Your Personal Injury Lawsuit

If you have been injured in an accident, knowing your legal rights can provide both financial relief and peace of mind.  There are over 3 million injuries from transportation accidents each year and about 150,000 construction site accidents reported each year in the United States according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Every year in the U. S, millions of Americans receive medical treatment for a personal injury. Often times, these individuals are stuck paying expensive medical bills for an injury that was caused by another person’s negligence.

We are currently evaluating construction personal injury claims in Pennsylvania and throughout the U. S. Victims of accidents, negligence, and personal injury have the right to seek compensation for their injuries, damages, loss of wages, and medical expenses. Our personal injury lawyers handle all types of accident claims. We also handle every type of personal injury accident claim and motor vehicle accident compensation cases.

Personal injury accidents can cause life-threatening physical injuries and trauma that can include financial damage to victims of negligent drivers. Injured victims must deal with large and unforeseeable medical expenses, loss of wages, pain, suffering and loss of quality of life. Family members also can suffer economic loss, mental anguish and loss of companionship in caring for an injured family member.
Many personal injuries occur due to negligence on the part of one of others involved. When an accident is caused by another party's negligence you are entitled compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering as well as other damages.

If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident or personal injury where you feel you may be entitled to compensation, please complete the contact form on the right or call us at 1-866-757-6949 for a free case evaluation. A live personal injury counselor is available to answer your questions 24 hours a day. Time is of the essence when it comes to filing your Personal Injury lawsuit!

All of our experienced Personal Injury Lawyers work on a contingency basis and don't get paid unless you do!

Each State has a strict statute of limitations for you to file your Personal Injury lawsuit.  Fill out our FREE CASE EVALUATION form or call toll free us now at 866.757.6949.

Choosing an experienced Personal Injury lawyer will be very important to your lawsuit and the amount of compensation of your settlement!

Personal Injury Statistics

• There are more than 1 million cases of whiplash reported each year in the U. S.
• Fatal head injuries are responsible for more than 60% of all bicycle fatalities.
• There are over 3 million injuries each year from transportation accidents.
• 2/3 of all bicycle accident reported deaths are from traumatic brain injuries (TBI).
• There were 109 Bicycle accident related deaths in 2009.
• There were 950 Motorcycle crash related traffic deaths in 2009.
• There were 563 Pedestrian related deaths in 2009.
• There were 17,000 truck related accidents reported in 2009.
• There were 90,000 motorcycle related injuries reported in 2009.
• 50,000 bicycle injuries reported each year in the United States.
• 1 million children are injured in bicycle related accidents each year.
• 8,000 boating accidents are reported by the U. S. Coast Guard each year.
• 500,000 truck and commercial vehicles were involved in accidents in 2010.
• The U. S. Department of Transportation reported 33,808 nationwide traffic accident deaths in 2009.
• More than 100,000 motorcycles are involved in crashes each year according to latest data from the NHTSA.
• Motorcyclists are 39 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a crash according to NHTSA.

Recent Accident Settlements & Verdicts

• $2.2 Million Settlement - Faulty roadwork and hazardous road conditions resulted in a bicyclist crashing and suffering multiple broken bones and severe head injuries.
• $1.24 Million Settlement - A bicyclist was struck while riding through and intersection and run over by a truck making an illegal turn.
• $1.75 Million Settlement – A motorcyclist drove through intersection and car did not see him because of overgrown vegetation had leg amputated.
• $1.5 Million Settlement - Minor child suffers head injury in a car collision and the loss of her mother.
• $6 Million Settlement - 32 year-old wife and mother killed in a head-on collision by car driven by a sales representative. that crossed center line
• $4.2 Million Settlement - 13 year-old boy suffers brain damage after being struck by a car at an intersection.
• $2.4 Million Settlement - 72 year old woman suffered a severe spinal injury from slip & fall on an uneven public sidewalk.
• $1.4 Million Settlement - Traumatic Brain injury caused by driver who made an illegal left hand turn causing collision.
• $5.2 Million Jury Award - Asbestos worker who developed malignant peritoneal mesothelioma from asbestos work exposure.
• $1.395 Million Jury Award - Woman involved in serious spinal injury from two-car collision at intersection.
• $1.25 Million Jury Award - Wrongful-death lawsuit by the family of a man who died as the result of a car wreck.
• $1 million Jury Award - Parents of a baby boy who died in his mother’s womb before an emergency C-section was performed.
• $12.3 million Jury Award - Insulator and construction worker died of malignant Mesothelioma cancer
• $12.3 million Jury Award - U. S. Steelworker died of occupational asbestos exposure causing malignant Mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma Victim Receives Compensation

A plumber who developed mesothelioma as a result of his asbestos exposure was recently compensated for his illness. The man reportedly worked in a number of hospitals throughout England and America during his career. It was in many of the older hospitals that asbestos was discovered, which had not been removed as was legally required.

Alan Ward, 61, was recently diagnosed with mesothelioma, a deadly form of cancer caused by exposure to the toxic mold, asbestos. During his time working as a maintenance man in hospitals, he says he removed several pipes and boilers that were covered in a material he was unfamiliar with. It wasn’t until later in life, and he was assured through the diagnosis, that he realized this dust-like substance was asbestos.

Suit Filed and Justice Served

Ward claims that during his career he was never given any protection to wear or warned about the risks associated with the job. Exposure to asbestos, when inhaled or ingested, can cause the lungs and organs in the body to become clogged. As a result, mesothelioma and other forms of cancer can develop.

When Ward was given 18 months to live (he has now lived two years, which is rare with this form of cancer), he decided to take action and file a lawsuit on behalf of all of the other workers who were exposed. The court found Ward’s former employees guilty of negligence and he has been awarded $290,000 in the settlement. He says that although his life right now is a constant struggle, the compensation brings about justice and will enable him to live a bit more comfortably in what could be his last months.

Asbestos Exposure Still Affects Veterans

Each day the men and women that serve our country not only put their lives on the line in battle, but they are also fighting asbestos-related illnesses as a result of their time at war. Asbestos exposure in war times has been an ongoing problem in the United States for decades, and both current soldiers and veterans are now dealing with the aftermath of being exposed to asbestos.

Asbestos is a cancer causing substance that in previous years was used in construction, at shipyards, and in various other manufacturing fields. Exposure through inhalation has been linked to life-threatening illnesses like lung cancer and mesothelioma. Exposure Through the Years Asbestos exposure in veterans of war has gained significant attention since the shipbuilding efforts took place during World War II.

According to reports, about 3,000 cases of mesothelioma were reported each year in the U.S. A majority of these cases reportedly involved men and women who had been exposed while in the military. During the war, many were employed at shipyards and worked extensively in military construction, which is to blame for their exposure to asbestos and other harmful chemicals. However, risk for exposure didn’t come to an end with WWII. Instead, exposure continued, and some fear still continues, as many of these veterans got jobs at shipyards and construction sites after deployment seeing as these are the fields in which they had experience.

Reports also claim that those who are deployed overseas are at special risk of exposure since other countries, such as Iraq and Iran, still widely use asbestos as one of their main building materials. China and Russia are also two of the world’s top asbestos consumers.

Mesothelioma Suit Filed for Workplace Exposure

A lawsuit was recently filed by a man who claims he suffers from mesothelioma as the result of his exposure to asbestos. The man formerly worked as a pipefitter, welder, and pipeliner. During his career, he believes he was unknowingly exposed to asbestos and other harmful chemicals. As a result of his exposure to asbestos, he developed a rare form of cancer known as mesothelioma. The illness often goes undetected for many years and researchers have yet to find a cure for the fatal disease. The man has named 36 companies as defendants in the case. Among the defendants are Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing, Pfizer, and Viacom.

Workplace Exposure

Tommy Harnell was reportedly diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, a rare cancer this past July. Harnell attributes his illness to the fact that he was exposed to the toxic substance, asbestos, during 1957. Harnell and his wife filed the suit in August claiming his former employers failed to warn him of the risks linked to asbestos. Harnell also claims his former employers did nothing to implement any sort of safety plan for their workers to prevent them from being exposed to the substance.

Harnell says he was completely unaware of the dangers he faced on a daily basis at his job. In the lawsuit, him and his wife claim he now suffers from a great deal of physical pain and mental anguish due to the increase in medical expenses and decline of his health. Harnell’s wife also says she has suffered from a loss of companionship. The Harnell’s are seeking unspecified general, special, punitive, and exemplary damages in the lawsuit.

Asbestos Law Retroactive in Ohio

The Ohio Supreme Court this week has ruled that a 2004 law that  imposed stricter rules on asbestos-related claims can  be applied retroactively to those cases filed before the law was passed.

The state Supreme Court said Wednesday the law was valid because the changes were “remedial and procedural” and not in violation of the Ohio Constitution, which bars retroactive laws that change the nature or substance of a law.

The law in question, passed in September of 2004, requires the medical expert to actually treat the claimant  instead of merely reading the medical records and the claimant is required to offer specific medical evidence that their condition was caused by asbestos exposure.

In Ohio there are about 40,000 cases that had been filed prior to law being passed and many of those are likely to be dismissed as a result of this week’s ruling.

Linda Ackison had filed a wrongful death suit in May of 2004 against Dayton Malleable and others claiming that long-term exposure to asbestos at work had contributed to the illness and death of her husband, Danny.

Richard Schuster, an attorney for Dayton Malleable called the ruling significant for the economy of Ohio as well as for the companies involved in the suit.

“For the businesses located here in Ohio, it will allow the cases to come off their books and allow them to focus on doing business and, hopefully, hiring people here in Ohio,” he said. “It really focuses the attention on those people who are ill, who have a real disease, and allows those cases to move through the courts, which have been clogged up by people who weren’t sick.”

Vin Green, an attorney for Ackison, condemned the ruling saying that the decision was a ruling on the side of big business and against the well-being of Ohio citizens who have been injured by asbestos exposure.  He also called it “completely and totally inaccurate” to say that those filing asbestos claims weren’t sick.  “If you have damage to the lining of your lungs, you are sick,” he said.

In Georgia, the retroactive portion a similar law was overturned and the legislature then passed a new law.  Kansas has a similar law not yet challenged and a similar Florida law is being challenged in the courts.

The Truth About Class Actions

If you want the truth about class actions, you'll rarely find it in the popular press. Even the left-leaning St. Louis Post-Disptach has been editorializing recently against class actions.

What's the good of class actions? I've found that Op-Ed editors shy away from lawyers who are writing to defend class actions, but I managed to get two Op-Eds on the topic published: "Class Actions Deter Corporate Wrongdoing" in the Roanoke Times, and "The Best Defense Against Class Actions" in the Alton Telegraph.

In a world without class actions, big corporations would steal everything we have, a dollar at a time.

Here in Madison County, Illinois (where I've been practicing more than thirteen years), I've always been amused at the way the local paper in the neighboring St. Clair County, the Belleville News-Democrat, is fascinated by plaintiffs' lawyers, yet never tires of dissing them as often as possible. Today's lead in an article about class actions: "A record number of class-action lawsuits -- 106 -- were filed last year in Madison County, topping the previous high of 77 the previous year." ("Class Action Lawsuits Set a Record," by Brian Brueggemann).

The article, heavy on quotes from a big business lobbyist, complains that "in 2002, more class actions were filed in Madison County per capita than any other county in the United States. That number for 2003 is again expected to be tops in the country." The paper apparently wasn't able to find a class action lawyer to respond.

Why does the number of class actions filed, considered by itself, have any meaning? As usual, there is no discussion of how many of these cases are dismissed voluntarily, perhaps because they duplicate actions of other lawyers; how many are dismissed voluntarily at the urging of one of the great defense lawyers who practice around here; how many are removed to federal court and stay there; how many fail at the certification stage; and how many are settled. The newspaper has never explored the good that comes out of class actions (see next post). The newspaper rarely explores the facts of any particular case.

When it comes to class actions, there are important, weighty issues to discuss. Yet here's the Belleville News-Democrat's take: "Class actions in our neck of the woods? They're B - A - D."

With corporate America spending millions on “grassroots” efforts to discredit class actions, it’s often hard to separate the truth from the propoganda.

What is corporate America hiding? Class actions serve as an important deterrent to corporate wrongdoing. As an Illinois appellate court has written, the class action “is one of the few legal remedies the small claimant has against those who command the status quo.”

Thanks to the threat of class actions, a corporation must think twice before scheming to overcharge its customers, violating antitrust laws, or crossing the line from “maximizing profits” to cheating customers. A few years ago, a number of corporate scandals were first unearthed by class actions against Worldcom, Global Crossing, Tyco and Enron.

Class actions also work to make products safer. The Firestone litigation resulted in safer tires for thousands. The litigation over diet drugs, Rezulin and Baycol resulted in well-deserved compensation to those permanently impaired by drugs that should never have been placed on the market. Other products made safer through litigation include childrens’ toys, football helmets, garage doors, and farm machinery.

Rather than blaming lawyers, companies should make sure their products are safe and their policies are fair to consumers. In the end, this will always be the best defense against class actions.

To read the newspaper coverage in the papers surrounding Madison County, Illinois, you'd think that lawyers' fees in class actions were skyrocketing. That's not the case, according to a non-biased study by two law school professors summarized yesterday in the New York Times. ("Study Disputes View of Costly Surge in Class-Action Suits," by Jonathan D. Glater) (free registration may be required).

The study's conclusion? --

In their article, Mr. Eisenberg and his co-author, Geoffrey P. Miller, a New York University law professor, write that if the effects of inflation are taken into account, then from 1993 through 2002, "contrary to popular belief, we find no robust evidence that either recoveries for plaintiffs or fees for their attorneys as a percentage of the class recovery increased."
For more about class actions, here is a link to an Op-Ed by an S&L partner that was published in the Roanoke Times: "Class Actions Deter Corporate Wrongdoing."

FOREX Money Management – The Key To Long Term Profits

Although it can be tempting to whip out your credit card and take advantage of a strong upward trend in your favorite currency, failure to manage your money properly will leave you broke faster than you can say “sell, sell, SELL!!”

FOREX trading, just like any other form of investment, is not a guaranteed money maker 100% of the time. Professional investors know this, and they know that some of their trades *will* lose money. The reason they’re still successful is that they plan for these losses accordingly so that in the long term they remain profitable.

Consider this example: a new trader finds a FOREX trading system that proves 75% successful, definitely a system to hold on to. What this means is that out of every 100 trades, 75 will generate a profit. The problem lies in not knowing which of the trades will be successful and which will cause a loss. What if the first 25 trades executed with this system generate losses, while the next 75 generate profit? If the trader has not practiced money management wisely he may have lost his entire investment capital on those first 25 trades.

The more aggressive FOREX trader will no doubt claim that the only way to big profits in a short period of time is to risk more of your capital, but in essence all he is doing is gambling. Indeed, an aggressive FOREX trader may get lucky and hit ten profitable trades in a row generating a very nice profit, but what happens if the next 19 trades all generate losses? If he’s still wagering large sums of money on each trade he’ll soon be back to where he started from, or more likely in an even worse predicament.

A disciplined FOREX trader will only risk a smaller percentage of his or her investment capital on each trade. Sure, the profits will be smaller in the short term compared to a more aggressive trader, but when the downturn hits (and it most definitely will), the FOREX trader practicing wise money management will be able to weather the storm far better than the aggressive trader.

It may not be the most exciting of strategies, but you’re not in the FOREX trading business for thrills, you’re in it to generate consistent profits. Using anything other than wise money management when investing in the FOREX market is simply gambling, and if you want to gamble then you’re better off at the casino. Even professional poker players, widely labeled as gamblers by spectators, employ money management systems. They realize that they can’t possibly win every single tournament they enter, so instead of risking their entire bankroll on one game they risk only a percentage at each one. This allows them to recover far more quickly when their losing streaks hit. Those that don’t practice money management quickly find themselves playing Crazy Eights instead.

In conclusion, don’t let the promise of quick riches cloud your judgment. FOREX trading is not a get-rich-quick scheme; it’s an investment vehicle that can provide healthy profits for those who manage their money wisely. Remember, slow and steady wins the race.