Injury & Accident Law

Federal Judge Loses Escalator Injury Suit, Lawyer Cites Bias

The lawyer for a federal judge who lost a $21 million lawsuit for an escalator injury is blaming bias against the judiciary for the verdict. California jurors deliberated only two hours before ruling against U.S. District Judge George Schiavelli of Los Angeles, who said he was injured when a shopping…

Feb 26, 2008 2:29 PM CST

Supreme Court Denies Cert in Consolidated West Virginia Tobacco Cases

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal that sought to stop the consolidation of more than 1,000 lawsuits against tobacco companies in West Virginia. The cert petition by four tobacco companies asked the court to intervene before March 18, the date that the first phase of the…

Feb 25, 2008 4:14 PM CST

Judge Sues Man Who Pleaded Guilty to Shooting at Him

Judge Chuck Weller of Reno, Nev., has sued the man who pleaded guilty to injuring him by firing a shot through his courthouse window in 2006. Weller says in his suit that he suffers post-traumatic stress as a result of the attack, which left him and his secretary with shrapnel…

Feb 25, 2008 1:34 PM CST

Riegel Will Affect Many—But Not All—Medical Device Suits

Lawyers representing plaintiffs in lawsuits alleging injuries for medical devices were bracing for waves of dismissal motions after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Wednesday. The court ruled in Riegel v. Medtronic that manufacturers of medical devices winning a rigorous pre-market approval from the Food and Drug Administration cannot be sued…

Feb 22, 2008 4:50 PM CST

Administration Pushes Pre-Emption Following High Court Victory

The Bush administration saw its stance on federal pre-emption validated in yesterday’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling barring lawsuits against the makers of preapproved medical devices. Now it will seek to expand the ruling in a new case relating to drug company liability. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled yesterday in Riegel…

Feb 21, 2008 3:38 PM CST

Company to Pay $5.2M Settlement in Cell Phone Crash Case

International Paper Co. has agreed to pay $5.2 million to a driver who lost her arm in a crash caused by an employee who had been talking on a cell phone. The injured driver, Debra Ford, had alleged she was rear-ended when the employee was talking on a company-supplied cell…

Feb 13, 2008 2:48 PM CST

Merck Agrees to $650M Settlement in Medicaid Health Care Fraud Case

Without admitting liability, Merck & Co. has agreed to pay a total of more than $650 million to plaintiffs including the federal government, 49 states and the District of Columbia, to settle allegations that the pharmaceutical company engaged in health care fraud by violating Medicaid rules. The settlement, according to…

Feb 7, 2008 9:30 PM CST

Judge Cuts $11M Award to $5M in Funeral Picketing Case

A federal judge has upheld the $2.9 million in compensatory damages awarded to the father of a fallen U.S. Marine whose funeral was picketed by a fringe Kansas church. But he has cut a Baltimore federal jury’s award of $8 million in punitive damages to $2.1 million, reducing the total…

Feb 5, 2008 10:44 PM CST

BP Pleads Guilty in Texas Refinery Explosion That Killed 15

A federal judge in Houston is one step closer to approving a criminal plea deal by petroleum giant BP concerning a 2005 explosion at a Texas refinery that killed 15 and injured more than 170. BP entered a guilty plea today, but U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal hasn’t yet decided…

Feb 5, 2008 12:03 AM CST

Fosamax Cases Build Against Merck

Merck & Co. is facing an increasing number of lawsuits over its osteoporosis drug Fosamax, even as it has announced a possible $4.85 billion settlement of claims related to its painkiller Vioxx. The roughly 340 Fosamax suits filed as of Sept. 30 claim the drug can cause a bone-wasting condition…

Jan 30, 2008 5:04 PM CST

Anger Over $500M ‘Big Dig’ Settlement

News of an apparent $400 million settlement that concludes a potential criminal case against the project manager of a controversial Boston tunnel project has sparked anger among Massachusetts residents. The approximately $400 million to be paid by Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff is part of a $500 million civil settlement with the state…

Jan 23, 2008 7:06 PM CST

Vioxx Settlement Amended to Allow Attorney Advice to Clients

Attorneys overseeing a proposed $4.85 billion settlement with Merck & Co. over its withdrawn Vioxx drug have reportedly amended a controversial provision that could have required some plaintiffs’ lawyers to advise all or none of their clients to take the deal. Initially, some attorneys expressed concern about language barring lawyers…

Jan 18, 2008 11:12 PM CST

Mass. Judge Sues Over Injury on Courthouse Steps

Judges in Massachusetts don’t qualify for workers’ compensation. So, after Paul Chernoff fell on some jagged steps at the Norfolk Superior Courthouse in Dedham and fractured his knee, the jurist eventually decided he had no choice but to sue to get someone to take responsibility for his injuries. The judge,…

Jan 17, 2008 11:43 PM CST

Homeless Man Sues Calif. Hospital Over Patient Dumping

A paraplegic man has filed a tort claim against a Southern California hospital, seeking damages for being dumped, without a wheelchair, on a local skid row in a condition in which he allegedly could not care properly for himself. The February incident, which was recorded on a nearby video camera…

Jan 17, 2008 7:42 PM CST

Defendant Claims Miami Law Firm Paid for Settlement Info

A defendant cruise line has filed motions seeking to disqualify a Miami plaintiffs firm from pursuing 75 pending claims by passengers and workers, contending that the Wingate Law Firm retained two investigators who paid a cruise line employee to provide confidential settlement information. The investigators allegedly paid a Royal Caribbean…

Jan 16, 2008 8:02 PM CST