According to Consumer Reports, car seats for infants (the rear-facing seats for infants up to about one year in age) usually fail in broadside crashes — 10 of 12 models tested failed, some “disastrously” (the seat often separated completely from its base). One popular model — the Evenflo Discovery —…
If you — like many personal-injury victims — are taking over-the-counter (OTC) pain medications, you need to be aware of new proposed FDA (Food and Drug Administration) warnings. On January 2, 2007, the Washington Post reported that the FDA has proposed stronger warning labels on over-the-counter “painkiller” medications, especially because…
In another post to this Blog, I lamented both the bias against any plaintiff and the especial bias against any plaintiff suing a doctor or hospital for medical negligence: Virginia’s not being on this list of “judicial hellholes” is no surprise to Virginia judges or the trial lawyers for the…
Traffic deaths in the United States in 2005 — 43,443 — reached their highest levels since 1990, according to government statistics cited by the Insurance Journal, The increase was more than 1 percent compared to 2004. This increase was attributed in part to increased deaths from motorcycle and pedestrian accidents.…
Here’s a novel idea for the Bush Administration: the next time a Virginia jury considers the proper amount to award a Virginia citizen severely injured by the carelessness of another, the jury should consider … the facts of the specific case … rather than the Bush Administration’s talking points for…
No, Virginia, your jury verdicts for injured men, women and children are not excessive or “out-of-control.” The American Tort Reform Association — “ATRA” — has published its list of “Judicial Hellholes” of 2006 … and, Virginia, you are not on its list. You are not even an “Honorable Mention,” and…
A Circuit Court Judge in Virginia recently commented to me and other counsel that the defense of sudden emergency is “dead” in Virginia. I think the Judge was being somewhat facetious in order to underscore the significance of a recent Virginia Supreme Court decision, but the question remains — does…
If you are a personal-injury lawer in the conservative state of Virginia or elsewhere in the land of tort reform, this is my admittedly provocative view — employed by my firm over the past six (6) years or so — of how to obtain just personal-injury settlements for your clients:…
If you have been a trial lawyer for long, you likely have heard of Gerry Spence’s famous final plea in just about every closing argument . From his latest book, Win Your Case, Spence speaks to the jury on behalf of little Polly: Before I leave you I want to…
Marlo said she was injured in the accident. As her attorney, I believed her. But Allstate Insurance Company just knew that it could push her around. Allstate’s insured said that her car was barely moving when it hit Marlo’s. The only exterior damage to Marlo’s car were scratches on her…