Personal Injury

Defective Airbags Can Result In Serious Injury Or Death

As Georgia injury lawyers who have handled many automobile and truck accident cases, we sometimes see defective products that lead to injury and death in collisions. One such defect involves airbags. Although airbag failures are not common, there are many reasons for there failure. Many fail because of design defects or defects in components.
Just last month, Nissan Motor Co Ltd announced plans to recall 204,361 vehicles from its 2007 and 2008 model years in the United States due to the possibility that a passenger
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Dangerous Crib Lawsuit

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has filed a lawsuit against a crib distributor for allegedly ignoring a nationwide recall of bassinets that can cause babies to suffocate. Madigan criticized federal regulators Wednesday for failing to take aggressive action against SFCA Inc., the owner of the Simplicity brand.
Madigan’s lawsuit seeks a recall that SFCA would publicize in newspapers statewide. It also seeks a refund for retailers. “Our investigation revealed that SFCA continued to distribute recalled products that posed serious risks to children,” Madigan said in
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High Speed Chase Ends In Two Deaths: Was It Worth It?

According to news reports, Atlanta Police Officer Sgt. Darrell Johnson was killed on Friday morning, October 24 when his vehicle was struck head-on by a fleeing suspect during a high speed police chase. Not only was the police officer killed, the fleeing suspect was killed as well.

The newspaper reports are sketchy, however, it appears that the high speed chase began when authorities received a 911 call from a member of the public who had spotted the suspect’s car while weaving. The officers apparently attempted to make a traffic stop of the suspect. When the suspect refused to stop for the suspected traffic violation, he took off, thus initiating a “high speed” chase. During the chase, the suspect lost control, crossed the center line and hit Sgt. Johnson’s vehicle head-on.

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Drug Manufacturer False Advertising

The Food and Drug Administration has taken issue with drug manufacturer Bayer over advertising claims for two aspirin medicines manufactured by the company. Bayer promotes the medicines as leading to healthy hearts and stronger bones.
The FDA sent two warning letters to Bayer for never submitting proof that its pills are effective in battling heart disease and osteoporosis as claimed by Bayer. The two drugs are Bayer Women’s Low Dose Aspirin + Calcium and Bayer Aspirin With Health Advantage.
Treatments for those diseases must be
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Accident Reconstruction Experts and Serious Car Accidents and Collisions

In our serious injury practice, we are often encountered by cases where there is a dispute concerning liability for a particular collision. The tractor-trailer driver contends that he was forced off the road by an unknown John Doe motorist. The at fault driver who ran over the pedestrian claims that he or she could not see the pedestrian due to lighting conditions. The driver who is speeding denies that, in fact, he was speeding, and on and on. In cases involving serious or catastrophic injuries
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Settling a Personal Injury Law Suit

Needless to say, our attorneys are often asked by our clients when they should settle their personal injury lawsuit and in what amount. These question, many times, presuppose that both liability and damages are clear enough to warrant a settlement in a particular case. Oftentimes, liability is hotly contested as are damages and a case is therefore made more difficult from the settlement standpoint. However, in a case where the liability of the person causing the injury is rather clear and the damages are well documented, a fair settlement should be achieved. It is with respect to this type of case that we attempt in this blog to answer the question posed.

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Car Crashes, Car Collisions and Automobile Insurance

Our attorneys routinely handle serious injuries arising out of car collision and crashes. We are always amazed to learn just how little the public knows about automobile insurance coverages and generally how they work. The purpose of this blog is simply to set forth some of the basic principles so that the public can be educated about how automobile insurance coverage works in the typical case.

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Crib Recall Announced

Today, Delta Enterprise Corp a children’s products maker will announce a recall of 1.59 million cribs linked to two infant deaths. This recall follows other recent recalls of cribs and bassinets involving other manufacturers.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC, is expected to hold a news conference later this morning to announce the recall, which is being conducted on a voluntary basis by the company. Mandatory recalls are rare, though the CPSC sometimes has to pressure manufacturers to agree to repair or pull their products
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Work Related Injuries: Compensation From Third Parties

There is a common misconception that all work related injuries are solely covered by Workers’ Compensation statutory benefits. While it is true that any employee who is injured on the job while working for their employer is entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, this does not necessarily mean that the injured worker is limited to the recovery of such benefits. If a third party, such as an independent contractor unrelated to the employer, participates in a negligent or wrongful act that results in a injury to
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Negligence by Emergency Vehicles

Under Georgia law, the driver of an authorized emergency vehicle, including a law enforcement vehicle, when responding to an emergency call, has certain privileges that are not available to other drivers. As an example, the authorized emergency vehicle operator may proceed past a red or stop signal and exceed the maximum speed limits posted so long as he or she does not endanger life or property. The authorized emergency vehicle may also disregard regulations governing direction of movement or turning in specified directions. The exceptions
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Bus Accidents Provoke DOT to Review Bus and Motorcoach Safety

Bus accidents (or motorcoach accidents) can multiply the loss of life and life-changing injuries. Our Bluffton University baseball team client will never be the same as a result of the bus accident in 2007 that left him permanently injured, and several of his teammates dead.
A bus accident in Utah in January 2008 that left nine dead likewise shows how bus safety has been a neglected issue. Today, the U.S. Department of Transportation finally took the step of ordering a “full review” of bus safety.
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Profiles In Courage: Innocent Personal Injury Victims

In today’s economic times, we hear a lot of discussion about the problems that people are having financially. While many people are emotionally suffering due to rising unemployment and adverse economic conditions, those who suffer perhaps the most during these troubling times are innocent victims in personal injury cases. Our office just settled the case of one young lady, which is a classic example of what we address in this article. Simply stated, this young lady is a living profile in courage.
On the date
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Trial Techniques – The Art of Cross-Examination – Part XVI

Rule No. 12 of 12: The successful cross-examiner understands the risks of cross-examination.
As set forth above, if an attorney asks a question that he does not know the answer to or asks one question too many, he is inviting disaster. Cross-examination is risky, particularly if a witness is hostile and adverse. If leading questions that are designed to make the witness answer with either a yes or no are not asked or if counsel begins sparring with the witness, counsel has lost control of
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Electronic Medical Records Can Reduce Errors

Over the years our Georgia medical malpractice lawyers have been involved in medical negligence lawsuits involving missing or improperly documented medical records. In an effort to avoid such problems the federal government is pressuring medical professionals and facilities to adopt electronic record keeping. While this has the potential to eliminate life threatening record keeping errors, there are also potential dangers associated with this system.
Electronic medical records allow healthcare professionals to easily document medical findings. With just a few keystrokes, a physician or PA can
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Trial Techniques – The Art of Cross-Examination – Part XV

Rule No. 11 of 12: The successful cross-examiner has the ability to make what appears to be complex become simple.
In order to adhere to this rule, experienced trial counsel knows that they must use language that layman can understand. Using lawyerly language or expansive vocabulary is not the way to go. Counsel must boil down the issues to as few as are possible so that the jury can understand what the issues are and follow the testimony and the relevance of the examination. If
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Trial Techniques – The Art of Cross-Examination – Part XIV

Rule No. 10 of 12: The successful cross-examiner knows how to force an evasive witness to give a responsive answer.
When a hostile or evasive witness refuses to answer a question, counsel must be firm and persistent in getting the answer desired. The first thing to do is to repeat the question. If the witness continues to evade, ask the witness what it is about the question that he or she does not understand. If necessary, have the court reporter read the question back to
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Trial Techniques – The Art of Cross-Examination – Part XIII

Rule No. 9 of 12: The successful cross-examiner has a good beginning and good ending to the cross-examination of the witness.
If counsel is prepared through proper investigation and discovery, counsel can start off strong and end strong. A good beginning gets the cross-examination rolling and prepared ending gets counsel down if he needs to get down without being too badly damaged by the opponent’s witness. Again, this all goes back to another rule, which is to prepare cross-examination in advance of trial.
When one
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Bus Accidents Continue to Kill and Injure

Bus accidents were the subject of action taken by The National Transportation Safety Board this week. The NTSB is the federal agency charged with investigating major transportation accidents. On Tuesday, it strongly criticized regulators at the Department of Transportation for lax oversight of the commercial bus industry.
The NTSB voted to cite the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for failing to implement recommendations that could lead to new safety equipment on buses, including seatbelts and stronger roofs and windows. They have been urging NHTSA to
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Trial Techniques – The Art of Cross-Examination – Part XII

Rule No. 8 of 12: The successful cross-examiner listens carefully to what the witness says in response to his questions on cross-examination.
As set forth above, counsel should know what a witness will say in response to each question posed. No question should be asked that the answer is not known in advance. Nonetheless, sometimes, an answer more favorable than anticipated may be given by the witness or impeaching or contradicting of yet another witness. By listening closely to what the witness says on cross-examination,
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Caps on Damages For Nursing Home Abuse – What Are They Thinking?

In addition to representing victims of trucking accidents and automobile accidents, the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP also represent victims of nursing home abuse and nursing home neglect. including patients who have sustained decubitus ulcers (bed sores), falls and brutality in nursing homes. Consequently we have seen, first-hand, how victims of nursing home abuse or neglect suffer when those facilities don’t adequately take care of the people for which they are paid to care. It has been our experience that the owners
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