Wrongful Death

Losing someone quite close could be a tragic incident in anyone’s life. The pain becomes even worse when such death was a result of an act of negligence or due to a wrongful act. Such a death serves as a basis for a civil action for damages due to the victim’s heir. Cases of wrongful death are those claims that are brought to the court of law by their survivors. These survivors could be their surviving spouse, child or parent as well.

It is alarming to note that nearly 20% of the deaths in US could be attributed to wrongful deaths. The majority of the causes for such deaths are motor-vehicle related accidents (15%), fire and burns (6%), falls (6%), drowning (2%), and poisoning (1%). The other major types of wrongful deaths brought to trial include medical mistakes, defective products, personal injury, catastrophic injury, nursing home abuse, criminal attacks, work-related accidents, and death during certain supervised activity.

The act in regard with wrongful death may vary by state or jurisdiction. In general cases, the survivors are eligible to claim the following damages under wrongful death case:

• All expenses incurred on death of the person or victim
• All benefits withdrawn due to the victim’s death
• Any loss of estimated future earnings anticipated over the lifetime of the victim
• Anguish, pain and suffering caused to the survivors of the victim
• Loss of care, protection and companionship due to victim’s death
• General and penal damages

The initial step you need to take in case of a wrongful death includes determining which individual or entity is at fault for such a catastrophe. You can gather enough evidence in this regard by visiting the site of incident, getting details about potential witnesses, and the like. You can hire a lawyer to help you with filing the suit since this involves a tedious long procedure like determining the courts empowered to hear the case, making a choice between such courts, getting the paper work done etc.

Unlike other cases, most wrongful death cases do go to the trial court rather than having an out-of-court settlement. In most cases, defendants try to keep dragging the case to earn an active interest on such money and in hope of getting a better settlement of a lesser amount later on. You need to have an aggressive approach and the expertise of a lawyer to help you get your rights at the earliest.

Remember that each state has its own limitation period within which such wrongful death claim should be filed after the incident has occurred. Similarly not any one can file a claim in case of a wrongful death. This decision as to who can file such a claim varies as per the jurisdiction. Also one family cannot sue another family member for wrongful death. Though most such cases are tragical, it is of utmost importance that you take up the necessary steps in time to get relief claim and hire a good professional lawyer for the same.

Truck Accidents

It is really astonishing to know how common truck accidents are. Annually there are nearly 500,000 trucking accidents reported. Each year, truck accidents attribute to nearly 5,000 deaths and 100,000 injuries. Most of the times truck accidents have been reported to involve cars, which they conveniently find to be at fault. However there are many trucking companies that fail to keep their vehicles up-to-date and result in casualties of pedestrians.

Trucking accidents are more likely to cause serious injury rather than just simple automobile accidents. This is because these vehicles are heavier than other vehicles and as such the injuries could be fatal for the victims. Most of the common causes that lead to trucking accidents involve:

• Overloaded trucks
• Oversized trucks
• Exhausted drivers
• Poorly trained drivers
• Bad weather conditions
• Speeding
• Aggressive driving behavior
• Unsafe safety systems
• Poor condition of the truck

When you are involved in a trucking accident, chances are high that you will not be in a position to yourself collect vital information about the accident. The first step you need to take is to get help for yourself. You can dial 911 for emergency help. Once you have received immediate medical care, you need to get your lawyer or hire one for this case. Investigation at the spot of accident is quite an essential factor in trucking accident cases since most of the details regarding the actual facts can be collected only from here. Your lawyer can then complete all the formalities for the case and get you a favorable verdict as well.

In case of a trucking accident case, it is possible to sue any person or entity who is directly in fault for causing such trucking accident. This includes the truck driver, the owner of the trailer, the shipper as well as any third party involved like the manufacturer of the truck where the accident occurs due to vehicle’s defect. Investigation is quite a critical factor in helping determine how all are parties to such a fault.

You need to remember that while going in for a case with a trucking company, you are going to face quite a tough defendant. Most trucking companies hire top level advocates who are able to often get through the case without giving you any kind of fair compensation. Remember that you are not playing on fair grounds here. You need the expertise of a good lawyer to help you get back with them and prove your case without doubt. Truck companies have their own team of investigators to get an on-site report and that is why you need the immediate help of your lawyer in such cases.

You need to understand that there are FMCSA regulations in place for carrying out safety measures that are needed to be followed by trucking companies. Again, there is a limit with regard to hours of service operation. Yet many try to escape these measures for making some extra bucks and that is why you need to have complete knowledge about such checks.

Serious Injury

A serious injury could be of various kinds that could disable your life in some or other way. A common serious injury would be a birth injury or a birth trauma incident. In such cases, the most common consequences could be head injury, nerve damage, and bone injury. In cases where your child suffered from an injury during the labor process or immediately after, you can be legible for a personal injury lawsuit. Birth injuries are found to occur in every 27 of 1000 births and hence you need to be aware of your rights in such cases. The reasons that could lead to such birth injuries could be:

• Mechanical trauma
• Mistakes made by the doctor, nurses, or hospital
• Oxygen deprivation

The other kinds of serious injuries include severe burns, traumatic brain injury and spine injury as well. If you are a victim of any such kind of injury caused to you by negligence on part of another, you can seek help from the court of law to get fair compensation for the same.

Catastrophic injuries are seen at a common rate even today due to several reasons like vehicle collisions, tire blowouts, and explosion. These could have disastrous effects on your life such as:

• Loss of limb, vision or hearing ability
• Inability to work for a long time or throughout the rest of life
• Inability to carry out daily activities of life.
• Chronic and depilating pain
• Severe emotional trauma
• Immense physical pain

It is usually not the victim who is able to fight his or her own case. Mostly their families or friends would present their case. Quite times, the defendant insurance companies try to offer a settlement and get the case dismissed even before the family has the time to think. They forget the factor that serious injuries involves a lot of treatment as well and that means a lot of more money required to pay the bills as well. This is why you need to refrain from meetings and settlements unless you have met your own lawyer. A good professional expert would help you to assess the situation and take the best decision in favor of the victim.

It is quite understood that in times of grief, it is difficult for a couple or the family to conduct a prompt investigation with regard to the serious injury. Yet it is very important to have good evidence with you when you present your case in the court of law. Hiring a lawyer will help you take care of all such problems. They can manage important things for you like investigating the circumstances, preserving evidences, identifying the responsible parties, and the like.

It is quite a common that you feel guilty to pursue investigations when you have a dear one suffering from such an injury. This is truer for parents of the child that is a victim of such birth injuries. However, the money you get as compensation from the case will only help you to help your dear ones in a better way.

Motorcycle Accident

It is truly gruesome to watch motorcycle accidents since this form of vehicle provides the least amount of protection to its driver. Preferred amongst youngsters and elders alike, motorcycles are a favorite mode of transport for most since it allows them the freedom to drive as they like. However, sometimes this very freedom proves to be quite a costly affair for them.

Exposed to direct danger, the mortality rate of motorcycle accident victims is quite high. There are quite a few reasons for such fatal accidents. Yet, the top reasons why such accidents occur are:

1. Lack of any substantial barrier between the road and the motorcycle.
2. Difficulty of other drivers to actually see a motorcycle or to judge it.
3. Fault of the driver driving the other motor vehicle.
4. High crash tendency because of the independent style of driving this vehicle.
5. Defective motorcycle design or maintenance.

There are yet many other reasons that actually act against the motorcycle driver like:

1. Poor roads, potholes, oil slicks, debris, puddles, uneven cuts etc.
2. Bad weather condition leading to poor rituality.
3. Speeding accidents.
4. Strong Winds.
5. Bad skill and co-ordination while driving the motorcycle.

As a motorcycle rider, you need to be aware of your rights with regard to the state you live in. You can consult your attorney in this regard.

No matter how good or bad a driver you are, you could have a very bad injury when involved in a motorcycle accident. You need to take some steps to make sure that you are able to prove your case in the court of law. These steps include:

• Storing the clothes you wore during the accident as they are.
• Keeping the motorbike in the same condition without getting it repaired.
• Taking pictures of the accident spot.
• Recording the minute details of the accident.
• Recording the narration of all possible and potential witnesses.

For those who can afford it, nowadays you get a motor vehicle event data recorder. Installing this device on your vehicle helps you to determine the cause of the accident without fault. It acts much like the black box in an airplane.

You can hire a lawyer to fight you case since his or her expertise will help you win. Either the motorcycle driver or the passenger could sue the other party involved in the accident. In most cases, cars have been seen to be involved in such accidents. Though they might argue that they did not see the bike coming, this blind spot is no reason for negligence and you are due to get a reward without any hassles. File your suit in the court of law at the earliest and even if your vehicle does not have insurance, you can still sue the other party. If you were partly at fault for the occurrence of such accident, the amount of money you recover will be reduced. Again the fact that you were not wearing a helmet while driving does not cut off your right to get compensation claims.

Medical Malpractice

Is there a case where you had to suffer due to the laxity of a doctor? Any professional negligence on the part of a medical practitioner can be termed as Medical Malpractice. The law helps you seek compensation for any case of injury or death of a patient due to sheer omission of action or a mistake by the health care provider.

Medical mistakes are too common and the exact statistical estimates would be hard to find. It is a shocker that such a vast and stretched out industry is suffering from so many errors. Most of these incidents go unreported and yet other estimates show that nearly 42% of people believe that they have personally experienced medical malpractice.

Medical malpractice could occur due to various reasons like:

• Inherent impossibility of doctors to give a completely accurate medical care.
• General difficulties in the medical industry like lack of funds, over burdened doctors and nurses, or slow adoption of latest technologies etc.
• Simple human errors of doctors like poor dosage or poor handwriting.
• Patient mistakes like failure or delay in reporting symptoms, dishonesty of patients, non-compliance of treatment procedures etc.
• Pharmacist mistakes like dispensing wrong dosage or wrong medication and failure to communicate instructions on taking medication.

Once you realize you are a victim of medical malpractice, you need to take some steps. Remember that there is a specific fixed period of time called the ‘limitation period’ within which you need to file suit.  An initial investigation on your part will help to reveal whether some negligence was actually involved on the doctor’s part and what extent of injury you had to suffer as a consequence. The next step involves filing a suit against those whom you consider responsible for such negligence. Getting dispositions from the parties, lay witnesses, expert witnesses, and preparing written discoveries is the next step after that. Thereafter you can discuss negotiations and settlements with your lawyer.  If that fails you can proceed to trial in the court of law. All these steps require the expert guidance and service of a competent, experienced lawyer to win your case.

To win a case, you need to be able to present ample proof in that regard. Generally a claimant should be able to provide the following proof:

• The health care provider was actually owing a duty towards the patient
• The health care provider did happen to breach his duty
• As a consequence of above the patient had to suffer an injury
• The injury caused to the patient was an immediate cause of the health provider’s breach.

You may have lots of doubts in your mind when it comes to filing suit in a medical malpractice case. You can try to get out-of-court settlement to prevent more hassles for yourself. Most law firms ask you to pay nothing till you have recovered your settlement and hence hiring a lawyer for your case always makes sense. Remember that a consent form does not give the health provider a reason to commit malpractice and you have every right to fight any injustice meted out to you by using the professional services of an expert attorney.

Dog Bites

Dogs and humans are known to be closely associated in daily life and yet there are a lot of incidents where the canine has attacked their human friend. If you are a victim of a dog bite, the law helps you recover compensation for the same. No matter what the previous history of the dog has been in this regard, most states lay down statutes according to which a dog owner is responsible for all bites, even if the dog has never bit anyone before.

It is estimated that nearly 2% of the US population comes under dog attack every year and in some cases the injury could be pretty serious. In fact nearly 1,000 Americans are brought daily to the emergency room for dog bites alone! On being injured, you are entitled to receive compensation from the dog’s owner for all your medical bills, cosmetic surgery, and any other treatment you receive in this regard. They are also liable to make good your lost income due to this injury. The causes to this accident could be any, still you stand a good chance to win your case in the court of law and receive your rightful compensation.

There are some simple steps you need to take when under a dog attack. On being bitten, do not panic since you can easily receive good medical service for all dog bites. Once bitten, you need to first identify the animal that bit you since if it is a stray dog, you might have to undergo the painful treatment for rabies. At the same time if the dog is not a stray, identifying the owner helps you get compensation later on. Next, get immediate medical attention. If you have been attacked on the face, it would be a good idea to insist on being attended by a plastic surgeon. Meanwhile, if you receive a call from the dog’s insurance company, make sure you note down all details but do not discuss any settlement issues with them.

You need to take some immediate steps on your side to make sure you have enough legal evidence later on to back up your claims. Identifying the dog would help to get a DNA analysis test later on which acts as a good proof in the court of law. Similarly you need to gather the name and address of the dog’s owner, dog’s license information, details about any potential witnesses, photos of your injuries, and insurance information about the dog.

It is always in your best interest to hire the services of a professional lawyer since they can take up your case in the court of law and get you a fair trial. Never hesitate to consult an attorney in this regard and also never sign anything without the knowledge of your lawyer since it may compromise your stand later on. The procedures followed by animal control department in the “dog court” hearings are usually of a nature that compromise on your rights as a victim. Hence it is very important to present a full-proof case in the court of law and only your lawyer could help you win hands down.

Defective Product Liability

What is defective product liability?

Defective product liability arises when a consumer is harmed by the use of any unsafe product that is sold through the market. The number of such incidents is increasing day by day. According to the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission, in 2007 alone defective product injuries were over 232,000.

How is it caused?

The liability for injuries caused by a product mainly arises from negligence, breach of warranty, consumer protection claims, and strict liability. The manufacturers of the product, the distributors and the retailers are all held liable for the injuries caused by those products. Defective product liability in the United States is based on manufacturing defect, design defect, or failure to warn. Defects can also be caused by poor quality of the material or workmanship. If the design of the product is inherently dangerous or renders the product useless, then it is a design defect. The failure on the part of the manufacturer to warn the user of non obvious dangers the product can cause, is a failure to warn defect.

What are the steps to be taken?

If you happen to be a victim of defective product injury, then you have to act quickly. This is because there is a stipulated time to file a complaint failing which you will not be entitled to any compensation. The first step is to make sure that the product you purchased was truly defective and that your injury was caused because of the use of the defective product. A visit to U.S. Product Safety Commission will give you enough information about defective product, product safety, etc. Next, try and locate a good product liability attorney who can help you throughout the case and ensure that you are properly compensated. Once an attorney is located, you must give all necessary details which include proof of injury, proof that the injury was caused by defective product, witnesses if any, etc.

Potential settlement, verdicts, and examples

There are many kinds of settlement in a defective product liability case. Usually, if you win the case, you will be compensated for the injury and all medical treatment costs will be borne by the manufacturer. The court makes sure that the verdicts send clear messages to the manufacturers that any such incident will be heavily penalized. Some of the recent examples of defective product liability settlements include:

1. Bridge collapse in May of 2008 in Minnesota where the compensation amount was $38 million US dollars.
2. The prescription drug defect in April of 2006 was compensated with $32 million US dollars.

Such verdicts have made manufacturers very vigilant and consumers very relieved. However, getting monetary benefits is certainly not a good compensation for the pain you suffer that results from the use of a defective product. Therefore, make sure that you are purchasing a good product of top quality. Even if the price is a bit high, always opt for the good quality products. Good and safe products always come with a higher price!

Construction Accident

A construction site worker is engaged in one of the most hazardous occupations known to man. Each year hundreds of thousands of people get injured or die in construction accidents. In fact, after 1920 it is estimated that nearly one million people have lost their lives due to accidents on construction sites. Though the law requires construction sites to be made safe for workers, many companies overlook this need to provide safety to their workers and these results in huge losses for the construction worker.

Once the accident has occurred, remember that there are many parties who can be held guilty for your condition. The owners of the property, the architects, contractors involved, engineers, designers, construction managers, manufacturers of the equipment (where injury is obtained from the use of specific equipment), and insurance companies are all liable to make good your loss due to the construction accident. Since there are a lot of different jobs you get to do around a construction site, there are various types of construction injuries as well. In some or other way, death and disability continue to linger at construction sites even today. There are a lot of things that could go wrong on a construction site like:

• Getting crushed under an object while being shifted.
• Malfunctioning of the cranes.
• Falling over cranes.
• Malfunctioning of other machineries of the company.
• Electrocution.
• Cave-ins.
• Other injuries like falls, burns, broken bones, head injury, scratches & cuts as well as deaths in some cases.

To counter these alarming rates of construction site injuries, the law provides you with necessary regulations, statutes, ordinances, and industry standards in this regard. Failure of the owners or negligence by third parties to abide with these statutory makes them liable to award you with proper claims in this regard.

When you are involved in a construction accident, you need to take certain steps there upon to get proper relief claims later on. These can be spelt out easily as:

1. Getting medical care.
2. Reporting to the employer.
3. Completing a claim form and filing it as soon as possible.

Inform the employer or your construction site manager about any accident and keep note of such person that you happened to notify. Get all the detailed information about those who witnessed your accident since they could act as good proof in the court of law later on. If possible, getting photographs of your injury and the spot of such accident would be of great help. Once you have attended your injury and given it ample medical attention, you need to hire a professional lawyer in this regard who can help you with the nooks and niches of the case in hand.

It is true that worker’s compensation covers most injuries that happen at the construction site. You can file a suit against your owner without the fear of facing retaliation from their end. The extent of liability they owe to you depends upon the facts of the case and your lawyer can help you get the best judgment possible.

Auto Accidents

One of the most common types of accidents in US today that draw in most injuries and deaths is the auto accidents. However, it is quite important that you become aware of the laws of the particular state you are in before you press your claim for recovery of damages. The law varies from state to state and it is very important to understand how the law applies in your particular situation.

It is quite concerning that speed chosen by man over his own mobile vehicles actually has become quite troublesome for him in many ways. The alarming rate of increase in auto accidents over the years only points to more lawsuits and settlements in this case. The damages caused to you could be both economic as well as non-economic as per an Arizona auto accident lawsuit. The actual financial loss caused could be claimed under the economic damages like medical expenses for present and any similar future expenses in the same regard. Lost wages are also calculated under this claim. The non-economic damages refer to the difficulties you had to suffer due to such accident like divorce, loss of companionship, pain and trauma, any physical or mental discomfort, and the like.

There are many reasons that could be attributed to auto accidents yet the top six ones that are quite commonly prevalent are:

1. Drivers getting distracted.
2. Drowsy and exhausted drivers.
3. Drunk driving.
4. Speeding.
5. Aggressive Driving.
6. Bad weather conditions.

Though not by your own choice, once you get involved in an auto accident, you need to take immediate steps to claim compensation in this regard. Law requires the vehicle driver to stop and move their vehicle out of the way. You should get all necessary information regarding the driver, vehicle and possible witnesses. You can also get medical aid meanwhile by calling the emergency number 911 for help. If you are not seriously injured, you can also help others who have been involved in the same accident. Your next step would be to then file a police report if the accident involved any kind of injury.

To fight your case in a legal court of law, you need to substantiate your case with proper legal proof as well. For this purpose you need to assemble some important information like:

• The full names and addresses of all the drivers involved.
• The full names and addresses of all passengers in the vehicle.
• The full names and addresses of all pedestrians or other parties involved in the accident.
• The driver’s license number.
• The full names and addresses of all potential witnesses.
• Notify the police or emergency personnel if any of the drivers involved seem to be under alcohol influence.

No matter how much injury you suffered, it is always important to notify the police immediately after the accident. This will help you not only to get substantial proof for your own case but also get valuable witnesses for the same from the police authorities. It would be of great help to hire a lawyer for fighting your case since the expertise could help you get a good and fair settlement.

Arizona Personal Injury Attorney

The services of a personal injury attorney become an absolute necessity when you meet with an accident. It can be a bicycle accident, motorcycle accident, car accident, truck accident, drunken driving accident or even a pedestrian accident. According to statistics available with the Arizona Department of Transportation, in 2006 alone 140,000 motor accidents took place. The causes of such accidents may vary from absent mindedness to reckless driving. In any case, two things are important when you meet with any accident. They include:

1. Seeking medical attention.
2. Contacting a competent personal injury attorney for getting the right compensation.

When a personal injury occurs due to the fault of another party, the settlement is to be made between the two parties and the insurance company which insured the first party. If the party thinks that the compensation offered by the insurance company is too little then he can file in court to claim the rightful compensation. The help of a personal injury attorney is necessary at every stage.

When an accident claim is made, the defending insurance companies try to pay as little as possible. Only a personal injury lawyer knows how to get the maximum compensation for you. You may be entitled to compensation on several counts like cost of medical attention, damages to property and loss of wages. Only a good lawyer knows what claims you can make on the accident. If you do not make all the rightful claims, you may lose them and if the claims are faulty and not presented in the right form, still you are at a loss. The award at the court many not be in your favor. For making a claim on the insurance company the right information has to be given on the right forms. Necessary proof has to be submitted while claiming compensation. These include:

1. Photographs of place of injury and organ of injury.
2. Bills supporting medical expenses.
3. Documents showing number of workings days lost due to injury.
4. Relevant witnesses.

The burden of proof in the case of a personal injury claim rests with the one who makes the claim. The person who makes the claim or the plaintiff has to prove that loss was caused by the other party and the amount claimed as compensation is justifiable. The quality of evidence is also counted in determining the compensation. It is not the number of witnesses, but the quality of evidence offered by the witness that matters. The quality of the evidence is its dependability. The dependability is determined by how far it can be believed in the available circumstances.

Claims for personal injuries can be made on many other matters. Injuries resulting from negligence on the part of hospitals and incorrect diagnosis are fit cases for making personal injury claims. Boating accidents, drunken boat driving accidents, and dog bites and mauling sare some of the other personal injuries for which a claim can be made.

Alternative justice can be obtained by way of a settlement through mediation or arbitration. Only a lawyer knows when to agree for a settlement with the insurance company to extract the best compensation for the client.