awards made would assist them to live. Of course, the award may also help deal with the expenses of medical bills and the funeral.

Wrongful death cases also deal with the area of emotional pain of losing a loved one. It’s not easy to put a price on grieving, however the courts make an effort to take the pain of losing a loved one into consideration in their awards. The bottom line is that wrongful death cases are really about making life easier financially for those left behind.

If you have lost a loved one to a tragic accident that you feel was the result of negligence on the part of someone else, speak to a highly qualified wrongful death attorney. S/he will assess your case and let you know precisely what your rights are and what would happen if your case were taken to court.

When speaking to your attorney, that is your chance to ask other questions about standards of proof required in this type of case, the statute of limitations and how the courts go about assessing compensation. While some of the information you receive may be confusing, your attorney will assist you in understanding what it all means. At this point, you will be able to make informed decisions about how to proceed with your case.

Robert Webb is an Atlanta personal injury lawyer with Webb & D’Orazio, a law firm specializing in Atlanta personal injury, malpractice, criminal defense, and business law. Learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta business law, Atlanta criminal defense at Webbdorazio.com.

It might not surprise you to know that the foundation of many medical malpractice lawsuits is someone misreading an X-ray, mammogram, MRI or CAT scan. Sure, they’re not the easiest things to interpret, but the people paid to do so have many years of training under their belts to enable them to do it right the first time.

Unfortunately, that does not always happen, because even those with extensive training have days when things just don’t go right. While it might be understandable, as they are human, a medical error like this has the potential to cause serious personal injuries or result in a fatality.

A good med mal attorney needs to prove that there was a mistaken interpretation of a test, which is not always easy to do. It is usually accomplished by having a qualified radiologist with extensive experience in interpreting imaging results. In other words, the med mal attorney will seek to hire an “expert” in the field of interpreting radiographic films to testify in court.

Keep in mind that the mistaken reading is not the only error in a scenario like this. This is merely the starting point for a whole cascade of errors that may ultimately include incorrect treatment; the wrong drugs and possibly counter intuitive therapy. If the disease in question happens to be cancer and the imaging results were misread, imagine the anguish of a patient who finds out either they have cancer and got the wrong treatment, or have cancer and were not diagnosed as such, leaving it to grow unchecked.

When using an expert in court, that individual needs to be able to not only support a misread/incorrect analysis, but also be able to offer the further opinion that there was no reasonable basis for that wrong interpretation. This isn’t easy to do either, and for this reason, medical malpractice lawsuits often take a fair amount of time to be settled.

Robert Webb is an Atlanta personal injury lawyer with Webb & D’Orazio, a law firm specializing in Atlanta personal injury, malpractice, criminal defense, and business law. Learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta business law, Atlanta criminal defense at Webbdorazio.com.

When performing a Google search for either Stratton Faxon or RisCassi & Davis, those firms’ websites invariably came up in the second position. Above it, shaded in light yellow to indicate a paid advertisement, was a listing labeled “Defending Patients’ Rights.” Smaller type displayed the URL www.SGTlaw.com, which belongs to Silver, Golub & Teitell, a competitive personal injury law firm located in Stamford, CT. When this was discovered by Stratton Faxon partner Michael Stratton, he was not amused. “I don’t think Google should make money selling my law firm’s name,” he said.

As the Internet continues to evolve as an integral marketing tool for business, connecting with clients and the concept of potential customers searching for your firm’s name would seem to be a given. But when a cursory Google search revealed SearchAboveit, a sponsored advertisement for a competitor, in association with that cursory Google search, New Haven based personal injury lawyers Michael Stratton and Joel Faxon decided to take legal steps. They’ve filed suit against Google in New Haven Superior Court, alleging that the search engine giant improperly sold advertising rights to the Stratton Faxon name, to a competitor.

It isn’t the only such example. Other businesses have also discovered that while performing a Google search on their proper company business or marketing name, that a competitor’s name is sometimes placed on the top of the stack above the searched name, as a sponsored ad. According to a May 27th report in the Connecticut Law Tribune, companies such as American Airlines and Geico Insurance have filed similar grievances with Google before ultimately settling them.

In this instance, a Google campaign referred to as “Adwords” featured the Stratton Faxon law firm as a series of keywords within the online marketing strategy of personal injury firm Silver, Golub & Teitell. It should be noted that SGT was not named as a defendant in the Stratton Faxon lawsuit, which asks for a $50,000 pre-judgment lien against Google and is also pursuing an injunction to prevent Google from selling Connecticut law firm names as so-called adwords. Michael Stratton indicated that in addition to suing Google, his firm was planning to ask the Connecticut Bar Association for an ethics opinion.

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

Sunday, June 28th, is expected to be a festive day. Fairfield’s Jennings Beach will be the scene of the 29th Annual Stratton Faxon Fairfield Road Race. It will feature a half-marathon (13.1 miles), a 5K (3.1 miles), and a 1K Kids Fun Run.

Since its inception in1980, the event has been hosted by the Fairfield Firefighters. While this year’s race has been limited to 4,000 runners (with 3000+ already registered as of this writing), a full field is expected well before the day of the races. The event has grown in popularity with each passing year. Asserts race director Steve Lobdell, “While last year’s events drew a record crowd of 3,300, this year’s entries are 50% ahead of last year’s pace.”

The 2009 road race boasts several new additions. A Chrono Track timing system will add a new measure of precision. The disposable tag, or D-tag, eliminates the need for several organizational choke points. This innovation will allow athletes to spend more time focusing on their competition and less time waiting in lines. Easy to attach to a runner’s shoe, the D-tag is also far lighter and less intrusive than other timing tags and chips. For this year’s half-marathon event, all finishers will be receiving attractive “race completion” medals.

As always, sensory delights such as live bands and an optional sport massage will treat the runners along the courses. A post-race beach party will feature food, refreshments, live music, and an awards ceremony. Shower facilities, baggage claim, and free parking is available for participants. Technical running shirts will be given to the first 3,700 entrants in the half-marathon and 5K.

The Stratton Faxon law firm became the event’s Title Sponsor in 2007.

“We’re very excited about the Fairfield races and are proud to support an event that gives so much back to the community,” said Michael Stratton, partner of Stratton Faxon. Sponsoring the race is part of Stratton Faxon’s 10% philosophy, where 10% of case fees are set aside to support charitable causes that help better the community or civil jury system. Adds Lobdell, “With the generous support of our sponsors, we can continue to put on a high-quality running event and raise even more money for charity.”

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

An aviation disaster, whether it occurs in a commercial or a privately-owned aircraft, can be especially devastating because it is more likely to affect multiple parties. When an accident occurs in flight, or upon take-off or landing, the consequences can be easily exacerbated due to extreme rates of speed, by additional dangers associated with being in motion at high altitudes far above the ground, or by the numerous factors inherent to flying an aircraft that place human beings in untenable situations which are not life-sustaining. For instance, while leaping from an automobile traveling at a slow rate of speed may allow for a passenger to escape from a car relatively unscathed; the act of leaping out an airplane’s window, if it’s “cruising” along at 600 miles per hour at 34,000 feet, is bound to be a suicidal act. In such a case, the leaping passenger may actually be dead prior to impacting the ground more than six miles below. In addition, a large airliner or “airbus,” packed with airborne passengers enroute to their destinations, is not likely to have many survivors if it collides with another aircraft in mid-air. In fact, in such a special tragedy, multiple parties may be severely injured or more probably killed simultaneously. Other causes besides collision with a second aircraft may also be involved, resulting in a similar fate for many passengers.

Aviation-related injuries and death may be triggered by encounters with unforeseen weather systems or conditions, mechanical failure, shortage of fuel, defective navigational tools, or human errors related to the proper operation of such tools: insufficient airframe and engine maintenance, excessive age and consequent diminished reliability of aircraft components, crew fatigue or negligence, and more recently, the increasing risk of injury or death caused by a terrorist act.

When considering air travel, many factors must be considered. While no precaution taken by a passenger can guarantee a risk-free flight either domestically or internationally, airlines and private operators are obligated to not assume undue risk when enroute to a destination. If risks deemed improper are taken and the consequence is an aviation disaster, liability may well become applicable to certain parties. In the case of a terrorist act, criminality may well be assigned as well.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

A 29-year-old woman was working as a cook aboard a sailing vessel, the Essence. Early one morning, the Barkald, a bulk coal carrier with an estimated weight of nearly 49,500 deadweight tons, collided with the Essence. In the aftermath of the collision, the Essence became hung up broadside on the Barkald’s bow. Crew members aboard the Essence were able to safely evacuate from the vessel to the water, but when the Essence broke free from the Barkald’s bow and started to sink, the cook, an individual named Bortolott, was pulled underwater and drowned. She is survived by her parents.

Ms. Bortolotti had earned about $42,000 annually, and her estate claimed between $1.35 million and $1.99 million in lost earnings.

Bortolotti’s parents, individually and on behalf of her estate, sued the shipping company that operated the Barkald, the pilot, the pilot’s association, and the Essence’s owner and pilot. Plaintiffs alleged the Barkald’s crew failed to follow the proper safety measures appropriate to the circumstances. Plaintiffs claimed that a light was out portside on the coal carrier, limiting visibility as it navigated past the Essence. Plaintiff’s also alleged that the vessel’s master failed to obey the captain’s order to post a lookout at the bow because of the vessel’s size and crane obstructions on deck. Because no one was stationed at the bow, plaintiffs argued, no one was able to foresee the inevitable collision. Finally, it was alleged that the Essence failed to follow established rules associated with international navigation.

Defendants argued that their liability was restricted by the pecuniary loss rule under the Jones Act, under which there would be no loss because Bortolotti was without dependents.

Plaintiffs and defendants settled before trial for $5 million. The shipping company’s insurer paid $3 million, and the Essence’s insurer contributed the remainder. An intriguing aspect of this case is that it resembled a responsibility scenario often applicable to vehicle mishaps on land, in cases where a measure of blame is shared between defendants.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

At the very heart of the matter of premises liability law is the question “Who is to blame?” This isn’t the easiest thing to figure out, and that is why many premises liability lawyers will comment that each and every case is unique and has very little in common with any other case of the same nature. The circumstances of the case are what tend to make each one different.

“In a nutshell, the concept of premises liability boils down to this: a person who owns or occupies land (controls it) is responsible to make sure that the land is safe and hazard free for other people,” explained Georgia super lawyer Stephen M. Ozcomert of Atlanta.

This also isn’t easy when those slip and fall accidents happen right out of the blue. For instance walking down the sidewalk in front of a merchant’s store and accidentally tripping over a broken piece of pavement, or while in the hair dresser’s shop, someone slips on a pile of freshly clipped hair lying on a linoleum floor.

These seem like accidents that could have been avoided if only the owner of the premises had done something to warn customers about a hazard (cut hair on a linoleum floor) or had fixed an accident waiting to happen (the broken pavement). “If there had been a sign that warned customers about the hazards of slipping on cut hair, and someone wasn’t paying attention, it’s questionable whether or not there would be grounds for a lawsuit,” added Ozcomert.

This is where hiring a premises liability lawyer comes into play. They are there to help those who feel they have been a victim of a slip and fall injury by explaining the concept of negligence and liability. Only a skilled premises liability attorney is able to ascertain if there is a case worth pursuing.

“If there is a case and it proceeds to court, one of the things the court takes into consideration is how long an unsafe condition existed and if the owner was careless in leaving it unrepaired,” said Ozcomert. They also look to see if the owner did have posted warnings on the premises and they were ignored. The other component of a court’s assessment of a slip and fall case is whether or not the person who sustained the injuries was a reasonable person.

“Being a reasonable person in part means the plaintiff was not trespassing on the owner’s property or wasn’t doing something they were not supposed to do on that property. In other words, the victim’s own actions play a big part in the disposition of a slip and fall case,” outlined Georgia super lawyer Stephen M. Ozcomert of Atlanta.

To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

Every year thousands of Americans buy products that cause them personal injuries. Every year there are also thousands of product recalls for a variety of glitches ranging from annoying to capable of causing severe harm or death.

The last thing consumers expect when they buy a product is that it will harm them, and the last thing they also expect is that a company they rely on would ever put out a faulty product. “Unfortunately, this happens a great deal with everything from medical devices to baby car seats,” explained Georgia super lawyer Stephen M. Ozcomert of Atlanta.

While one gets used to hearing about vehicle recalls, toy recalls, food recalls and drug recalls, one rarely ever hears about a recall for laptop computers. “Apparently the problem was overheating which subsequently caused fires and other various injuries,” said Ozcomert. Hard to imagine that happening with something so seemingly innocuous, however, technology evidently does have bad days as well.

The apparent source of the problem was the rechargeable battery that got too hot, hotter than the normal operating temperature of the machine. “Most of the injuries that resulted from this disturbing development were personal burns, however, there were instances when the computer was left on and no one was using it. The battery overheated and started a fire,” outlined Georgia super lawyer Stephen M. Ozcomert of Atlanta.

While there have been more recalls since this was first discovered, the focus of the recall events has been a certain laptop battery used in the computers. The battery in question managed to garner a fair amount of negative press during a Sony major laptop battery recall.

Certainly there are things that may go wrong with any of the equipment we use during the day. “However, the real question in this instance deals with the manufacturer of the defective battery who knew (or should have known) it had the potential to harm people,” added Ozcomert.

Proving that the battery manufacturer did have knowledge of the faulty battery is not always an easy thing to do. It would involve, at the very least, the company having received complaints from other laptop users about the battery, and then doing nothing about it, unless however, they were motivated to do something later.

“Defective product law is challenging to say the least, and often the trail followed to get to the end of the story involving negligence on the part of someone in the chain from manufacturer to retailer is quite interesting. In cases such as this, the smart move is to hire a defective product attorney with an excellent track record in this area,” said Georgia super lawyer Stephen M. Ozcomert of Atlanta.

To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

It’s tough enough to get up the courage to face major surgery without also having to worry if the surgeon is in top form and able to do the job. Unfortunately however, surgical medical malpractice results in approximately 98,000 deaths a year. These statistics, courtesy of the Institute of Medicine, further suggest that total does not include patients who have wound up with life altering injuries due to surgery.

What is surgical medical malpractice? Most commonly it is the result of a surgeon failing to give their patient proper care, and that failure ends up causing serious injuries or death. Typically, this would have to do with a surgeon not adhering to accepted medical standards or not properly utilizing their skills.

Sadly, surgical medical malpractice is often due to very simple errors that should not have occurred had the surgeon been paying close attention to the surgical field, things such as using improperly sterilized instruments, a wrong incision, the puncture wound or a cut to an organ, anesthesia errors, surgery on the wrong organ or side, and instruments left inside a patient on closing.

Errors during surgery are one thing, negligence in diagnosing the right kind of operation necessary is another, and that is also classified as surgical medical malpractice. The three most often encountered classifications of surgery are emergency, urgent and elective. In the case of emergency surgery, it needs to be done post haste, not delayed. Urgent surgery needs to be done within a two-hour time frame, and elective surgery may be put off for some time.

Many procedures are prone to surgical malpractice, some more so than others. The ones that seem to be the most susceptible to errors are operations involving thoracic surgery, cosmetic surgery, gastric bypass, cardiothoracic and child delivery. While it is true that surgical medical malpractice is a reality of life, this isn’t to say that the majority of surgeries don’t go precisely as planned, and were deemed a success.

If you suspect you have been a victim of surgical malpractice, contact a medical malpractice attorney and find out what your rights are in this situation. Your attorney will be able to advise you of how cases such as this are handled.

Tim Anderson works with Atlanta Personal Injury attorney, Stephen M. Ozcomert. The firm specializes in personal injury, malpractice, motorcycle accidents, and wrongful death. To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

Basically the law of premises liability is a branch of personal injury law that covers injuries sustained as a result of dangerous or hazardous conditions on a piece of property. The major premise here is that a person who owns property – homeowner or commercial property – is (to a certain extent) responsible for what happens on that property. This means the owner is obligated to make sure the property and/or any buildings on that land are in safe condition for others.

The other name for cases in this area of law — perhaps you don’t recognize the term premises liability — is slip and fall cases. The bulk of cases in this area usually do deal with falls on slippery surfaces, trips over various hazards and other things, such as stairs in poor repair. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that this area of law is connected to several others as well.

Other injuries that may be covered by the doctrine of premises liability are porches collapsing, lead poisoning, mercury contamination, elevator malfunctions or drops, stairs that collapse and property fires. No two premises liability cases are alike and each one must be considered on its own merits. However having said that, there is one common element in most of these cases, and that would be negligence. The courts need to know if a property owner or manager is liable for a plaintiff’s injuries.

Proving responsibility for someone else’s injuries requires three components or elements. The first is a showing of duty, meaning that the owner did know or should have reasonably known about a hazard on his or her property. The second element refers to a breach of duty, in that it must be proven that the property owner failed to act “as a reasonable person” to remove or fix the danger.

Element three is that the plaintiff must show a causal link. In other words, prove that the defendant did not follow a reasonable standard of care and that this failure was the “direct and proximate cause” of the plaintiff being injured. If you have had an accident on someone’s property and want to know your legal rights, contact a premises liability attorney to discuss your situation.

Tim Anderson works with Atlanta Personal Injury attorney, Stephen M. Ozcomert. The firm specializes in personal injury, malpractice, motorcycle accidents, and wrongful death. To learn more about Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Stephen M. Ozcomert or Atlanta personal injury, Atlanta personal injury lawyer, Atlanta personal injury attorney, visit Ozcomert.com.

One of the leading causes of death in the U.S. for people under the age of 45 is traumatic brain injury. In fact, a TBI happens every 15 seconds. “Furthermore, there are roughly 5 million Americans that, right this moment, suffer from some form of TBI as a result of car crashes, falls and sports injuries,” explained Lance Sharp, an Austin personal injury lawyer at The Sharp Firm.

While one may be excused for thinking the skull is tough as nails, the brain on the other hand is a great deal more fragile, more fragile than we might think. “Not only is it one of the most complex organs we have, but it is also very soft and extremely vulnerable with a general consistency of slightly firm pudding,” outlined Sharp. It’s no wonder that it is susceptible to bruising injuries when it is smacked about inside the cranium.

The brain may be traumatized in two ways. In one instance the cerebral cortex may suffer a contusion after the head has hit a hard object or an object has struck the head (windshield or a bat). In another form of TBI, the deep white matter may suffer from something called diffuse axonal injury, as the result of the head being whiplashed about without striking a hard object, etc. “Depending on how serious the whiplash is, the axons may be stretched so far out of shape they are badly damaged,” said Laura Sharp, an Austin injury lawyer at The Sharp Firm.

The bruising of the brain, or the creation of the contusions, mostly happens to the tips of the frontal and temporal lobes, largely because this is where the brain tends to hit when the head impacts an object or is hit by an object. “No matter how mild, moderate or severe the TBI happens to be, these kinds of injuries must be seen and assessed by a medical professional. Time is of the essence in these cases as well,” added Laura Sharp.

The symptoms of TBI vary dramatically and are not always easy to identify, however some people may present with headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, difficulty balancing, a spacey feeling, poor motor skills, one pupil larger than the other, seizures, slurred speech, numbness and either/or a mood or personality change.

In all cases where TBI is suspected, contact a highly qualified personal injury lawyer immediately and discuss the case with them. The attorney will assess the case based on the details and advise how to proceed to justice. One such firm, with attorneys offering over 40 years of combined legal experience is The Sharp Firm in Austin, Texas.

To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.

It’s hard to imagine that one of the more common causes of large commercial truck accidents is fatigue, although it makes sense when the whole picture of the trucking industry is brought into focus. Jockeying a big rig doesn’t always pay the best rates and drivers often need to drive for much longer than the legally allowable maximum time on the road. “Approximately 750 people die every year and over 20,000 are injured because of fatigued drivers on the roads with their rigs,” outlined Lance Sharp, an Austin, Texas, attorney at The Sharp Firm.

It’s not too hard to figure out that being sleep deprived will make a trucker, or other driver, drift off while driving, causing the vehicle to swerve into another lane. Other dangerous results due to a lack of sleep may include jackknifing, rollovers and improper down-braking. Unfortunately, when a big rig is involved in an accident, it often winds up involving multiple vehicles. “Over 600 truck drivers a year meet an untimely end as a result of accidents they cause themselves while driving their rigs while not completely awake and alert,” said Sharp.

“Even though it is a legal requirement that log books must be kept, there have been cases where two books are kept instead of one – one showing the required hours a trucker has been driving, and the other showing the actual hours on the road,” explained Sharp. Finding these logs are helpful when it comes to litigating big rig accidents. In addition, if a truck has a “black box” on board, it will help reconstruct what happened prior to the accident.

“Dealing with a large truck accident is most often a mass confusion of overlapping regulations and laws. In most instances trucking accident lawsuits are brought against the trucking company and driver,” commented Laura Sharp. However, there may also be another entire cast of characters thrown into the mix that involves insurance companies, mechanics, government agencies, manufacturers and maintenance companies.

In cases like this, the complete history of the truck, its inspections etc., are crucial to establishing what condition the vehicle was in prior to a collision. Road conditions and maintenance will also play a part in this story.

When there has been a large truck accident, it is vital to contact a large truck accident attorney to have the case dealt with expeditiously. One such law firm in Austin, Texas, is The Sharp Firm, where Lance and Laura Sharp have over 40 years of combined legal experience at your service.

To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.

If you have some experience with being involved in an accident, then you know that at the scene the first thing that seems to happen is that everyone points fingers and says “It was the other guy’s fault,” not that this gets anything settled or makes things easier for those involved in the accident.

Basically, the most crucial thing you will need to know, prior to filing a personal injury lawsuit as the result of a car crash, is who is responsible for the accident. In some states there is the concept of comparative negligence or proportionate responsibility, and Texas is one of them. This means that if both parties are at fault for the accident, the award is apportioned according to the percentage of the liability as determined by the courts.

In these kinds of lawsuits, your attorney is required to prove to the court the other party was at fault due to his or her failure to drive with reasonable care. If it can be proven that the other driver was under the influence of a drug or alcohol, on a cell phone or speeding, and that these circumstances caused your accident, the court may award you the damages you are seeking. If it is proven that you were also on your cell phone and were partially responsible for the accident, your damages will be reduced by the percentage of your determined liability.

When it comes to the question of proving who is legally responsible, there are certain things that the courts must see. Your attorney must demonstrate there is a legal duty to provide due care and attention or care and responsibility. Secondly, you must also prove the other party involved in the accident did not exercise due care and by not doing so, was the direct cause of the accident and your injuries.

Being able to prove these things to a court’s satisfaction will usually mean you may be able to recover compensation for damages to your body or personal property. If you have been involved in a car accident and sustained significant injuries, consult a highly skilled personal injury attorney who will discuss your potential case and advise you on how to proceed. Each case is based on the facts and not all cases will go to court.

Lance Sharp of The Sharp Firm is an Austin personal injury lawyer specializing in personal injury and accident law in Austin Texas. The lawyers at The Sharp Firm have a collective 40 years experience in being Austin injury lawyers. To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.

It’s unfortunate, but true, that just about one third of all motorbike crashes come about as the direct result of another vehicle turning right in front of them. Even though the speeds involved in an accident such as this may be relatively slower, compared to being on a main roadway, the lack of protection a bike rider has will still spell serious injury or death. Motorbikes don’t stop on a dime either and even if the rider has excellent reflexes, there may still be some significant damages personally and to the bike itself.

It isn’t just the fact that other motorists casually turn in front of bikers that is the problem, it is also incidents that involve driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, driving recklessly in lousy weather and on poor roads, breaking basic traffic rules and regulations, running stop lights, driving without proper corrective lenses if required and yes, even sleep deprivation. The causes for accidents are legion; the results unfortunately are often very serious injuries or a fatality.

Aside from other motorist’s not paying attention to the rules of the road and acting in a negligent manner, motorcycle crashes may also happen as a result of a mechanic’s negligence. Two wheeled vehicles like this need extra care and maintenance and if a mechanic fails to do what is required with due diligence and care, this puts the biker at a huge risk on the road.

For instance, if a nagging engine problem was not corrected properly, a misaligned tire wasn’t fixed or a balding tire was left rather than putting a replacement on, this failure to do what was necessary to make the bike safe may result in a nasty pile-up later. This is one of the reasons why it is important to know the precise cause of a motorcycle accident in order to correctly apportion liability where it belongs.

While not many people give this much thought, roadways are a major headache for bikers. If those roadways are not properly maintained and cared for and a motorcycle hits loose gravel or potholes, they are likely to skid or flip. In circumstances like this, the bike accident may be attributable to local official negligence.

If you have been in a motorcycle accident and suffered severe injuries, or have lost a loved one to such an accident, contact a highly qualified motorcycle accident attorney who will advise you of your rights. Once s/he knows the details of your case, you will be able to discuss how you want to proceed to justice.

Lance Sharp of The Sharp Firm is an Austin personal injury lawyer specializing in personal injury and accident law in Austin Texas. The lawyers at The Sharp Firm have a collective 40 years experience in being Austin injury lawyers. To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.

The pain of losing a loved one suddenly due to the possible negligence of someone else is heart rending. At times like this, the family is not only coping with the wrongful death, but also wondering how they are going to be able to make ends meet. “Financial security becomes a very real concern for those left behind,” indicated Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland malpractice lawyer specializing in Cleveland medical malpractice cases in Ohio.

Although it is incredibly painful to function after the loss of a loved one, someone must take the first step forward and contact a highly skilled and compassionate wrongful death attorney for advice and guidance. This needs to be done as soon as possible, partially because of the statute of limitations and partly because filing a wrongful death lawsuit quickly, while the details are sharp and clear, makes the most sense.

“Never assume that just because the death may have been an unintended accident that something cannot be done to obtain compensation for the resulting death,” indicated Mellino. Even if the idea of filing a lawsuit seems foreign, and not likely to happen, contact an attorney and find out how a wrongful death lawsuit is handled and what it may mean in terms of financial compensation.

“Wrongful death lawsuits are civil cases, not criminal cases, and usually deal with emotional pain and material loss, not the question of guilt,” added Mellino. In these kinds of circumstances, it must be proven that another person or a company caused the death of an individual due to negligence. The person filing the wrongful death claim must also be a legitimate dependent or surviving member of the deceased, and the damages received are to financially assist the surviving family.

Be aware that each state has its own wrongful death statute and it is best to ask the wrongful death attorney what is applicable in the case being discussed. One such first rate wrongful death attorney is Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland malpractice lawyer specializing in Cleveland medical malpractice cases in Ohio.

To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

It is vitally important to have the correct type of car seat and harness for a baby when traveling anywhere in a vehicle. Actually, it is not only important to have the right car seats and harness for your child, it is the law. “The seat needs to be installed in the rear seat of a vehicle and for an infant, it must be rear facing,” explained Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland product liability lawyer specializing in Cleveland product liability cases in Ohio.

Unfortunately, these days it seems there are a fair number of car seats tagged for a manufacturer’s recall. While the maker may send out an additional part for a seat that is already installed, it makes one wonder just how safe it is to be adding extra parts that weren’t there in the first place. It may somehow affect the integrity of the whole unit. Other manufacturers will choose to send a whole new car seat as a replacement.

If anxiety had a name, it would be called the child car seat. Installing it according to the proper safety instructions is often a task for a mechanic, not a mom or dad. “Cutting corners when installing it is not an option and having the installation checked by someone in the know is crucial. If any part of that seat happens to be defective, the consequences may be severe injuries or death,” added Mellino.

“When on the hunt for an approved child car seat, avoid car seats made before 1981 and seats that do not have a label on them clearly stating the date they were manufactured and the model number,” said Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland product liability lawyer specializing in Cleveland product liability cases in Ohio.

Never buy second hand child car seats and do not simply glue a part back on that comes off. Any child car seat that is falling apart has the potential to be dangerous. Take the time to invest in a replacement.

Typically if someone is dealing with a situation where they had problems with a child car seat, it was due to defective handles, weak construction, sudden and unexpected releases and unanticipated rotation. This is possibly due to the manufacturer’s negligence, and any situations like this need to be discussed with a dangerous products attorney. One such top-notch attorney is Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland product liability lawyer specializing in Cleveland product liability cases in Ohio.

To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

Atorvastatin seemed to be a dream drug, the answer to those who were diagnosed with high cholesterol levels. Pfizer marketed this drug like there was no tomorrow and made it a point to mention that Lipitor had very few side effects.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case and many people across the nation found themselves talking to a dangerous drug attorney to assess their case. Lipitor is in a class of drugs called statins whose major function is to lower cholesterol.

Pfizer has a history of bringing out blockbuster drugs and you might recognize some of them because they are so popular: Viagra, Diflucan, Zithromax, Celebrex and Zoloft. They are also noted for the groundbreaking drug, Aricept, used to treat Alzheimer’s patients.

Lipitor/atorvastatin turned into a virtual success overnight, raking up sales of close to $12.9 billion in 2006 when it was first released on the market. From then on, sales have continued to soar and return healthy revenue to Pfizer.

Then, one day the roof fell in, and Lipitor patients were reporting rhabdomyolysis and severe liver damage. Lipitor sales plummeted to about $6 billion for the first quarter of 2007 compared to $6.2 billion in the same quarter in 2006.

Despite the damaging reports from Lipitor patients, statins are still in high demand, as more than 52 million people suffer from high cholesterol. Roughly one-third that number seeks treatment for it. The sales potential for this drug is virtually unlimited. The patent on Lipitor is good until 2010 even though the drug company wanted an extension until 2011.

Things were going well until the Food and Drug Administration started getting reports that people were dying from liver damage, heart problems and severe muscle deterioration as a result of taking Lipitor. It turns out that Lipitor’s side effects may be numerous, including diarrhea, muscle pain, headache, joint pain, memory loss, severe liver problems, and non-functioning muscle fibers (rhabdomyolysis).

Non-functioning muscle fibers means muscle breakdown, with the muscle cells purging their contents into the blood stream. This winds up in the liver and causes severe damage or death. This drug inhibits an enzyme needed to make cholesterol in the liver. It also blocks the manufacture of CoQ10 that benefits the heart.

The Institute for Safe Medication Practices and the Division of Public Health Sciences found Lipitor to be one of the most dangerous drugs on the market. In fact, it ranked it as the eighth most dangerous drug with over 6,000 adverse events. That’s pretty hard to ignore.

If you have experienced Lipitor side effects, contact a highly skilled dangerous drug attorney and discuss your situation. Knowing your rights will help you decide whether or not to file a dangerous drug lawsuit.

Christopher Mellino is a Cleveland Malpractice Lawyer specializing in Cleveland Medical Malpractice cases in Ohio. To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

Appendicitis, the end result of an inflamed and diseased appendix, is referred to as a surgical disease, as it usually requires the removal of the organ from the body. Often it becomes irritated and enlarged and at that point becomes what doctors classify as a medical emergency. Removal of this organ is considered an emergency because if it bursts and spills out toxic contents into the system, the problem becomes even worse, if not life threatening.

The interesting thing about the appendix is that no matter what stage the appendicitis is at, surgeons still recommend its removal as soon as possible. Most of these operations are safe and go as planned; however, there is the possibility of developing post-operative complications thanks to surgical malpractice. In some instances, there have even been cases cited where a patient had an unnecessary appendectomy of a healthy appendix.

The more advanced the infection of this organ, the more difficult and risky the surgery. In these cases, patients have been known to develop either an abscess or sepsis after surgery. Sepsis is a dangerous condition that presents as a whole-body inflammatory state, also called a systemic inflammatory response syndrome.

These possible complications of performing surgery if an appendix is too diseased, is usually one of the things that prompts physicians to operate early and avoid the problem of advanced appendicitis. This isn’t to say that all cases of appendicitis are correctly diagnosed in the first place, as it tends to mimic many other illnesses and is thus hard to correctly diagnose. There are also cases of appendicitis patients who have no symptoms and no one knows that until the disease is seriously advanced.

Unfortunately there are still no reliable medical tests these days that are totally accurate in diagnosing appendicitis, and for this reason, if the surgeon suspects a diseased appendix; their first instinct is to remove it before problems develop. Yes, it’s a risk to remove a healthy organ, however given the alternatives most surgeons would err on the side of caution.

Removing an appendix in young children is another proposition altogether and surgical statistics indicate at least 9% of children who have an appendectomy had a healthy appendix. One of the reasons children’s appendixes tend to be healthy when removed is due to the fact that it’s a lot more difficult to diagnose appendicitis in kids.

If you feel you are the victim of medical malpractice, contact a highly qualified medical malpractice attorney and discuss your case. The attorney will be able to explain your rights and assess your case.

Christopher Mellino is a Cleveland Malpractice Lawyer specializing in Cleveland Medical Malpractice cases in Ohio. To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a car accident involving an underage teen behind the wheel killed a 12-year-old Osceola girl late on the evening of Saturday, June 6th. In the crowded car, Shauna O’Rourke was a passenger with two teen girls, a toddler, and her 25-year-old brother Daniel O’Rourke, who has never had a driver’s license in what can be construed as a cruel irony.

At about 10:45 p.m., the driver, 14-year-old Allison Sullivan, braked while driving on rural Absher Road east of St. Cloud, troopers said. The sudden braking caused the car to skid, before it spun onto the shoulder where it struck a culvert and flew into the air. The car overturned, ejecting Shauna O’Rourke and her brother, who were the only occupants of the car not wearing seat belts.

Shauna O’Rourke was pronounced dead at Arnold Palmer Hospital. Daniel O’Rourke suffered serious injuries and was transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Sullivan and the two other passengers in the car sustained minor injuries. All of the people in the car were from St. Cloud.

It was ascertained by police that Daniel O’Rourke has never had a driver’s license. Caught driving without one in 2004, he was also guilty of not paying traffic tickets, including several bicycle violations. He also has an extensive criminal record in Osceola County, with a conviction on a drug charge earlier in 2009 the most recent infraction.

“This kind of case is truly tragic,” observed Francis of the Orlando-based Francis Law Firm. “Children killing children in car accidents are triggered by many factors, but this type of accident is all too common in our state. I think a 14-year-old is too young to drive, period – especially at night traveling at a high rate of speed on a rural highway.”

The death of the 12-year-old compounded the tragedy. “Shauna could have grown up into a fine woman,” he concludes, “She never got the chance.”

As for the 25-year-old not being behind the wheel, Francis perceives this to be a cruel irony. “He’s still relatively young too,” the lawyer said, “but he’ll have to live with the consequences of this tragedy for the rest of his life.”

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

Sometimes accidents have consequences that are improbable. When a driver in Oviedo lost control of his car and surged into a power line, interrupting electricity to thousands of Seminole County residents on Saturday May 30th, nobody expected it. “Sometimes accidents can have unexpected consequences,” says Orlando-based attorney Tony Francis of the Francis Law firm.

The mishap knocked out power to about 13,000 residents of Seminole County. The driver, behind the wheel of a White Cadillac, inexplicably lost control and slammed into the pole on Mitchell Hammock Road. While the pole is still upright, the crash with the Caddy knocked loose several high-tension power lines causing a monstrous fireworks display more indicative of 4th of July. “Witnesses claimed that the vehicle swerved like a hooked fish from side to side and hit the pole,” said Lt. Tony Valez of the Oviedo Police Department. The driver was airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center in serious condition. The crash cut off power to most of Oviedo. Residents and businesses were left without air conditioning, lights, and appliances. After about two hours, Progress Energy was able to divert the electricity and restore power.

An accident on Thursday night, June 4th, was more deadly. It happened on Interstate 4 in Orange County. The Florida Highway Patrol says 25-year-old Roberto Valles was traveling on I-4 when he ran off the highway and onto the grass. The car hit an exit sign and flipped onto its roof. Two passengers were ejected and later died. Valles and another passenger were taken to a hospital in serious condition.

“That’s a real tragedy,” says Francis, “While details are too sketchy to determine much about what happened, when lives are lost, the tragic nature of an accident becomes indelible.”

It is estimated that several hundred people die in Central Florida accidents each year. “Highway safety is discussed in the schools and in people’s homes,” Francis explains, “but it never seems to really sink in. Perhaps it should be stressed even more.”

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, a St. Cloud man died in a one-car crash near the intersection of Nova Road and Oak Shore Drive in Osceola County late Tuesday June 2. Steven Fox, 51, was driving a sports utility vehicle when he lost control and flipped at 8:57 p.m. (according to his vehicle’s digital clock), Fox was traveling at better than 100 miles per hour and passing cars along Nova Road just prior to the accident.

Fox lost control, traveled toward Center Canal bridge, hit a sign followed by a guardrail. As he approached the bridge, his vehicle became airborne and began to roll. “I’ve never seen anything quite like it,” said a witness who refused to be identified. “It rolled and rolled like it was a big toy.” Fox was not wearing a seat belt, was thrown from the SUV and into the canal. “He was probably already deceased when he hit the water,” said a spokesperson for the Florida Highway Patrol. Fox was taken to a hospital in St. Cloud where he was pronounced dead. Alcohol may have been involved in the accident.

A second Osceola accident involved a 14-year-old girl as the driver and one of her passengers in the car, a 12-year-old girl, who was fatally injured. The fatality was named Shauna O’Rourke, and she was a passenger in the car with two teen girls, a toddler, and her 25-year-old brother, Daniel O’Rourke. The driver of the car, 14-year-old Allison Sullivan, braked suddenly while driving on rural Absher Road east of St. Cloud at about 10:45 p.m. while traveling at an excessive rate of speed. The sudden braking caused the car to skid, and spin onto the shoulder where it struck a culvert and flew into the air. The car overturned, ejecting Shauna O’Rourke and her brother, who were the only occupants of the car not wearing seat belts.

Shauna O’Rourke was pronounced dead at Arnold Palmer Hospital. Daniel O’Rourke sustained serious injuries and was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Sullivan and the other two passengers in the car sustained minor injuries. All of the people in the car were from St. Cloud. Daniel O’Rourke has never had a driver’s license. He was caught driving without a license in 2004. He also has been arrested several times, and found guilty of a drug charge earlier in 2009.

Tony Francis is an Orlando personal injury lawyer. His practice specializes in being an Orlando accident lawyer helping innocent victims get compensation for their losses. To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

On the 30th of May, an unidentified man driving a white Cadillac surged his vehicle into a utility pole, disconnecting power from some 13,000 residents of Seminole County. The driver suddenly lost control and slammed into the pole on Mitchell Hammock Road. The pole was left standing, albeit a bit wobbly, but the impact severed several high-tension power lines causing them to short out. The vehicle was said by witnesses to fishtail from side to side, perhaps in the manner of a small dog caught in a great shark’s jaws. Said witness Tara McCarren, “I assumed it was a car wreck because I heard the ambulances and the helicopters.” The unidentified driver was airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center with undetermined injuries and remains in serious condition. He remains unidentified as of this writing. The collision left local residences and businesses without power until it was restored by Progress Energy about two hours later. “All of a sudden, we were left in the dark and had to make-do with candles and incense,” adds McCarren, “at least our shop smelled nicer than usual.” McCarren is the proprietor of a hair salon.

On Thursday morning June 4, a 1996 Ford pickup truck driver struck and killed a bicyclist in Cocoa Beach, Florida. The operator of the pickup truck was headed east on State Road 520 when he struck the elderly rider while he attempted to make a right turn onto Clearlake Road. The bicyclist who was killed was a 70-year-old male whose identity was not released prior to his family’s notification. The driver of the vehicle has yet to be apprehended and may have been traveling at a high rate of speed. If he is apprehended, criminal charges may well be filed.

Pedestrian or bicyclists vs. vehicle accidents are especially common on the rural roads and highways prevalent in Central Florida. Often the right-of-way is not yielded until it is too late, or else excessive speed or alcohol consumption is involved. With the cessation of funding for many public safety programs due to harsh economic conditions, an increase in such mishaps is all but assured. More than 600,000 pickup trucks were registered to operate on Florida’s highways as of January 1, 2009. Bicyclists on Florida’s roads are also becoming increasingly ubiquitous, although most are well under the age of 70. The harsh economic conditions have made the bicycle a more significant mode of transportation that other vehicles need to be aware of, especially when traveling on rural highways.

Tony Francis is an Orlando personal injury lawyer. His practice specializes in being an Orlando accident lawyer helping innocent victims get compensation for their losses. To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

“If a claim is handled through insurance, the settlement may cover the compensation due as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash. And then again, it may not,” explained Arkansas super lawyer Michael G. Smith of Little Rock. This is where a highly skilled personal injury attorney comes into play – meaning they will ensure a just settlement if the insurance companies are playing musical insurance policies with the victims involved in the crash.

Unfortunately, although insurance companies do offer us coverage on our vehicles and offer funds if there has been an accident, in most cases, the settlement amounts are no where near what they may need to be depending on the severity of the accident and the extent of the injuries suffered. “Nor do they address other issues such as pain and suffering and loss of wages,” added Smith.

It’s not uncommon for insurance companies to try and lowball settlement for those involved in accidents to try and get them to settle for far less than what they would be entitled to if they went to court and successfully sued for compensation. “The fact is that insurance companies are not anyone’s friends and that is quite evident when it comes to their accident settlement techniques,” explained Arkansas super lawyer Michael G. Smith of Little Rock.

Never take the first offer an insurance company makes as the result of an accident. In fact, don’t take the second offer either. Instead make tracks to talk to a highly skilled personal injury attorney who will assist in dealing with the insurance companies. “In most instances, the presence of a lawyer to settle a claim speeds it up and often may increase the settlement amount,” said Smith.

The ultimate big stick of course is the lawyer taking the insurance company to court, something most insurance companies hate with a passion and strive to avoid the costs. If an insurance problem involving a car crash is being shuttled about without any satisfactory ending in sight, speak to a top-notch attorney to get things sorted out fast. One such attorney is Arkansas super lawyer Michael G. Smith of Little Rock.

To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

It’s a well-known fact that we are now living longer lives. In fact there are now at least 1.7 million Americans in long-term care. In some cases, this is a real joy and a much-appreciated event. In others, especially if we or a loved one is placed into a long-term care home or nursing home, this is not always the experience that we anticipated it to be.

To say that nursing homes and long-term care facilities experienced an enormous boom in business is a serious understatement. Think about this as well when the future of our lives is being contemplated. “Virtually one quarter of the population today, and that may include those who are reading this release, may need to receive long-term care in a facility,” said Arkansas super lawyer Michael G. Smith of Little Rock.

Just because medical science has advanced and allows us to live longer does not mean that nursing homes and long-term care facilities have kept pace with the prevailing opinion on how people, particularly our elders, should be treated. One would think with the advent of more nursing homes being built that the new facilities would be a significant step up in care for our seniors. Such is not always the case. “Nursing home abuse and negligence is far more prevalent than we would like to believe,” added Smith.

“The most disturbing thing about this type of abuse is that while the government is aware of it, thanks to studies they have conducted in this area, nothing much seems to be done to resolve the issue. This state of affairs is not only shocking; it is discouraging, because our seniors should be treated with dignity and respect,” added Smith.

Those federal government studies actually came to the conclusion that roughly 30% of all nursing home facilities perpetrate some from of medical malpractice and that includes mental and physical abuse and other forms of psychological harm. “Cited in those studies were the most common forms of abuse. Some of them were patient dehydration, malnutrition, infections left untreated, pressure sores, bedsores, medication errors, slip and fall accidents, and untreated pain,” explained Arkansas super lawyer Michael G. Smith of Little Rock.

If a loved one is being mistreated while in care, it needs to be reported immediately to the administrator. File a complaint with the department in your state that regulates nursing homes and immediately call a qualified nursing home abuse attorney.

To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

One of the difficulties that a newborn may face on their journey into this world is shoulder dystocia, defined as the baby’s head being delivered, but the shoulders are stuck and the baby is unable to be delivered naturally. This is an emergency situation and requires prompt action by the doctor doing the delivery to avoid any complications.

Shoulder dystocia is a term that actually means difficult birth, and indeed it is when the baby is stuck, unable to move forward without help. This may be caused if the baby is a large one, but may also happen with any size. There are several methods doctors may use to help the baby along, including fondal pressure (but not excessive) forceps or even vacuum assisted delivery.

Lately there has been a move to rotate the baby’s head during birth to prevent dystocia, which, if done correctly, assists in a proper birth. If done incorrectly, it causes dystocia. The other method of delivery involves lateral traction. This happens when there is a little delay after the baby’s head has cleared the birthing canal. This may be a natural delay, but some doctors panic and use lateral traction. Many doctors are now finding that lateral traction pushes the baby’s head towards its shoulders, which causes shoulder dystocia.

There are other causes of shoulder dystocia, but suffice it to say that in some instances, it may be the result of medical malpractice. Unfortunately there is a high risk of brain and nerve damage in babies with shoulder dystocia. The nerve damage is a brachial plexus injury, otherwise called Erb’s palsy and it affects the nerves that control movement and sensation in the fingers, hands and arms.

If you feel that you have been the victim of medical malpractice, call a knowledgeable attorney to discuss your potential birth injury case. Your lawyer will ensure you are informed of your rights and keep you apprised of everything happening on your file as your lawsuit progresses.

Michael G. Smith is a Little Rock injury lawyer and Little Rock accident lawyer, practicing personal injury law in Little Rock Arkansas. To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

The problem of medical misdiagnosis in America is bigger than many people think. It happens when a doctor does not diagnose a condition properly, or incorrectly diagnoses someone’s condition. While neither of these problems happens to be intentional, they often result in medical malpractice because they are based on negligence. Of interest is the fact that the Journal of the American Medical Association, indicate the rate of misdiagnoses in the US has not improved much since the 1930s. Doesn’t that revelation make you stop and think?

Victims of medical malpractice have the right to file a lawsuit and recover damages for things like the expenses related to the initial misdiagnosis, lost wages (not just for the future and the present, but for the past) and the mental anguish the misdiagnosis caused. In instances where death was a result of the misdiagnosis, the family members may be able to file a wrongful death suit and be compensated for the death.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within a certain period of time, and this tends to vary with each state, so make sure to speak to a knowledgeable attorney about the time limits. For instance, in Arkansas a medical malpractice suit must be filed within two years after the date of the incident.

The most common instances where medical misdiagnosis has happened usually occur when potentially dealing with cervical, lung, colon and breast cancer, blood clots, stroke, heart attacks, severe infections, meningitis and diabetes. At one time, it was thought that roughly 20% of every deadly disease diagnosed was wrongly diagnosed. Unfortunately, it’s likely this statistic from 2006 has increased.

How does medical misdiagnosis happen? It is usually the result of a doctor making the wrong call on whether or not a tumor is benign or malignant; not ordering screening for a condition a patient is at high risk to develop; doesn’t do necessary testing or refer to a specialist; misreads lab tests, doesn’t listen to the patient closely and doesn’t properly handle lab specimens.

If you suspect you may be the victim of medical malpractice (medical misdiagnosis), contact a medical malpractice attorney to discuss your case. Remember, time is of the essence in these cases, so do not wait until it is too late.

Michael G. Smith is a Little Rock injury lawyer and Little Rock accident lawyer, practicing personal injury law in Little Rock Arkansas. To learn more about Little Rock injury lawyer, Little Rock accident lawyer, Little Rock person injury lawyer, Little Rock malpractice lawyer, Little Rock injury attorney, Little Rock wrongful death attorney, visit Arkansaslawhelp.com.

Personal injury is an area of trial law that receives a tremendous amount of attention when huge settlements are awarded. But winning such cases is seldom a “slam dunk.”

The specifics of catastrophic personal injury cases can be daunting. Says Joel Faxon, “Personal injury is an area of law. It’s designed to protect those harmed by the negligence, recklessness, or malpractice of others. Personal injury encompasses a full range of legal claims – wrongful death, auto accidents, birth trauma related to defective drugs or product liability, or even aviation disasters. The crucial element in such cases is that the loss suffered by the victim is irretrievable. What they’ve lost can never be regained.”

It may sometimes seem like small consolation, but a trial law firm such as Stratton Faxon helps victims of catastrophic loss, including their families, recover financial compensation for medical costs, loss of income, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other injuries which were incurred during the catastrophic trauma. Adds Faxon, “We’ll work extremely hard to prove the adverse party in your case truly bears legal responsibility for your injury and that the damages claimed reflect the full extent of the injury or loss.”

All personal injury claims are subject to a statute of limitations, although the time limits involved may vary based on your claim. It’s important to note, however, that personal injury is a broad, evolving area of law. Says Faxon, “Your individual claim’s specific circumstances determine a great deal about what kind of a case you have. If you think that you might have such a claim, you should contact our office as soon as possible.”

Stratton Faxon frequently handles personal injury cases that fall under the following su-categories: sexual abuse, slip and fall, toxic mold, car and truck accidents, wrongful death, construction accidents, injuries suffered at work, medical malpractice, motorcycle accidents, nursing home abuse, premise liability, product recall, playground accidents, birth injury, and aviation disasters. But some accidental injury, especially among children, is preventable. Websites focused on child safety include those of the National Safety Council, Safe Kids Worldwide, Children’s Safety Zone, and the Children’s Safety Network.

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

The Fresh Faces Campaign is like a perennial blooming in spring, its blossoms not always readily apparent, but being experienced year after year. Public service legal aid agencies are like that, and so is the Fresh Faces Campaign that has been “there” for such agencies in recent years. But sometimes, it’s good just to stop and smell the flowers.

That’s why something special can be said to have happened at New Haven’s Café Bottega on the evening of May 7, 2009. Right across the street from the city’s New Haven Green, downtown, it was the annual reception of the not-for-profit Legal Assistance Association (LAA), Inc., and where the Equal Access to Justice Award was presented to Michael Stratton and Joel Faxon for their outstanding work for legal aid.

The LAA is one of several fine legal aid agencies that benefit from Fresh Faces. The LAA provides high-quality legal aid services to individuals, families, and groups in the greater New Haven area, including the lower Naugatuck Valley, who can’t get legal services because of limited income, age, disability, discrimination, and other barriers. In fact, the pithy phrase, “Equal Access to Justice,” is one of the LAA’s touted goals. Other stated LAA objectives “to achieve long-lasting improvement in the rights and living conditions of our client community” and “to foster our clients’ ability to protect their own rights,” also ring true. LAA proudly provides a full range of legal services to their worthy clients.

To assist such an agency with their Fresh Faces Campaign is simply Stratton Faxon’s distinct pleasure. Knowing that the dollars raised by the innovative program is going to such worthy causes is a reward in itself. “The LAA is doing wonderful work, tremendous things,” says Joel Stratton, “Doing Fresh Faces is a privilege for us, allowing our firm to give a little bit back to the community we serve.”

To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

A motorcyclist is often given less respect than operators of cars or trucks. The roads are dangerous places, and the lack of protection (even with helmeted motorcyclists) can more easily lead to catastrophic injuries. But what kind of obstacles do motorcyclists face in the courtroom if they’re attempting to recover damages? The disadvantages are plentiful and not always obvious.

The motorcycle operator’s choice of attorney can be crucial. While almost any lawyer specializing in catastrophic personal injury cases can handle a motorcycle accident case, most will simply treat accidents involving motorcycles like a car accident. As anyone who rides a motorcycle knows, the two kinds of vehicles don’t just look differently, they are very different. From a legal standpoint, this is certainly true, as motorcycle law is its own unique genre within personal injury law.

In fact, most lawyers dealing with vehicle accidents fail to understand the difference between a motorcycle accident and a car accident. A motorcycle moves differently when it’s hit. It doesn’t slide like a car, or leave the same type of tire friction marks. Motorcycle skid marks don’t tell the same story that a car’s skid marks will tell. Although it isn’t necessary for a lawyer to be a so-called “motorcycle lawyer” to represent a motorcyclist who has been victimized, they should be well-versed in the distinctions between cars and motorcycles post-impact.

There’s also a stigma to being a “biker” in most courtrooms that has to be overcome or at least compensated for by a skilled attorney. Juries or even judges should be alerted to the presence of this inherent stigma. “Bikers” are perceived as risk takers, with the “Hell’s Angel” stereotype dangling about their persona in the manner of a living tarantula. What attracts bikers to the recreational activity tends to repel the majority of the population.

What bikers can do to help themselves is to counter negative stereotypes. If an attorney points out that a biker was attired in full safety gear when the accident occurred, it can help. If a biker was wearing an unapproved helmet or no helmet at all, or dressed in t-shirt and a pair of shorts and so was badly cut up, jurors tend to be less sympathetic. But an attorney representing the motorcyclist must first be aware of such nuances if his representation is to be well-regarded in the courtroom.

Alexandra Reed writes for Connecticut personal injury law firm, Stratton Faxon.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

It happened in Berkeley County, North Carolina, in August of 2008. Prudential Carolina Real Estate was held liable because one of the firm’s agents didn’t disclose that certain properties she represented had toxic mold issues. The verdict wasn’t huge, just $50,000 in actual damages and an additional $75,000 tacked on to the liability for punitive damages. But the residential property that the agent was selling did indeed have mold.

The negligence on the part of the Prudential agent involved mold reports which were never provided to a couple who were buyers. Although the verdict went against the real estate agent, the original lawsuit had asked for $1.5 million in damages.

The property in question was a single storefront (a house and store) valued at $110,000. Although it became a bike shop, the premises were discovered to harbor black mold. The issue became whether the property had been purchased “as is” with the Prudential saleswoman asserting that the mold’s presence had already been known by the plaintiffs, or whether the black mold had never been disclosed. One plaintiff remarked, “She knew about the mold problem and didn’t tell us.”

Because of the proliferating mold, the plaintiffs were forced to abandon the storefront. Afterwards, they were still under contract to pay the property’s mortgage.

Complicating the first case immeasurably had been the fact that the plaintiffs had been told originally about the toxic black mold by a previous occupant of the storefront, so in essence, they had known about the mold, and still purchased the property at a reduced rate. The verdict was a form of litigated compromise perhaps reflective of murky North Carolina statutes regarding mold more than anything else.

A second Berkeley County house had also been found pregnant with mold a month earlier, in July 2008. In that instance, an entire family was victimized including a 3-year-old child. It had been alleged in that case that a negligent builder was to blame for causing the family to sicken with respiratory symptoms of an alarming nature, their health compromised. That mold intrusion had been caused by substandard construction leading to water infiltration. Yet in that case, a judge had ruled in favor of the builder, determining that the water might have pooled and been present in the house even if the construction had been “up to code.”

Alexandra Reed writes for Connecticut personal injury law firm, Stratton Faxon.

Contact Stratton Faxon to speak with a Connecticut accident lawyer about your personal injury, wrongful death, or Connecticut malpractice case. To learn more about Connecticut accident lawyer, Connecticut personal injury, Connecticut malpractice lawyer, visit Strattonfaxon.com.

From studies done after surgical events, it appears that most of the errors could have been avoided. Records indicate there are stories of surgery performed on the wrong site, the wrong person and other mistakes. “These errors are a concern to people facing surgery, and for those who may have experienced this,” said Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland malpractice lawyer specializing in Cleveland medical malpractice cases in Ohio. Speaking to a highly skilled medical malpractice lawyer is a must in instances like this.

The surgeon has a high duty of care to the patient they are operating on, and on the other side of the coin, the patient has every right to place their complete faith and trust in the doctor to not do something wrong. However, if something does go wrong, it is the patient’s right to consult with an attorney.

“Generally speaking medical malpractice is the failure of a medical professional to use reasonable care to prevent patient injury or illness. And this is a normal thing to expect,” explained Mellino. Non-fatal errors of a surgical nature happen relatively often and may cause patients problems they didn’t have before surgery, including such things as permanent disabilities or paralysis. It’s definitely a cause for concern when one realizes that over 98,000 people die each year because of surgical medical negligence. Medical negligence is a good reason to hire a leading med mal attorney.

Patient consent forms allow surgeons permission to operate, but don’t cover what happens if there is an error in surgery. “We don’t anticipate there will be surgical errors. We “do” however anticipate that the surgeon is skilled enough to not make mistakes,” commented Christopher Mellino, a Cleveland malpractice lawyer specializing in Cleveland medical malpractice cases in Ohio.

If faced with what appears to be a med mal situation that may have been caused by a failure to take a proper medical history, to note all drug allergies, inattentiveness, bad handwriting on patient charts, and poor pre-operative planning, contact an experience med mal attorney to discuss the possibility of filing a medical negligence lawsuit.

To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

While many parents don’t want to think about the possibility of something happening to their child as it is being born, the truth of the matter is that birth injuries do happen. They may include injuries such as paralysis, brain injury, fetal distress, cerebral palsy, dystocia, breech presentation, and cephalopelvic disproportion. All of these particular injuries may occur as the result of the doctor’s negligence.

Is there a way to minimize things like this happening, and if so, what would you be able to do to avoid this happening to you during the birth of your child? The first thing is finding a doctor you are comfortable with and finding out if others have had positive experiences with that physician. This isn’t to say that something may not happen during delivery, but if the doctor has a good track record with other mothers, chances are you are in good hands.

Do your homework on what birth injuries are possible and make a list of questions to ask the doctor. Ask what is done to monitor you and the baby for any possible complications. In general, the most common cause of birth injuries is because the physician isn’t properly monitoring mom and baby. If this is discussed prior to the baby’s arrival, chances are the doctor will be more aware of his responsibilities.

While there is no need to feel paranoid about giving birth, it honestly doesn’t hurt to be as well-informed as you can about things that have the potential to go wrong. Talking to the doctor about those things is also one more step toward understanding what the physician goes through to make sure your baby arrives safely.

If you are in a situation where you are certain a birth injury took place as the result of the negligence of your attending physician, contact a top notch med mal attorney and discuss your case options.

Christopher Mellino is a Cleveland Malpractice Lawyer specializing in Cleveland Medical Malpractice cases in Ohio. To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

We all look up to doctors and other medical professionals because by virtue of their training, they have the skills and ability to make us feel better – to fix what is wrong. Most doctors, etc., take this responsibility very seriously and follow the “Do no harm,” oath of their profession. However, negligence does stalk the halls of many medical facilities, including physician’s offices, and the act of acting in error or failing to act, becomes a very serious matter.

In medical malpractice law there are two common oversights we see on a regular basis – the misdiagnosis of a medical condition or the failure to diagnose a certain medical problem. It’s a startling fact that roughly 40% of med mal lawsuits in the U.S. are the result of a doctor failing to diagnose someone promptly.

Let’s take a quick look at misdiagnosis. This is when a patient is told they have something that they really “don’t” have. Needless to say, subsequent treatment may cause any number of complications. The major point here is that the “real” condition is going undiagnosed and untreated. In reality, the patient then has two problems – the misdiagnosis of the real condition and the failure to diagnose the real condition.

If a particular illness is time sensitive, such as a viral heart infection or cancer, it is crucial that the proper treatment be started post haste. Not diagnosing the real condition results in leaving it untreated for far too long, causing the patient serious problems. Treatment given for the wrong thing may exacerbate the problem and/or cause another problem entirely, prescriptions given in error compound the original diagnostic error(s).

On the other end of the continuum, we see cases where doctors totally missed the boat in figuring out what is wrong with a patient, or managed to get it right too late. Again, with some diseases, time is of the essence and if treatment is delayed or not commenced, the consequences could be deadly. The sad thing is that in these cases, what was once possibly treatable then becomes untreatable if left too long.

If you’re faced with a suspected failure to diagnose or a misdiagnosis, contact a highly skilled med mal attorney and discuss your legal rights and options.

Christopher Mellino is a Cleveland Malpractice Lawyer specializing in Cleveland Medical Malpractice cases in Ohio. To learn more about Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland malpractice lawyer, Cleveland medical malpractice, Cleveland medical malpractice lawyer, visit Christophermellino.com.

House Bill 903 is like the clock reversing direction into a past when workers rights were blithely ignored. Its passage on May 1, 2009, negates a previous Florida Supreme Court ruling and restores a cap on attorney’s fees in workers’ compensation cases. Headed for the desk of Florida Governor Charlie Crist after being passed by the Senate by a 22-16 vote, it appears that being paid “reasonably” for representing injured workers is a vestige of the past.

The October 2008 decision by the state’s highest court involved a nurse who was injured lifting a patient at a nursing home. Her lawyer helped her win $3,344 in lost wages and medical expenses after her initial claim was denied. The law, ironically enough, limited the attorney’s fee to about $8 an hour while the insurance company’s lawyers were paid about $150 an hour. Tony Francis of the Orlando-based Francis Law Firm refuses to remain silent. “Last fall’s Supreme Court decision was unfair. This bill would retrograde us back to a completely skewed playing field. What lawyer could afford to represent injured workers if HB903 becomes law? All we’re asking for is a fair shake – not just for us, but for workers who get hurt. Why should insurance companies get to run the table?”

Francis has more to say about the controversial HB903. “This is what’s called a ‘bad bill,’ and who does it hurt most? Who will fight insurers who refuse to pay doctor bills for workers hurt on the job?” Florida Justice Association spokeswoman Jacqui Sisto agrees, “This version of the bill is greatly unfair to Florida’s injured workers and first responders.” She added that it may even face a constitutional challenge. Francis adds fuel to this argument. “Deletion of the word ‘reasonable’ will mean continued litigation over who gets to access the courts to obtain wrongfully denied benefits for injured workers and first responders,” he says. But one of the eventualities that Francis perceives is increased costs passed on to taxpayers. “What’s going to happen when injured workers, after being denied deserved benefits and recovered losses, are forced to seek help from social programs such as Medicaid to pay their bills, especially if they’re unable to return to work for an extended period? It will mean that taxpayers will eventually be footing their bills – bills that might well have been paid by insurance carriers if the workers had been able to get decent legal representation in the first place.”

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

On Friday, May 1, 2009, the Florida Legislature passed HB 903 dealing with workers’ compensation. Tony Francis of the Francis Law Firm, and the Florida Justice Association (FJA), strongly opposed this unfair legislation. A fight was tirelessly waged throughout the legislative session to get the controversial bill either amended or killed. Last minute compromises failed and now the bill is headed to the governor for his signature.

The bill essentially prevents Florida’s injured workers from finding an attorney willing to represent them in court. House Bill 903 creates an uneven playing field as injured workers are placed at a disadvantage because they are unable to pay their attorneys “reasonable compensation.” The bill gives insurance companies a decidedly unfair advantage by encouraging bad claims handling practices and eliminating penalties for wrongfully denying claims.

Asserts Tony Francis of the Orlando-based Francis Law Firm, “Deletion of the word ‘reasonable’ will mean more litigation contesting the ability to access the courts to obtain wrongfully denied benefits by injured workers and first responders.” Furthermore, without the obligation to pay a ‘reasonable fee,’ the insurance carrier “can keep on denying benefits and coerce injured workers into taking quick and unreasonable settlements,” Francis argues. It’s also a question of access. “Why is it considered okay to block the access to the courts for injured workers and first responders by capping attorney’s fees when workers’ compensation benefits are wrongfully denied?”

Francis places HB903 in the stark relief of a citizen perspective. “What’s the upshot of all this? It’s easy to see what will happen. Unable to recover the benefits they need for survival; injured workers will be left to the lottery-like applications required by social programs such as Medicaid to pay their bills. It’s pretty obvious that the real bills will end up being paid by taxpayers, as is too often the case.”

Wealthy insurance companies are the true beneficiaries of this ill-advised legislation. “The injured workers won’t be getting their day in court, no matter how egregious the workplace might have been to cause accidents that in at least some cases, could have been prevented,” Francis concludes.

To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.

Construction site accidents and related injuries are bound to receive additional scrutiny as Obama Stimulus disbursements jumpstarts additional 2009 construction projects under federal auspices. But lax safety procedures during the Bush Administration tenure also appear to have contributed to a substantial increase in such events since 2000. The increase in construction site accidents might have even begun to rise in the early 1990s.

Consider that in 2008, one in four workplace fatalities were construction workers. There were 1,225 fatal occupational injuries in 2001 involving a construction site; by 2008 that figure had risen to 2,889.

Examples of such tragedies are common.

· 55-year-old carpenter struck by a drunk driver while working on The Big Dig in Boston, multiple serious injuries resulting.
· 50-year-old union iron worker in Philadelphia fell down a darkened stairway when a temporary lighting system failed, multiple serious injuries resulting.
· 22-year-old self-employed roofer fell 25′ off a sloped roof in Naples, Florida, permanent paralysis resulting.

Because only about 10% of construction companies employ more than 20 workers, most have no formal job safety regulations or programs in place.

In 1992, the “lost-workday” rate for workers in the construction industry was 5.7 per every 100 fulltime workers. In 2007, that rate had increased to 9.6 per 100 fulltime workers, an increase of nearly 40% making it the highest such rate of any major economic sector.

Yet jury verdicts in construction site accidents tend to produce modest settlements in favor of construction workers and other public sector workers compared to those accidents (less than $250,000) which involve non-workers (more than $500,000), even if the construction workers’ injuries were quite horrific. This discrepancy may partially be linked to a pro-corporate, pro-business trend in the weakening of workers’ compensation statutes which has been occurring in most “right-to-work” states since about 1990. In some cases, salaries of attorneys representing injured workers have been deliberately “capped” by state legislatures, possibly affecting the quality of legal counsel afforded to workers, especially those in the construction industry. A blatant example of such legislation is HB903, a measure passed on May 1, 2009, in Florida.

Tony Francis is an Orlando personal injury lawyer. His practice specializes in being an Orlando accident lawyer helping innocent victims get compensation for their losses. To learn more about Orlando injury lawyer, Orlando personal injury lawyer, Orlando accident lawyer, Orlando injury attorney, visit Francislawgroup.com.