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Personal Injury
- New York state man recovers $200K for fingers lost to lawn mower
- Eight Powerful Reasons to Hire a Local Attorney
- Court Allows Claims For Emotional Distress After Alleged Breach Of Contract To Continue
- Wal-Mart Limits Subrogation Rights Against Workers
- Pennsylvania Worker recovers for fall from ladder bought at Home Depot
Premises Liability: The Slip and Fall
- NYC to pay $2.75M for softball accident in school gym class
- New case law on slilp and fall on icey sidewalks owned by a City
- Worker who lost leg in construction accident receives $13M
- Boy blinded in ATV rollover gets $6M settlement
- ELMIRA ATTORNEY CONTINUES TO INVESTIGATE OUTBREAK OF LEGIONNAIRES’ DISEASE AT THE FLANNERY TOWERS
Workers' Compensation
- New York Times article on biased "Independant" Medical Examiners
- No Work Jobs
- Prison Guard receives settlement in MRSA case
- New blog post at the Pa Injury Law blog about the effect Bush had on OSHA
- New post on the Pa Work Injury Law Blog about what to do when you're laid off
Vehicle and Automobile Accidents
- Pennsylvania Car Accident Plaintiff's award of $400,000 Upheld On Appeal
- An unsafe intersection in Athens Township?
- Pennsylvania Superior Court Case Quashing Underinsured Motorist Carrier Appeal
- Pa. Superior Court Allows UIM And Bad Faith To Proceed At Same Time
- People injured in Springfield Township, Bradford County automobile crash
General
- Insurance company denials of benefits in Pennsylvania and New York
- CALL YOUR MEMBER OF CONGRESS AND URGE SUPPORT FOR THE ARBITRATION FAIRNESS ACT OF 2009
- Another ATV Death
- Bradford County, Pennsylvania has a new website
- No conflict of interest between Bradford County, Pennsylvania's new Judge and new District Attorney, despite them cousins
Legal News
Judge campaign candidates speak at dinner in Towanda
Judge Beirne unopposed in local race
Attorney General Tom Corbett to visit Bradford County
Beirne will run for full term as judge
Bradford County Employers Laying Off Workers
Death Benefits Not Mandatory for PA Car Insurance
Bradford County: Judge Beirne presiding
Pennsylvania Senate confirms Beirne as Bradford County judge
Legal Library
Personal Injury
- Questions for Your Doctor In Personal Injury Cases
- Traumatic Brain Injury: By The [Staggering] Numbers
- What is an Independent Medical Examination?
- Common Questions About the Legal Process
- The Wrongful Death Of A Child - Part Two
Premises Liability: The Slip and Fall
- Cracked, Broken or Irregular Sidewalks Causing a Fall
- Dog Bites
- If You Have Been Bitten or Attacked by a Dog, Then You Need to Read This Article
- New Pennsylvania Superior Court Case on Dog Attack
- Lead Poisoning Threatens Pregnant Women
Workers' Compensation
- New York Times article on Independent Medical Exams
- Response to Time Magazine Article: "Doctor's View: Can Health Coverage Cause Pain?"
- Specific Loss Benefits
- Reimbursement for Travel Expenes in Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Cases
- Flow of Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Claim Documents Prior To Litigation
Vehicle and Automobile Accidents
- Reducing The Impact of A Whiplash Injury
- Car Accident Injuries: Neck Pain
- Multi-Truck Accident in Susquehanna County Results in Hospitalization
- Repeat Offender Facing DUI Charges After Accident Lands Passenger in Hospital
- Driver Strikes Mother and Daughter in School Crossing Zone
Newsletters
General
Personal Injury
New York state man recovers $200K for fingers lost to lawn mower
A plaintiff recovered $200,000 for injuries that he sustained in an accident involving a lawn mower — even if he was largely to blame. The plaintiff, Mikhail Nisanov, amputated three fingers when a Black & Decker (U.S.) Inc. electric lawn mower activated while he was cleaning the underside of its cutting deck. Nisanov claimed that the mower's power switch was too easily activated and that a safer design would have featured a more fully recessed switch. Black & Decker argued that Nisanov was at fault for ignoring the product's warning that the mower should be unplugged during maintenance. The jury agreed. It awarded $2 million, but the award was sliced to $200,000 because Nisanov was found 90-percent liable for the accident.
To purchase a full report on this case from Verdict Search, click Nisanov v. Black & Decker (U.S.) Inc.
Pennsylvania Worker recovers for fall from ladder bought at Home Depot
A man who sustained a traumatic brain injury in a 25-foot fall from a ladder bought at a Home Depot store recovered $406,800. William Sohngen was using the Louisville extension ladder unattended while painting on the side of a two-story home. The base slid and he crashed to the ground because the rubber feet on the ladder's legs were worn down, he claimed.
The jury found that Home Depot was to blame because it sold the ladder and failed to mention that it had been in rental service for four years, which is against company policy. Sohngen also sued Louisville Ladder for defective design, but the jury found it wasn't negligent. Home Depot was found 60 percent liable and Sohngen was found 40 percent liable, which reduced the jury's $678,000 award.
To purchase a full report on this case, go to VerdictSearch.com.
The jury found that Home Depot was to blame because it sold the ladder and failed to mention that it had been in rental service for four years, which is against company policy. Sohngen also sued Louisville Ladder for defective design, but the jury found it wasn't negligent. Home Depot was found 60 percent liable and Sohngen was found 40 percent liable, which reduced the jury's $678,000 award.
To purchase a full report on this case, go to VerdictSearch.com.
Third Restatement of Torts Tops High Court's Agenda
When the Pennsylvania Supreme Court convenes this week in Harrisburg, a major products liability case will be on its agenda. Bugosh v. I.U. North America, Inc. could pull the state into the mainstream on product liability law or further entrench the Commonwealth in its own rules. PaAJ participated as Amicus on this case. Read more from the Legal Intelligencer. Read the Superior Court opinion.This potentially landmark case could reshape products liability law by adopting the anti-consumer Restatement of Torts (3rd). Former PaAJ President Cliff Rieders argued in favor of keeping Pennsylvania law consistent with the second restatement.
According to Rieders, the court showed great interest in his argument that the results in cases involving suppliers or distributors would be the same under either the restatement second or the restatement third. The court did, however, engage in a lengthy “prospective” discussion about the application of the restatement third and its viability in future cases. Rieders said that the court was extremely thoughtful and receptive to the historical importance of the restatement second, 402A.
Hedge clipper manufacturer not liable for landscaper's loss of fingers, says jury
A jury in the United Stated District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that a hedge clipper was not defectively designed, after a landscaper using the equipment accidentally amputated two of his fingers.Fernando Sanchez, an employee of a landscaping company, was trimming bushes in 2003 when he lost control of an HC-2000 hedge clipper, manufactured by Echo Inc., and was injured when the clipper's blades came in contact with his hand.
Counsel for the plaintiff argued that the clipper should have turned off automatically as soon as Sanchez dropped it. Defense counsel alleged that Sanchez was contributorily negligent, since he was walking backwards directly before the accident.
The jury found no defective design, and ruled that both parties had been negligent, awarding Sanchez zero damages.
To order the full report on Sanchez v. Echo Inc., go to VerdictSearch.com.
Vehicle and Automobile Accidents
Investigating Yamaha Rhino
In a front-page article, the Wall Street Journal (11/4, A1, Trottman, Conkey) reports that the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is investigating the Yamaha Rhino off-road vehicle "following reports of some 30 deaths," and "Yamaha faces more than 200 lawsuits in state and federal courts, many alleging the Rhino's design is unsafe."
While "Yamaha has settled some," it "recently beefed up its defense and says it may start to fight rather than settle." According to Yamaha, "plaintiffs' lawyers 'have seized on safety and product enhancements that Yamaha has made to the Rhino to allege baseless claims about the stability of the vehicles.'" The company added that "many injury claims...stem from improper operation, modifications such as removing the protective 'roll cage,' or failure to use a helmet and seat belt." Meanwhile, "some plaintiffs' lawyers allege that Yamaha failed to report Rhino problems to the CPSC as early as it should have."
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FAQs
Personal Injury
- How long is all this going to take?
- The insurance company offered me a settlement almost immediately after my serious accident. Should I accept it?
- The insurance company says that I don’t need a lawyer to settle this. What do you think?
- What is my case worth?
- What factors determine who is at fault in a car accident?
Workers' Compensation
- What happens if I return to a modified duty job and then I am laid off?
- If I am unable to return to the type of work I did before I was injured, what happens?
- If I am injured on the job can I choose the doctor who treats me?
- Should an injured worker apply for unemployment benefits?
- What medical benefits does the Act provide to a worker after they have sustained an on-the-job injury?
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