Practice Areas

• Auto Accidents
• Truck Accidents
• Wrongful Death and Fatal Accidents
• Motorcyle Accidents
• Bicycle Accidents
• Slip and Fall/Premises Liability

News

• More Cable Barriers To Be Installed On Kentucky Highways
  Additional cable barriers are to be installed on Kentucky highways to prevent crossover accidents
• New Auto Designs May Help Reduce Pedestrian Injuries and Fatalities
  This is an article outlining the recent and potential changes in automotive design to help reduce injuries and fatalities in pedestrian accidents.
• Inaccurate M.R.I.s May Cause Further Damage
  This is an article that explains what an MRI is and how it works. Also, it shows how mistakes can be made in performing the test and reading the results.
• Recent Study Shows Seven Ways to Enhance Jury Trial Process
  In a recent study seven different concepts were tested to see if they enhanced the jury trial process.
• New Warning Systems to Help Prevent Auto Accidents
  Several automobile manufacturers now have advanced warning systems available in an effort to prevent serious and fatal automobile accidents.
• Study Suggests That Plaintiffs Are Better Off Avoiding Trial - Is This Correct?
  A soon to be released study published in the New York Times suggests that Plaintiffs should avoid trial in civil litigation and accept the offers made by the insurance company. This may or may not be true depending on the facts and circumstances of a particular case.
• Allstate Tops AAJ List of Worst Insurance Companies
  Your car accident settlement may be affected by the insurance company of the car that caused the accident. The American Justice Asocciation releases is list of the worst insurance companies for consumers.
• Medicare Fraud May Make Medicare Reductions More Difficult
  Fraudulent payments by medicare for bills submitted using the names of deceased dotors may make medicare reimbursemnt for accident victims harder to negotiate
• Plasma Disc Decompression
  Plasm Disc Decompression offers car accident victims with bulging discs alternative to traditional surgery
• Students Injured in Bus Accident
  Alabama bus crash may help raise seat belt issue
• Two Deaths on Louisville Roadways to End June
  Two Fatalities to End June on Louisville Roads as a pedestrian is struck and killed and a driver is also killed in an intersection accident.

More Cable Barriers To Be Installed On Kentucky Highways

The installation of median cable barriers that will prevent crossover
motor vehicle accidents continue to span onto more Kentucky highways thanks to an
announcement by Gov. Steve Beshear.  The cable barriers that have
already been installed on Interstates, 64, 265 and 71 in Jefferson and
Oldham as well as the one in Fayette County on New Circle Road have
apparently prevented almost 300 crossover car and truck accidents since
2006. With the additional barriers more accidents should be prevented.

 When cars or trucks go through the median into oncoming traffic there are usually deadly and horrific results. The oncoming car has little or no chance to avoid a vehicle that is coming from a lane in the opposite direction.
 
The five sections of highway are due for the cable installation were
determined by analysts who studied crash data to find the area with the
highest needs.  One of the areas getting the barriers is a 10.2 mile
stretch of the Gene Snyder Freeway between Interstate 65 and Dixie
Highway in the Louisville area, which is the only area of the Gene Snyder Freeway
that doesn't currently have the barriers.  Bullitt, Hardin, Hart and Barren counties wil also have barriers installed on sections of I-65. These areas have been determined to be some of the most dangerous in Kentucky.

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New Auto Designs May Help Reduce Pedestrian Injuries and Fatalities

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) January1st and October 31st are the two most deadly days of the year for pedestrian fatalities.  Autumn is the season for the highest rate of pedestrian fatalities.  The three hour time period between the hours of 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. is the highest rate of any other three hour time frame for pedestrian fatalities.  Friday and Saturday have higher fatality rates than any other day of the week.  One in five pedestrians killed were killed in hit and run crashes.  This report also states that pedestrian fatalities have decreased in the past ten years from 13% to 11% of motor vehicle deaths.  Part of the reason for the decline is vehicle designs have changed in recent years to reduce injuries when a car collides with a pedestrian.

While automakers have made several advancements to protect the safety of the occupants inside the vehicle they are now focusing on the safety of the people outside the vehicles.  This trend was prompted in part by safety standards in cars being manufactured overseas.  Since cars are being sold overseas car manufacturers want their cars to meet and many global standards as possible.

Studying pedestrian accidents is more challenging that it seems.  Most pedestrian are hit with the front of the vehicle but there are several factors that determine what will happen after the impact.  The size of the vehicle as well as the size of the pedestrian can have different results making a comprehensive study more difficult.  An example would be if a high profile car, like an SUV, hits a pedestrian it will likely mean the impact will occur higher on the body.  Another of the many factors is the position of the leg.  This will determine whether their body will go forward or backward.  Speed is another consideration.  If the driver doesn’t brake the pedestrian will likely end up on the hood of the car but if the driver brakes they will likely end up under the vehicle. 

Some of the changes in vehicle design have been obvious changes to help lower pedestrian injury.  These include hood ornaments are either imbedded in the grill or designed to collapse.  Exterior mirror are now on springs and door handles are recessed.  All of these design changes can reduce injury to a pedestrian who has been hit.  Another less obvious change is hood designs.  Most cars manufactured in the U.S. have braces that support the hood that will collapse when impacted from above.  Engine covers are made of plastic to further soften the blow.  Some vehicles have also increased the amount of space between the hood and engine cover.

A major area of concern that is proving to be a challenge for car makers is the front bumper.  In Europe and Asia where there are many more pedestrians they have designed bumpers with more crush space.  Unfortunately these bumpers don’t do as well in crash tests and can interfere with the sensors that trigger air bag deployment.  A solution being implemented by Toyota is bumpers with a high density foam which is behind a plastic bumper cover.

There will be more design changes in the future that will undoubtedly lead to more pedestrian safety standards in the autos made in the U.S.  On average, 13 pedestrians are killed which averages out to around one death every two hours.

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Inaccurate M.R.I.s May Cause Further Damage

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive way to take internal pictures of the body.

Unlike X-Rays and Computed Tomographic (CT) scans, which use radiation, the MRI uses powerful magnets and radio waves. The MRI scanner contains a magnet. The magnetic field produced by an MRI is about 10 thousand times greater than the earth's.

The magnetic field forces hydrogen atoms in the body to line up in a certain way (similar to how the needle on a compass moves when you hold it near a magnet). When radio waves are sent toward the lined-up hydrogen atoms, they bounce back, and a computer records the signal. Different types of tissues send back different signals. For example, healthy tissue sends back a slightly different signal than cancerous tissue.

Single MRI images are called slices. The images can be stored on a computer or printed on film. The width of the slice can affect the quality of the image produced.

An MRI can easily be performed through clothing. However, because the magnet is very, very strong, certain types of metal can cause significant errors, called artifacts, in the images.

MRI’s have been regarded as a highly effective way to get information on internal issues in the body. They have been used for years as evidence of injuries caused by an auto accident. The most common injury from a car accident found would be a bulging or herniated disc.

The accuracy of the MRI may not be as fool proof as we have been lead to believe.  An MRI reading my indicate that there is not a problem , a negative MRI, but in actuality there is a problem that is not detected.  

Jim Glanz with The New York Times reported that he had an MRI after a fall and the scan showed nothing except bulging disks .  He was told that bulging disks were normal to people in his age group.  He was instructed to do neck exercises.  He followed the exercise regime and eventually felt better.  A year later he fell again and suffered the same symptoms but they were more painful and debilitating.  The symptoms didn’t lessen so he had another MRI which showed a nerve impingement that was diagnosed as serious enough to cause paralysis if he did not have surgery to widen four to five vertebrae and free the trapped nerves.

There are many explanations as to why scans can render such diverse results.  MRI’s are performed by Radiology centers which then send the reports to the doctors.  Doctors can never be sure if the MRI was done well, interpreted well or if the machine being used is the most current available. Also, the manner that the scan was performed can affect the results. If the width of the picture slice is too wide it might be hard to read. Some companies don’t even take an MRI of the entire spine if a cervical, lumbar or thoracic MRI is ordered. They set gaps between the slices. This cuts down on the time required to complete the MRI, but it also creates inaccuracies since there are no images of the gaps. If the disc herniation falls within the gap there would be no image of it. The thought is that more MRI’s can be scheduled by reducing the time required for each MRI. Meaning more profits for the testing facility and inaccurate test results for the patient.

Some questions to ask before having a MRI is whether the radiology center is accredited by the American College of Radiology.  Ask for details of the machine being used and be aware of what the latest machines are capable of showing. Also ask what settings are used on the machine and if there are any gaps. Lastly, ask who is going to be reading your scan.  Make sure it is someone who reads MRIs of that particular area.  If you are having an MRI on your chest and a person who reads musculoskeletal images daily reads your chest scan they may miss something that a person who reads chest scans daily may catch.

Even if you do all of the research and are comfortable with the radiology center and you have a negative MRI but still experience symptoms please get a second opinion.  Pain is one of the ways our body tells us something is not right.  What our body is telling us is usually the most accurate indication of issues.

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Recent Study Shows Seven Ways to Enhance Jury Trial Process

In a study conducted by the 7^th Circuit Bar Association seven concepts were tested to see if they enhanced the jury trial process.  The project tests began in October of 2005 and ran through April of 2008. They studied 50 civil jury trials and reviewed the survey results. The surveys were submitted by 434 jurors, 86 lawyers and 22 judges who were all participants in the trials.

The seven concepts that were tested are :

• allowing jurors to ask questions of the witnesses during the trial
• limiting presentations by lawyers
• providing jurors with preliminary instructions before evidence has been presented (the instructions are the law of the case given by the court to the jury before deliberations)
• using 12 person juries in civil trials (In Kentucky state courts we use 12 person juries. Only 9 jurors must agree for a verdict)
• allowing lawyers to make statements to the jury between witnesses during the evidence phase of the trial
• having jurors fill out questionnaires for the jury selection process
• providing jurors with guidance about how to conduct their deliberations

The conclusions reached indicated that all involved in the trials, the judges, attorneys and jurors, found the concepts to be effective in aiding juror understanding and satisfaction of the trial process.

More than three-quarters of the jurors reported that being able to submit written questions to the witnesses aided in their understanding of the facts being presented. Also, more than three-quarters of the jurors found that having preliminary instructions helped in their understanding of the case.

The judges involved in the cases indicated that the jurors having the ability to ask questions and having preliminary instructions increased the fairness of the trial and did not reduce the efficiency. The 7^th Circuit Bar Association American Jury Project Commission has recommended the use of both concepts.

Many of the Judges in Jefferson Circuit Court allow the jury to ask questions. This is usually after both attorneys have finished questioning the witness. At this time any juror wishing to ask a question would right it down and hand it to the Sheriff. The sheriff would give the written question to the judge. At this time the attorneys would be called to the bench and advised of the question outside of the hearing of the jury and asked if they had any objections to the question. If there were no objections the Judge would read the question to the witness and the witness would answer. The attorneys would be given the opportunity to ask follow up questions.

Although this procedure might seem cumbersome it works very well. It gives the juror the chance to ask questions on anything that is not clear to them. They are thus better informed and a better juror. It also allows the attorney to get into the mind of the jury. This is helpful in forming trial strategy.

I have never been involved in a trial where preliminary instructions are read to the jury before the evidence has been presented. the instructions are normally given by the Court to the Jury at the close of all evidence and after the closing arguments. I would think this would be helpful. The jurors are to deliberate where they will apply the law to the facts as presented in court. Knowing the law before the end of the case would be helpful to a jury, allowing them to focus on more important elements of proof. In any civil trial whether it is an auto, motorcycle or truck accident trial or a wrongful death trial, there are many elements to consider and having this guide could be very beneficial.

I have not heard whether Kentucky is looking at formally adopting any of these procedures state wide. It is normally left to the discretion of the individual trial court. I will have to consider making a motion for preliminary instructions being read to the jury. We have the best system in the world, but there is room for improvement. I am glad that there are studies ongoing to find ways that may improve the jury trial system.

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New Warning Systems to Help Prevent Auto Accidents

There are several new systems that are coming on the market that will help prevent accidents while driving.  The technology is very advanced and not available for every make and model of cars but will soon become an industry standard.  This new phase of technology has been created to help drivers prevent accidents.  Many of the luxury-vehicle makers are now marketing advanced warning system for some of the automobiles in their line.

Volvo now has what is called a Blind Spot Information System.  This system uses outside cameras to alert drivers as to when other cars are in their blind spot.  It will activate an amber light on the left front window pillar to let the driver know.

Mercedez-Benz now has what is called Distronic Plus system which uses both long and short range radar systems to distance the driver from moving vehicles ahead.  It will alert the driver using chimes if they are closing in too quickly.  It also will prepare the car for a collision by tensing up the seatbelts and cueing up the airbags.  If the driver does not respond the system will begin to brake the car up to 40%.  Once the driver responds the system will relinquish its power back to the driver.

Infiniti has what is called Lane Departure Prevention.  This feature will physically prevent the vehicle from drifting if the driver does not intend to.  The system determines this by recognizing if the car is passing over a lane line when the turn signal is not used. This feature will then apply the brakes on the opposite side of the vehicle which will ease the vehicle back into the lane.

BMW is now offering a Lane Departure Warning which essentially will determine the same as Infiniti’s Lane Departure Prevention.  The difference is the steering wheel will rumble to alert the driver of the lane crossing. Also, it will not activate the brakes and has the option of being turned off.

Lexus now has what is called Pre-Collision System.  This system has cameras mounted on the front of the vehicle and can sense when a frontal collision is possible and will tighten the seatbelts and boost the brakes.  Once the driver responds the action is relaxed.

Even with every warning system installed there will always be the potential for automobile accidents because the driver has no control over the actions of the other drivers on the road.   That issue and uncontrollable factors, such as weather, will always put a driver at risk for automobile accidents.  Be as safe as you can once you hit the road.

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Study Suggests That Plaintiffs Are Better Off Avoiding Trial - Is This Correct?

The age old question for a plaintiff attorney is whether to advise your client to accept the offer made by the insurance company or roll the dice and take the case to trial. S this the best and highest offer you are going to get? Is it the bird in the hand or two in the bush? In the past I have used my own experiences along with the jury verdicts reports of trials with similar fact situations and injuries to determine the value of the case. Other intangible items such as the type of witness the plaintiff will make or their jury appeal are also considered. Now there has been a study in New York as to how well plaintiffs and defendants in civil lawsuits did when they elected to go to trial and reject the final offer made.

The results of a soon to be released study that has been reported in The New York Times suggest that plaintiffs in civil lawsuits are better off when they settle their case and should avoid going to trial. The study reports statistics that show a majority of plaintiffs who take their case trial do not get the verdict they had hoped for. More times than not, the verdict does not exceed the last offer of settlement made by the defendant.

The statistics in the study were compiled by Randall Kiser, who is principal analyst at DecisionSet, a consulting firm that advises clients on litigation decisions. The Results of the study is based upon data compiled as to when Defendants and Plaintiffs make the wrong decision in going to trial. These statistics were obtained from analyzing approximately 2,054 New York case over a 40 year period ending in 2004. According to the study Defendants are wrong when they decide to proceed to trial 24 percent of the time. The Plaintiffs did not fare as well being wrong 61 percent of the time.

An interesting statistic that is reported to be in the study was that in 15 percent of cases where the parties could not agree on a settlement both sides benefited by going to trial. The defendant is said to have won by getting a jury verdict less than the plaintiff asked for. The plaintiff is considered a winner by getting a jury verdict that exceeded the defendant's final offer of settlement.

Estimates based upon statistics in the study state somewhere between 80 to 92 % of cases settle. The study questions the motives of lawyers in proceeding to trial, suggesting a financial motivation. The financial motivation on the part of the defense attorney could be in the form of additional hours which can be billed on the case. This means a higher fee. For the plaintiff attorney, I don’t believe that the financial motivation would be that easy to pin point since it is a risk reward situation. That is they may get a larger verdict and therefore a larger fee, but they also may get a smaller verdict and a smaller fee or even a zero verdict that would mean no fee at all.

In my opinion financial motivation would not affect the attorney's decision making process in deciding whether to proceed to trial. Most defense attorneys I know are over worked and have more cases than they have time for. They would rather settle within the settlement authority they have from the insurance company than take the risk of going to trial and the plaintiff getting a verdict larger than that authority amount. If this was done often I believe the insurance company would be looking for a new attorney.

There are insurance companies that have policies of making low offers of settlement or forcing the plaintiff to trial. In these cases the decision making is in the hands of the insurance adjuster not the defense attorney.

As for a plaintiff's attorney, they will advise their client to go to trial if that is in the client's best interest. This decision is made by evaluating verdicts from cases with similar fact situations and from that attorney's own experience. Unfortunately, there is no crystal ball or hard fast formula for determining a cases' true value. This is why it is important to get advice from an attorney who concentrates their practice in the area of law that is your case. The attorney's experience is a critical factor in the decision making process. Make sure your attorney is frank with you in his opinion of your case and you will have better odds of making the right decision for you. This will keep you from becoming a negative statistic.

It will be interesting to look at this study and evaluate the raw data. As with any study, the types of cases used, the lawyers involved, the judges involved and the laws of the state where the study was conducted can all have an effect on the results.

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Allstate Tops AAJ List of Worst Insurance Companies

What are your chances of success if you have been injured in a car accident and that injury is diagnosed by your doctor as a soft tissue or whiplash injury? Many times it is dependant upon the insurance company that insures the car that hit the car you were in. Historically there are some insurance companies that make lower or what might be considered less reasonable offers on this types of cases. Yhe luck of the draw , so too speak, will effect whether the process of the personal injury claim is a smooth or rocky road for you.

The American Association for Justice last week released a report with a list of the  worst insurance companies in the United States for the consumer. At the head of the list was Allstate. The list is for those insurance companies who refuse to pay just claims, employ hardball tactics against policyholders, reward executives with extravagant salaries, and raise premiums while hoarding excessive profits. The top five offenders were:

             1. Allstate

             2. Unum

             3. AIG

             4. State Farm

             5. Coseco

The report was compiled over a six month period using information obtained from court documents, SEC and FBI records, state insurance department investigations and complaints, nationwide news accounts, and testimony of former insurance agents and adjusters. Allstate blames trial lawyers for making unreasonable demands, indicating that the tactics used are an effort to resist those demands.

People injured in car accidents have had a hard time reaching a reasonable setlement for what have been described as low impact soft tissue injuries or whiplash claims. Often these injuries do not show up on testing and it is only the injured party's word that is proof of the pain and injuy itself. Many insurance companies have succesfully targeted this type of claim with lower offers of settlement. Hardball tactics on these types of claims is hoped to force an injured person to take a low settlement offer. Often the only alternative for the injured inthis case is to file a lawsuit and take their case to trial.

Read More About Allstate Tops AAJ List of Worst Insurance Companies...

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Medicare Fraud May Make Medicare Reductions More Difficult

Medicare apparently over $92 million in fraudulent bills since 2000 to medical suppliers who sent in bills home medical equipment. The billing was done under the names of doctors who had been dead for as long as five years ccording to reports of investigators. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) was advised of the problem approximately six years ago. It looks like the problem has not been corrected. In the past eight years CMS has apparently paid somewhere in the neighborhood of hlf a million of these claims.

The Medicare Fraud Strike Force came into existence last year with the purpose of solving the problem. It is estimated that this fraudulent billing costs taxpayers tens of billions of dollars every year.

I believe this issue of fraudulent billing makes it much more difficult to obtain reduction from CMS for thos injured in motor vehicle accidents. Medical bills related to injuries sustained in a car accident paid by Medicare must be reimbursed by the accident victim if they receive a settlement or a jury award in their personal injury case. This lien or right to subrogation or reimbursement must be repaid. It is primary. Medicare has the right to file a lawsuit to collect the money if it is not repaid. 

This fraudulent billing appears to be wide spread. I suspect that it will become more difficult than it already is to obtain reductions in these lien amounts for deserving people who have been injured in automobile accidents.

 

 

 

 

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Plasma Disc Decompression

Plasma Disc Decompression is described as a new option for people who have suffered  a back injury, usually a bulging or herniated disc, in a car or truck accident. If an accident victim has not responded to conservative care in the past a traditional back surgery was the only option. These surgeries included spinal fusions and disectomies. The results can not be guarenteed and the recovery period is extensive and painful.

In many cases Plasma Disc Decompression may be the alternative to the more invasive back surgery. It is described as a minimally invasive procedure that allows you to go home on the same day of the procedure. The procedure is performed under x-ray guidance place a passage way into the disc. A small pathway is made into the disc and a a device is inserted through the surgical port into the center of the injured disc.

Nucleus tissue is removed from the disc to relieve pressure on the outside membrane of the disc. The hope is that the removal of this material will allow the bulge to recede. Hopefully the disc will no longer irritate the nerve root that is the cause of the pain after the procedure. It is said that the procedure takes less than an hour.you are able to go home after a few hours.

 It is my understanding that the procedure is now available in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. Having this option available gives the personal injury attorney handling a back  injury case  another option topresent to their client to explore. Should you be suffering from a bulging or herniated disc this is a procedure you may want to get more information on.

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Students Injured in Bus Accident

On Sunday June 30, 2008 in Dothan, Alabama a bus carrying students from Centenary United Methodist Church out of Lexington, KY was involved in an accident.  The bus was part of a three bus caravan taking 70  middle and high school students to a church camp in Panama City, FL.  Two children in the pickup were in critical condition and the driver of the truck was also hospitalized.  Sixteen of the students were among thos taken to an area hospital for treatment.Also hospitalized were the bus driver, his wife and an adult chaperone.  It was reported that many of thestudents were very shaken and disturbed. 

This type of accident makes me wonder whether it is time for Kentucky to visit the question as to whether seat belts should be required on school buses and mass transportation buses.  It is unfortunate that tragedy such as this on the 20 year anniversary of the Carrolton bus crash have to occur before any action is taken. Safety of our children should be a priority. I can only speculate as to whether seatbelts would have prevented or limited many of the injuries sustained in this accident. I have seen many people on school buses and city buses that were invoved in an accident that were injured when they were thrown out of their seat or propelled into the seat in front of them. This is a debate that has gone on for years. The issue is far from resolved.

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Two Deaths on Louisville Roadways to End June

Two deaths occurred on Louisville Roads to end the month of June. In the morning hours of Friday, June 28, 2008. The accident apparently occurred around 4:00 am when the driver of a Ford Explorer ran a red light and slammed into a Mitsubishi. The accident occured at the intersection of Taylorsville Road and Chenoweth Run in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. It is believed that the driver of the Explorer  died at the scene of the accident. One of the passengers of the Explorer was trapped under the wreckage and had to be flown by a medical helicopter to University Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. The driver of the Mitsubishi as well as a second passenger in the Explorer was taken by ambulance to the hospital emergency room for treatment and evaluation. At this point police believe alcohol may have been a factor in the crash. This accident underscores the importance of proceeding cautiously through intersections, even when you believe that you have the right of  way. Most intersection accidents that I have seen could have been avoided by looking both ways as one enters an intersection.

Joe Lowe, a 56-year-old Louisville man who was apparently crossing Jefferson Street near 15th Street in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky when he was hit Saturday night by an unidentified car.  He was transported to University Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky where he apparently died while in surgery from multiple blunt-force injuries he suffered in the auto accident. The exact details of the crash were not available as of Sunday. The coroner's office is looking for Lowe's next of kin. If you have any information that would be helpful please contact the Louisville Metro Police Department. As gas prices continue to ris more and more people will be walking or riding bicycles to get to their destinations. Please use extra caution in areas where pedestrians may be, especially around the twilight hours.

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