Trial Attorney Blog

Bus accidents have been a problem in Atlanta and Georgia for many years. Recently, the lawyers of Finch McCranie LLP were able to secure a very favorable settlement for the most seriously injured survivor in the Bluffton Bus crash which occurred here some years ago.

Now, in an encouraging move, the National Transportation Safety Board is recommending charter bus companies come up with better plans to deal with crashes in remote areas. Last Friday, the NTSB sent recommendations to the American Bus Association and the United Motorcoach Association. The list suggests detailed contingency plans and information about driving through remote areas where there is no wireless telephone coverage.

In January 2008, nine people died and 43 others were injured in a bush crash near Mexican Hat, Utah, as they returned to Phoenix, Arizona from a weekend ski trip in Telluride, Colo.

Potentially dangerous trampolines which have been sold in the Georgia and Atlanta areas are the subject of a recall. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in cooperaation with Skywalker Holdings announced a voluntary recall of about 60,000 trampolines manufactured in China and distributed by Skywalker Holdings LLC, of Brigham City, Utah.
The recall applies to the Skywalker Holdings 13-foot Square Trampoline and Enclosure Combo. The units have blue spring pads, a black net enclosure, and a jumping mat. “Skywalker Holdings” is printed on a label located under the jumping mat and on the enclosure net.
The straps supporting the top of the trampoline’s enclosure to the poles can fail. The enclosure could drop if these straps break, posing a risk that a user could fall from the trampoline.
To date Skywalker Holdings reports it has received at least 250 reports of straps breaking. No injuries have been reported.
The trampolines were sold at specialty stores and major retailers nationwide and online from January 2007 through February 2009 for between $400 and $600.
The CPSC advises that consumers should immediately stop using the trampolines and contact Skywalker Holdings to obtain a free repair kit. The contact information provided is as follows:
Consumer Contact: Contact Skywalker Holdings toll-free at (866) 603-5867 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. MT Monday through Friday, or visit the company’s Web site at www.skywalkertrampolines.com.

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As a Georgia injury lawyer, I read almost everyday about a death or serious personal injuries sustained as a result of an All Terrain Vehicle ATV accident. With the increasing popularity of ATVs it is inevitable that there will be more accidents and injuries; however, most are preventable. Without exception, most ATV accidents can be traced back to a rider who broke at least one of the ATV Safety Institute’s Golden Rules. Whether you’re riding in a public park or on private land, keep these eight guidelines in mind:

Always wear a helmet and other protective gear.

Never ride on public roads — another vehicle could hit you.

The Atlanta lawyers of Finch McCranie LLP often see cases in which children are injured on exercise equipment such as treadmills and weight machines. The tragic death of boxer Mike Tyson’s 4-year-old daughter may seem like a freak occurrence, but the Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that treadmills injure more children than any other type of exercise equipment.

According to CPSC figures, almost 5,500 children under age 5 were treated in emergency rooms in 2006 and 2007 for treadmill-related injuries.

While most had cuts, bruises and scrapes, primarily on the hands or fingers; one child’s injury required an amputation. Thirty-two percent had their hands caught in or on the treadmill, in some cases suffering serious friction burns.

Last Friday the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington essentially upheld a landmark ruling that found cigarette makers deceived the public for decades about the health hazards of smoking.

The Court of Appeals upheld the major elements of a 2006 ruling that found the nation’s top tobacco companies guilty of fraud and violating racketeering laws. The ruling said manufacturers must change the way they market cigarettes. It bans labels such as “low tar,” “light,” “ultra light” or “mild,” because such cigarettes have been found to be no safer than others because of how people smoke them.

It also requires the companies to publish “corrective statements” on the adverse health effects and addictiveness of smoking and nicotine. The requirements have been stayed or dealyed while the case has been under appeal.

The attorney general of Alabama has announced that 14 major drug companies will pay Alabama $89 million to settle a lawsuit accusing them of defrauding the state Medicaid agency. This lawsuit brought on behalf of the taxpayers of the state of Alabama is one of many throughout the United States brought by state’s Attorney Generals accusing drug manufactures of overcharging and defrauding states for the purchase of drugs used in state sponsored medicaid and health care programs. The lawsuits essentially allege a pattern of fraud by drug manufacturers over many years.

The Alabama settlement followed a series of trial victories in Montgomery County Circuit Court against other drug companies accused of similar activities. The state of Alabama was represented by private law firms who undertook the representation and absorbed the risk of a losing verdict.

The companies agreeing to the Alabama settlement are: Abbott Laboratories, Schering-Plough Corp., Warrick Pharmaceuticals Corp., TEVA Pharmaceuticals USA, IVAX Corp., IVAX Pharmaceuticals, Barr Laboratories, Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Aventis Behring, ZLB Behring, Sanofi-Synthelabo, Forest Laboratories, Forest Pharmaceuticals, Baxter Healthcare Corp. and Baxter International.

Georgia injury lawyers, handling a claim for a catastrophically injured employee or the family of a deceased employee, our investigation will often reveal that the employee received injuries while working on or around a piece of machinery that caused the death, some traumatic amputation or other trauma to the employee. In such a case, the attorney must consider potential product liability claims, such as defective design, manufacture, assembly, testing or failure to warn or misrepresentation. The Supreme Court of Georgia has outlined the test for whether a product is defective in terms of risk-utility analysis. There are three (3) principal basis of recovery in product liability actions: Negligence; Breach of Warranty; and Strict Liability.
Like any other claim, actions for damages based on product liability are governed by statutes of limitations. For personal injury actions based on negligence or strict liability related to product liability, a two year statute of limitations applies. However, there is an additional limitation that an attorney representing an employee injured by a product of any kind must consider as soon as he is retained. This is the statute of repose and it functions in addition to the statute of limitations. This statute of repose is a complete band to strict liability and negligence actions filed more than ten (10) years after the date of the first sale or use or consumption of the products, regardless of when the injury occurred. Thus, an injured employee’s time to file a case could be much less than two years. The statute of repose does not apply to claims based on failure of the manufacturer to warn of product related damage.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured on-the-job, call the Georgia workers compensation lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP for a free consultation.

Georgia and South Carolina injury lawyers are seeing ATV accidents involving serious injury and sometimes death are on the rise with the return of warm weather. Tragically many, if not most are preventable by using common sense and obeying ATV rules. Just this week, I read about a Summerville, South Carolina teenager who is fighting for her life as a result of being thrown from the back of a fast moving ATV. According to witnesses, neither the 32 year old ATV driver or the teenage passenger were wearing helmuts.

Almost all ATV fatalities or serious injuries occur while violating one or more of the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s “Rules of ATV Operation”. Those rules are as follows:

1. Children under sixteen (16) should not ride adult-sized ATV (engines bigger than 90 cc’s).

Our Atlanta based lawyers are constantly involved in cases involving brain injury and brain death. As tragic as these cases are, the families and loved ones are many times faced with the decision whether to cease life support after there has been a medical determination of brain death.

In general, brain death is considered to be the irreversible loss of brain function. The exact definition has changed throughout the years and is still subject to debate. The brainstem controls brain function and is responsible for regulating breathing, heart rate, reflexes, withdrawal from pain. Thus, diagnosing brain death requires the absence of brainstem function.

Most states have adopted a version of the Uniform Determination of Death Act thereby establishing a definition of brain death. The Uniform Act defines brain death as follows:

Defective medical devices can lead to the serious injury or death of innocent people. For this reason Georgia injury lawyers representing victims of defective and dangerous products were dismayed when the Supreme Court decision in Riegel v. Medtronic, held that consumers can’t sue medical device companies over medical devices that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Now, victims of these dangerous products who say they were injured by faulty medical devices want Congress to pass legislation called the Medical Device Safety Act, that would override the Supreme Court decision.
Congressional Lawmakers are scheduled to hold a hearing this week on legislation that would nullify a Supreme Court decision that prevents consumers from seeking damages for injuries caused by federally approved medical devices. Support for the Medical Device Safety Act has been fueled by news of the Sprint Fidelis Pacemaker Wire and other faulty medical devices. Although device makers argue that the Bill will have a chilling effect on medical innovation and patient safety, there is no evidence to support such a conclusion. To the contrary, such a bill would enhance patient safety and make manufacturers accountable for faulty medical devices
If you or a loved one have been seriously injured as a result of a faulty medical device, contact the product liability lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP for a free consultation..