Geoffrey E. Schorr
The American Association for Justice has just reported that a Dallas area man received a verdict of $84.25 million dollars as a result of a personal injury lawsuit. Mr. Waldrip, a 73 year old resident of Dallas County, rented a moving truck from U-Haul to help his daughter move. After parking the U-Haul truck, Mr. Waldrip set the parking brake and exited the vehicle. Because of an alleged failure in the parking brake, the truck rolled backward, over Mr. Waldrip. Mr. Waldrip suffered severe personal injury and is now permanently disabled because of the personal injury.
The U-Haul truck was 18 years old with almost a quarter million miles. Mr. Waldrip alleged that U-Haul failed to properly maintain the vehicle. Mr. Waldrip’s attorneys introduced evidence at trial that six previous users complained about the parking brake, and that the complaints had been reported to U-Haul. Mr. Waldrip claimed, among other things, that U-Haul was negligent in maintaining and repairing its vehicles. U-Haul claimed that Mr. Waldrip was negligent, and denied that its trucks were unsafe.
The American Association for Justice reports that the Court reduced the punitive damages award from $63 million dollars to $26 million dollars to comply with the Texas State law that caps punitive damages. It is also reported that U-Haul plans an appeal.
If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of someone’s negligence, contact one of our personal injury attorneys at 1-866-456-0100.
Posted in
Personal Injury
Tags:
Negligence,
personal injury
Attorney Geoffrey E. Schorr
Changes in medical malpractice laws in Texas have greatly impacted victims of medical malpractice. In 2003, voters were mislead by politicians and lobbyists and voted for drastic medical malpractice reform. Voters were falsely informed that doctors would make a mass exodus from the state without malpractice reforms, and that medical malpractice suits were destroying the medical profession. Lobbyist groups, such as Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR), used their influence and resources to convince lawmakers to ask citizens to amend the Texas Constitution by reforming Texas medical malpractice laws. With false threats that doctors would flee the state, and false claims that medical malpractice lawsuits were hurting the medical profession, in 2003, Proposition 12 barely passed. As a result of its passage, the Texas Constitution was amended capping non-economic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits at $250,000. In other words, innocent victims of medical malpractice, no matter how devastating their injuries are from the acts and/or omissions of health care providers, can recover a maximum of $250,000 for pain and suffering and mental anguish. Because of the caps, victims who have little or no economic damages will have difficulty finding an attorney to represent them for medical malpractice. This is because medical malpractice lawsuits can cost from the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. With caps for damages in medical malpractice cases as low as they are, many lawfirms cannot justify spending large sums of money to prosecute medical malpractice lawsuits. The medical malpractice caps have punished most those who have no economic damages, such as lost wages. Therefore, the young and elderly, people who probably are not employed, can recover a maximum of $250,000, no matter the extent of their injuries.
An example of the devastating effects of Proposition 12 is the medical malpractice lawsuit of former Dallas Cowboys’ star, Ron Springs. Mr. Springs is diabetic and his diabetes attacked and destroyed his kidneys. In order to survive, Mr. Springs needed a kidney transplant. One of Mr. Springs’ former Dallas Cowboys’ teammates, Everson Walls, donated one of his kidneys to Mr. Springs. After the successful transplant, in a national feel-good story, Mr. Springs was pushed in his wheelchair onto the field at Texas Stadium before a 2007 Dallas Cowboys home game by his former teammate, friend and kidney donor, Everson Walls. Mr. Springs’ life had been saved, and his recovery was progressing daily.
Weeks after the successful transplant, Mr. Springs returned to Medical City Dallas to have a small, benign, fingernail sized, cyst removed from one of his arms. Mr. Springs flatlined on the operating table after the anesthesia had been administered. Mr. Springs has been in a coma ever since the procedure, and has very little, if any, brain activity. The anesthesiologist, who had only been in private practice for less than 30 days prior to Mr. Springs’ visit, has been sued by Mr. Springs’s family for medical malpractice. At the time of the procedure, Mr. Springs was retired, and, therefore, would have no claims for lost wages. If his attorneys are successful and prove that the anesthesiologist’s negligence caused Mr. Springs’ injuries, Mr. Springs’ non-economic damages will be capped at $250,000 - no matter how egregious the negligence, if any, may have been. Considering that Mr. Springs’ attorneys will likely spend around $75,000 to prosecute the case, and are probably representing Mr. Springs on a 40% contingency fee, even if the maximum amount was recovered for Mr. Springs, after expenses and attorneys fees, Mr. Springs’ estate would receive only approximately $75,000.
Therefore, the only ones benefiting from the current caps are those who are negligent (medical professionals) and those who pay money for their negligence (malpractice insurance companies). The caps certainly don’t benefit the innocent victims of medical malpractice, like Mr. Springs. Moreover, instead of detering medical professionals from committing medical malpractice, the caps deter innocent victims from filing medical malpractice claims. In fact, after the passage of Proposition 12, the number of medical malpractice lawsuits in Texas has drastically decreased. Without medical malpractice lawsuits, negligent medical professional have little accountability for acts of medical malpractice. Further, with a maximum exposure for medical malpractice of only $250,000, most negligent medical professionals have little incentive to stop committing medical malpractice.
Contact Schorr Law Firm toll free at 1-866-456-0100 or Visit Schorr Law’s Website
Posted in
Medical Malpractice
Tags:
Medical Malpractice,
Tort Reform
Attorney Geoffrey E. Schorr
Instances of nursing home neglect and abuse have been on the rise for decades. Of the more than 17,000 nursing homes in the United States, statistics show that more than 30% of them have high rates of abuse and neglect. Considering the fact that more than 1.6 million citizens depend on nursing homes to provide for their healthcare each year, incidents of neglect and abuse must be addressed. In 2003, USA Today reported that nearly half of all nursing home patients suffer from untreated pain. Another recent study found that almost 5000 death certificates for nursing home residents in 1999 listed starvation, dehydration or bedsores as the cause of death.
Nursing home negligence and abuse cannot be tolerated, and the rights of the numerous innocent victims of nursing home neglect and abuse must be upheld. It is imperative for family members to report suspected nursing home neglect and/or abuse to the proper authorities. Nursing home neglect and/or abuse can be manifested in different ways and it can result in a variety of injuries, including:
- Bed Sores
- Infections
- Falls
- Financial Abuse
- Fractures
- Malnutrition
- Dehydration
- Failure to Medicate & Monitor
- and injuries leading to Death
If you suspect that your loved one has been the innocent victim of nursing home abuse and/or neglect, contact Schorr Law Firm for a free consultation with one of our nursing home negligence attorneys.
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Posted in
Medical Malpractice
Tags:
Medical Malpractice,
Nursing home negligence
During the holiday season it is important to remember that car accidents occur at an alarming rate, and are especially prevalent during the holidays when many people travel out of town, and hurry around town in their vehicles running errands. Last year there was an estimated 6.2 million car accidents reported in the United States, with approximately 2.2 million reported injuries. Car accidents remain the number one cause of death for U.S. citizens between the ages of 4 and 34, and there are on average 40,000 car accident deaths reported per year. According to the NHTSA, in 2005 Dallas was rated the sixth most deadliest city for car accident related deaths. These above statistics make it likely that every year you, a relative or someone you know will be involved in a car accident.
Car accidents typically occur due to a driver’s negligence. A driver can be negligent in many ways, including: driving too fast, driving while intoxicated, driving recklessly, or by failing to pay attention while driving. Drivers are becoming more distracted while driving, especially with advances in technology. Many drivers operate their vehicles while eating, while talking on the phone, while texting, while watching television and by surfing the internet. Failure to timely react while operating a vehicle can lead to car accidents. If a driver is distracted, his or her reaction time may not be sufficient to avoid a car accident.
For car accident avoidance, drivers must adhere to the laws of the road, and keep distractions while driving to a minimum. To protect against injury in the event of a car accident, drivers and passengers must always buckle seatbelts, and consumers should purchase vehicles equipped with safety equipment, such as airbags. Also, it is imperative that children be placed in approved safety seats, and are properly restrained.
In the event of a car accident immediatley contact 911. If possible, safely remove your vehicle from the roadway. Make sure to get the other driver’s contact and insurance information. You should proceed to the nearest emergency room to make sure you or any passengers are free of serious injury. Finally, contact Dallas car accident attorneys at Schorr Law Firm, and we will assist you with your claims.
Contact Schorr Law Firm toll free at 1-866-456-0100 or Visit Schorr Law’s Website
Posted in
Personal Injury
Tags:
Car Accident,
personal injury
Welcome to Schorr Law’s blog! From time to time, we’ll add content that we believe will be helpful to you in understanding personal injury law, bankruptcy, family law, and medical malpractice.
If you ever have a question you need an answer on quick, please give us a call, toll-free, at (866) 456-0100.
-Geoffrey Schorr
www.schorrlaw.org
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Uncategorized
