Finch McCranie, LLP

Dangerous Products No Longer Receive Federal Protection

Companies that produce dangerous products suffered a major defaet last week in the United States House of Representaatives. By a vote of 407 to 0, the House of Representatives passed legislation reauthorizing the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and included statutory language specifically prohibiting the CPSC from issuing any rule or regulation that expands the scope of federal preemption of state law.
During the Bush administration, the CPSC has issued rules and regualtions which it argues preempt state laws governing dangerous products, thereby depriving innocent
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Bad Faith Insurance Claims

Bad faith insurance claims have always been difficult because the insurance industry has routinely been able to hide behind restrictive laws designed to protect them from even egregious conduct. However, a case pending in Missouri may change this situation.
A Jackson county Missouri trial judge issued an order directing Allstate Insurance Company to produce records which the Plaintiff lawyers allege show how Allstate set up a claims payment system in the 1990s that shortchanges clients while earning huge profits. Despite the judges directive, Allstate refused,
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Government Information To Be More Accessible

Our serious injury lawyers often request information from governmental agencies in efforts to help our clients. Many times, despite laws requiring disclosure, our requests are routinely denied or ignored.
The Bush administration has consistently pushed toward secrecy in government. Former Attorney General John Ashcroft had issued an order instructing agencies to lean against releasing information if there was any uncertainty about how it would affect national security.
Now the Congress is fighting this trend by passing legislation which would expand the Freedom of Information Act
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Doctors Place Self-Interest Ahead Of Patients In Study

A disturbing study by the Massachusetts General Hospital was reported in the December 6, 2007 issue of the Harvard Crimson Newspaper. The paper reported that the study disclosed that nearly half of the doctors surveyed are more likely to protect their colleagues than their patients. Forty percent of the doctors admitted to not reporting a serious medical error they had witnessed. Likewise, forty-five percent admitted to not reporting a physician who they knew to be impaired or incompetent.
Additionally, the study found that the physicians
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Arbitration Clauses Attacked By Consumer Advocates In Congress

We have previously written about mandatory arbitration clauses. Just a few years ago, Congressional Republicans made it a priority to limit almost all litigation against businesses. Now, legislation is advancing which could make it easier for consumers to have their complaints heard in the courts. At issue is the fine print in many contracts for goods and services, such as credit cards and cell phones, requiring that any disputes be submitted to arbitration by a third party. Critics of these provisions contend that they deny
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Atlanta Area Motorcycle Accident Case Settles

Our motorcycle accident injury attorneys have successfully concluded a case involving a young man who lost control of his motorcycle in Carrollton, Georgia in May of 2005. The client was operating his motorcycle in the City of Carrollton near the Southwire Plant. As he approached a curb in the road, the lane was littered with gravel, dirt and other debris. The client had a split second to decide what action to take. Instead of attempting to engage his brakes, which he felt would result in
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Atlanta’s Fox Theater Injuries Recall Past Theater Safety Failures, and Serious Injuries and Wrongful Deaths

Having seen past injuries and deaths occur because theater safety principles were disregarded in using orchestra pits in Atlanta, our Georgia Injury Lawyer Blog attorneys shuddered upon reading that it had happened again in Atlanta. A 17 year-old dancer wearing a Panda costume reportedly suffered critical injuries when she fell some 12 feet into the lowered orchestra pit of the Fox Theater, during a performance of the “Nutcracker” by the Atlanta Ballet.
The orchestra pit contained no orchestra, but was apparently lowered to this great
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Dangerous Drugs Advertised By Manufacturers

Our dangerous drug attorneys often review cases in which an inappropriate drug was prescribed for a patient. Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization founded in 1971 to represent consumers’ interest in Congress, the executive branch and the courts. In the latest newsletter from The Health Research Group, a division of Public Citizen, there is an interesting article concerning direct advertising by pharmaceutical companies.
The article points out that other than New Zealand, the United States is the only country that allows direct
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Atlanta Area Nursing Home Slammed

Last week, two Georgia nursing homes were added to the list of the worst in the country according to federal data.
The Place at Augusta and Shoreham of Marietta were cited for deficiencies and placed on the list of the worst nursing homes in the country by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. These two homes in Georgia were among 54 nursing homes in 33 states that failed to improve quality of patient care and/or administrative services over the last year.
According to the
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Defective Medical Device Question Before Supreme Court

The United States Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday in a case which may have a major impact on lawsuits against medical device makers brought by patients who have been injured by defective products. The Supreme Court will be asked to consider whether patients can bring lawsuits over defective devices which have been cleared for sale by the Food and Drug Administrations’ approval process. In this case, a federal appeals court barred a suit which claims a New York man suffered permanent injury when a Medtronic
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Nursing Home and Insurance Company Abuse of Elderly and Disabled

Our Atlanta based attorneys have and are litigating cases against nursing homes involving almost unspeakable abuses of elderly and vulnerable patients. These civil suits help uncover abuses by nursing home and insurance companies, according to a new report by the American Association for Justice.

“Where regulatory and legislative bodies have been unable to cope with this distressing rise of neglect and abuse of our elderly, the civil justice system has stepped into the breach,” said the AAJ President, in a statement accompanying the release of the report, “Standing Up For Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans.”

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On-The-Job Accident Results In Death Of Georgia Worker

The Associated Press reported this week that 37 year old Jimmy Roubles of Augusta died in a construction accident when a trench caved in on him while he and a co-worker were installing pipes six feet underground. The article did not indicate whether this man was married or whether he had children. If he left dependants, they will be entitled to Georgia “death benefits” under the Georgia Workers’ Compensation Act; although the benefits are pitiful and limited.

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Motorcycle Accident In Henry County Involves Hit-And-Run Driver

Georgia injury lawyers know that motorcycle accidents often result in serious injuries and even death for the biker. Today WSBTV reported that a motorcyclist was severely injured as a result of a hit-and-run crash in Henry County. Justin Haynes, age 34, was struck at Fairview and East Atlanta Rd in Ellenwood by a female driving a black Toyota Highlander. According to police, the women stopped but then drove off.
Hit-and-run accidents are becoming more common in Atlanta. There is a 24 year old woman on trial this week who is accused of causing a collision which took the lives of several innocent people. In that case, the woman left the scene and was then assisted by her mother in attempting to cover it up.
Georgia law provides that if someone negligently injures or kills someone and there are aggravating circumstances involved, such as being intoxicated of leaving the scene and failing to render aid, the offending party may be liable for punitive damages.

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Inexcusable Surgical Mistakes Continue

Outrageous surgical “errors” continue to maim and kill patients throughout Georgia and the United states despite requirements that hospitals and doctors abide by a standard set of procedures to prevent surgical mistakes.
These errors include operating on the wrong patient or the wrong body part.
This inexcusable problem is highlighted in a new study in the Archives of Surgery. The data was drawn from an insurance database in Colorado that included 27,370 self-reported incidents from 6,000 physicians from 2002 to mid-2008. Doctors in the
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Remington Rifles Have Serious Defect

According to a recent CNBC report, Remington Model 700 rifles have a serious and deadly defect, that can cause the rifles to fire without pulling the trigger.
The danger is caused by a defective component in the trigger mechanism called the trigger connector. The system is known as the Walker Fire Control System and Remington is the only gun manufacturer which incorporates it in firearms.
The report revealed that the defect with the trigger connector is that is not bound to the actual trigger. As
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Burn Injuries

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have seen some horrible burn injuries over the years which have resulted from automobile accidents, truck accidents, use of dangerous products and on-the-job accidents. There are few injuries more serious than burns. Burns can all too often be fatal. Even for those who survive, the degree of pain that accompanies a burn is hard to imagine. The debridement of the dead skin, necessary to prevent infection, is one of the most painful treatments in all of medicine. On top of that, burns leave serious scars that last a lifetime and often cause physical restrictions which affect the quality of life.

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Graco Stroller Recall-Four Deaths Reported

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have seen many serious injuries and wrongful death caused by dangerous products. Last week the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in Washington, announced that Graco, a company that specializes in making baby related merchandise, is recalling about 2 million strollers after receiving reports that four infants died in the strollers. They said the four infants became trapped inside the strollers and were strangled. The deaths occurred between 2003 and 2005. According to the announcement, the strollers being recalled are older versions of the Graco Quattro Tour and MetroLite strollers and travel systems, all made before 2007 and distributed by Graco Children’s Products Inc. of Atlanta.

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Workers’ Compensation Claims And Third Party Liability

When someone is injured on-the-job under Georgia law they are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits will provide minimal payments for lost wages as well as reimbursement of any medical expenses arising out of the on-the-job injury. In exchange for these statutory benefits the employee may never sue the employer responsible for the on-the-job injury. In short, even if an employer is negligent and/or creates an unsafe situation for an employee, the employer cannot be sued, instead as a tradeoff for not being sued,
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Police Chase Cases And Sovereign Immunity

As we have blogged about on many occasions in the past, there are many unfortunate situations where third party innocent victims become involved in reckless and dangerous police chases. If the police are chasing a juvenile, a traffic offender or some other non-violent offender and while traveling at high speeds continues to chase the suspect under such dangerous conditions that they crash into an innocent third party, there should be legal liability for a reckless disregard of proper police procedure in this context. Indeed, under Georgia law, O.C.G.A. § 40-6-6 specifies that where there is evidence of a reckless disregard of proper police procedure in the decision to either initiate or continue a high speed pursuit, such reckless disregard can be the basis of liability against the police if an innocent third party is injured due to such recklessness. Notwithstanding the statute, it is commonplace in any case brought by an innocent victim against the police for the government entity involved to assert sovereign immunity as a defense.

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On-The-Job Deaths Decreased 47% In 2009

In the late 70’s and early 80’s while I was employed in the Georgia claims department of a major insurance company, we had a very significant number of workers compensation death cases. Part of the reason was that the company wrote alot of assigned risk business but another reason was that the economy was doing well. Construction was booming and there were lots of jobs, especially construction jobs. Recently released statistics demonstrate that this is not the case now..

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