Injury & Accident Law

Wis. Supreme Court Finds Cheerleading is a Contact Sport, Tosses Injury Suit

An injured cheerleader won’t be able to sue her school district and another member of her squad as a result of a ruling today by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The court ruled that cheerleading qualifies as a contact sport under a state statute that provides immunity for athletic participants—in this…

Jan 27, 2009 5:24 PM CST

Insurer Drops Smoke = ‘Pollution’ Claim in $25M Fatal Office Fire Litigation

An insurance company fighting to avoid paying a claim in a fatal Houston 2007 office fire that could involve damages of $25 million is reportedly dropping its effort to apply the pollution exclusion in its policy for the property to the smoke, fumes and soot that killed three people. But…

Jan 22, 2009 5:29 PM CST

Two Chinese Dairy Producers Get Death Penalty for Selling Tainted Milk

Two Chinese milk producers have received death sentences for selling dairy products laced with melamine, a toxic compound that led to the deaths of at least six children. Dairy middleman Zhang Yujun and dairy producer Geng Jinpin were sentenced to death by China’s Intermediate People’s Court, the New York Times…

Jan 22, 2009 3:54 PM CST

Couple Drops Lawsuit Claiming United Is Liable for Beating by Drunken Husband

A Florida couple has dropped their lawsuit contending that United Airlines was responsible for a woman’s beating by her husband because it served him too much alcohol on a flight from Japan. A federal court dismissed the case after Yoichi and Ayisha Shimamoto sought dismissal on Dec. 23, the Chicago…

Jan 9, 2009 7:21 PM CST

Dallas Law Firm to Repay $840K for Scam Run Without Partner’s Knowledge

A Dallas law firm will pay $840,000 in restitution as a result of a fake accident scam that authorities say was run without the owner’s knowledge. The firm Trey Allen has already paid $200,000 of the total and will pay the rest over the next five years, the Dallas Morning…

Jan 9, 2009 4:12 PM CST

Biggest-Advertising Lawyer Spent $20M in 2007

Massachusetts lawyer James Sokolove is the biggest-spending legal advertiser, but he no longer tries any cases. Sokolove spent more than $20 million advertising his firm in 2007, but he refers all of his cases to other lawyers and takes a percentage of the recovery, Boston Magazine reports in a profile.…

Jan 7, 2009 2:20 PM CST

Girl, 12, Mistaken for Prostitute, Sues Over Alleged Police Beating

Responding to a report that three white prostitutes were soliciting, plainclothes police officers in Galveston, Texas, wound up arresting a 12-year outside her home one August day in 2006, according to a federal lawsuit filed there against the three officers. Not recognizing them as police, the girl, who says the…

Dec 23, 2008 10:26 PM CST

Calif. Supremes Allow Suit Against Would-Be Rescuer

The California Supreme Court has ruled that a statute protecting rescuers from liability only applies to those providing medical care in an emergency. The court’s 4-3 ruling allows a lawsuit against a woman who pulled her friend out of a car in which they were riding after it crashed on…

Dec 19, 2008 6:03 PM CST

Some Child Cough Medicine Deaths Could Be Crimes

Not every death of a young child from an overdose of an over-the-counter cold or cough medicine is accidental, a study has determined. “Some of the 103 children who died after taking over-the-counter cough medicines may have been deliberately given overdoses to sedate or even kill them, expert reviewers found…

Dec 19, 2008 5:20 PM CST

Judge’s Daughter, Convicted in Fatal DUI, Sues Driver She Hit

The 21-year-old daughter of a juvenile court judge in Houston has filed suit against a truck driver she rear-ended in a fatal DUI accident last year. Elizabeth Shelton’s suit—which also names 15 other defendants, including insurers and banks—seeks compensation for injuries and property damage resulting from the Oct. 23, 2007…

Dec 18, 2008 6:36 PM CST

Insurer Applies ‘Pollution’ Exclusion in Fire Deaths from Smoke Inhalation

In a move that could stretch the traditional definition of “pollution” to the breaking point, an insurer in Texas has asserted the pollution exclusion in its commercial liability policy in an effort to avoid covering the deaths of three people from smoke inhalation in a 2007 Houston office fire. “Great…

Dec 18, 2008 1:52 AM CST

5-Time Mom Sues Doc Over Alleged Labor From Hell

Catherine Skol had already had four other children. But delivering the fifth was the most painful experience she has ever had, she contends–and she’s hired a high-profile Illinois personal injury lawyer to prove it. In a lawsuit filed by attorney Kathleen Zellner this week against the fill-in doctor who handled…

Dec 16, 2008 10:07 PM CST

Justice Who Wrote Ignored Decision Unsure of Oregon ‘Runaround’

Justice Stephen G. Breyer wrote last year’s 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision ordering the Oregon Supreme Court to reconsider a $79.5 million punitive damages award, a ruling the Oregon justices ignored when they found a separate state ground to uphold the verdict. When the case returned to the Supreme Court…

Dec 4, 2008 1:23 PM CST

Suit Claims Wal-Mart Sale Ads Led to Trampling of Worker

A lawsuit filed by the family of a Wal-Mart worker trampled to death by after-Thanksgiving shoppers contends advertising touting deep discounts led to “crowd craze.” The suit claims the retailer was negligent when it engaged in marketing to attract a large crowd, creating “an environment of frenzy and mayhem,” the…

Dec 4, 2008 12:25 PM CST

Supreme Court Considers Tobacco Punitives, for Third Time

The U.S. Supreme Court will return to the familiar today when it hears arguments on whether to set aside a $79.5 million punitive damages award against tobacco giant Philip Morris. The high court has twice overturned the punitive verdict, and the Oregon Supreme Court has twice reinstated it, Bloomberg reports.…

Dec 3, 2008 2:32 PM CST