Finch McCranie, LLP

Georgia Serious Injury Cases: Frequently Asked Question Number 6

This blog will continue in our series of providing our readers with answers to frequently asked questions in the context of a serious injury case. This blog will address FAQ number 6:
6. Can my spouse recover damages if I am seriously injured and he/she misses time from work caring for me?
Answer: A spouse does not have a legal claim for their own lost wages while they miss work caring for their injured spouse. However, under Georgia law, a spouse does have a claim
(more…)

Georgia Serious Injury Cases: Frequently Asked Question Number 5

This blog will continue in our series of providing our readers with answers to frequently asked questions in the context of a serious injury case. This blog will address FAQ number 5:
5. Who will pay my lost wages while I am recovering from my injuries?
Answer: In Georgia, there is no “Pay as You Go” rule so unfortunately the answer to this question is that you may receive no lost wages at all unless your employer continues to pay you and/or you have disability
(more…)

Another Atlanta Area Police Chase Case and More Avoidable Deaths

We have written previously about the dangers of police chase cases. This week we read in the paper about a chase that occurred on January 24 involving a man fleeing the police in a stolen vehicle. As he was fleeing, allegedly with a police officer in pursuit, the suspect in the stolen vehicle engaged in increasingly dangerous behavior. Ultimately, he collided head-on with another innocent motorist, killing that motorist and decapitating a female passenger in his car. According to the news accounts, the deceased
(more…)

Atlanta Man Electrocuted: Serious Injury and Wrongful Death

We read in the newspaper this week about the death of a maintenance man at a local school system when he was electrocuted while trying to change a fixture at the elementary school. While the newspaper article did not provide many details, it was curious to us that a maintenance man would be killed while simply trying to change out a light fixture. This raises the obvious issue of whether there is third party negligence because the electrical system obviously had some problems within it,
(more…)

Georgia Serious Injury Cases: Frequently Asked Question Number 3

This blog will continue in our series of providing our readers with answers to frequently asked questions in the context of a serious injury case. This blog will address FAQ number 3:
3. If a client settles his or her personal injury claim against an at fault defendant, will they have to repay their own insurance carrier under current subrogation provisions of the law?
Answer: This question often comes up in the context of serious injury cases where the injured individual has incurred substantial medical
(more…)

Ortho Evra Contraceptive Patch is Dangerous to Use

The Ortho Evra contraceptive patch has been used by many young women who unfortunately have developed clot related injuries. Some users have had strokes, heart attacks, pulmonary embolisms or deep vein thrombosis as a result of using this product. This past week, the Food and Drug Administration announced a significant update to the manufacturer’s warning on the contraceptive patch. The label now warns users of the patch that they are at a significantly higher risk of developing clot related injuries than other women who use
(more…)

Georgia Serious Injury Cases: Frequently Asked Question Number 2

This continues in our series of providing our readers with answers to frequently asked questions in the context of a serious injury case. This blog will address FAQ number 2:
2. Who will bear responsibility for my future medical expenses if I settle my serious injury case today?
Answer: Anytime a serious injury case is settled, there has to be an evaluation of future medical expenses. Has the injured individual recovered completely from their injuries? Are future medical expenses likely? If future medical expenses are
(more…)

Medication Errors In Atlanta Hospitals

We have previously written about the dangers of medication errors in hospitals. Recently another incident made the news because a celebrity was involved. Actor Dennis Quaid’s newborn twins and another child were put in serious danger when they were administered overdoses of a blood thinner. The California Department of Public Health said the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center gave the newborns 1,000 times the intended dosage of heparin. Fortunately, all three children recovered, but two needed a drug that reverses the effects of heparin.
The authorities said
(more…)

Emergency Care Lacking in Hospitals

Our attorneys are increasingly reviewing cases where major surgical procedures are being performed at small physician-owned hospitals and surgical centers.
On January 10, 2008, the Washington Post revealed that the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, had issued a report concerning physician-owned specialty hospitals. The report concluded that most physician-owned speciality hospitals are poorly equipped to handle medical emergencies.
The report revealed that only 55% of the 109 physician-owned hospitals studied had emergency departments, and of those, the majority had only
(more…)

Atlanta/Georgia Medical Malpractice Limits on Recoveries

Our medical malpractice attorneys are frequently forced to decline cases which have merit from a liability standpoint, but due to caps on the amount of recovery cannot be justified in economic terms.
Last week, the Los Angeles Times ran a story concerning a 72 year old woman who entered Stanford University Medical Center for double knee replacement surgery in April. Four days later, she was dead. Her son, an anesthesiologist, felt that the case was a classic case of medical malpractice. After the operation, his
(more…)

Wrongful Death Damages in Georgia

Among all the 50 states Georgia law is unique because it measures damages in a wrongful death case from the viewpoint of what the deceased lost, not what his or her survivors lost. Under Georgia law, the measure of damages in a wrongful death case is “the full value of the life of the decedent.” See O.C.G.A. §§ 51-4-1(1) and 51-4-4.
The full value of the life of the decedent under Georgia law has two components. First, the economic value of the deceased’s normal
(more…)

Tort Claims Against Local Government Employees

Here in Georgia, due to the doctrine of Sovereign Immunity, as we have posted before, it is very difficult to sue a local government employee. If a government employee commits a tort against an innocent third party and that person wishes to file a claim against the government employee, the government employee cannot be sued in his or her official capacity unless the employer of the government employee has waived its sovereign immunity. This is because any claim against the employee in his or her
(more…)

Overcoming Sovereign Immunity Defenses of Counties in Georgia

This past week we spoke at a State Bar seminar on the doctrine of Sovereign Immunity in Georgia. In Georgia, there are limited statutory waivers of sovereign immunity by state and local governments. One of the most frustrating areas is that of county immunity. Essentially, the only statutory waiver of county immunity is that which provides for liability for county vehicles. If a county agent or employee is operating a covered vehicle, there is a mandatory minimum waiver of $500,000.00 per accident/$700,000.00 per occurrence. If
(more…)

Innocent Pedestrian Killed During High Speed Police Pursuit

On February 5, 2012, a thirty-one year old woman was killed in a residential neighborhood as police officers were pursuing shoplifting suspects. The news accounts do not provide a great deal of information about what the suspects allegedly stole but tragically, again, the question arises in the context of these dangerous pursuits, is it worth risking a human life to apprehend a fleeing shoplifter? Could not other law enforcement techniques have been utilized to apprehend the suspects later, under much safer circumstances? Here, rather
(more…)

Motorcycle Accidents And The Need For Uninsured Motorist Coverage

In those situations where motorcyclists are involved in automobile collisions, as might be imagined, the injuries sustained can be rather serious. There is no protection other than the helmet for the motorcycle rider. If a motorist fails to yield right-of-way to an oncoming motorcyclist and fails to yield, the results tragically can be either death or very serious injury. What compounds the tragedy is the case where the at fault motorist has either minimum limits of insurance or no insurance at all. In such
(more…)

The Aftermath Of Tort Reform: Dealing With The Apportionment Statute

In 2005, the Georgia Legislature passed what is known as the Tort Reform Act of 2005. One of the statutes enacted is O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33(c). This provision of the law states that in assessing percentages of fault in any tort action, the trier of fact shall consider the fault of all persons or entities who contributed to the alleged injury or damages, regardless of whether the person or entity was or could have been named as a party to the suit. Thus, in any tort
(more…)

Tort Claims Against State County And Municipal Governments

Any one who is injured by the acts or omissions of a government agency or employee should understand that there are some hidden traps that could defeat their claims if the law is not followed, in some cases, scrupulously followed. Here we refer to the ante-litem notice provisions required under Georgia law in order to perfect a claim against a government officer or entity. In certain circumstances, if a timely ante-litem notice is not filed, either with a city, county or state government, the
(more…)

The Impact Of Divorce On Wrongful Death Actions

A divorce is traumatic in and of itself but becomes particularly tragic when either during the divorce or after its conclusion the wrongful death of a child occurs. In such circumstances, the wrongful death claim belongs to the parents jointly. Either one, therefore, has the right to bring the wrongful death claim but if one proceeds unilaterally in doing so, they do so in a fiduciary capacity, meaning that if they ever recover anything, they must hold the monies in trust until such time
(more…)

The Impact of Pre-Existing Injuries On Personal Injury Case Evaluation

It is not uncommon in our practice to be asked to represent clients in automobile cases who have pre-existing conditions. The closer in time to an accident the pre-existing condition is, the more difficult it is to separate the proverbial “wheat from the chaff” and to prove that the client’s problems arising out of the current accident were either caused by that accident and/or were aggravated by it. While it is not necessary, as a matter of law, to prove that the new injury
(more…)

The Impact Of Contributory Negligence On A Personal Injury Claim

As lawyers we are often consulted by prospective clients inquiring about whether they “have a case.” Sometimes they do and sometimes they do not. Oftentimes those who do not have cases are themselves guilty of contributory negligence. In Georgia, this is a very difficult problem to overcome because typically juries are not as likely to award damages to someone who substantially contributed to their own injuries due to their own negligence.
A classic case of contributory negligence is where a motorist is approaching an intersection
(more…)

Secret Link