Injury & Accident Law

Courts in China Reluctant to Hear Tainted Baby Formula Cases

Three courts in China have so far refused to hear lawsuits filed against the maker of tainted infant formula. Although some lawyers and judges are working hard to establish the power of courts in China, companies that make shoddy goods rarely are held liable there, the New York Times reports.…

Oct 17, 2008 6:30 PM CDT

Not Consulting Client Costs Md. Lawyer a Losing Malpractice Case

Although experts said Donald Sturgill didn’t have a viable medical malpractice claim for ailments he suffered after being treated and released for a boating accident, his lawyer managed to get him a $15,000 settlement. That proved to be a costly experience for attorney Robert Joyce and his former employer, the…

Oct 15, 2008 11:53 PM CDT

MRI May Show Nothing, Even If Patient is Injured

Just because an MRI shows nothing wrong doesn’t mean the test is right. So patients who are in significant pain should seek a second opinion regardless of whether an initial magnetic resonance imaging test indicates they are fine, physicians tell the New York Times in an article that should be…

Oct 14, 2008 10:32 PM CDT

Tobacco Lawyer Hits Judge for Copying U.S. Arguments—Including Typos

A tobacco lawyer claims in an appellate brief that a federal judge who ordered cigarette makers to stop using “light” descriptions for cigarettes copied government language in her 2006 opinion—including two of its typographical errors. Arnold & Porter partner David Eggert claims in his brief that U.S. District Judge Gladys…

Oct 14, 2008 2:16 PM CDT

NY Appeals Court Tosses Conviction of PI Law Firm and Name Partner

A New York appeals court has overturned the conviction of a personal injury law firm and one of its name partners for conspiring to defraud insurance companies. The court said there was insufficient evidence against the law firm Silverman & Taylor in Freeport, N.Y., and against name partner Daivery Taylor,…

Oct 10, 2008 4:09 PM CDT

Teens’ Parents Claim 2006 VW Beetle Was ‘Unreasonably Dangerous’

After one Texas teen was killed and another paralyzed in a rollover accident, their parents are suing the manufacturer of their 2006 Volkswagen Beetle. The vehicle was “unreasonably dangerous,” contend Earl and Juanita McGilvra and Michael Kitchings and his daughter, Ashley, in the federal court product liability suit, which seeks…

Oct 7, 2008 6:38 PM CDT

Final Answer for Victim’s Family in Boston ‘Big Dig’ Death: $28M

The family of a 38-year-old woman who was crushed to death in 2006 when a portion of the so-called “Big Dig” tunnel ceiling collapsed in Boston will get $28 million in settlements, after reaching an agreement with the remaining defendants in the wrongful death case. “Milena Del Valle’s family agreed…

Oct 1, 2008 8:06 PM CDT

Florida Family Files Tort Claim Over Delayed Worker’s Comp Benefits

Blinded in a workplace shooting four years ago that killed several others, 34-year-old Jamie Dolan also reportedly suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and panic attacks. He has been awarded $1,300 a month in worker’s compensation benefits, plus medical expenses. But getting the latter has been a struggle, according to the…

Sep 30, 2008 6:35 PM CDT

Judge Says Raisinets, Not Damages, Are Option for Popcorn Plaintiff

Fat and calories aren’t the only hidden risks of movie theater popcorn. The unpopped kernels also post dental dangers, but that doesn’t mean the cinema has to pay for broken teeth, a Manhattan judge has ruled. Judge Matthew Cooper dismissed the suit by an insurance broker who sought more than…

Sep 30, 2008 1:54 PM CDT

Police Taser Naked New York City Man, Who Falls and Dies

Add another individual to the death toll related to Taser use: Several New York police officers are facing potential disciplinary action after reportedly stunning a naked and incoherent man who was standing on a fire escape in Brooklyn wielding only an 8-foot fluorescent light tube. The man, 35-year-old Iman Morales,…

Sep 25, 2008 11:06 PM CDT

Divorce Drama: Kirkland Partner Sues Wife re Alleged Affair & STD

Private equity partner Frederick Tanne of Kirkland & Ellis was already expecting a difficult year because of the market slowdown. But now it’s clearly gotten worse. The 48-year-old New York lawyer has sued his wife, Amy, 46, in Manhattan Supreme Court, contending that she gave him a sexually transmitted disease…

Sep 22, 2008 8:19 PM CDT

Tort Suits Claim Chinese Chairs are Toxic

Sitting in an armchair or lying on a sofa isn’t ordinarily considered a hazardous activity. But for well over 1,000 people in several European countries, it allegedly was. After the Chinese manufacturer of furniture distributed by a French company put extra packets of a chemical mold retardant, customers began reporting…

Sep 19, 2008 6:50 PM CDT

Judge Awards Ferry Victim $18M, But Cuts Lawyer’s Contingent Fee

A New York federal judge has awarded a record $18.3 million to the most seriously injured victim of the 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash, but slashed the contingent fee due his lawyer from one-third of the award to 20 percent. The victim, James McMillan, was a former fish market worker…

Sep 18, 2008 3:50 PM CDT

Tobacco Makers Sift Through Thousands of Documents in $1B Hospital Suit

A 10-year-old lawsuit filed by Missouri hospitals against cigarette makers seeking $1 billion for the cost of treating tobacco-related illnesses has been stalled in discovery. The tobacco companies are sifting through tens of thousands of records for indigent patients provided by more than 30 hospitals under a court order, the…

Sep 15, 2008 5:54 PM CDT

LA Train Crash Kills 25, Cause Unclear

Amidst conflicting accounts of what may have caused a head-on train collision in suburban Los Angeles that killed 25 and injured more than 130 others on Friday, two teens told a local television station that they had been text-messaging with one of the train engineers just before the crash. Although…

Sep 15, 2008 4:03 PM CDT