Injury & Accident Law

Judge Slaps Railroad With $4M Penalty for ‘Staggering’ Pattern of Misconduct

A Minnesota judge has added a $4 million fine to an already hefty jury verdict against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. involving a fatal train-car crash related to a crossing gate failure. The railroad is alleged to have begun destroying evidence within minutes of the 2003 crash in Anoka, Minn.…

Oct 16, 2009 11:49 AM CDT

Lawyer Seeks Right to Advertise in R.I., a State in Which He Has No Office

Critics say that attorney James Sokolove is more about advertising than law practice. And at least one or two justices on the Rhode Island Supreme Court seemingly may agree. As Sokolove’s lawyer argued late last month that his client should be allowed to promote his Delaware-based national personal injury firm…

Oct 15, 2009 6:08 PM CDT

Lawyer Fined $500 for Suing Police Dog, City Defendant to Seek Costs

After earlier fining a Michigan lawyer $500 for naming a police dog as a defendant in a lawsuit over a bite, a state-court judge has now dismissed the claim citing sovereign immunity and a lack of evidence. Attorney Lawrence Radden admittedly named Liberty, a German Shepherd, as a defendant in…

Oct 14, 2009 8:13 PM CDT

Recent High School Grads Lawyer Up in High-Society Minneapolis Spat

At first the Dayton family—yes, the Dayton department store family—tried to resolve the situation informally. But as a barrage of vandalism, deposits of human waste and the taunting phone calls and notes continued over a period of nearly two years at their exclusive Minneapolis home, they eventually resorted to litigation,…

Oct 13, 2009 10:05 PM CDT

Unlucky in Med Mal & Law Firm Suits, Woman Wins Case re ‘Frivolous’ $6K in Costs

Allegedly misdiagnosed with breast cancer, Victoria Kremen had a double mastectomy. Then she sued her doctors for malpractice–and lost, because the statute of limitations had run. Then she sued her lawyers for malpractice—and lost again. Now, however, she’s finally scored something of a legal victory, reports the New York Law…

Oct 13, 2009 7:37 PM CDT

Office Life in the Fast Lane Leads to Litigation, Company Bans

As drivers increasingly multitask by doing office work behind the wheel–talking on cell phones, text-messaging, even reading or working on a laptop computer–some are becoming defendants in tort litigation. Meanwhile, as the risks of such distracted driving are becoming increasingly well-known and documented by research, some companies are making it…

Oct 1, 2009 7:32 PM CDT

Urgent Advisory: Remove Floor Mats on Eight Toyota & Lexus Models

As Toyota Motor Corp. plans a huge recall of some 3.8 million vehicles due to loose floor mats that could force the accelerator down, United States transportation officials say owners of eight Toyota and Lexus models manufactured in the last six years should immediately remove the driver’s-side floor mat. Officials…

Sep 29, 2009 10:45 PM CDT

Judge OKs $24M Settlement Against Chrysler in Car Accident Death

A bankruptcy judge in New York has approved a $24 million settlement over a Chrysler longshoreman killed in a California auto accident. A Los Angeles Superior Court jury originally awarded a little more than $55 million to the family of 38-year-old Richard Mraz, who died of head injuries after he…

Sep 24, 2009 11:22 PM CDT

‘Negligent’ Stapling of Filing Cited By Judge in Tort Action

CORRECTED: A “negligent” stapling job on a court filing that twice drew blood from a court clerk drew the attention of a New York judge, who took time to note the sloppy stapling in a ruling denying a motion for default judgment in an auto accident case. “The poor stapling…

Sep 24, 2009 6:13 PM CDT

N.Y. Lawyer Among 8 Charged in Alleged Hospital Record-Selling Scheme

A New York lawyer is among eight individuals charged in an alleged scheme in which current and former employees of city hospitals are accused of selling confidential patient information to personal injury lawyers. William Hamel, 45, who works for Manhattan’s Dinkes & Schwitzer, is charged with third-degree bribery, reports Newsday.…

Sep 23, 2009 11:58 PM CDT

PI Law Firm Owes $1.5M for Phone Book Ads, Bankruptcy Petition Says

A Florida law firm with a name apparently designed for phone book advertising has filed for bankruptcy, listing $1.5 million in debt to companies that publish yellow pages directories. The personal injury firm, A Advocates & Attorneys, is an affiliate of the Kennedy Law Group in Tampa, whose president, Thomas…

Sep 10, 2009 2:53 PM CDT

Bonfire Could Return to Texas A&M, Following $2.1M Settlement

A 1999 accident at Texas A&M University that killed 11 students and one graduate and injured dozens of others ended a 100-year-old campus football tradition known as Bonfire. But the fire, which grew to bigger and bigger heights before a 60-foot-high stack of logs under construction collapsed a decade ago,…

Sep 9, 2009 11:55 PM CDT

Parties in $27B Environmental Case Fight Video With Video

A 16-year-old class action against Chevron Corp. over some $27 billion of claimed environmental contamination in Ecuador hasn’t been decided yet. But it’s already generating headlines because of the company’s unusual litigation tactics. Now, as a documentary about the claimed damage to Ecuador’s Amazon region is about to debut in…

Sep 9, 2009 7:55 PM CDT

‘Rip Van Winkle’ Rejoins Aviation Firm After 7 Years as a High School Teacher

A founding partner of a San Mateo, Calif., law firm who took a seven-year detour from his legal career to teach algebra at a public high school is now back in practice there again. Jim Collins, 57, has rejoined the O’Reilly Law Firm, which is now known as O’Reilly ||…

Sep 9, 2009 7:26 PM CDT

Chevron Video Posted on YouTube Was Doctored, Accused Judge Says

Videotape of an Ecuador judge posted on YouTube and a company website by Chevron Corp. was doctored, the judge, who is accused of discussing an upcoming ruling in an ongoing environmental case, tells the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.). “There was total manipulation in the video,” says Judge Juan Núñez,…

Sep 2, 2009 6:47 PM CDT