Miami Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Car Accident Victim's Slow Recovery From Traumatic Brain Injury

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:04:15 -0500

A 15 year old girl is slowly recovering from being hit by a car on a crosswalk. According to turnto23.com, Angeleigh Kumpel suffered multiple injuries, including a traumatic brain injury, a fractured pelvis and a broken left leg. Her father says she will have to learn how to walk and talk again. Yet, her family is happy because Angeleigh is forming simple sentences.

New Drug for Treating TBI is Being Tested

Citing the American Academy of Neurology, an article in ddmag.com talks about a new drug that is currently being successfully tested on lab rats suffering from TBIs. The new drug, Clazosentan, is thought to specifically block brain receptors called endothelin receptor A (ETrA), which contribute to the restriction of blood flow in the cerebrum of the brain as early as four hours after a brain injury. When prolonged, this reduction in blood flow can cause permanent cell dysfunction and death.

Expensive Therapy Marks Long Road to Recovery

While we await FDA approval of the medication for use on humans, recovery for traumatic brain injury patients like Angeleigh is achieved through rehabilitation therapy, which is long and expensive. This is why victims that have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of another's negligent actions need the help of an experienced trial lawyer to recover the funds they need to pay for their rehabilitation, as well as for their ongoing medical and personal needs.

According to studies done to help injured N.F.L. players and wounded soldiers returning from the battlefield with traumatic brain injuries, the faster we provide them with rehabilitation therapy, the greater their recovery can be. Keith Cicerone, Director of Neuropsychology at the JFK Rehabilitation Institute in New Jersey, has stated that the longer a patient goes without therapy, the more likely it is that his or her brain may "develop bad habits" due to what he calls "mental disuse syndrome" because it is not being used at the same level it was prior to the injury.

Moreover, if left untreated, these victims may suffer the long-term consequences of traumatic brain injuries: headaches, vertigo, depression, dementia and memory loss, all of which may, in extreme cases, lead to suicide. Two former N.F.L. players, ex-Miami Dolphins' Michael Current and former Pro-Bowl safety Dave Duerson killed themselves after being unable to cope with the consequences of the concussions they suffered as N.F.L. players.

Call a Lawyer Directly, Don't Call a Clinic Referral Service

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:04:50 -0500

Call a lawyer directly, don't call a clinic or lawyer referral service when you or a loved one is hurt because of someone else's negligence. Why allow someone else, especially a service making money from referring you to a lawyer, to choose your lawyer or decide from whom you receive medical treatment? Choosing a lawyer is a critical decision that potential claimants' should not leave to someone else. The decision on what attorney to hire to represent you is too important a decision to delegate to others, especially phone operators handling calls who give you the number and put you in contact with the "next name up on the list, a "name" that has paid a fee to be on "the list" and to whom you will be referred without regard to that lawyer's experience in the first place.

We are all familiar with those television and radio commercials, as well as with those billboards dotting our highways that announce a catchy phone number or domain name that claim to connect the victim to some service that will help him or her get up to $10,000.00 in compensation if they were involved in an accident. In reality, although the telephone numbers and/or domain names sometimes include terms seemingly related to the practice of law (i.e., words like "law", "legal", "attorney", "lawyer", etc.), these advertisers are very careful to include in their disclaimer (the part with some incredibly fast talking guy that no one understands) that they are not lawyers. Florida law gives you the right to get "up to $10,000.00 in benefits) because that is the minimum insurance coverage required for any driver to be allowed to operate a vehicle in this State. You don't have access to those benefits because of something magical the referral service does. Most likely than not, the only magic that referral service will do will be make you waste a good portion of those $10,000.00 (if not all) in what may turn out to be inadequate medical treatment for your injuries...

The important thing is to make sure these benefits work to help you get proper medical care and treatment, as well as some lost wage payments. The quality of the care you receive can go a long way in improving the likelihood that you will get full and just compensation for your injuries.

What is 411-pain?

So, who are these companies that spend so much money advertising? Often they are pain clinics or chiropractors' offices. These clinics refer the "client" (meaning you) to a lawyer, but only after making sure that the $10,000.00 of your P.I.P. insurance policy will be spent with them or with some company "allied" to them (like companies that provide MRI services, other medical services or equipment, etc.). Of course, these referrals are not based on the quality of the services that these companies "provide" or on the experience that the lawyer has handling your particular kind of case, but on the "deals" that these other "providers" have formed with the pain clinic.

According to clickorlando.com, this is exactly what happened to Jazzmil Rodriguez. After being involved in a car accident last summer, she remembered the familiar commercial jingle prompting viewers and listeners to call 1-800-411-PAIN and did just that...

Sure enough, she was referred to a law firm, but she was also sent to a pain clinic called Florida Injury, where a paralegal (not an attorney) met with her. She was instructed by both the pain clinic and and the law firm to attend daily treatment sessions at the clinic for ten days and three to four times a week after that.

You May End Up in Debt

This course of action potentially makes victims the biggest losers after a car crash. As a result, crash victims may end up getting sub-standard medical services by not being "referred" to or seeking out the best available specialists for their injuries. Similarly, they may be sent to a specialist once the $10,000.00 available in their P.I.P. insurance policy for medical services have been exhausted by the pain clinic and its allies. Should they need to see a specialist at that point, the specialist will treat them contingent on getting paid once they win their case. But, what if they don't have a case against the other driver, don't win their case or simply do not recover enough money to satisfy the additional medical bills? They end up in debt or not getting treated at all.

This was an additional consequence of calling 411 PAIN for Ms. Rodriguez. The $10,000.00 of her P.I.P. insurance policy were exhausted by Florida Injury in just two months. Then, after she had wracked more than $15,000.00 in chiropractor treatment, the attorney to whom Florida Injury had referred her suddenly called to say that she had no case because the other driver had no bodily injury coverage that she could recover from. Result: the crash victim ended up owing $5,000.00 in medical bills.

You May Lose Your Car Accident Case

Something similar may happen with the lawyer. You do not get "referred" to the lawyers with the most experience in your particular kind of case. You get referred to the lawyer "allied" to the pain clinic. This means that you may very well lose the case or not recover as much compensation as you would have if represented by an experienced law firm.

The Florida Attorney General has launched an investigation into 411 Pain and its relationship with businesses like Florida Injury. Also, the Florida Bar has formed a committee to review the practices of referral services like 411 PAIN.

Motor Vehicle Accident Victims Suffer Spinal Cord Injuries

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:05:46 -0500

Tyler Robinson was not texting while he drove home. He was not on the phone and distracted. He had not had any alcohol to drink either. He was simply driving when another vehicle pulled out in front of him, making him swerve trying to avoid a crash. As a result, cherokeetribune.com reports, Tyler's car flipped five times before coming to a stop and Tyler ended up with a broken neck.

Lengthly and Expensive Rehabilitation Therapy

Rehabilitation therapy may help someone in Tyler's condition regain mobility. How much mobility is a question of many different factors like the specific kind of spinal cord injury, the age of the victim and how soon the victim starts receiving the therapy. Even then, there is no guarantee of how much the victim will recover, but there is always hope. Tyler broke his C5 cervical vertebra in three places. He also had a nerve pinched between the C5 and C6 vertebrae that has caused his paralysis. Tyler has started his rehab therapy wearing a halo brace that keeps his head and neck immobile to allow his spine to heal properly.

Motorcycle Accident

According to 9news.com, on November 7, 2011, Ben Meyerhoff was riding his bike to work like he had done thousands of times before. This time, however, he rear-ended at full speed a garbage truck that had stopped in front of him. His C6 and C7 vertebrae were crushed and his spinal cord severely injured. In the following weeks he often heard the term "quadriplegic" or the newer term "tetraplegic", which meant he suffered paralysis of his limbs and torso.

Besides the quality of rehabilitation therapy he is getting, Ben's biggest asset is his mental attitude. He does not think in terms of what he may never be able to do again, but in terms of the odds he overcomes everyday.

Victims of spinal cord injuries face a long and expensive specialized rehabilitation process, which is why those who have been the victims of a car accident, a motorcycle accident, a tractor-trailer accident, an amusement park accident or any other kind of accident caused by another's negligence need the help of an experienced lawyer that can get them the funds they need for their rehabilitation therapy, as well as for their daily survival. It is very important that these victims (or their families) hire a lawyer quickly and allow this lawyer to begin working on their case immediately. Their attorney will then be in a position to do the same thing the attorneys for their opponents' insurance companies are doing from the moment of the accident: preserving evidence and speaking with potential witnesses while the incident is fresh in their minds.

Long Term Consequences of Traumatic Brain Injuries

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:22:09 -0500

Traumatic brain injuries, concussions or blows to the head may have many more consequences than previously thought, even for small children that have suffered them at an early age, according to health.usnews.com. Traumatic brain injuries occur as a result of a blow to the head in a fall, a car accident, a sport activity or simply by getting hit by a moving object.

Long Term Consequences of T.B.I.

Two recent Australian studies looking at the long term impact of T.B.I.s in children as young as two years old indicate that this kind of injuries affected cognitive function, IQ and even behavior. Both studies indicate that contrary to popular belief, the fact that small children have soft developing skulls and brains actually puts them at greater risk of future problems.

Long Term Consequences Not Only For Small Children

The long term consequences of T.B.I.s are not limited to small children. Soldiers and professional athletes also suffer long term consequences of traumatic brain injuries such as headaches, vertigo, depression, dementia and memory loss which may lead, in extreme cases, to suicide. The latest of these extreme cases was that of former Miami Dolphins player Michael Current, who fatally shot himself with a shotgun last January 16. He followed in the steps of former Pro-Bowl safety Dave Duerson, who shot himself in the head a year ago after sending several text messages asking friends and family members to make sure his brain was examined for chronic brain encephalopathy, a condition linked to dozens other N.F.L. players. In both cases the players were unable to deal with the consequences of the concussions they suffered as N.F.L. players.

Soldiers Suffer From The Consequences of T.B.I.s Too

Another group that suffers from the consequences of T.B.I.s are our wounded warriors returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, traumatic brain injuries have often been called the signature wounds for those wars because of the number of bomb attacks (I.E.D.s) targeting our troops. Shock waves from these bombs pass through helmets and the brain. Also, as pointed in an article at npr.org, soldiers may suffer secondary trauma when the explosion throws them against vehicles or walls, causing the brain to shake again.

The official number of soldiers that have suffered some form of traumatic brain injury since the beginning of these wars is 150,000. However, independent studies have suggested that the number can be as high as 400,000. Both enormous numbers. Soldiers interviewed for the NPR article included a sergeant who used to command 60 men in battle, suffered a traumatic brain injury and after coming home became lost in a supermarket. It also included a soldier who used to plot sniper attacks and could not assemble a bird house after being wounded.

There Is Hope

Thankfully, many of these studies indicate that the faster we provide rehabilitation therapy to people that have suffered some kind of traumatic brain injury, the greater their recovery can be. Keith Cicerone, a leading rehabilitation researcher and director of neuropsychology at the JFK Rehabilitation Institute in New Jersey has stated that "the longer you go without therapy, the greater likelihood there is of falling into what I would call a mental disuse syndrome, where the brain is not being used at the same level," "The brain, he says, "is in essence going to develop bad habits."

However, this brain or cognitive therapy does not come cheap, which is why victims that have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of another's negligent actions need the help of an experienced lawyer to recover the funds they need to pay for their rehabilitation and ongoing medical and personal needs.

Hit and Run Victim Left With Traumatic Brain Injury

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:40:26 -0500

Peter Moore is a 45 year old victim of a hit and run accident left with a mild traumatic brain injury, a broken neck and other injuries, according to berkshireeagle.com. This accident did not happen in South Florida, where hit and run accidents seem so prevalent as of late, but in Pittsfield, MA. However, no matter where it happened, it shows how the negligent operation of a motor vehicle may cause potentially catastrophic injuries to a person while doing something many of us do everyday. It also shows how those at fault may leave the scene without regard for their victims' fate.

Mr. Moore was simply walking his dog on a local road at about 8:15 p.m. when a car struck him. The driver of the car left the scene. It was later determined that the driver was Meredith Nilan, the daughter of the Chief of Probation of Berkshire Superior Court. Although Ms. Nilan was initially charged with abandoning the scene of a personal injury accident and negligent operation of a motor vehicle, the charges were dismissed. The State is appealing the case.

Lucky Traumatic Brain Injury Victim

Luckily, Mr. Moore seems to be recovering well from his injuries. It is surprising that he was able to walk home when he came to after being struck. He only learned that he had been struck by a car after being checked (and told) by his doctor. He is expected to be able to go back to work soon.

Not Every Traumatic Head Injury Victim Is So Lucky

Yet, not every person suffering a traumatic brain injury is so lucky. We represented a young lady that crashed her Honda Civic against a tractor trailer truck that suddenly made a U-turn in front of her. Our client could not stop in time and her vehicle went under and thru the trailer. As a result, our client suffered a traumatic brain injury as well as orthopedic injuries that will keep her partially incapacitated for the rest of her life.

Thankfully, the lawyers at Greenberg & Stone were able to help her recover the policy limits of the trucking company's insurance policy. Our exhaustive investigation of all possible sources of compensation, allowed us to recommend that she accept the policy limits and avoid a protracted legal battle that could end up with no recovery if the trucking company's insurance carrier were to become insolvent, as the trucking company itself already had. Thankfully, she followed our recommendation and accepted the policy limits offered by the insurance company. A few months later the insurance company did in fact become insolvent. To learn more about this and other cases successfully handled by the lawyers at Greenberg & Stone, please visit the Notable Cases section of our website.

Property Owners May Be Responsible for Accidental Drowning

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 12:32:39 -0500

It is an unfortunate and specially sad fact of life that small children continue to lose their lives in Florida when they wonder into a backyard swimming pool and drown. A few days ago in Orlando, a 4 year-old boy somehow gained access to a neighbor's backyard and was found by police face-down in the pool. According to newstalkflorida.com, police officers were near his house on an unrelated call when the boy's mother approached them saying that her son was missing. Officers attempted CPR on the child, who was immediately transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Attractive Nuisance Doctrine

The Attractive Nuisance Doctrine is part of Tort Law. It states that a landowner may be held liable for injuries to children trespassing onto his land if the injury is caused by hazardous object or condition on the land that is likely to attract children who are unable to appreciate the risk posed by the object or condition. Over time, landowners have been held liable under this doctrine for injuries caused by abandoned cars, piles of lumber or sand, trampolines and swimming pools.

Plaintiffs must meet the following five conditions to prove that a landowner is liable under the doctrine:

That there is a dangerous condition to children on the land that the landowner should have been aware of;

That the owner knows or should have known that children often wonder in the area where the dangerous condition is located;

That the condition is dangerous and can likely cause injury or death to children because they cannot appreciate the risk;

That the utility to the landowner of maintaining the condition and expense of fixing the dangerous condition are minimal when compared to the risk it posses to children; and

That the landowner has failed to exercise reasonable care to eliminate the dangerous condition or adequately protect the children.

Understanding Diminished Value of Car After Accident

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:48:41 -0500

The value of almost every car is diminished after it is involved in an accident, regardless of how well the resulting repairs are performed. This is because consumers are reluctant to buy a car that has been previously crashed. In fact, if they knew that the vehicle they were about to buy had previously been involved in an accident, some people would probably walk away from the deal, while most people would probably use that information to get as large a discount as they could.

Your Insurance Company Won't Tell You About Diminished Value

Another interesting point is that your insurance company won't tell you about the diminished value of your vehicle after it has been in an accident...At least not voluntarily. They will tell you (even boast) about their excellent claims service, about the quality of the repairs made to your vehicle, how these are "guaranteed for life" and, that's it.

Theme Parks Must Report Injuries

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:12:31 -0500

The newly opened Legoland has joined other Florida theme parks in reporting injuries suffered by patrons while visiting their venues, according to the SunSentinel.Com.

Injuries to be Reported to Bureau Of Fair Rides

The State's Bureau of Fair Rides receives quarterly reports of certain injuries and illnesses from all major Florida theme parks. For example, 12 injuries were reported during the fourth quarter of 2011 by Orlando's theme parks. The injuries included a fractured ankle caused by a slip and fall. However, the reports also include illnesses, such as the case of a 71-year-old man "not feeling well" before and after riding "Expedition Everest" in Disney's Animal Kingdom, who's reports have also noted that a blocked artery was a factor when a 43-year-old woman who complained of nausea and dizziness related to the Magic Kingdom's "Space Mountain" ride.

Owner Of Car Is As Liable As Driver

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:50:27 -0500

I once heard someone say that in Florida it's ok to lend anything but your car to a friend...I didn't quite understand what that meant until I attended Law School and came across the "Dangerous Instrumentality Doctrine".

Vehicle Owner Equally Responsible

Under Florida Law, the owner of a motor vehicle is liable for the damages and/or injuries caused by another operating his or her vehicle. This rule is the result of the "Dangerous Instrumentality Doctrine" as adopted by the Florida Supreme Court in the case of Southern Cotton Oil Company v. Anderson, 80 Fla. 441, 468, 86 So. 629, 637 (1920) where the Court stated that: "one who authorizes and permits an instrumentality that is peculiarly dangerous in its operation to be used by another on the public highway is liable in damages for injuries to third persons caused by the negligent operation of such instrumentality on the highway by one so authorized by the owner".

Premises Liability Cases Are Not Limited to Commercial Properties

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 08:56:24 -0500

People often fail to realize that a homeowner is as liable as the owner of a commercial property for a visitor's injuries or death. In other words, a premises liability case can be filed against a homeowner the same way it could be filed against a hotel or other establishment when someone gets injured at their premises.

Swimming Pool Accidents

Swimming pool drownings are among the most common sources of premises liability cases against homeowners in South Florida. With warm weather almost all year, Florida (specially South Florida) is a place where many homes have swimming pools. Of course, not all accidental swimming pool drownings or near drownings will bring about a premises liability case. For example, the recent accidental drowning of a toddler in what appears to be his own backyard pool in South Miami is unlikely to become one. However, had it been someone else's child, the homeowner may have had to face civil liability in court.

WHY HIRE AN ATTORNEY IMMEDIATELY AFTER AN INJURY OR A WRONGFUL DEATH

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 08:35:46 -0500

Having represented so many injured people, as well as those that lost close family members due to other's negligence or fault, I know the shock, grief, anger and pain felt by them. It does not cease to amaze me how often I get a call from someone that has been injured in an accident (or someone that lost a loved one) asking questions about the viability of a claim months or years after the accident from which it originates took place. Experience tells me that the best course of action for someone in that situation is to hire an attorney as soon as possible so that the necessary experts can be retained, evidence can be preserved and witnesses can be interviewed so that if there is a case, it can be filed with all the evidence necessary to obtain the best result possible.

Assisting The Daughters Of A Man Killed In An Explosion

In 2010 we were hired by the two young daughters of a man hospitalized in the intensive care/burn unit at the Orlando Regional Medical Center as a result of getting severely burned in a gas explosion. Friends of his daughters had advised them to help their dad by hiring a lawyer who could start working on the claim as soon as possible. The daughters reluctantly called and hired us.

We immediately hired a renowned expert who met us at the scene of the explosion and searched through the rubble to find the cause of the explosion. We arranged to meet with all the parties involved (Fire Marshall, adjusters and experts from the condominium association, a unit owner and the LP gas company) within 48 hours of being hired.

Collecting Evidence Soon After The Event

Everything was comprehensively examined by ALL PARTIES PRESENT. This was very important because it avoided later having issues of evidence tampering or the chain of custody of such evidence. In this case, the whole scene was inspected and photographed by each party at the same time. This proved specially important because within 2 days of this inspection, someone tampered with the evidence at the scene. Had we not inspected the scene earlier, we might not have been able to settle this case for a very substantial sum within a couple of months of the explosion.

What is Tort Reform? - Part III

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:20:59 -0500

In past posts we have talked about "reformers" trying (in many cases, succeeding) to dramatically change our tort law by imposing conditions on the use of expert witnesses (as done in Florida by a statute that requires out of state expert witnesses to obtain a "certificate" from the Medical Board), shortening the statutes of limitation and by imposing "caps" on damages. On this occasion we will talk about another method used to fool the public into accepting tort reform: greatly limiting awards for punitive damages or eliminating them altogether.

What Are Punitive Damages

Punitive damages (or exemplary damages, as they are sometimes called) are intended to punish and "make an example" of the wrongdoer or tortfeasor. In other words, they seek to stop others from incurring in the same wrongful actions and to express society's outrage at those wrongful acts.

Similarly, punitive damages may be awarded in cases where the court considers that compensatory damages are not an adequate remedy. For example, they may be awarded against an intoxicated driver for injuries or death he or she caused, i.e., to financially punish the drunk driver for his or her conduct. Also, punitive damages may be exceptionally awarded in contractual disputes: in insurance bad faith cases the insurance company's refusal to pay (despite being clearly obligated to do so) is considered a tort separate from the contractual dispute which entitles the plaintiff to damages beyond the value of the insurance policy.

What is Tort Reform? - Part II

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 14:24:32 -0500

In our last post on this subject we explained what is tort and briefly "touched" on tort reform as it refers to medical malpractice, specifically in the State of Florida. In this post we will talk about those who propose tort reform and the specific changes they are proposing (or already implementing) and some of their "convincing" arguments on why we need tort reform.

Who Wants Tort Reform And Why

Insurance companies, the medical industry and big business in general are among those that want to change the current tort system. Among the "reasons" they raise in support of why the system should be changed, they claim that the so called "frivolous" lawsuits increase the cost of litigation and compensation payouts, raising the cost of insurance because of how much money they have to spend in insurance premiums.

As we pointed out in the previous post, there are no such frivolous lawsuits in medical malpractice: these cases are so expensive to litigate (among other things because of the cost of hiring medical experts) that no plaintiffs' law firm would dare to pursue a case unless they were as certain as anyone can possibly hope to be of the validity of their client's injuries and the defendant's responsibility those injuries.

Also, as related to medical costs in this country, proponents of tort reform claim that frivolous lawsuits increase the cost of healthcare because of the amounts of money the medical industry has to spend in malpractice insurance premiums. However, according to Bloomberg Businessweek, tort reform would have no noticeable effect in this area. A study by the Congressional Budget Office shows that medical malpractice cases increase the cost of healthcare by only 1% to 2%.

How To Pick A Lawyer To Handle Your Personal Injury Case

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 18:01:09 -0500

Every where you look there are lawyers who want to represent you or your loved ones when injured or killed due to the negligence of another. It seems like every other television and radio commercial is about a law firm that wants to handle your case. Billboards and other forms of advertisements beckon you to call. Just how is someone supposed to find a competent, qualified and experienced lawyer to handle their claim?

Be A Smart Consumer

A person who is injured or who has lost a loved one and is looking for legal representation is a "consumer of legal services." As a consumer, you have every right to make sure that you are getting the most for your dollar, even though you won't be paying for the lawyer's services until the case is settled. Not all lawyers are equally qualified or have the experience necessary to handle claims for car accidents, motorcycle accidents, trucking accidents, medical malpractice, wrongful death, product liability, boating accidents and plane crashes.

So how do you begin your search? Referrals are always good, but in and of themselves should not cause you to make a decision. The person who is referring you to the lawyer may not have had the same type of case that you have. In other words, different facts or different laws may apply. Advertisements are a good place to start, as is the internet. But they are just that, a place to start.

Good Resources To Check For Lawyers' Experience

What you need to do is look at the lawyer's experience and qualifications. A way to do that is to see how the lawyer is viewed by his peers and the courts. Martindale Hubbell rates lawyers according to their ability and their ethical standards. An "AV" rating is the highest rating that a lawyer can receive from Martindale Hubbell. This rating is peer reviewed, meaning that other lawyers in the community rate the lawyer. So first you should seek out an "AV" rated lawyer. A second resource are "Super Lawyers" and "Law Dragon", who have also created peer reviewed rating systems. The lawyers that make the "Super Lawyers" or "Law Dragon" are deemed exceptional by other lawyers, as wel as by Judges in the community.

The lawyer that you want to represent you should also be a member of his/her state trial lawyer's association and the American Association for Justice, which is a national organization formed by Plaintiff's lawyers. In addition, membership in other associations could be viewed as important as well. I, for one, am on the Florida board for APITLA, which is the Association for Plaintiff Interstate Trucking Lawyers of America. This is a very important organization, because interstate trucking is regulated by the Federal Government and if you do not hire a lawyer who is well versed in trucking law, you may be missing an opportunity to avail yourself of more insurance coverage to help compensate you for your injuries.

What is Tort Reform?

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:23:18 -0500

Friends and family members often ask "hey, what's tort reform? Following I will attempt to answer this question about a legal topic that is more important to our society than most of us realize.

What Is A Tort?

However, before discussing tort reform I believe it is best to explain what we mean by "tort". Contrary to popular belief, the term tort (as used in the legal World) does not refer to a cake or other form of delicious pastry. It comes from English Common Law and it refers to the breach of a civil duty by an individual (or a corporation) to another person. Such civic duty is different from a contractual or an equitable duty: contractual duties are duties arising from an agreement reached by the parties. Equitable duties are those springing from rights a person may have.

While many wrongful acts amount to both torts and crimes, they are different: a tort is typically dealt with by the victim filing a lawsuit against the wrongdoer, who is known as the tortfeasor. A crime, on the other hand, is dealt with by the state prosecuting the accused. One more important difference: while the remedy for a crime is the sentencing of the accused to death or to a prison term, the remedy for a tortious act is typically money damages.

Finally, torts come from three different kinds of actions:

1. Negligent actions. Most lawsuits are based on negligence:

a. Car, motorcycle and truck accident cases;

b. Slip or trip and fall cases;

c. Medical malpractice cases;

d. Product liability or defective products cases;

e. Pharmacy error cases;

f. Negligent security cases;

g. Amusement park accident cases;

2. Intentional acts:

a. Assault;

b. Battery;

c. False Imprisonment;

d. Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress;

e. Fraud.

3. Quasi-torts or liability torts. These can be categorized as statutory violations. Among others they include:

a. Violation of consumer protection laws;

b. Worker's compensation cases;

c. Violations of anti-discrimination laws.

For the purposes of this post, we will only deal with torts caused by negligent acts.