California Injury Blog

George Washington once said:

Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.

Letter of Instructions to the Captains of the Virginia Regiments [July 29, 1759].

The advocates of consumer rights, viewing the resources of defense firms and corporate defendants, can relate to the trepidation felt by the out-numbered and out-gunned Continental Army. Because of that disparity in resources, Consumer Attorneys of California ("CAOC") consolidates the voices of consumer attorneys throughout the state to (1) preserve and protect the constitutional right to trial by jury for all consumers, (2) champion the cause of those who deserve redress for injury to person or property, (3) encourage and promote changes to California law by legislative, initiative or court action, (4) oppose injustice in existing or contemplated legislation, (5) correct harsh, unjust and oppressive legislation or judicial decisions, (6) advance the common law and promote the public good through the civil justice system and concerted efforts to secure safe products, a safe workplace, a clean environment, and quality health care, (7) uphold the honor, integrity and dignity of the legal profession by encouraging mutual support and cooperation among members, (8) promote the highest standards of professional conduct, and (9) inspire excellence in advocacy. This post is a multi-blog effort to inform consumer attorneys about CAOC's value and encourage participation in CAOC through membership.

Continue reading "California Injury Lawyer Supports The Efforts Of CAOC" »

The Orange County car accident lawyers at Bisnar | Chase know and understand the shock and distress anyone goes through when they get in a car crash. That's why we designed an Insurance & Registration Organizer where drivers can have their car documents handy and readily accessible. I have personally found this organizer to be invaluable -- even when you get involved in a fender bender.

Continue reading "Orange County Car Accident Victim Puts Glove Organizer to Good Use" »

Veterans today are facing more challenges than ever before. They are probably the most criticized and underappreciated segment of our population. What most of us forget is that we owe our freedom to these brave men and women who have put their lives on the line. But what happens when they return from duty? They face a slew of challenges from combat stress and readjustment issues to changes in family roles, bonding with children who were born in their absence, job changes and unemployment. If ignored, these issues can turn out to be catastrophic for veterans and their families. Veteran fatalities caused by suicides are said to be at an all-time high among veterans now.

According to studies conducted by The Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, about 283,000 veterans are struggling with reintegration issues and won’t seek mental health assistance because of the stigma associated with it and the consequences it could have on their career prospects.

This is where a great group of people called Freedom & Honor come in. This group conducts training and education programs for members of the U.S. military, whether they are veterans or on active duty. These programs have in fact been designed by training experts with the help of combat veterans. The flagship program of Freedom & Honor, Return to Honor, is a 2.5-day cognitive and experiential program using training methodologies proven effective with trauma victims. These workshops takes a peer-to-peer approach that helps these veterans learn how to re-establish connections, with friends, families and society and how they can effectively reduce the impact of combat trauma on their lives. These are not mental health programs, just a training program to help veterans get back to living their lives and becoming productive citizens.

Continue reading "Giving Veterans Hope and a Second Chance" »

California will become the sixth state in the nation to ban texting while driving. The new law will take effect on Jan. 1, 2009. Motorists caught texting and driving at the same time could start facing fines of up to $100. This ban came after a couple of bills took effect in July 1. One allows adult motorists to use only hands-free devices while driving. The other prohibits drivers under 18 from using cell phones in any way while driving. This new law drives home the point and makes it clear that it is not OK for adult drivers to be texting while driving. Our source for this blog was this Associated Press news report.

According to statistics from the California Highway Patrol, cell phone use was a factor in 61 deaths and 3,489 injuries on California’s roads and highways from 2002 to 2007.
Under the new law, texting while driving could result in a $20 fine for a first offense and a $50 fine for subsequent violations. But the total expenses for the violator can add up because a number of fees could be tacked on to those penalties.

Continue reading "New California Law Banning Texting While Driving Takes Effect Jan. 1" »

I came across this interesting column in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that talks about an issue that has been of great concern to me – runaway trailer accidents. Runaway trailers usually occur as a result of not being properly secured to a vehicle and can cause catastrophic accidents with serious injuries or deaths.

This news report is about an activist, Ron Melancon from Glen Allen, Virginia, who has taken it upon himself to document accidents involving passenger vehicles that tow trailers. A 43-year-old retail sales manager, Melancon is working to get national safety standards in place to prevent these tragic accidents from happening. Most recently in Pennsylvania, 36-year-old Michelle Kott was killed on a local highway when a trailer came loose from a truck and crashed into the car she was driving. In fact, this tragedy was similar to a horrific April 2006 accident in Richland, Pennsylvania, where a wood chipper detached from a truck and slammed into a minivan killing 37-year-old Spencer Morrison and two of his 4-year-old triplets.

California is no stranger to these tragic runaway trailer accidents. Statistics on these accidents are not readily available because the government does not keep track of these incidents very well. However, a recent Los Angeles Times investigation identified 540 runaway trailer accidents from news reports and court files between 2000 and 2007. These accidents resulted in hundreds, if not thousands, of injuries and at least 164 deaths. It is very likely that there were many more runaway trailer accidents, injuries and deaths that were not reported by news sources.

Continue reading "Activist Shines Spotlight on Tragedies Caused by Runaway Trailers" »

The Orange County Board of Supervisors has rejected their own health department and grand jury’s recommendations that Orange County restaurants adopt either a color coded system or a letter-grade system to let consumers know how their establishment scored on their last inspection. According to this news report in The Orange County Register, county supervisors voted down the changes saying that they could burden restaurant owners with added costs during this period of economic crisis. Supervisors also said the county’s existing system is “doing a good job” at protecting local diners safe from food borne illnesses.

What was this big financial burden on the restaurants as a result of these changes? It would have increased the payment by no more than $7 a year for the biggest restaurants! It is a shame that the supervisors voted against both a color-coded and a letter grade system. As an Orange County personal injury attorney who has represented numerous victims of food borne illnesses over the years, I know that the current system of displaying inspection placards outside the restaurant has been woefully inadequate when it comes to preventing food borne illnesses. A color-coded or letter-grade system would definitely have been more effective and user-friendly.

Continue reading "Officials Reject Letter Grades for Orange County Restaurants" »

A much-awaited federal vehicle roof strength rule is being relegated to the back burner yet again by the Bush administration for the next administration to handle. The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced that it would not meet the Dec. 15 deadline for final adoption of a new roof strength rule. The department has set a new target of April 30, 2009 – more than three months into the Obama administration. Our source for this blog is this news report in Automotive News.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has not changed the standard in more than 30 years. It is outdated to say the least and has cost Americans tens of thousands of lives and millions, if not billions, in medical and related costs. The NHTSA estimates that out of about 40,000 fatal accidents each year in the United States, close to 10,000 deaths may be attributed to rollover accidents.

Continue reading "Obama Administration Expected to Handle New Roof Strength Standard" »

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has approved a new rule that will require merging commercial truck and bus drivers’ licenses with medical examination certificates into one electronic record. According to this Associated Press news report, this is part of the federal agency’s effort to get medically unfit truck and bus drivers off the road.

Apparently federal officials have been dragging their feet on issuing this rule, which would have prevented medically unfit truckers and bus drivers from getting behind the wheel. FMCSA has also proposed creating a registry of doctors or physicians qualified to award health certificates to these drivers. Medical examiners who fail to meet minimum standards could be banned from issuing these fitness-to-drive certificates.

Continue reading "FMCSA Approves New Rule to Keep Sick Truckers Off Roadways" »

This week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a new rule governing the number of hours that commercial truck drivers can drive each day. These are known as the truck drivers’ hours-of-service. What’s special about this new rule? In my opinion - nothing. The so-called new standard is in fact identical to the previous two rules that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia struck down last year and in 2004, according to the Public Citizen, which challenged those ineffective regulations.

The new FMCSA’s rule authorizes truckers to drive 11 consecutive hours with 34 hour restart provisions. Under the rule, drivers may continue to work a physically and mentally exhausting 77 hours behind the wheel of a big rig over a seven-day period. They may then take 34 hours off and then hit the road to start all over again. In addition to all that time they are allowed to drive, they can be required to work 14 hours a day, which includes loading and unloading cargo. This new rule also fails to require electronic on-board recorders that are very much needed to assure that the rule is effectively enforced.

Continue reading "New FMCSA Truckers Hours-of-Service Rule Inadequate and Ineffective" »

This week the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) issued a statement supporting the long-due amendment of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard. The amendment would require motorcycle manufacturers to install antilock braking systems (ABS) in all motorcycles. The changes, proposed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in September, will create minimum performance standards that have been tested successfully in other parts of the world. It will also keep motorcycles with unsafe brakes from being sold in the United States.

According to IIHS statistics, both the rate of fatal motorcycle accidents and the frequency for which insurance collision claims are filed are lower among motorcycles with ABS compared with the same motorcycles without ABS. The IIHS study shows 6.7 fatal crashes per 10,000 registered vehicle years among motorcycles not equipped with ABS during the year 2005-2006. For motorcycles equipped with ABS that number was much lower at 4.1.

Continue reading "Safety Advocates Support Anti-Lock Brakes in all Motorcycles" »

A case handled by my good friend Charles Boyk’s Ohio truck accident law firm recently resulted in a $1.25 million jury verdict for the plaintiff, who lost his leg in a truck accident. This case was brilliantly handled by Boyk and his law firm. The case was initially dismissed in Wood County Court of Common Pleas, but was reversed earlier this year. The trial resulting in the $1.25 million verdict for injured victim, Sean McMahon, took place September 30, 2008.

Here’s what happened. McMahon was parked at a truck stop in Wood County, Ohio, when McMahon left his truck and observed a fight between two other truckers. McMahon saw Raymond Blake, who was inside his trailer, push a man who was standing in front of Blake’s truck by lunging his truck forward. Seeing the other man lying on the ground in the path Blake’s large trailer, McMahon rushed and pushed the man on the ground to safety. But the trailer ran over McMahon’s right leg, which had to be amputated later.

Continue reading "Charles Boyk – Best Ohio Personal Injury Attorney" »

Top scientists and career employees at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have issued a report to the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform objecting the federal agency’s own rule that weakens consumers’ ability to file product liability lawsuits against drug manufacturers for not labeling medicines and medical devices properly. According to this Associated Press article, the report highlights internal FDA documents, which show high-ranking career officials in the agency repeatedly pointed out the dangers of drug makers not being required to update labels to give consumers complete information about the medications they use.

The 2006 drug-labeling rule basically limits when people can sue in state court over personal injury claims involving medications. The FDA maintains that federal regulations prevail when it conflicts with state law. This concept is called pre-emption.

Preemption was a strategy consistently adopted by the FDA, other federal agencies and the Bush Administration to shield manufacturers of dangerous and defective products.
According to a recent report called “Get Out of Jail Free” issued by the American Association of Justice(AAJ), the Bush Administration has authored language aimed at preempting product liability litigation to 50 federal rules that govern everything from auto products to drugs and medical devices.

Continue reading "Report States FDA Officials Opposed Drug Suit Policy" »

My partner, Brian Chase and I know a lot of attorneys. We work with attorneys throughout the country and refer cases to many attorneys. When we refer a case to another attorney or need the services of an attorney in a state we are not licensed in, we are very particular about who we send clients to and who we will work with. We want only the best and Ben Glass is the best that I know of.

I have known Ben Glass for some time now and he never ceases to amaze me. Ben is a straight shooting, down to earth, tell-it-like-it-is kind of guy who is also an excellent attorney and a father to seven children. Ben has written a number of books directed at educating the people of Virginia about their rights, including one about insurance company scams ("Robbery Without a Gun"), a book on auto accidents in Virginia ("Virginia Car Accident Book"), another on Virginia medical malpractice cases ("Virginia Malpractice Book") and a bunch of others that I haven't seen.

Continue reading "Best Virginia Personal Injury Attorney - Ben Glass" »

Truck drivers may soon be mandated to install alarm systems in their vehicles to make sure that they remain alert while operating their vehicle, according to this KSL-TV news report. Federal investigators have repeatedly found that truck driver fatigue is a leading cause of fatal big rig accidents around the country. Federal officials report that one in eight commercial truck accidents are caused by exhaustion or the truck driver falling asleep at the wheel.

What the federal government is proposing is to require installing a high-tech alarm system that would go off when a driver gets drowsy. Dave Creer of the Utah Trucking Association says such a requirement would make things difficult and more expensive for trucking companies. When the government starts mandating something, he says, things get really tough for trucking companies across the board – whether it’s the little guy, the not-so-little guy or the big companies with the large fleets.

Statistics show that the people most often injured or killed in big rig crashes are the occupants of passenger vehicles not the drivers of the large trucks and 18 wheelers. There are nearly 12,000 injury (fatal and non-fatal) large truck accidents a year in California, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The alarm systems is designed to lower the accident rate and save lives. I see the possible lives saved as well worth the cost.

Continue reading "Big Rig Safety Equipment May Be Required By Federal Agency" »

Several consumer groups around the nation are urging California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to sign Assembly Bill, AB 2825, which is designed to protect California motorists from auto body repair fraud. According to this news report, the legislation has been passed by a strong bipartisan vote and will become California law after Governor Schwarzenegger signs it.

AB 2825 will essentially safeguard consumers from fraudulent businesses that illegally or unethically switch parts, causing financial loss and possibly vehicle safety issues for the consumer. This bill requires a vehicle repair invoice to specify if any used, rebuilt, remanufactured or reconditioned parts are supplied. Current law requires that consumers be provided an itemized written estimate prior to work commencing and a final invoice listing work completed and parts provided. But this AB 2825 also mandates that an automotive repair dealer must attach copies of specified invoices to the estimate for all crash parts installed that are over $50.

Continue reading "Auto Repair Fraud Legislation Requires California Governor Approval" »

Several consumer groups around the nation are urging California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to sign Assembly Bill, AB 2825, which is designed to protect California motorists from auto body repair fraud. According to this news report, the legislation has been passed by a strong bipartisan vote and will become California law after Governor Schwarzenegger signs it.

AB 2825 will essentially safeguard consumers from fraudulent businesses that illegally or unethically switch parts, causing financial loss and possibly vehicle safety issues for the consumer. This bill requires a vehicle repair invoice to specify if any used, rebuilt, remanufactured or reconditioned parts are supplied. Current law requires that consumers be provided an itemized written estimate prior to work commencing and a final invoice listing work completed and parts provided. But this AB 2825 also mandates that an automotive repair dealer must attach copies of specified invoices to the estimate for all crash parts installed that are over $50.

Continue reading "Auto Repair Fraud Legislation Requires California Governor Approval" »

By John Bisnar

Outrage hit a fever pitch when Exxon Mobil released its latest record quarterly profits. There was no denying that the results Exxon posted amount to a lot of cash.

But where do they spend it all?

Here’s one source: funding phony think tanks that advocate eliminating the minimum wage, deny global warming, and hope to prevent Americans from receiving justice through the legal system.

Look no further than San Francisco based Pacific Research Institute (PRI). Like other “tort reform” groups, PRI’s funding comes from tobacco, oil, and drug corporations, according to past public donor lists. All have spent millions of dollars to close the doors of the civil justice system, or at a minimum, stack the deck against everyday Americans if they do get in.

PRI has concocted yearly studies that purport to rank state legal climates or put a value on the justice system. The legitimacy of this fiction was illustrated by the 2008 edition, where PRI cited themselves or other tort reform groups no less than 34 times in the footnotes.

Thankfully, serious objective academics reviewed one of PRI’s reports. Three law professors concluded that their claims are “without scientific merit and present a very misleading picture of the American tort system and its costs.”

The professors leveled several criticisms on PRI’s report, calling it “advocacy disguised as science,” “pure fiction,” “lack[ing] scientific merit,” and containing “highly dubious extrapolations.” Additionally, they discovered that none of the statistics or figures were from academic publications or peer reviewed by independent experts. PRI’s assertion that Americans are paying a “tort tax” also holds no water; its origins are a discredited insurance industry appraisal.

It is obvious that PRI went to incredible lengths to dupe the public into believing their research was legitimate and genuine. But why do they care so much about the legal system?

Continue reading "WHAT BIG OIL PROFITS CAN BUY" »

As if dealing with insurance companies from time to time is not enough, there is a proposed California Bill, AB 2800, which would let auto insurance companies put a black box tracking device in your car. This box would essentially let the insurance Big Brothers keep track of when, where and how you drive. What’s more, insurance companies can charge you a penalty if you refuse to be tracked. So, basically, if you want to protect your privacy, you can be penalized for it.

Insurance companies’ argue that this bill is not about them keeping track of your driving, but only about verifying the number of miles you drive. I agree with Carmen Balber, a consumer advocate with the group, Consumer Watchdog. Balber wrote an Op-Ed for the Sacramento Bee () on this issue. As she puts it, this bill does nothing but give “insurers fresh ways to charge you more.”

Some insurance companies such as State Farm are already lobbying the California Department of Insurance for insurers to be able to collect for the time of day you drive, days of week, type of road, where your miles are driven, speed and even how aggressively you drive by measuring hard stops, starts or turns. So does that mean an insurer can increase rates if you work a night shift as a cop or a nurse? Does that mean you could get penalized for making a couple of hard turns or driving too fast or too slow?

Continue reading "Should You Let Your Insurance Company Become Big Brother?" »

WhoCanISue.com has ridiculous written all over it yet, Time magazine recently published an article about the new attorney referral marketing website that’s all set to go live next month.

Right from its name, to its “slip on a banana peel” graphics, to its tagline “The Legal Process Made Easy,” the website makes a mockery of our tort system of accountability. It infers that holding a wrongdoer financially accountable for injuries they have caused is easy. It makes fun of lawyers and lawsuits, implying that lawsuits are frivolous and an easy way to make easy money. It isn’t enough that Time magazine wrote about it but night time talk show hosts are making jokes about it and lawyers are complaining about it on their blog which combined has flooded the website with traffic and it isn’t even live yet.

WhoCanISue.com isn’t even a law firm marketing for clients they intend to represent. WhoCanISue.com is a “referral” website, meaning the sponsors of the site are not looking to perform legal work for prospective clients. This is a pure advertising site. Personal injury attorneys pay money to advertise on the site in hopes of attracting new clients to themselves. WhoCanISue.com makes money by selling space on the website to attorneys.

Continue reading "WhoCanISue.com: Bad Taste Mockery or Marketing Genius?" »

Insurance giant Allstate leads the top 10 list of worst insurers in the country, according to a comprehensive investigation of thousands of legal documents and financial filings by the American Association for Justice (AAJ), a national trial lawyers group. According to this article, the group based this top 10 list on what it calls “a distinct pattern of industry greed” among these insurance companies that do what they can to avoid paying claims, play hardball with consumers and put profits over the welfare of their policy holders.

According to AAJ’s chief executive officer Jon Haber, Allstate “publicly touts its ‘good hands’ approach” but has privately instructed its agents to adopt more of a “boxing gloves” strategy against policyholders, making it near impossible for them to get claims paid. As for Allstate, the strategy is a gold mine – to increase profits, expand salaries for their executives -- all at the expense of its suffering policy holders. The other top 10 worst insurers include: Unum, AIG, State Farm, Conesco, WellPoint Health, Farmers, Torchmark and Liberty Mutual – in that order from 2 to 10.

Continue reading "Top 10 Worst Insurance Companies – New Report From the American Association for Justice" »