If you’re planning on filing a lawsuit, you probably have what you believe to be evidence that you were wronged in some regard. Understanding evidence, however, does take some real legal knowledge. In fact, you may find that, upon meeting with your attorney, they don’t really believe that the things you consider to be evidence […]
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Police Sued Over Privacy Violations
CNN reported that a police department in Washington is facing a lawsuit over violating the rights of inmates. The reporting details that 11 women and 1 man are suing a police department over alleged instances where the inmates—who were all arrested on suspicion of drunk driving—were recorded while they were undressing and using the toilet. […]
Frivolous Lawsuits Get too Much Publicity
The idea behind a lawsuit is to give a person who was wronged because of another person’s negligence away to get compensated. This can include suing manufacturers for putting dangerous products out on the market when they should’ve known better, suing motorists who are prone to driving dangerously and end up hurting or killing someone […]
Dog Bites and Liability
Unfortunately, many dog owners are not responsible with their animals. In fact, it’s quite reasonable to argue that the biggest cause of dog bites has nothing to do with dogs, but with the people who are in charge of taking care of those dogs. There are differences on a state-by-state basis as to how much […]
Daycare Worker Arrested for Raping Children
For parents with children in daycare, a nightmare scenario seems to be unfolding in Ohio. According to NewsOK, a daycare worker has been arrested on two counts of rape. The woman, according to the article, had engaged in sexual conduct with an infant and made a video of herself doing it. Police claim that they […]
Class Action Against LinkedIn Reveals Importance of TOS
If you’ve gotten emails that appear to be from a friend of yours but that were actually from LinkedIn giving a pitch for the website, you’re not alone. In fact, a lawsuit has been filed against the business social networking website alleging that the company breaks into email accounts, uses the contact list to send […]
Can You Sue a Company for Mishandling Your Information?
Today, it’s not uncommon for companies with whom people do very casual business – cellular phone companies, Internet service providers, etc. – to have some very sensitive information about their clients. For example, Social Security numbers are routinely used as forms of identification and many companies require that information in order to open an account. […]
Why Do Personal Injury Attorneys Turn Down Cases?
There are instances when a personal injury attorney may turn down your claim. This may leave you wondering if there is any hope for justice but, keep in mind the fact that civil lawsuits are not really about justice; they’re about compensation. If you’ve been turned down as a client by an attorney, some or […]
How Do You Sue on Behalf of a Child
Some of the largest jury awards are actually handed out to children. These occur in cases involving medical malpractice during birth, car accidents that permanently damage a child and in other cases. Obviously, a child cannot enter into a contract or take any other legal action of their own accord. Parents are the ones who […]
Suing Your Doctor – What Are Your Chances?
Physicians can be intimidating. They know so much about the human body that, when you have a dispute with them, it tends to be somewhat intimidating as to what you should do about it. You may find that you feel outclassed by the doctors and the healthcare facility and wonder if it’s even worth it to go after them for medical malpractice. In some cases, it is worth it.
Understanding Medical Malpractice Claims
You don’t have to be a medical expert yourself to file a medical malpractice claim. In fact, your personal injury lawyer will have experts who will help with your claim and who will give you another perspective than your doctor’s on what went on in your situation. In some cases, your personal injury attorney and the experts they work with may be aware of egregious malpractice that never even occurred to you has having happened. There are plenty of cases where people end up suffering horribly because of medical malpractice, so you’ll want to make sure to explore your options if you’re a victim of it.
What Do Medical Malpractice Claims Cover?
Some people aren’t aware of what medical malpractice claims can cover. In most cases, they’ll be surprised to find out what you can sue over. For instance, you can sue for:
- Missed diagnosis
- Wrong medication
- Wrong procedure
- Botched procedure
- Improper diagnoses or Failure to diagnose
The basic thrust of any medical malpractice claim centers on the fact that the patient was wronged by the doctor in terms of not receiving the level or type of care that they needed due to negligence on the part of a physician. Remember that some conditions will not improve and that, unfortunately, some conditions are terminal and there’s nothing that a doctor could do about it. The key element in medical malpractice claims is that the negligence, not the condition, is really what caused the patient to come to harm.
Taking to an experienced Personal Injury Lawyer
The best way to get started figuring out whether or not you want to file a medical malpractice claim is to speak with an experienced injury attorney. There are time limitations on how long after the fact you have to sue over medical malpractice. Because of that, it’s important to speak with an attorney right away. It doesn’t matter whether you want to sue or not. They attorney can tell you how long you have to wait and that can make all the difference in the world.
Don’t be intimidated by suing someone for medical malpractice. There are some cases where medical negligence is obvious and others where it is not. It takes an experienced injury attorney to know the difference in some cases and, because of that, you’ll want to speak with one sooner rather than later. They may be able to help you put together a successful lawsuit for malpractice against a doctor who didn’t live up to the level of care expected of them when taking care of patients and the civil courts are there to make sure you have a way of getting compensated for that.
For a FREE case review, contact Texas Personal Injury Lawyer, Blanie A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-771-5453
Understanding Unsolicited Settlement Offers
People who get into car wrecks with commercial firms sometimes find themselves on the receiving end of what seems like a generous check. This is because the commercial firm is protecting itself, not because they’re filled with regret and concern about your situation. Understanding settlement offers should make it apparent why you need to talk to a personal injury lawyer in these cases.
What Is a Settlement?
The word “settle”, in the legal sense, has several meanings. Basically, a settlement means that you put a conflict to rest permanently. This can be done in various ways, but, where lawsuits are concerned, it’s usually done out of court. This makes clear a few things about taking a settlement offer from a commercial trucking or driving firm or from anyone else, for that matter:
- You’re entering into a legally-binding arrangement
- You’re likely giving up the right to sue
- You’re signing a legal document without an attorney to advise you
The settlements that these firms hand out are not designed to make your life easier. The people that figured out how much to offer work for the commercial firm, not for you. They’ll try to figure out how much they have to pay you to get you to go away and not make any legal trouble for them over the incident in the future. There are ways that settlements can work, however.
Making a Settlement Work
Rather than taking whatever check that a trucking company or other commercial firm hands you and heading off to the bank, speak to a personal injury attorney. They’ll be able to advise you on the matter. If they think that the settlement is all you’re going to get from the case, they’ll just advise you to take it and be grateful. If they don’t, however, and if they feel that the trucking company is just trying to buy you off, then they may advise you to go ahead and sue or to negotiate the settlement further.
Negotiating a Settlement
If you negotiate a settlement, you’re likely to get more. A injury attorney might be able to negotiate more than enough to pay for their fees and still allow you to go home with a bigger check. Consider the advantages that an attorney has in these situations:
- They know the legal risks to the person offering the check
- They know how much similar cases pay out
- They know how much court fees would be, giving them leverage with the party offering
- They know how much other people in your situation end up paying in expenses related to the injury
Talk to a personal injury attorney if you’re offered a check. They may feel that the company offering you the check is being generous and tell you to take it or they may want you a client, if they feel that you’re being treated unfairly by the company in question. Either way, at least you’ll know whether or not the settlement is a good one and whether it’s worth taking it or not or if you should file a lawsuit, instead.
If you are in doubt, or need a FREE case review, contact Houston Personal Injury Lawyer, Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-771-5453
Understanding Wrongful Death Lawsuits
A wrongful death action is an option in certain situations. These actions can be taken against anyone who has caused by negligent action or inaction the death of an individual. The actions are filed by the survivors and are filed for monetary damages. Before this starts sounding like it’s akin to putting a price tag on someone’s life, understand that it’s different than that.
Why Sue for Wrongful Death?
In any family, each member contributes something to the whole. It may be an income, skills that allow for the maintenance of the family dwelling, help running a farm or anything else. Everyone contributes. When someone is killed because of the negligence of another, the surviving family oftentimes ends up suffering far more than emotional scars.
In some situations, the loss of a primary breadwinner may leave a family destitute. This is not acceptable when that death should have been avoided in the first place. Wrongful death lawsuits are designed to make sure that the family has some option to go on with their lives after they’ve lost someone. In some cases, this may actually be the only way that the family would survive.
Assessing Damages For Wrongful Death
The hardest part of wrongful death claims is usually figuring out how much the death impacted the family financially. It’s important to remember that this is what’s being discussed, as opposed to putting a price on someone’s life. The person’s life can never be replaced. The financial burdens placed on the family because of losing the person, however, can be alleviated and there are concrete figures that can usually be attached to them.
Your personal injury lawyer will help you to determine how much you should seek in damages. This will be based on your situation and on past cases and how much they awarded the plaintiffs. The attorney will make sure that you seek a fair amount.
Who Causes Wrongful Deaths?
Anyone who takes a life out of negligence can be held liable for having caused a wrongful death. Remember that there are sometimes criminal charges that people who end up causing a wrongful death face. These charges do not impact your lawsuit. Whether or not they’re found guilty, you can sue. The civil lawsuit is designed to provide for the survivors. The state and its criminal justice system will take care of themselves and you only need to concern yourself with surviving.
A wrongful death lawsuit can be very painful. The compensation that families sometimes receive, however, can enable them to go on and to avoid having the worst happen because they lost someone whose income and support they depended upon dearly. Like most lawsuits, there are limitations on how long you have to file a wrongful death action. You’ll want to speak with a personal injury attorney as soon as you can. They can let you know how much time you have left to make this decision and make sure you know about your options as far as filing a lawsuit is concerned. Contact an attorney soon to find out.
If you believe you have a wrongful death lawsuit, please contact the Law Offices of Houston Personal Injury Lawyer, Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 727-771-5453 for a FREE case review
Medical Malpractice – What Is Failure To Diagnose
Almost half of the medical malpractice lawsuits filed every year have to do with a failure to diagnose. These aren’t lawsuits over someone leaving a surgical instrument in the body after closing the wound, about giving someone the wrong medication or about not treating someone at all. These lawsuits are about a doctor’s competence as it relates to being able to give diagnoses that save lives.
Diagnoses and Medicine
A great deal of the time that doctors spend in med school is spent learning how to diagnose conditions successfully. A great deal of how they protect their patient’s lives depends upon the physician’s ability to see what’s actually wrong.
There are cases where doctors do fail in this regard. People have been sent home from the ER with conditions as dangerous as fractured necks and have ended up suing for millions after the fact. The only reason that they weren’t diagnosed and treated properly was because of medical negligence and, because of that, these people sometimes decide that suing is the best option for them to recover their damages.
What if it Was a Logical Mistake?
There are cases where doctors cannot be expected to find a condition right away. In fact, sometimes doctors have to test and analyze a patient over and over to figure out what’s actually ailing them. Sometimes, there’s really no way that a doctor could have failed to find a condition, but there are some cases when they should have and, when someone is hurt because of that failure, medical malpractice lawsuits may be options.
The doctor will have to have taken you on as a patient, to begin with. You cannot, for example, sue a doctor for not recognizing that the cough they heard you struggling with in the ER was due to lung cancer. If they had every opportunity to give you a chest x-ray, to run other tests and to diagnose your cancer and if they failed in that duty, causing you to get sicker, you may be able to sue.
Why Sue Over This?
The reason people sue over failures to diagnose is the same as the reason that they sue over anything else. The failure to diagnose injures them physically and financially and it should have never happened. This means that the doctor was negligent and that means that the patient may have an option to file a lawsuit in front of them.
Finding An Experienced Personal Injury Attorney
Talking to a Personal Injury Attorney can help you clear your case up. It may not be that the physician was ultimately responsible for the failure, but the personal injury attorney should be able to tell you whether or not this is the case. There may be more investigation required but, if you consult with an injury attorney, they can usually tell pretty quickly whether or not they could help you. If they can help you, they may end up putting together a lawsuit and helping you to get compensated for the pain and suffering and financial losses that you’ve been put through.
Got Questions? Contact the Law Offices of Personal Injury Lawyer, Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-771-5453
What Can a Personal Injury Attorney Do To Help Your Case?
If you’re involved in a very bad car wreck, there are likely some things that you have in common with other people who have been in wrecks. First, there’s a good chance that you remember sensations, being afraid, noise and the other chaos associated with car wrecks, but your recollection of specific details is probably not that clear. Second, you probably remember the terror more than anything else. So, what can a personal injury attorney do for you if you end up in a car wreck and aren’t even sure what happened beyond believing that it wasn’t your fault? The answer is: a lot.
Reconstructions and Experts Assist a Personal Injury Lawyer
Personal injury lawyers deal with people who have been traumatized by accidents all the time. Just as your emotional and mnemonic conditions following the accident likely took predictable forms, your car probably behaved in a predictable way during the accident, as well. After all, our brains may react with utter chaos when we see someone careening at us in the other lane or flying toward us at an intersection, but our vehicles are bound by the laws of physics.
Car Accident attorneys can reconstruct accidents. Using the accumulated knowledge of how cars behave in accidents, what you know, the condition of the cars and the site of the wreck after the fact and other data, along with the help of experts, they can reconstruct what happened and find out whether or not negligence was an issue. For drivers, this can mean a lot of things, aside from a chance to win compensation. It can mean:
- Knowing for sure that it wasn’t your fault
- Knowing that there was nothing you could have done to have prevented it
- Having the confidence that the other driver was negligent
How Does this Help My Injury Case?
Personal Injury Attorneys can help you to fill in the blanks where your memory isn’t clear. More importantly, however, they can present empirical evidence to a jury that demonstrates the circumstances of your wreck and how it was an unavoidable consequence of the other driver’s negligent behavior. When this is established, the jury awards can be very large. One motorcyclist in California won over $800,000 after his attorney explained to the jury how the accident was not at all his fault and how the other driver was negligent.
Trust Your Personal Injury Attorney
There are some situations where you have to have someone with expertise help you through reconstructing what happened to you. Your attorney will do everything they can to determine what happened during your wreck and whether or not it was your fault. They don’t do this to just win money; they do it to get at the facts of what happened. If the facts are that negligence on the part of the other driver caused you injury-financial, physical, emotional or otherwise – they may be able to argue for you in court and win you compensation that could pay for your injuries, your medical expenses and your lost wages. Trust your attorney and you may be surprised what they can find out!
For trusted advice, contact Texas Personal Injury Lawyer, Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-773-5453
How Can A Personal Injury Lawyer Help Maximize Your Compensation
If you’re injured on the job, in a car wreck or as the result of medical malpractice, you’ll want a very good personal injury attorney to represent you. Some people end up being offered a check by whatever entity or individual was responsible for their injuries and, unfortunately, they sometimes take it. It’s almost always a bad idea.
The Minimum Possible Amount
If you are offered one of these checks, consider how you got it. The attorneys for whatever company or person who injured you sat down and thought of the minimum possible amount they could pay to get rid of you. Then, they wrote up a check for that amount and came to you with it, probably offering their regrets along with the compensation. The problem with tis is that, if you take it, you’re probably letting them off the hook far too easily. What you need is your own attorney.
Understanding Personal Injury Attorneys
Your personal injury attorney understands how much accidents cost in real terms. He understands them in human terms. He understands that lost wages, lost opportunities, pain and suffering and other factors are all real things. He also understands how the law makes provisions for you to get compensated for these things. It’s not an automatic payout. Your attorney has to argue your case successfully to get you compensation. If you have a right to ask for compensation, however, your personal injury attorney will be sure that you exercise that right.
Your attorney also knows how much to ask for, which is very important. Asking for too much can ruin your case; asking for too little may end up cheating you. He will figure out a realistic amount for which to ask and they’ll have very good justifications for why you should receive that compensation, but the jury will ultimately decide if you should get that compensation.
A Settlement that works for you
If you are offered a settlement, your injury attorney will also know how much to ask for. He can keep the other side from wasting your time and trying to give you compensation as way to get you to back off of the lawsuit. If the offer a suitable amount, however, you may be able to avoid court fees and your attorney may encourage you to take it if it’s acceptable. The advantage with a good personal injury attorney is that he has the experience to really understand if it’s an acceptable amount or not.
Talk to an attorney if you believe that negligence has brought you to physical, emotional or financial harm. You can oftentimes consult with them for free and they’ll determine if they think you have a case or not. Personal injury attorneys can be exactly the people that you need to make sure that you don’t end up paying for injuries that were someone else’s fault, whether it was because of medical negligence, a bad or drunk driver or for any other reason. Their expertise can protect you from being put into financial ruin because someone failed to take the reasonable care that could be expected of any other person in their situation.
If you are a victim of an injury, call the Law Offices of Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-771-5453 for a FREE case review
How Can A Personal Injury Lawyer Help With Medical Malpractice Cases
Sometimes, people hear medical malpractice and think that it’s about winning huge jury awards or settlements because a well-intentioned doctor made a simple mistake. If that’s what you think, you’re wrong. Medical malpractice claims sometimes range into the millions of dollars in awards and there is very good reason for that. Understand what the victims of medical malpractice go through and you’ll understand why those figures are so high.
Pain and Suffering
People like to speak frivolously about pain and suffering, likely because they’re talking about someone else’s. When you’ve been put through it because of medical negligence, you’ll understand why attorneys sometimes add so much to the awards they seek for it. Consider what happens to people sometimes as a result of medical malpractice:
- Permanent disability
- Permanent disfigurement/mutilation
- Permanent loss of bodily abilities or functions
- Brain damage
- Unnecessary surgeries
If you’ve been a victim of medical negligence, you may have experienced some of this yourself. If you have, you should talk to a Personal Injury Attorney. No one should be made to suffer this way because of negligence.
Financial Damages
Here’s another category that people fail to understand. Sometimes, the media will report on the millions that someone gets because of a medical malpractice claim as if the jury were showering the claimant with riches; like the claimant won the lottery. Generally, these cases are very disturbing.
Some people are injured in a way that means that they can never work again. They may also be facing huge medical expenses because of the negligence. The very high figures you see in compensation are usually given for a reason. The jury usually sees how much the person is going to suffer, how none of it was their fault and ends up finding in their favor for tangible, empirical and very rational reasons. If you cannot work and you have to pay enormous medical bills for the rest of your life because a doctor let you down, you should not have to pay them yourself. You did nothing to deserve it.
Finding an Aggressive Personal Injury Lawyer
Medical malpractice claims hinge on a doctor breeching their duty to you as a patient. You’ll need an Injury Attorney who is passionate about arguing this area of the law and who is very good at it, of course. There are great attorneys out there and, with the right one, your chances of winning are vastly increased.
If you’re suing a doctor in Texas, you’ll want a very good attorney. The fact of the matter is that medical malpractice claims – and the patients who file them, unfortunately – have become political footballs. The odds are somewhat stacked against the claimant, so you’ll want a skilled and dedicated attorney. If you do have a good attorney, trust them to represent your rights. The attorneys who handle these cases aren’t intimidated by doctors, hospitals or insurance companies and you can be very sure that they will fight for your rights as much as is needed. There’s no guarantee you’ll win, but having a good attorney increases your chances greatly.
If you are a victim of medical malpractive, contact Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker, a Houston based Medical Malpractice Lawyer at 713-771-5453
When You Have A Car Accident: Don’t Speak Too Soon
Did you know that human memory is not reliable at all? Most people feel that they can remember very minute details, particularly of major events, but this usually proves not to be the case when it’s put to the test. For people who have been in an accident, this can become a real problem.
Your Settlement Compensation is On The Line
If you’re involved in a car wreck, there are going to be all kinds of people who are going to want you to recall that wreck in the way most advantageous to them. The other driver will want you to forget their negligence and the part it played in your wreck. Your insurance company will want you to remember some minute detail that lets them off of the hook. The only person you can trust in these situations, as far as not trying to get you to say something against your own interests is concerned, is your own personal injury attorney.
How A Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
First, you can tell your attorney anything and they’re not going to show up in court and explain how it makes your claim invalid, even if you misspoke. Your attorney is there to represent your interests and your interests alone. This means that they’re not looking to harm your case when they ask you questions. Tell them anything; they’re there to help you.
Second, they have experts that they can contact and they tend to have a great deal of expertise on their own. This means that they’ve probably seen whatever type of accident you’ve been in before and they’re going to know how anyone responsible for paying you compensation is going to try to get out of it. This means that they’re wary for the same old schemes and that they can keep you safe from falling prey to them.
Third, they know the tricks that the defendants will try use on you. For instance, if you have a very strong case, there’s a good chance that the defendant’s counsel will recommend that they settle to avoid court costs. Sometimes, they’ll approach you directly with what seems like a generous offer and try to get you to go for it without going through your attorney. Don’t do this. If it’s a generous offer and it’s worth it, your attorney isn’t going to try to get you to go to court, instead, just for the sake of going to court. Always talk to your auto accident attorney.
Let your personal injury attorney do the talking for you. The last thing you want to do is be on your own when you should be paid compensation for someone else’s negligence. Your attorney will take care of all of the negotiating and other aspects involved with taking a legal action against someone and will see to it that you’re involved from the start. Like your doctor, however, your attorney has the advantage of being emotionally calm, which allows them to think clearly, intelligently and strategically in ways that put you at the advantage and that represent your interests.
If you have been involved in a car accident, contact the Law Offices of Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker, a Houston Personal Injury Lawyer for a FREE case review
Dietary Supplements, Herbal Remedies and Defective Products
If you’re a health nut, you’ve probably been exposed to plenty of literature and advertisements for products that make claims that haven’t been approved by the FDA. These include:
- Herbal supplements
- Dietary supplements
- “Natural” treatments
These products line the shelves of health food stores, holistic medicine provider shops and other establishments. They’re very popular. One of the dangers of these products is that their claims have not been established as being true or false, however. There are standards to which they do have to adhere, but there is a definitive element of caveat emptor to consider when buying these supplements and other supplies. If you believe that one has caused you harm, you should definitely speak with a defective products attorney.
It’s Not Medicine
One of the things that you should understand before you start buying these products is what a double-blind study is. These are the types of studies that are usually conducted to get reliable data on the efficacy-and safety-of pharmaceutical products. Many of the supplements on the market have never been subjected to these types of studies. While the marketing for these products will sometimes claim that the scientific establishment doesn’t want you to know about the wonderful power of these pills, the manufacturers clearly do not want their claims scientifically tested, either.
Herbal and Dietery Supplements Do Get Recalled
The FDA does make recalls of these products from time to time. Some recent recalls include:
Healthy People Co. Dietary Supplements, manufactured by Healthy People Co. This was recalled in February of 2012 because the supplement had undeclared drug ingredients in it.
RegenArouse by Regeneca, Inc. was recalled in February of 2012 because the intimacy enhancement capsules were an unapproved new drug.
These supplements, of course, make claims that have not been approved by the FDA, but the FDA does have the authority to take them off of the market when they make specific claims or when they contain elements that run afoul of regulations.
When Defective Herbal and Dietery Supplements Harm People
A defective products attorney may be able to help you if you were injured by one of these products. The fact that they tend to qualify their claims by saying that they have not been evaluated by the FDA doesn’t provide the companies that manufacture these products with a shield against liability. Understanding how product liability law works should give you some insight into this.
Products can be held to be defective in their design, manufacture or advertising. No matter which way one of these products turns out to be defective, if it harms you, you should contact a personal injury attorney to see about whether or not seeking compensation via a lawsuit would be a viable option for you. If it is, the personal injury lawyer may want to represent you and go after the company in court. Any product that is on the market needs to be safe. Whether its claims are inflated or not, the product should not cause the consumers who utilize it to come to harm or to experience undisclosed side effects.
Call the Houston Law Offices of Blaine A. (Bat) Tucker at 713-771-5453 for a FREE case review.
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