What to Do When Your Child is Injured at School

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Posted on 25th June 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Children often enjoy school. It is a time where they get to see their friends and learn new things. However, there can be times where school can be bad for a child and a parent. One of these times is when a parent finds out their child has been injured at school. What to do when your child is injured at school is rather simple.

First, you need to ensure your child is both physically and emotionally safe. Having a child that is not fixed in both physical and emotional ways is extremely dangerous. Take your child to a hospital or their doctor to ensure their injuries are checked over and documented. This documentation will become important should you decide to sue the school.

Second, it is important to consult with the school about what happened. The school should have filed out an incident report that will state exactly what happened. Ask the school for a copy of this report. Ask your child what happened and check to see what they say is what the report reflects. The report and your child may have different versions of the events and it is important to determine which set is correct for the injury.

Third, consult with legal counsel. Your legal counsel will want a copy of all relevant reports include the school incident report, copies of your child’s medical records and a sworn statement made by witnesses and your child. They will guide you through the process to ensure all of the relevant information is gathered and that your child does not have to be injured without legal recourse. It is important to consult with a lawyer as soon as possible after the injury or accident. While there is no statute of limitations in criminal law it is becoming increasingly difficult to prove a case after weeks or months of time has elapsed.

The information contained within this article is not legal advice and should not be taken as such.

If your child has been hurt at school in Indiana, contact the qualified attorneys at Ken Allen Law.

Financing Nursing Home Care

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Posted on 24th June 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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There may be many reasons why one would consider home nursing care for a loved one. This is the case normally in situations where the loved one needs long term care to either get better or live in more comfort. Unfortunately financing nursing home care is difficult.

The average annual cost for home nursing care is about $50,000. This may be out of reach for most families. More so since most of these conditions are not planned. It is not surprising to find families going through all their savings to keep their loved ones in a more comfortable home setting. This does not have to be the case.

So, how can one finance home nursing care? Personal finances are normally the first options for most families. However, since home nursing care is not in most budgets, it does not take long before this source runs dry. Many families have found themselves in serious financial difficulty once they depend on this as their only source of funding.

When personal financing becomes untenable, most families fall back on Medicaid and Medicare. Medicaid may pay part or all of the home nursing costs through the Medicaid Nursing Facility Program. Medicare also helps for people over the age of 65 years. The problem with both is that they have strict eligibility requirements. Since they are state and federally funded programs, you are required to meet part of the costs for home nursing care. For example, Medicare does not pay for custodial care and usually pays for a limited time. However, for the family in a dire financial situation, they are very important.

For those that would like to take control of their own lives, then long-term care insurance comes in handy. This private insurance protects assets against situations that require extended long-term care. It usually covers the cost of care in a nursing home, adult day care and your home. One should not underestimate the costs of home nursing care. Not only does it devastate your finances, it is also emotionally draining. You need to plan for these situations to avoid difficulty in financing nursing home care.

This article is not legal advice. People seeking legal assistance with elder law should contact Attorney Andrew M. Lamkin.

The Recall of Yaz

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Posted on 18th June 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

In November 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recalled some of the birth control pill Yaz, due to unsafe practices during manufacturing.

While Yaz is still on the market, its maker, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, is facing an undetermined number of lawsuits. Yaz is said to have contributed to heart attacks, strokes, blood clots, gallbladder disease, kidney disease and sudden death in countless women. Yaz is made with drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol. The drospirenone is a diuretic and can cause electrolyte imbalances, specifically the increase of potassium which can lead to blood clots, kidney disease and gallbladder problems.

Yasmin, a similar contraceptive, was approved by the FDA in 2001. Yaz wasn’t approved until 2006, and many of its users claim that they have had severe side effects from the pill which they were never warned about. In 2008, the FDA required that Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals relaunch the pill’s campaign to include the more severe side effects, and to clarify the other benefits of the pill, like its use in treating acne.

Although the recall wasn’t widely heard about, almost 33,000 boxes of Yaz were recalled. There was also a recall of Yaz’s generic equivalent, Ocella. More than 120,000 boxes of Ocella were affected. The problem stemmed from a manufacturing plant in Germany. Some of the pills may have contained too much drospirenone. Other pills were dispensed using dirty equipment that was labeled clean. Instead of destroying those batches, the number of bad batches were averaged with the number of good batches to make it look like the drug was within specifications. The FDA warned Bayer that the averaging practice was fraudulent and unacceptable.

At present, there is no indication that there will be more recalls but Yaz class action lawsuits are likely. Bayer Pharmaceuticals faces a combination of lawsuits in the United States, as well as Canada.

Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Lawyer

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Posted on 31st May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Much thought should be put into the hiring of a lawyer. Whether legal services are needed for a seemingly simple matter or something devastating, choosing a lawyer is a highly personal decision and requires forethought and consideration.

  • Why do you need a lawyer? While some lawyers cover several areas of legal concern, most parties prefer the services of a lawyer who specializes in one area of the law.
  • How do you feel about the lawyer after the initial consultation? Is this lawyer personable or do they exude the aura of the dread ‘ambulance chaser?’ If this lawyer was recommended by a friend or colleague, how was their case handled?
  • How much will this case cost? Laws vary state to state about when the lawyer must put their fees in writing. Some states require they must do it before services begin but other states only require it within a reasonable time. It is important to be clear on what the fees are, whether they are based on contingency, and what the payment structure is. Be sure to know if there are extra fees for document copying or courier services.
  • What are the terms of the retainer agreement? For fifteen minutes work does the lawyer charge by the hour or do they charge for fifteen minutes? How frequently are updates given about how the money is spent?
  • How accessible is he? If you have questions about the case, how long do they take to return the phone call? Will this lawyer provide a cell phone number and email address, and how often are updates given on the case? Do they have a lengthy vacation scheduled in the near future?
  • Does this lawyer have an upstanding record? It is important to know if they have gone before an ethics committee, and what the outcome was. If they were suspended, find out why. Have they been disciplined in the past?

Hiring an attorney is frequently necessary during a highly stressful and emotional time in one’s life. By taking a deep breath and a step back from the situation, and by asking questions, you can be rewarded with a fruitful lawyer/client relationship. Consider contacting the attorneys at Jodat Law Group if you live in the state of Florida.

Car Accident Statistics in the US

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Posted on 31st May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Each year in the United States, over 6 million car accidents occur and nearly 40,000 people are killed. Every 12 minutes, a person dies in a car accident. Furthermore, the leading cause of death for individuals between the ages of 2 and 34 is car accidents. Each year, nearly 2 million people are permanently injured in a car accident and every 14 seconds, someone is injured in a car crash.

Every individual should be informed of rules of the road and take safety precautions to avoid car accidents and fatalities. Studies show that each year, twenty-five percent of drivers are involved in an auto accident within a five year period. Thirty percent of all fatal car accidents are a result of excessive speeding. This is the second most common cause of deadly auto accidents. Each year, accidents cost Americans, $164.2 billion. If the cost is averaged and divided upon every American, it would cost each American more than $1,000 per year.

The leading cause of death of children between the ages of 2 and 14 is car crashes. Each year, nearly 2000 children are involved in fatal car accidents. Almost 700 children are harmed each day in motor vehicle crashes and nearly 250,000 each year.

Car accidents are the single most contributors to disabilities in the United States. Therefore, it is imperative for individuals to take all necessary safety precautions when traveling on the road.

Other Car Accident Statistics in the United States

Traffic fatalities have reached a record low in 2008. The number dropped 9.7 percent from 2007, making it the largest decline in automobile crashes since 1982. In 2009, the number continued to decrease. This is the lowest the number has been since 1961. The automobile fatalities have been on the decline for the past 6 years, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) fatality crash data. In 2008, only 2.35 million people were injured in car accidents. This is the lowest reported number since 1988.

Nearly 4.2 million automobile accidents resulted in property damage last year. Only 34,017 of those automobile accidents ended in death. The number of fatal crashes in urban areas decreased 11 percent in 2008 to 15,983. Conversely, the number of rural fatalities decreased 10 percent to 20,905 in 2008.

This article is purely for informational purposes and is not intended to serve as legal advice.

For more information or if you have been involved in a car accident and need legal advice, visit the Law Firm of Kelley Uustal in Fort Lauderdale.

Criteria for Filing a Defective Products Claim

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Posted on 31st May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Defective products law is a reference to the liability of one or more participants in the production of goods that may cause harm or substantial damage. Parties include manufacturers and assemblers of products as well as people who distribute the products and make them available to consumers. The production chain ends with the retailer who is also liable for any danger that a product may pose to consumers. Defective products lawsuits usually constitute the use of products that are defective. For most people a product is something can be touched but defective products law now caters even for items that are intangible.

Evidence for Defective Products Claim

Defective products law claims have the basis of negligent activities or warranty breaches in which a product fails to live up to the functions it is meant to fulfill. Different states have different product liability laws. Regardless of in which state that one is, the defective products law requires individuals or plaintiffs who bring out lawsuits to prove that the product had defects. A number of product defects exist and these count as a liability for suppliers and manufacturers.

Design Defects as Defective Product

Design defects are perceived as defects that were in existence even before the product was formed. Even though the product might function well, the design defect is considered to be dangerous. Defective products law defines manufacturing defects as those that occur when the product is being manufactured. This usually means that a small number of a range of products are defective. Marketing defects are mainly concerned with the lack of instructions or instructions that are unclear. It is also concerned with a lack of adequate warnings regarding the safety of the product.

The defective products law does not place emphasis on the good intentions or attempts to be careful on the part of the producer. Whether or not the producer exercised caution during the manufacturing or distribution process does not redeem him if the product is defective. The liability offense is based on the end result and not what went on before the consumer gained access to the product.

This article is absolutely not intended for legal advice. Please go and visit the Searcy Law attorneys in West Palm Beach, Fla. to know about defective products law.

Truck Accident Statistics

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Posted on 31st May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Interested in truck accident statistics?  If you drive a truck or are on the road quite a bit, you may wonder about how accident-prone trucks really are.  Of course these statistics will also affect the insurance rates of truck drivers, and if you own or drive a big rig, this is something that will directly affect you.

In truth, trucks are more important than most people realize.  They bring in items like food and other necessary supplies to big cities so that people no longer need to live on or near farms.  They also allow for companies to expand their business as their products can be sold to virtually anyone in the world, since now delivery by big trucks is so commonplace.  As important as they are, however, this doesn’t mean that big rigs don’t have special risks associated with them when on the road.

Tracking Statistics

There are many agencies that track these statistics regularly for various reasons.  The Center for National Truck and Bus Statistics, operating from the University of Michigan, was established in 1988 to collect this type of information and to analyze the results.

There are also state agencies and even legal agencies that track these numbers, as they are used for their own purposes.  State agencies may realize the need to make changes to certain highways and roadways if accidents frequently happen there.  And of course law firms need to understand how to best represent their clients when there is an accident.

Understanding Statistics

While statistics vary from year to year, typically there are some 55,000-60,000 fatal vehicle accidents in the United States annually.  On average, less than 5,000 of these involve big rigs.  Most actually occur in rural areas during the day and on a weekday as opposed to a weekend.

The involvement of a DUI is much less for truck accidents than for motor vehicle accidents; typically only 1% of big rig fatalities involve DUI whereas some 20% or more of fatal automobile vehicle accidents involve a DUI.

Anyone that has been in an accident with a truck should consult with a Coral Springs attorney at Weinstein Law Firm to make sure their interests are protected; these statistics will not determine how your particular case should be handled as of course every accident is different and should be treated on an individual basis. This article should not be a substitute for legal counsel from a lawyer.

How to Deal with a Denied Social Security Disability Claim

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Posted on 29th May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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Claimants of Social Security Disability as well as SSI are likely to be denied these claims due to one reason or the other. However, it is good that social security law and disability law allow the claimant to appeal this denial. This is why claimants without representation are always advised to call social security immediately upon receipt of the denial letter. In most cases, the social security office sends the requested appeal forms to the claimant as soon as they receive an appeal request.

Representation

On the other hand, claimants who have representation are advised to get in touch with their attorney or the disability representative as soon as they get a denial letter. Usually, it is the representative who will ensure that all paperwork necessary to appeal to the denial is completed properly. Further still, it is the representative who will present the completed paperwork to social security. Since the representative is conversant with social security law as well as disability law, he/she completes the entire appeal process on behalf of the claimant.

Nevertheless, claimants who are represented are still advised to call social security immediately upon receipt of a denial letter. This is important because it will ensure that the case is accorded a “protected date”. In return, it will be easier for the representative to follow up on the case so as to ascertain that the appeal deadline is followed. Further still, it is important to call social security so as to gain some level of security especially during occasions when the claimant might fail to receive the appeal forms.

Appeal is faster than a New Application

It is however important to note that it is easier to win a denial that is followed using the appeal process rather than one that is pursued by filing for a new application. Apart from that, previous statistical records also show that an appeal is more likely to be awarded benefits as compared to a new application. Thus it is important for the claimant, especially one who is not represented, to understand how social security law and disability law work in order to win the SSD and SSI claims.

This article is absolutely not intended for legal advice.

Searching for a Tampa disability attorney? Visit the law offices of Mike Murburg, P.A.

Boating Safety Tips

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Posted on 29th May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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The Coast Guard and other associations have safety tips and procedures available to boaters regardless of what type of watercraft is operated. Knowledge of these techniques and procedures reduces the risk of accident, injury or possible death that can suddenly occur.

Life Jackets

Watercraft operators and passengers should always wear properly fitting life jackets while on the water. Many accidents happen suddenly and without warning, leaving no time to find and apply a life jacket. Numerous water fatalities occur as a result of not wearing a life jacket.

Watercraft Safety Courses

Many government, local and online agencies provide safety classes to operators of all ages. Classes are designed for the beginner to the advanced and last from 6 to more than a dozen lessons. Courses include instruction for various sized motorboats, sailboats and windsurfers. Students learn boating safety, boat handling, identifying weather conditions and electronic navigation.

Avoid BUI

Boating under the influence of alcohol or drugs is against the law whether the watercraft is a canoe, kayak, rowboat or yacht. Alcohol is a contributing factor in one third of all annual boating accidents. Inebriated watercraft operators are more dangerous than intoxicated automobile drivers.

BUI decreases a person’s ability to think and rationalize clearly, making it difficult to properly process information, evaluate a situation and exercise proper judgment. Difficulties with balance and coordination contribute to decreased reaction time. Depth perception and peripheral vision are diminished along with the ability to focus and distinguish colors.

As alcohol effects the inner ear and balance, an intoxicated boater falling into the water may not be able to correctly determine which way to go to reach the surface of the water. This is how drowning occurs. Intoxicated persons also experience a false sensation of warmth, which leads to hypothermia, as the actual cold temperature of the water is not realized.

Devise a Float Plan

Regardless of what sized watercraft is being operated, how many people are on board, or what body of water the craft will be located on, a float plan is advised in case of an emergency. The plan provides detailed information including the type of craft, who will be aboard, when the craft is leaving and when it should return. This information is supplied to someone not accompanying the boaters in the event an accident occurs.

If you have been involved in a boating accident, you need an attorney who can develop a legal plan that is best for you. You may be entitled to compensation for lost wages, medical bills, or pain and suffering. Boating accident attorney Bloom Legal in New Orleans can help.

Did Cost Cutting Play a Role in Transocean’s Oil Rig Explosion?

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Posted on 19th May 2010 by admin in Uncategorized

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People across the country who never gave a thought to how oil gets from below the surface of land and sea into barrels are now learning about things like blow-out preventers and acoustic switches. This is due, in part, to a wealth of information that has come to light since a fire and explosion occurred onboard the Transocean semisubmersible drilling rig, Deepwater Horizon, on April 20, 2010.

For example, ten years ago, the pipe from a different offshore drilling rig came loose and the valve that is supposed to shut off the flow of oil did not work. The drilling rig above could not control the valve, called a blow-out preventer. This incident highlighted that the rig, similar to the Deepwater Horizon, did not have a backup system for activating the blow-out preventer.

This decade old incident prompted officials of the Minerals Management Service (MMS), which is part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, to issue a safety alert in March, 2000 ordering companies drilling in deep water in the outer continental shelf to have good backup systems. But MMS left it up to the companies to decide what kind of backup system to have.

Why MMS did not require drillers to use a specific type of backup system like the ones used in other major offshore drilling countries (a remote-control shutoff called an acoustic switch) is currently under investigation. Reports show that MMS did look at the issue of whether to require the acoustic switch, but it found that acoustic switches were too expensive and not always reliable.

As reported last week by The Wall Street Journal, acoustic systems cost about $500,000. Ironically, this is the same amount it costs BP to lease the rig for one day from its owner and operator, Transocean Ltd. BP is currently spending $6 million each day to try to halt the spill.

Now, eleven people are dead and the U.S. coastline is facing an environmental disaster. Experts estimate that 210,000 gallons of oil per day is escaping the underwater well. Approximations concerning when the leak can be controlled are still vague and range from weeks to months.

If you need help with a Transocean lawsuit, or Transocean claim, we urge you to call Gordon, Elias & Seely today at 1-800-773-6770 or locally at 713-668-9999. Attributable to a successful track record in prior Transocean wrongful death matters, our firm was hired before all other maritime law firms to prosecute a lawsuit against Transocean, British Petroleum and others.

The highly trained Transocean rig attorneys at Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P. f/k/a/ Gordon & Elias, L.L.P., are knowledgeable and experienced when it comes to helping offshore workers and their families. We focus our efforts and expertise in maritime law. With a track record for successful outcomes for injured workers, there’s little doubt that we can help families who have been affected by this preventable accident.

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