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Tractor Trailers and Traffic Laws

The result of two objects coming together, one of which is your car and the other of which is something that weighs tens of thousands of pounds, is not going to be a good result. And you don’t have to be a physicist or a scientist to understand that if a tractor-trailer hits you in your little car or your SUV or your minivan, you and your family are going to be seriously hurt or killed. There are a whole set of complicated federal regulations and you need an attorney that knows the federal regulatory system inside and out, and knows how to develop a tractor-trailer case. Federal Laws regulate how many hours they are allowed to drive so many truckers keep two sets of logbooks. One set is the driving time that they get paid for. The other logbook is the driving time they show the state troopers, or they show the federal regulators, or they show the truck stop operator. The equipment, the rig, how often it has to be inspected, how it has to be maintained – those are all things that are regulated by the federal government. Often, we will do a case and we will […]

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Mesothelioma – Specialized System Gets You In Court

Some court cases take years to see the inside of a courtroom but with mesothelioma cases, things get sped up. The exigent docket or commonly referred to as the “rocket docket” is most unique and specific law that people need to be aware of. The docket basically allows mesothelioma people to get a trial within a year to two years of their diagnosis. Basically, the case is handled by two judges – one handles one type of mesothelioma cases and the other handles all railroad mesothelioma cases. They each have dockets every few months where 20 cases are chosen for trial. The cases are prioritized by: Are they a living mesothelioma? Highest priority Deceased mesothelioma Lung Cancer – living Lung Cancer – deceased There are some other variables the judges and the lawyers use, but generally speaking, these are the most important ones. Your lawyer gets you on a docket in a year, or six months or nine months, and you’re automatically under a court order that tells you what the time frames are. Your lawyers, if they’re experienced, should know exactly what the judge is going to require of you, of your lawyers, what information they have to provide

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Mesothelioma – The Cold Hard Facts

There are three major different types of asbestos in North America and it’s hotly debated whether one or all of them can cause a mesothelioma. Fiber size and all kinds of technical, scientific issues pop up in mesothelioma cases. Before you go to court, you need a lawyer with experience in the medicine and science of mesothelioma. It’s important that you have someone that has experience with the history of asbestos, because it was known a long, long, long time ago how dangerous asbestos was. You have got to win the case, explain to the jury the history of what was known and when it was known, to hold these companies liable. And you don’t just get to walk into the courtroom and say, “Hey, this is a meso case, give us a bunch of money.” You have to prove the history of why these products were used, and what the companies knew about how dangerous they where, what scientific material the company had available that the worker didn’t know about, and how they failed, year after year after year, to tell the workers this stuff is deadly. Make sure you have a lawyer who has experience actually trying a

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West Virginia Coal Mines – Safety is Key

The focus on safety has become more and more apparent since several recent, major fatalities. Even the government now recognizes how critical it is that they inspect mines, and if necessary, shut them down until the management makes them safe. But there are avenues open to the miner. Unfortunately, getting that check at the end of the week to put food on the table can be more important than blowing the whistle on safety vioilations. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of federal and state regulations that affect various safety requirements at coal mines in West Virginia. The laws differ depending if it’s a surface mine or a deep mine. But the most important safety requirement in West Virginia is to have employers who care about safety more than they care about production. They have got to put safety first, and train their miners in the proper safety requirements to do their job. It’s critically important that management be invested in safety, and that they care about the employee understanding the safety regulations. In a deep mine there are regulations concerning equipment. What type, how is it to be maintained, what safety features does it have to have? We

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Head Injury Cases

Head injury cases are unique for lots of different reasons, but they’re unique mainly because you have to have experience and know what you’re looking for, and where are you going to find it? It’s as simple a question as saying, “Do you have a head injury?” A lot of head injuries aren’t visible with an x-ray and you can’t see them with an MRI. So, if you can’t, where do you turn? How do I know if I’m going to be able to go back to work? There are neuropsychologists that we work with very closely. They offer certain types of tests that will find subtle changes that even the victim might not recognize. Another thing that’s very important based upon your experience is to make sure the wife or the husband of the person who may have a head injury goes with them. Inevitably they’ve seen changes in the head injury person that even the victim doesn’t even realize. You also have to be pretty familiar with the new techniques of medical imaging. There are tools available that we didn’t have five years ago that take different types of pictures of your brain and actually show us where

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What Makes a Good Personal Injury Lawyer?

What makes a good personal injury lawyer? There’s and old story that illustrates exactly you need. A little boy walks up to the man carrying a violin case and says, “How do I get to Carnegie Hall?” And the old man looks at him and says, “Practice, practice, practice.” The most important quality of better personal injury lawyers is they actually try cases. They go to the courtroom with their client, they put the witnesses on the stand, and they go to the jury to get their client the justice they deserve. Actually practicing cases is the most important quality. Also, look for a lawyer who has a high level of compassion for their clients, to understand and walk in their shoes, because of the type of injury they’ve suffered, and what that is like. What is it like to live without a leg? What is it like to live with burn marks all over your upper torso and neck? You need to be able to crawl into the skin of your client and understand how their life has been forever permanently changed. You are trying to use your skill, your talent, and your experience, and your humanity, to help

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No Two Injury Settlements are the Same

Every injury settlement is unique. In each case, we gather as much information as possible from our clients but no two cases are alike so there isn’t any kind of average amount for a settlement. Some people may only miss a few days of work while others may never be able to work again. Some injuries though serious, will heal, though it may take one to two years to become pain-free or scar-free. But for many their scars will be visible for life just as the pain may exist the rest of their life. Cases are evaluated differently based on the type of injury. Obviously, the more serious the injury – such as paralysis and burns – due to the horrific and devastating injury. And many times the entire family is affected by the injury and it changes their lives as well. These cases can lead to a high settlement value. Any cases where a limb is amputated or multiple limbs are amputated – those are at the high end of the personal injury settlement scale. Also, how you are hurt affects what the settlement is likely to be worth. In aviation cases, normally, people know for several minutes that

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Is a Small Law Firm or a Large Law Firm Better for Injury Victims?

When you are injured in an accident, you might wonder if a large law firm or a small law firm is best for you. I’m sure both small and large law firms feel they are best for your needs, but for me personally, I have made a deliberate effort to keep my law firm small over the years. I did this for one important reason – because I believe someone who has been catastrophically injured or lost their life deserves personal attention. Having a small law firm makes it possible for me to familiarize myself with every single case in my office. I know who is working on it with me and what is happening at any given moment with that case. It is much easier to keep the client informed about their case and in fact, every single letter, no matter how small, is sent to our clients. An added benefit with a small firm is that it ensures the secretaries know our clients when they call. The lawyers know all of our clients and in the Segal & Amos, PLLC, each case is assigned to two lawyers, leaving me free to supervise each case. Some of the more

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What Qualities Should You Look for in a Trucking Accident Attorney?

If you are looking for a lawyer to handle your trucking accident case, the most important consideration is to find someone with experience. A lot of people are unaware that the laws that govern the tractor-trailer industry are entirely different from those laws for automobiles. Of course, the reason for that difference is in the fact that if your little car is hit by a tractor-trailer, you don’t stand much of a chance of winning that battle and the law of averages pretty much dictates you’re going to lose. The government has very strict laws concerning how tractor-trailer drivers are trained and permitted to operate their trucks, how many hours they are allowed to drive before taking a rest, and how they must supervise their loads. When they stop, there are laws about how they check their gear, their load and their equipment; and the tractor-trailer must be maintained properly. Your lawyer needs to know these laws in order to determine the best way to represent you in your tractor-trailer accident. Determining Your Lawyer’s Experience  One of the best ways to find out how much experience a lawyer has in this area is by interview and this can be done

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If You Suffer a Back Injury at Work, do You Have a Lawsuit?

If you suffer an injury at your workplace that is your employer’s responsibility, whether you can file suit or not depends on a specific law. You are dealing with a deliberate intent suit instead of a normal negligence lawsuit and this requires a lawyer spending time with you in order to gain full understanding of what happened and why, and if safety rules were broken by your boss. In the case where someone else hurt your back such as an independent contractor or a delivery company, this constitutes a normal negligence lawsuit. Many times the actual premises may not be safe and an example of this might be where electricians are hired to do a low voltage job. They then get into a high voltage area and are seriously burned or electrocuted, and this requires close examination of all the parameters involved in their injury. Since back injuries can range from strains to sprains, the most important question will be, “How did you hurt your back?” Sprains and strains will not result in a big lawsuit, but if you are paralyzed and your career is ended, then the lawsuit will be much larger and more complex. We need to evaluate

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