Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer - Miscellaneous - Most Commented

Pet Food Recall--Cat and Dog Food Causes Kidney Failure and Death

Michael Myers — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 22:18:48 GMT

Menu Foods--with plants in the United States and Canada--has announced an extremely broad recall of cat and dog food (specifically, the "cuts and gravy" variety which dcomes in cans and small foil pouches).

The recall covers over 60 million containers of wet pet food. The recall was announced after reports of kidney failure and at least 10 deaths.

The pet food was sold by stores operated by the Kroger Company, Safeway Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and PetSmart Inc. More information can be obtained at the Menu Foods Pet Food Recall site. Menu Foods manufacturers for 85 percent of the leading North American retailers including Iams.

If you have a pet that has been sick and/or died as a result of eating contaminated pet food please contact one of our attorneys now to see how we could help you out during this tragic situation. With mounting vets bills and other expenses, you should not be held responsible for someone else's negligence in placing contaminated pet food into the market place. Contact us today by clicking the link above or filling out the form at right to see how we can help.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Don't Overplay Your Hand: Plaintiffs Frequently Make the Wrong Choice

Michael Myers — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:34:43 GMT

This summer the New York Times published an article about the choices made by individuals whether to settle their personal injury lawsuits and the typical outcome at trial following these decisions. The article indicated that typically individuals overestimated their likelihood of success at trial and end up doing worse financially as a result of trying the case than they would had they settled it.

The article goes on to discuss choices made by insurance companies and large corporations. Unlike the decision made by most individuals, entities with significant litigation experience typically make better choices and end up doing better at trial than they would have had they settled their cases.

The contrast between the decisions made by individuals and major corporate entities comes as little surprise. The choices made by individuals are more likely to be emotional and are almost uniformly based on information that is inferior (based on both on quantity and quality) to their adversary’s.

The reasons for this information gap between litigants are both simple and complex. It’s apparent that insurance companies, for example, are able to make actuarial decisions based on the outcomes hundreds of thousands of cases whereas even experienced counsel for individuals ends up making anecdotal assessments based on their handling of hundreds or thousands of cases as opposed to hundreds of thousands of cases on the part of the opposing insurance company. But beyond this quantity of reasons, there is also a qualitative heuristic that comes into play.

Individuals underestimate the likelihood of the probable happening (for example, smokers underestimate their likelihood of contracting lung cancer) and overestimate the possibility of the improbable happening (winning the lottery or being killed in a train accident).

In the context of personal injury cases injured people (oftentimes with the help of neighbors, relatives or sensationalistic news stories) overestimate the likelihood of not just winning but also winning a significant verdict and underestimate the odds that the opposing insurance company has accurately assessed the case.

There are obviously situations where too little money is offered and the case should be tried. We’ve blogged numerous times about recovering judgments that are 10, 20 and even 30 times the best offer made by the insurance company. But these are exceptions rather than the rule.

There are definitely times where it makes sense to go to trial. But in most cases it doesn’t make sense to go to trial and it does make sense to accurately assesses both the odds of prevailing at trial and the likely outcome at trial. In addition, the cost of going to trial must be factored into the calculus in order to determine what the injured person is likely to net.

These are my thoughts about the article and analysis of whether the majority of cases should go to trial or not. I would be interested to hear your input as I know quite a few people have views different from mine (particularly the “true believers” in the plaintiffs' bar that think every case should go to trial).

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Legal Malpractice Claims Expected to Rise in 2009. One Big Factor: Attorneys Practicing Outside their Core Areas

Michael Myers — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 10:22:52 GMT

Experts predict that the current economic downturn will give rise to an increasing number of legal malpractice lawsuits. Historically, claims against lawyers escalate during economic downturns.

There are several different reasons for the increase in malpractice claims: (1) assets lose value; (2) deals go sideways; and (3) attorneys start practicing outside of their core competence. This last reason is perhaps the most interesting.

Lawyers feeling economic pressure are more likely to retain work they would otherwise refer out to someone with more specific knowledge. We see this with increasing frequency when it comes to personal injury claims.

Instead of referring personal injury claims to personal injury attorneys, business and real estate and family law attorneys are starting to handle these claims to prop up their own sagging practices. This leads to a host of problems.

While personal injury claims can see simple on their faces, they are laced with complexities and really only can be competently handled by experienced practioners. There are just too many "hidden" traps for the occassional practitioner.

The bottom line for clients and attorneys is very much the same: make sure that personal injury cases are handled by personal injury attorneys. It's the best thing for the client and, in the long run, the best thing for the business or real estate or family law attorney who first speaks with the client.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

7 Year Old Boy Dies Off Cruise Ship

Mark McLean — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 12:28:23 GMT

A seven year old boy was killed in a jet ski accident during a cruise vacation in the Bahamas recently. Interestingly, Royal Caribbean claims that it holds no responsibility since the accident occurred while the boy was on an excursion from the ship.

Most excursion tickets from cruise lines contain disclaimers that the cruise line is not liable for injuries that happen ashore. However, in most instances, the cruise lines are working hand-in-hand with the vendors (like the company that rented the boy the jet ski in this case). However, experienced attorneys can challenge (and overcome) these disclaimers in most situations.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section under Airline, Cruise, Bus and Other Mass Transit Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mark McLean

Medicaid--The Ahlborn Decision

Michael Myers — Tue, 30 May 2006 14:19:29 GMT

The Supreme Court just handed down a great decision for injured persons. The case is called Ahlborn. Ahlborn provides a very strong tool where there is (1) a large Medicaid lien and (2) inadequate insurance to fully compensate the injured person.

We just received a call from a young woman who had a $250,000 Medicaid lien. Unfortunately there was only $100,000 in insurance coverage and the insurance carrier would not pay her anything because of the Medicaid lien.

With the help of the Ahlborn decision she is now in the position to recover a significant portion of the insurance proceeds.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

New Law Could Limit Damages in Malpractice Claims

Michael Myers — Thu, 16 Mar 2006 05:47:11 GMT

On March 6, Governor Gregoire signed the medical malpractice compromise into law. This new law could have significant impacts on medical malpractice claims. For example, there will be voluntary arbitration, which would limit damages to $1 million and remove the right to a new trial if a party to the claim appeals the arbitration. The law goes into effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns.

If you think you, or someone close to you, has a medical malpractice claim, now is the time to contact a personal injury attorney.

For more information, please see: Gregoire signs malpractice compromise.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

More Hit and Run Collisions...This Time Bike Versus Pedestrian

Michael Myers — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:59:11 GMT

One of the attorneys in our office rides his bike to work every day. He doesn't own a car. He has some pretty strong opinions about Seattle drives (especially bus drivers).

But drivers aren't the only ones charged with obeying the traffic laws. Bicyclists have to follow them too.

King-5 News recently reported about a six year-old Seattle boy is home who may require reconstructive surgery after being struck by a hit and run bicyclist.

Noni Echo-Hawk-Lopez is a reserved boy to begin with, his parents said, but now he's not even allowed to talk because of a fractured and swollen jaw.

Doctors at Harborview Medical Center "had to completely wire his jaw shut," said his mother, Abigail Echo-Hawk.

Fortunately in this case the bicyclist was detained by witnesses before he could get away.

I'm unaware of any insurance companies that sell liability policies for bicyclists (the same way liability policies are sold for motor vehicles). But there are two valuable sources of insurance coverage if you're injured by a bicyclist: renters and homeowners insurance. Both cover negligent acts by an insured and it may well be that the rider who injured Noni lives in a home, condo or apartment where there is coverage.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Kitsap Naval Base Injury Highlights Safety Issues

Michael Myers — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:27:59 GMT

Almost all construction site injuries are preventable. The Washington Department of Labor and Industries has promulgated an extensive and detailed set of rules regarding construction site safety. Contractors who follow these rules have few if any injured workers. Those who don't have significantly more on the job injuries.

KOMO News reported this morning that:

[A] 24-year-old contractor for Tutor-Saliba was working with a team moving concrete pylons when she somehow got trapped by one of them, injuring her legs, said a shipyard spokesperson.

The general contractor on a construction site is responsible for making sure that its workers are safe and that the workers of its subcontractors are safe. While the workers compensation statute limits claims that workers can bring directly against their employers, employees of subcontractors have the right to sue general contractors for failing to follow safety guidelines and provide a safe workplace.

There are numerous regulations in the Washington Administrative Code designed to prevent crush injuries. It is unclear whether they were followed at the Kitsap Naval Base.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Cruise Ships--The H2 of the Sea

Michael Myers — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:08:11 GMT

There's a close relationship between boats and the environment. Marketing materials--particularly for cruise ships--show vessels in pristine blue waters with fish whales and dolphins in close proximity.

The New York Times ran an article this weekend regarding the damage cruise ships do to our oceans and coasts.

Cruise ships emit nearly twice as much carbon dioxide as airplanes. They pollute far more--per passenger, per mile--than airplanes.

According to environmentalists, carbon dioxide emissions are just a drop in the ocean when it comes to eco problems on luxury liners. Most ships run on so-called bunker fuel, the cheapest and dirtiest fuel oil, which not only powers the vessel, but also all the amenities on board: restaurants, swimming pools and nightclubs among them.

The Article indicates one-week voyage on a large ship is estimated to produce 210,000 gallons of sewage, a million gallons of gray water (runoff from sinks, baths, showers, laundry and galleys), 25,000 gallons of oily bilge water, 11,550 gallons of sewage sludge and more than 130 gallons of hazardous wastes.

I saw a bumper sticker the other day. It read: Your Hummer Looks Stupid. The cruise lines need to clean up their acts. If they don't I hope the weight of social pressure makes cruising as unacceptable as rolling in a big black H2 through the middle of Fremont.

On a one to one basis, cruise ships are going to pollute more than jet skis or Zodiacs. But the same concerns apply. We should make sure that we're smart about fuel consumption and waste when we're on the water. Boating safety means more than preventing personal injury or drowning. It also means not injuring the environment.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers

Holland America's Medical Personnel--Health Care Providers or Investigators?

Michael Myers — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:46:00 GMT

I’ve blogged about Holland America’s responsibility for the health care provided on board its ships. This blog is a little bit different.

I think everyone would agree that curative treatment should be a health care providers’ top priority. But review of the records in numerous Holland America cases suggests that health care providers on board Holland American vessels place equal emphasis on documenting facts that give Holland America a leg up on the passenger should the passenger file a claim.

Holland America providers also appear to be the first-line of the carrier’s risk management program. Not only are medical records peppered with comments designed to assist Holland America in subsequent litigation, but they also include assessments of whether the customer’s pain, disappointment of being injured, etc. will turn into an actual claim or lawsuit. For instance, it’s not uncommon to find in either medical records produced by the ship’s doctor or one of its nurses indicating that the patient has not mentioned “claim” or “suit” yet but that follow up with the passenger might be appropriate.

It seems only fair if Holland America is going to treat its medical personnel as independent contractors and disclaim liability for their negligence that they should in fact be true independent contractors and that medical records developed on board the vessel should not be available to Holland America except through discovery.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Myers