3 Most Famous Personal Injury Lawsuits

via Tumblr hobbsr04.tumblr.com/post/131682886152 Most personal injury lawsuits barely make the papers. But these three made the silver screen. In choosing the biggest injury cases, you could go by the dollar amount of the settlement or the jury verdict. But we decided to go with three that were so big that Hollywood came calling. Here are the three most famous personal injury lawsuits: Stella Liebeck v. McDonald’s: This could be the most famous (or infamous) lawsuits of all time. What became the poster child for frivolous lawsuits was anything but. Ms. Liebeck suffered third-degree burns to her inner thighs, genitals, and groin and required skin graft surgeries after spilling coffee in her lap. Plus, McDonald’s knew its coffee was too hot — company policy said it should be kept at 185 degrees, and 700 others claimed they’d been burned by McDonald’s coffee in the previous ten years. After McDonald’s scoffed at Liebeck’s offer to settle the case for $20,000, a jury awarded her $2.7 million. The case was the subject of a 2011 documentary, Hot Coffee. Anderson v. Cryovac, Inc.: One town’s lawsuit against multiple corporations for contaminated groundwater became the basis for the 1996 book A Civil Action and the 1998 film of the same name. John Travolta played attorney Jan Schlichtmann who fought for residents of Woburn, Massachusetts against Beatrice Foods, UniFirst, and Cryovac, a subsidiary of W.R. Grace. The companies dumped so many toxic chemicals in the ground it caused a cancer cluster in the town, giving several children leukemia. Anderson, et al. v. Pacific Gas and Electric: A different Anderson, but another toxic tort case. This time it was residents of Hinkley, California going up against one of the biggest energy companies in the world, again for pollutants in their groundwater. Lucky for Hinkley, they had an enterprising legal clerk on their side — Erin Brokovich. Your personal injury claim may not be made into a movie, but it’s big to you. And you should talk about it with an experienced personal injury attorney. Related Resources: Hurt by a product or accident? Get your claim reviewed for free. (Consumer Injury) What Movies Don’t Know About Injury Lawsuits (FindLaw’s Injured) In ‘Godzilla’ Lawsuit, 3 Ex-Producers Claim Contract Fraud (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice) Arrrrrgh! Can Disney Fend Off 4th ‘Pirates’ Copyright Suit? (FindLaw’s Second Circuit) from Injured blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/3-most-famous-personal-... via Blogger hobbsr04.blogspot.com/2015/10/3-most-famous-personal-inju...

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3 Most Famous Personal Injury Lawsuits

Most personal injury lawsuits barely make the papers. But these three made the silver screen.

In choosing the biggest injury cases, you could go by the dollar amount of the settlement or the jury verdict. But we decided to go with three that were so big that Hollywood came calling. Here are the three most famous personal injury lawsuits:

1. Stella Liebeck v. McDonald’s: This could be the most famous (or infamous) lawsuits of all time. What became the poster child for frivolous lawsuits was anything but. Ms. Liebeck suffered third-degree burns to her inner thighs, genitals, and groin and required skin graft surgeries after spilling coffee in her lap. Plus, McDonald’s knew its coffee was too hot — company policy said it should be kept at 185 degrees, and 700 others claimed they’d been burned by McDonald’s coffee in the previous ten years. After McDonald’s scoffed at Liebeck’s offer to settle the case for $20,000, a jury awarded her $2.7 million. The case was the subject of a 2011 documentary, Hot Coffee.
2. Anderson v. Cryovac, Inc.: One town’s lawsuit against multiple corporations for contaminated groundwater became the basis for the 1996 book A Civil Action and the 1998 film of the same name. John Travolta played attorney Jan Schlichtmann who fought for residents of Woburn, Massachusetts against Beatrice Foods, UniFirst, and Cryovac, a subsidiary of W.R. Grace. The companies dumped so many toxic chemicals in the ground it caused a cancer cluster in the town, giving several children leukemia.
3. Anderson, et al. v. Pacific Gas and Electric: A different Anderson, but another toxic tort case. This time it was residents of Hinkley, California going up against one of the biggest energy companies in the world, again for pollutants in their groundwater. Lucky for Hinkley, they had an enterprising legal clerk on their side — Erin Brokovich.

Your personal injury claim may not be made into a movie, but it’s big to you. And you should talk about it with an experienced personal injury attorney.

Related Resources:

• Hurt by a product or accident? Get your claim reviewed for free. (Consumer Injury)
• What Movies Don’t Know About Injury Lawsuits (FindLaw’s Injured)
• In ‘Godzilla’ Lawsuit, 3 Ex-Producers Claim Contract Fraud (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)
• Arrrrrgh! Can Disney Fend Off 4th ‘Pirates’ Copyright Suit? (FindLaw’s Second Circuit)

from Injured http://blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/3-most-famous-personal-injury-lawsuits.html

Can I Sue for a Railroad Crossing Accident?

via Tumblr hobbsr04.tumblr.com/post/131621533082 Yes, you can sue for injury stemming from an accident at a railroad crossing. However, your lawsuit will only be successful if someone was negligent. Railroad crossings are generally hazardous and sometimes accidents just happen. Railroads are only liable for incidents that stem from their negligence. So, if you do what some commuters in California have done recently and abandoned your car on the tracks, do not expect to successfully sue for damages. If, however, you have all the elements of a negligence claim, your suit may succeed. Let’s see what you need to do to prove negligence if you are injured at a railroad crossing. Proving the Elements of Negligence All negligence cases have four elements: duty, breach, causation, and harm (also known as damages). Plaintiffs must show that a defendant owed them a duty of care, which was breached, and that this breach caused the plaintiff’s injury, resulting in a compensable harm (or, a harm that can be relieved with monetary or other damages). What precisely you would have to show to prove that negligence occurred at a train crossing depends on the details of the incident and who you are suing. You may be able to blame multiple defendants if, say, you are hit by a train at a crossing and the company that owns the tracks is not the same as the one that owns the train. Naming Multiple Defendants A railroad crossing accident may involve many parties. Apart from the owners of the train and tracks involved, your lawyer may consider suing the train manufacturer or the company that put the traffic light at the crossing, or its manufacturer. Similarly, your lawyer will look for more than one way to show the defendants were negligent. Arguments can be made that worker training fell below standards, that equipment was poorly maintained, or that communications systems failed. Again, everything will depend on the details of your case — different rules apply to passengers in the train than to a car at a railroad crossing. And even after you tell your lawyer the story, it may take some time to decide who to name as defendants in the suit and what to argue. A Train Wreck of a Claim Given the general complexity of any negligence case and the statutes of limitation that apply, it is critical that you act fast. States all have different time limits that dictate the deadline for filing certain lawsuits, so it is important to talk to a lawyer promptly. If you were injured in an accident at a railroad crossing, consult with an attorney as soon as possible. Counsel will help you to understand the issues at play and get a sense of whether you have a serious claim or if your case is a train wreck. Related Resources: Injured in a car accident? Get your claim reviewed by an attorney for free. (Consumer Injury) What is a Common Carrier? (FindLaw) What Laws Govern the Amtrak Crash? (FindLaw) from Injured blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/can-i-sue-for-a-railroa... via Blogger hobbsr04.blogspot.com/2015/10/can-i-sue-for-railroad-cros...

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Can I Sue for a Railroad Crossing Accident?

Yes, you can sue for injury stemming from an accident at a railroad crossing. However, your lawsuit will only be successful if someone was negligent. Railroad crossings are generally hazardous and sometimes accidents just happen. Railroads are only liable for incidents that stem from their negligence.

So, if you do what some commuters in California have done recently and abandoned your car on the tracks, do not expect to successfully sue for damages. If, however, you have all the elements of a negligence claim, your suit may succeed.

Let’s see what you need to do to prove negligence if you are injured at a railroad crossing.

Proving the Elements of Negligence

All negligence cases have four elements: duty, breach, causation, and harm (also known as damages). Plaintiffs must show that a defendant owed them a duty of care, which was breached, and that this breach caused the plaintiff’s injury, resulting in a compensable harm (or, a harm that can be relieved with monetary or other damages).

What precisely you would have to show to prove that negligence occurred at a train crossing depends on the details of the incident and who you are suing. You may be able to blame multiple defendants if, say, you are hit by a train at a crossing and the company that owns the tracks is not the same as the one that owns the train.

Naming Multiple Defendants

A railroad crossing accident may involve many parties. Apart from the owners of the train and tracks involved, your lawyer may consider suing the train manufacturer or the company that put the traffic light at the crossing, or its manufacturer.

Similarly, your lawyer will look for more than one way to show the defendants were negligent. Arguments can be made that worker training fell below standards, that equipment was poorly maintained, or that communications systems failed.

Again, everything will depend on the details of your case — different rules apply to passengers in the train than to a car at a railroad crossing. And even after you tell your lawyer the story, it may take some time to decide who to name as defendants in the suit and what to argue.

A Train Wreck of a Claim

Given the general complexity of any negligence case and the statutes of limitation that apply, it is critical that you act fast. States all have different time limits that dictate the deadline for filing certain lawsuits, so it is important to talk to a lawyer promptly.

If you were injured in an accident at a railroad crossing, consult with an attorney as soon as possible. Counsel will help you to understand the issues at play and get a sense of whether you have a serious claim or if your case is a train wreck.

Related Resources:

• Injured in a car accident? Get your claim reviewed by an attorney for free. (Consumer Injury)
• What is a Common Carrier? (FindLaw)
• What Laws Govern the Amtrak Crash? (FindLaw)

from Injured http://blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/can-i-sue-for-a-railroad-crossing-accident.html

Legal How-To: Proving an Injury

via Tumblr hobbsr04.tumblr.com/post/131573659107 In most personal injury cases, the main point of contention is proving who was at fault for an accident or an injury. But just as important is proving the injury itself and the extent of the harm. Damages are an essential element of any injury claim and even if you can prove another party was negligent, you won’t be entitled to any recovery if you can’t prove your injury. Depending on your circumstances, this could be as simple as an x-ray of a broken hip after slipping and falling in a store. Other injuries may be much more complex or hard to demonstrate. Here are some considerations for how to prove an injury: Physical Injuries The most important first steps you can take in a personal injury case are documenting what happened and documenting your injuries. The first step to proving your injuries is proving when and how they happened. If you are involved in an accident or hurt by a product, document the incident with detailed notes and photographs, if possible. Make sure to keep track and get copies of any official documentation like police reports and medical diagnoses. In some cases, you may not know the exact moment you are injured. Injuries from toxic exposure or medical malpractice may take time to develop or identify. So you may be required to do some research for paperwork or documentation. Qualified injury attorneys will know exactly where to look for injury evidence, as well as how to secure expert testimony regarding hard-to-prove injuries. Emotional or Reputational Injuries Not all injuries are broken bones - some tort cases can involve damage to our psyches or reputations. And proving emotional distress or reputational injury from defamation can be more difficult than printing out a doctor’s bill. In an emotional distress case, some courts may require evidence of a physical or bodily injury accompanying the emotional trauma, as well as evidence marking the intensity or severity of your mental anguish. And while demonstrating personal humiliation or harm to one’s reputation in the community for a defamation claim may be a challenge, there are some statements that are so damaging that they are deemed defamatory on their face and are therefore presumed to be harmful. Proving an Injury: Checklist An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to assess your claim and advise you on the legal requirements to proving your injury. But there are three ways that you can help: Document the Incident: Personal notes, pictures, and interviews; Research the Reports: Police reports, medical records, billing statements; and Assist your Attorney: Give your personal injury lawyer as much information as possible. Related Resources: Have an injury claim? Get your claim reviewed for free. (Consumer Injury) 5 Things a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Do (That You Probably Can’t) (FindLaw’s Injured) Do I Have a Personal Injury Case? (FindLaw’s Injured) Medical Malpractice: Documents Checklist (FindLaw’s Injured) from Injured blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/legal-how-to-proving-an... via Blogger hobbsr04.blogspot.com/2015/10/legal-how-to-proving-injury...

via Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/87814799@N02/22351901181

Legal How-To: Proving an Injury

In most personal injury cases, the main point of contention is proving who was at fault for an accident or an injury. But just as important is proving the injury itself and the extent of the harm. Damages are an essential element of any injury claim and even if you can prove another party was negligent, you won’t be entitled to any recovery if you can’t prove your injury.

Depending on your circumstances, this could be as simple as an x-ray of a broken hip after slipping and falling in a store. Other injuries may be much more complex or hard to demonstrate. Here are some considerations for how to prove an injury:

Physical Injuries

The most important first steps you can take in a personal injury case are documenting what happened and documenting your injuries. The first step to proving your injuries is proving when and how they happened.

If you are involved in an accident or hurt by a product, document the incident with detailed notes and photographs, if possible. Make sure to keep track and get copies of any official documentation like police reports and medical diagnoses.

In some cases, you may not know the exact moment you are injured. Injuries from toxic exposure or medical malpractice may take time to develop or identify. So you may be required to do some research for paperwork or documentation. Qualified injury attorneys will know exactly where to look for injury evidence, as well as how to secure expert testimony regarding hard-to-prove injuries.

Emotional or Reputational Injuries

Not all injuries are broken bones - some tort cases can involve damage to our psyches or reputations. And proving emotional distress or reputational injury from defamation can be more difficult than printing out a doctor’s bill.

In an emotional distress case, some courts may require evidence of a physical or bodily injury accompanying the emotional trauma, as well as evidence marking the intensity or severity of your mental anguish. And while demonstrating personal humiliation or harm to one’s reputation in the community for a defamation claim may be a challenge, there are some statements that are so damaging that they are deemed defamatory on their face and are therefore presumed to be harmful.

Proving an Injury: Checklist

An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to assess your claim and advise you on the legal requirements to proving your injury. But there are three ways that you can help:

1. Document the Incident: Personal notes, pictures, and interviews;
2. Research the Reports: Police reports, medical records, billing statements; and
3. Assist your Attorney: Give your personal injury lawyer as much information as possible.

Related Resources:

• Have an injury claim? Get your claim reviewed for free. (Consumer Injury)
• 5 Things a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Do (That You Probably Can’t) (FindLaw’s Injured)
• Do I Have a Personal Injury Case? (FindLaw’s Injured)
• Medical Malpractice: Documents Checklist (FindLaw’s Injured)

from Injured http://blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/legal-how-to-proving-an-injury.html

Can I Sue My Doctor for Opiate Addiction?

via Tumblr hobbsr04.tumblr.com/post/131566832267 You can sue your doctor if you become addicted to opiates – commonly known as pain killers. But only if your doctor was negligent in prescribing the pills. Physicians owe their patients a certain standard of care. If they fall below it and patients are harmed, doctors are liable. This applies to prescriptions, just like any other aspect of treatment. Medicine is not a perfect or precise science, however, and not everything that goes wrong is due to negligence. Proving Medical Malpractice Medical malpractice is negligence in healthcare. In an opiate addiction matter, you have to show that something about your doctor’s drug prescription – the dosage, the type of drug, failure to notice your developing addiction – was a breach of the duty of care that was due to you as a patient. The same might also apply to your pharmacist and the institutions associated with your physician and pharmacist. All negligence cases have four elements that must be proven: duty, breach, causation, and harm (sometimes called damages). Failure to prove any one category will result in a lost claim. Put together, the elements add up to a complete claim. So, to prove negligence you must show the following: Your physician owed you a duty of care and breached that duty by failing to exercise reasonable care. This failure to exercise care, or the breach, caused you harm. The harm refers to an actual injury and to compensability, meaning that there are monetary or injunctive damages arising from the harm that you suffered. Reasonable Care in Prescribing Medication It will be impossible for anyone to determine whether your drug addiction was caused by your doctor’s failure to exercise reasonable care without a detailed discussion of your history and an analysis of medical records. But here are a couple of examples that may help you understand what your lawyer will look for. Let’s say you saw a doctor for an injury and he prescribed an opiate-based medication for the pain. You are a recovering drug addict and you didn’t tell the doctor anything about it but within a week are popping pills uncontrollably. That is probably not negligence, as a physician cannot be expected to guess that you were previously addicted and you should have spoken up. But if you did tell your doctor that you are a recovering addict and your particular injury is easily treated with alternatives like physical therapy, then the doctor is more likely to be found negligent in that situation. The difference between the two circumstances above is substantial, even if it seems slight. In the first example, the doctor is acting based on the information available and your addictive response seems unusual. In the second example, where the doctor ignores your explicit warning, the physician would be irresponsible to prescribe pain pills to an admitted recovering addict, especially where alternative treatments are available. Consult With Counsel Medical malpractice cases are very complex. Your lawyer will need to look at your medical records and history, communications between you and your doctor, standard treatments for your ailments, and alternatives. These cases can also take time to prove. But time is short. States have different statutes of limitation for filing medical malpractice claims, which means you will lose your opportunity to file suit if you sit on it too long. Do not try to decide on your own whether you have a valid claim. Consult with an attorney as soon as possible and let the experts determine whether it’s worth going after your doctor for negligence in prescribing medication. Related Resources: Browse Medical Malpractice Lawyers by Location (FindLaw ) State Law Summaries: Medical Malpractice and Reform (FindLaw) Medical Malpractice Legal Help (FindLaw) from Injured blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2015/10/can-i-sue-my-doctor-for... via Blogger hobbsr04.blogspot.com/2015/10/can-i-sue-my-doctor-for-opi...

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