The city of Chicago has agreed to pay $800,000 to settle a lawsuit a lawsuit by a woman who fell at O’Hare Airport while traveling to medical conference. According to the lawsuit, Diana Sarkar fractured her kneecap and tore cartilage after slipping on an oily floor. The suit alleged that city failed to properly maintain the floor and failed to warn travelers about potentially dangerous conditions.

An Iowa jury last week ordered a construction company and hotel builder to pay $7 million to a worker who fell three stories during a 2005 incident. Allen Frohne suffered severe injuries when a lift tipped over causing the fall. Jurors found that Le Claire Hotel Group and Gibbs Construction were negligent for the fall.

The owner of a chimpanzee shot and killed by police after it attacked a 55-year-old woman last week will likely be named in a lawsuit, according to legal experts. Attorneys say the state could also be accused of liability in the incident because it should have known the animal was a risk to the public. The victim of the attack remains in critical condition at the Cleveland Clinic as doctors evaluate her injuries.

What follows is a story first published under the byline of Chicago Tribune staff reporter, Michael Higgins, on July 6, 2006:

“A former middle-school pupil who was left a quadriplegic at 13 after a trampoline accident in his extracurricular tumbling class cannot sue Chicago Public Schools, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

“Lawyers for Ryan Murray, now 26, had argued that school officials failed to supervise the tumbling class properly, allowing 8th graders to spring off a mini-trampoline onto inadequate mats.

“But in a 4-3 vote, the Supreme Court said that school officials were immune from suit unless they acted "willfully and wantonly" to endanger Murray.

“The majority found that while the accident was tragic, the most Murray’s lawyers could hope to prove was that school officials were negligent.

“‘Clearly there is no evidence that the defendants intended for Ryan to be injured in any way,’ Justice Mary Ann McMorrow wrote for the majority. ‘Trampolining is a hazardous activity, and accidents can occur even when spotters are used and safety equipment is available.’

“The accident occurred Dec. 14, 1992, at Bryn Mawr Elementary School.

“Named as defendants in the case were the Chicago Board of Education, Chicago Youth Centers and the Youth Centers employee who had been supervising the class.

“In a dissenting opinion, Justice Thomas Kilbride argued that Murray should have been allowed to present his case to a jury.

“Kilbride said that, according to Murray’s expert witness, the lack of adequate mats caused Murray to land "partially on the mat and partially on the bare gymnasium floor."

About The Poster
Attorney Edward A. ("Ted") Bills can be reached at 719.444.1000 or at  http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

Attorney Ted Bills has one mission - to fight for the rights of personal injury victims and those who have been devastated by the misconduct of others - he represents clients with an aggressive approach designed to provide SWIFT justice.

Attorney Bills is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, and the El Paso County (Colorado Springs) Bar Association. He works in tandem with his clients to provide assertive, business-savvy, legal services that solve problems, reduce delays, and minimize costs.

Nothing on this site constitutes an attorney-client relationship nor does it constitute legal advice.

Personal Injury law comes under the umbrella of law of torts in the US. The name tort is derived from the French word tort, which means wrong. Personal Injury is also a term applied to any damage or harm done to a person’s body, reputation, rights, or property.

Personal Injury claims can be filed under both civil and criminal law suits depending upon the details of the case.

Personal Injury includes, dog bites, motor accidents, wrongful death, product liability, medical malpractice, sexual harassment, emotional duress, bodily harm, damage to reputation, nuisance etc. The person suffering the personal injury may be able to recover damages from the person/company causing the injury.

Damages are financial compensation for loss of income, disability, loss of love and affection, emotional distress, pain etc.

The law of torts is divided into 4 categories: intentional torts, negligence, strict liability and nuisance.

1. Intentional torts are those torts that are committed by a wrong doer purposely. For example: battery, assault, false imprisonment, defamation, trespassing, invasion of privacy, causing emotional distress, racial or sexual discrimination, and etc.
   

2. Negligence torts are those wrongs, which are done unintentionally. They are the most common of the tort cases in court. They include product liability (products that are dangerous to the users even when used correctly), medical malpractice, misdiagnosis, and etc.
   

3. Strict liability torts are those wrongs, which are borne out of occupational hazards and use of dangerous products. They need not be due to negligence of the defendant. Occupational hazards like construction workers, factory workers, and etc. Anywhere it is the duty of the employer to provide a safe working atmosphere.
   

4. Nuisance torts are those wrongs which interfere with an individual’s use of his land or property. For instance noise pollution by a factory, smoking by individuals in public places, and etc.
   

If you are injured, contact a personal injury lawyer to check the merits of the case, to see if a case exists, the amount of potential damages, and etc.

Most law firms take personal injury cases on contingency basis, meaning that the lawyer gets paid from the claim on winning the case.

About The Author:
Attorney Edward A. ("Ted") Bills can be reached at 719.444.1000 or at http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

Attorney Ted Bills has one mission - to fight for the rights of personal injury victims and those who have been devastated by the misconduct of others - he represents clients with an aggressive approach designed to provide SWIFT justice.

Attorney Bills is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, and the El Paso County (Colorado Springs) Bar Association. He works in tandem with his clients to provide assertive, business-savvy, legal services that solve problems, reduce delays, and minimize costs.

Nothing on this site constitutes an attorney-client relationship nor does it constitute legal advice.

On Monday, June 12, I posted a brief story about a 6-year old boy who allegedly slipped on a wet boardwalk and burned his arms and legs in water from a recently erupted geyser near Old Faithful.

If there were a case it would arise out of the FTCA (Federal Tort Claims Act) if a federal employee was negligent and that employee’s negligence was a direct and proximate cause of the boy’s injuries).

This is a premise liability case, slip and fall, on federal property. The law that would apply however would be Wyoming state law, case law or statutory, applicable to premises liability. The FTCA would be applicable because Yellowstone is a national park (and its employees, who may have been negligent, would be federal employees).

Any good attorney would want to know the answer to this question: What did the boy actually slip on? Was it water from Old Faithful or was it something else, like water from a leaking fountain, which should have been fixed by a federal employee?

Without having knowledge of all the facts in this matter, it is impossible to tell whether there is the potential for liability.

To read more about the basics regarding FTCA claims, see http://www.quintonpetix.com/fedtorac.htm.

FTCA applies in the United States and its territories.  Under FTCA, the United States is liable under circumstances where a private person would be held liable in accordance with the law of the place where the act or omission occurred.

The extent of the United States‘ duty of care under the FTCA is a question determined under State law.  Either a State statute or case precedent can impose duty.

Some further basics of premises liability: At common law, the nature and extent of the duty owed by a landowner to an individual depends on the individual’s status as an invitee, a licensee, or a trespasser.  At common law, a landowner usually owes a higher duty to an individual who is invited onto the land or premises, particularly for business purposes (an invitee), than to one who enters without invitation or permission (a trespasser), or to one who enters with the owner’s permission but for his own purposes (a licensee). 

Generally, a licensee is owed a duty to be warned of known dangers only.  An invitee is owed a duty of reasonable inspection to find hidden dangers.   In general, landowners are not insurers of the safety of those who enter their land or premises with permission; instead, landowners are under a duty of reasonable care to protect them from dangerous conditions. 

Landowner liability turns on whether the landowner had actual or merely constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition; this issue is determined by reference to State law.  Landowners may raise the defense that the condition causing the harm was "open and obvious" to the claimant, who remains under a common law duty to act reasonably and to look out for his own personal safety.  If the facts so indicate, the United States may invoke this defense by using the private person analogy.

To learn much more about Wyoming premises law (likely the law in this matter), see http://www.americanwhitewater.org/resources/repository/Wyoming_Recreational_Use_Statute.htm and if an admission fee was charged, pursuant to 34-19-105, liability would attach as a limit to the landowner’s liability (which in general says there is none). Likewise, if the failure to guard or warn was malicious or willful, liability would attach. In all other instances, under the Wyoming Recreation Use Statute, liability would be barred.

About The Author:
Attorney Edward A. ("Ted") Bills can be reached at 719.444.1000 or at http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

Attorney Ted Bills has one mission - to fight for the rights of personal injury victims and those who have been devastated by the misconduct of others - he represents clients with an aggressive approach designed to provide SWIFT justice.

Attorney Bills is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, and the El Paso County (Colorado Springs) Bar Association. He works in tandem with his clients to provide assertive, business-savvy, legal services that solve problems, reduce delays, and minimize costs.

Nothing on this site constitutes an attorney-client relationship nor does it constitute legal advice.

This post is from Attorney Edward A. (”Ted”) Bills who can be reached at  719.444.1000  or at   http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

Anything provided on this blog is for informational purposes only and by no means constitutes an attorney-client relationship between a visitor and Attorney Ted Bills.  Any reader of this blog is urged to consult competent legal counsel regarding specific points of law and not construe any material transmitted via this blog as legal advice.

So What is a Forensic Psychologist?

The field of forensic psychology is the interface between psychology and the law. However, most forensic psychologists provide services which are both clinical and forensic in nature. When a psychologist treats an individual who was emotionally traumatized by an accident, the treatment is clinical in nature, designed to assist the individual in recovering from the trauma. But, when the psychologist is asked to provide a report for the court, regarding the extent of the trauma, and to assess the psychological damages incurred, then the psychologist is providing forensic services.

A forensic psychologist is a psychologist who, by virtue of training or experience (or both), is qualified to assist a court or other fact finder in arriving at a just or correct decision.

Our legal system requires that an individual accused of a crime be competent to stand trial. Further, even if an individual is competent to stand trial, he or she may have been suffering from a psychological disorder at the time the crime was committed. This could prevent an individual from forming intent to commit a crime; this is generally called diminished capacity.

Additionally, even if the individual is competent to stand trial, and was competent when the crime was committed, the presence of a psychological disorder may present a mitigating factor to be considered at sentencing. For all these reasons, psychological evaluations of criminal defendants are appropriate.

Psychological factors that are part of a defendant’s personality style and which predict a potential behavior pattern can be useful in establishing whether or not that individual was capable of committing the offense charged. The psychological assessment of sexual offenders can help determine disposition following sentencing, as well as in determining treatment needs to avoid recidivism.

Forensic psychologists often assist in a wide variety of civil matters as well. Examples would be lawsuits or insurance claims where emotional suffering is a part of the claim, where it is necessary to determine the competency of an aged or ill person to make decisions, cases where there is a question of whether a death was an accident or a “disguised suicide” in an insurance claim case, or in a wide variety of other areas.

To be a forensic psychologist one would first need a doctorate degree in psychology, often (but not necessarily) in clinical or counseling psychology.

Attorney Ted Bills has one mission - to fight for the rights of personal injury victims and those who have been devastated by the misconduct of others - he represents clients which an aggressive approach designed to provide SWIFT justice. Attorney Bills is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, and the El Paso County (Colorado Springs) Bar Association. He works in tandem with his clients to provide assertive, business-savvy, legal services that solve problems, reduce delays, and minimize costs.

This post is from Attorney Edward A. (”Ted”) Bills who can be reached at  719.444.1000 or at  http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

Anything provided on this blog is for informational purposes only and by no means constitutes an attorney-client relationship between a visitor and Attorney Bills. Any reader of this blog is urged to consult competent legal counsel regarding specific points of law and not construe any material transmitted via this blog as legal advice.

Statutes of limitation: 

In law there is a provision called the “statute of limitation” and that legal provision can limit the time period in which a person can file a lawsuit.

If you feel you have a claim in Colorado for personal injury, medical malpractice, or wrongful death, contact a Colorado Personal Injury Attorney immediately regardless of whether or not the statute of limitation has passed.

While the URL listed below can provide some reference to statutes that have been operational in the state of Colorado - there is no assurance that this data is either current or complete so, again, you should contact a Colorado Personal Injury Attorney.

Colorado Statutes of Limitation: http://198.187.128.12/colorado/lpext.dll?f=templates&fn=fs-main.htm&2.0

Attorney Ted Bills has one mission - to fight for the rights of personal injury victims and those who have been devastated by the misconduct of others - he represents clients with an aggressive approach designed to provide SWIFT justice. Attorney Bills is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, and the El Paso County Bar Association. He works in tandem with his clients to provide assertive, business-savvy, legal services that solve problems, reduce delays, and minimize costs.

This post is from Attorney Edward A. (”Ted”) Bills who can be reached at 719.444.1000 or at http://www.SpringsAttorney.com.

When you suffer a personal injury, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Legal responsibility, called “liability,” revolves around the fact that most injuries happen because someone was careless or “negligent.” Even if you were partly responsible for your own injury, it is still possible to get some compensation if someone else was also careless and partly responsible for your injury.

Common injuries in personal injury cases include head injuries, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, burn injuries, broken bones, fractures, knee injuries, neck injuries, back injuries, shoulder injuries, muscle and ligament injuries, herniated or bulging disks, reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD), complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), paralysis, paraplegia, and quadriplegia. Personal injury law areas of practice generally include motor vehicle accidents, auto accidents, motorcycle crashes, semi-truck collisions, 18-wheeler wrecks, SUV rollover accidents, drunk driving accidents, slip, trip and fall injuries, premises liability claims, construction site accidents, job-related accidents, industrial accidents, dangerous and defective products, as well as dog bites and animal attacks.

When you’re injured, you need all the help you can get, and you need it as soon as possible. Still, it’s important to pick an attorney who will care more about your well-being than in getting a quick, but low, settlement - someone that will understand that it is not just you who has issues, but your spouse, your children, and other family members.

Many personal injury lawyers provide initial consultations free of charge. Through such a process you can interview the lawyer before making a decision. What is important is how comfortable you are with the lawyer you select. Care should be taken, however, to make your selection in a relatively short period of time since the law provides strict limits and specific time period in which suit may be brought. Once engaged, an attorney should be responsive to your needs; answer questions satisfactorily, return telephone calls promptly, have an experienced administrative staff and, most importantly, represent your interests zealously. If at any time you are dissatisfied with your lawyer, you should be able to change attorneys without penalty.

While most personal injury claims are settled out of court, knowing that an attorney is both willing and able to try a case in court, if that becomes necessary, should add an additional dimension to your overall sense of security. Then if the case does fail to settle, strong and shrewd litigation skills can almost certainly precipitate a better outcome.

So what does it cost?

Most personal injury lawyers work on a contingent-fee basis, which means that you pay nothing unless the attorney wins the case or secures a settlement acceptable to you. Typical contingent fees range from thirty to forty percent of the amount of damages recovered. While it may be tempting to choose a lawyer based solely on who will take the lowest percentage, fees alone should not be the determining factor since it is often the most experienced lawyer that will ask for, deserve and earn, the higher fees.

All legal cases have associated costs and such costs need to be paid. In personal injury cases, costs are generally paid first from the settlement funds, but it there is no settlement, costs are paid by the client. Costs include such items as filing fees, expert testimony fees, deposition fees, arbitration fees, legal research fees, postage, administrative and other related costs.

This blog is provided by http://www.SpringsAttorney.com the moderator is Attorney Edward A. (”Ted”) Bills, a personal/bodily injury attorney with offices in Colorado Springs, CO 80906. If you would like to talk with Attorney Bills, please call 719.444.1000.  

Accidents happen when you least expect them.  That is why they are called accidents. 

But when an accident leads to an injury, particularly to an injury that is devastating and debilitating then there may be a legal cause of action under the general topic of ‘Slip and Fall Injuries.’

If you have been injured in a slip and fall or some other type of accident and if you have a permanent injury as a result, then the question becomes: ”Was the accident due to the fault or negligence of someone other than you?”

If you can answer this question with a resounding “Yes,” then you need to be talking with a law firm to see if they can help you get compensation for your losses. 

The Law Firm of Edward (”Ted”) Bills handles many types of personal injury cases.

Since the initial consultation - or getting to know each other session - is FREE, you should always call just to be certain that your rights are protected.

Edward Bills, “The Lawyer Who Cares”