Personal Injury

HIDDEN MINEFIELDS AND TRAPS FOR THE UNWARY

While most serious injury lawyers are aware of the ante litem provisions that exist under Georgia law, most lay persons are not. Thus, injured persons with valid claims against either city or county governments can through inaction sabotage such claims unwittingly just because of their ignorance of the arcane provisions found in the ante litem statutes of Georgia law. An ante litem notice simply means notice before litigation is commenced. With respect to cities, O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5 requires written notice to a Georgia municipality within six months of the event giving rise to the claim. This code section reads as follows:

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THE SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST FLEEING SUSPECT IN POLICE CHASE CASE

In a case decided April 30, 2007, entitled Scott v. Harris, the United States Supreme Court held that a suspect fleeing from the police during a high speed police chase case has no Fourth Amendment right to be protected from the use of excessive force by the police against them. As we interpret this case, essentially, what this means is that a suspect assumes the risk of injury by the police during a police chase case.

In the Harris case, a 19 year old was fleeing from the police and the police employed a “pit maneuver” in order to knock the suspect’s car off the road. The pit maneuver is one in which the police hit the corner of the fleeing car with their car in order to force it off the road. In this case, when the suspect’s car left the road, it crashed rendering him a quadriplegic.

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MESOTHELIOMA CLAIMS FROM ASBESTOS EXPOSURE ARE STILL VIABLE

Asbestos products, which have been used primarily for insulation purposes, have long been known to be dangerous. Nonetheless, exposure to asbestos still presents a danger to anyone performing maintenance, repair or demolition work in any structure containing asbestos. Unfortunately, it has been well documented that the Asbestos industry was well aware of the fact that exposure to asbestos could cause cancer. Mesothelioma is a form of cancer specifically caused by exposure to asbestos. It is difficult to diagnose and hard to treat. It occurs typically
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Uninsured Motorist Stacking Bill – Important To Georgia Serious Injury Victims

Senate Bill 276, a very important bill for all Georgia citizens who may become involved in serious injury motor vehicle accidents, is awaiting action by the House Rules Committee at the State Capital. This bill would drastically improve uninsured motorist coverage in Georgia. Under current law, a consumer who is has uninsured motorist (UM) coverage can only access part of their total limit if they are hit by a driver with a small amount of liability insurance coverage. SB 276 would allow consumers to “stack”
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HIGH SPEED POLICE CHASE CASE SETTLES FOR $1 MILLION

After years of litigation, the City of Hampton paid $1 million to the family of Grashaunda Banks to settle a wrongful death claim brought as a result of a high speed police chase that resulted in a deadly collision. The crash occurred on Hwy. 19/41 near midnight on July 23, 2000, near the Atlanta Motor Speedway.

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PRESCRIPTION ERRORS ARE RISING

Negligent filing of prescriptions has been on the rise. In fact, because of a shortage of pharmacists and the steady increase in the use of prescription medications, the rate of death and injury from botched prescriptions is skyrocketing, officials say.
There are as many as 7,000 deaths annually in the United States from incorrect prescriptions, according to Carmen Catizone of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. He told The Washington Post that as many as 5 percent of the 3 billion prescriptions filled each
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PHYSICAL AND SEXUAL ASSAULT

If you are physically or sexually assaulted by another person, you can bring a personal injury claim (civil action) against them to recover payment for your medical bills, lost wages, pain, suffering, and any other financial loss that you sustained as a result of the assault. A personal injury claim is separate from any criminal proceedings that may also be underway. The criminal court can find the other person guilty or not guilty and sentence them to prison; however, in the civil action, the judge
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ELDER ABUSE AND NURSING HOME NEGLIGENCE CASES

Unfortunately, as people age, they become more vulnerable to abuse, neglect, and exploitation. This is especially true for people living in long-term care facilities and nursing homes. Abuse and neglect results in persons suffering a variety of physical and psychological injuries, which result in pain, suffering, and loss of quality of life. An injured person is entitled to compensation for these losses, when they are caused by intentional or negligent actions of the nursing home or its employees. The injured person can make a personal
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PEDESTRIAN AND MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS ACCOUNT IN PART FOR INCREASE TRAFFIC DEATH TOLL

Traffic deaths in the United States have reached their highest levels since 1990, according to government statistics cited by the Insurance Journal. This increase was attributed in part to increased deaths from motorcycle and pedestrian accidents. There are a number of reasons for the increase. One possible explanation is the rise in our urban/suburban populations. As these numbers increase, our roads and highways become more crowded. Another possible explanation for the increase in pedestrian injuries and deaths may be related to the dramatic increase in
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Workers Compensation Decision Good For Injured Workers Who Travel For Employers

The Georgia Supreme Court issued a sharply divided ruling on Monday which is a great decision for employees who travel. The 4-3 decision turned on an interpretation of the “continuous employment” doctrine. The High Court upheld an award of workers’ compensation benefits to the 11 year old son of a man killed as a result of an automobile accident in Georgia. The employer had put the Florida resident up in an apartment in Fayetteville, Georgia while he was working as a construction superintendent here. The
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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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