Washington DC Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Archive for February, 2009

Victim of Tractor-Trailer Wreck Obtains $75,000 Settlement

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

Our client was driving her vehicle when a tractor-trailer owned by Giant Food Corporation changed lanes and ran her off the road. The client had a prior knee replacement and had to have it revised two years following the collision. Giant argued that they were not responsible for the knee revision surgery since the Plaintiff would have required a revision, even in the absence of the tractor trailer driver’s negligence, and because the client did not have any pain in the knee following the collision. Partner Allan M. Siegel filed a lawsuit on behalf of the client. The trial was scheduled for Janauary, 2009. The Defendant offered to settle the case for $75,000, two weeks before trial.

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Client slips and falls at Subway Sandwich Shop – Obtains settlement of $150,000

Friday, February 20th, 2009

Client slips and falls at Subway Sandwich Shop – Obtains settlement of $150,000
Our client was entering a Subway Sandwich Shop, located in the Bowie Wal-Mart, when she slipped and fell on soda which had spilled on the floor. The owner of the Subway Sandwich Shop denied responsibility, claiming that he had already cleaned up the spill. However. the law firm’s investigation revealed two witnesses to this fall. One witness had seen the soda and reported it the store manager, who went into the backroom but never came back to clean it up. The other witness heard the manager yell at another employee, after our client fell – “I thought I told you to clean that up.” Partner Allan M. Siegel filed a lawsuit against the owner of the Subway.

Our client had a pre-existing degenerative condition in her knee which was aggravated by this fall. Following the fall she needed arthroscopic surgery to repair the knee. After extensive discovery, the case settled at mediation for $150,000.

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Partner Allan M. Siegel Testifies in front of D.C. Councilmember David Catania

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009

Partner Allan M. Siegel testified before the D.C. Council regarding licensing requirements for doctors in the District of Columbia. The piece of legislation which was being proposed, as written, would require that doctors who agree to testify on behalf of victims injured as a result of medical malpractice be licensed in the District of Columbia. This requirement would make it extremely difficult for injured people to file medical malpractice lawsuits, since very often it is necessary to retain an out of state doctor to testify against a local doctor.

Mr. Siegel, testifying as President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, DC, explained the problem with the bill, as written. His testimony was well received and he was assured that there would be an exception added to the bill to eliminate this unintended consequence. Mr. Siegel’s efforts will ensure the rights of innocent victims in the District of Columbia are protected. To see the full text of Mr. Siegel’s testimony click here.

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AAJ Releases Report Exposing Insurance Company Practices*

Friday, February 13th, 2009

AAJ released the second article in a series of original research reports on the insurance industry, “Tricks of the Trade: How Insurance Companies Deny, Delay, Confuse and Refuse.” Following up on “The Ten Worst Insurance Companies in America” released in 2008, the new report describes some of the ways the insurance industry attempts to make money at the expense of consumers. Additionally, the new report details six tactics that target policyholders, names the insurance companies that are engaging in these practices, and lays out what consumers can do to prevent abuses and fight back. The personal injury lawyers at Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel encourage you to read the report so you can protect yourself against these tactics. You can find the full report at the link below. Of course, if you are a victim of abuse by an insurance company call the trial lawyers at Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C.

Click here to read the entire report.

*The opinions and views expressed in this report are those of The American Association for Justice and are based on investigations and research performed by that organization. Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C. did not participate in that investigation or the authoring of the report, and cannot vouch for the methodology utilized or the results reported.

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Cerebrum

Wednesday, February 11th, 2009

The cerebrum is the largest part of the brain. It has two regions (or halves), left and right. The left side generally receives messages from and controls the movement of the body. The dominant side, which is usually on the left (for right-handed people), controls speech, understanding, reading, writing, arithmetic, and other language functions. The non-dominant side, usually the right (for right-handed people), processes nonverbal information , including spatial orientation, relationships of objects to each other, and recognition of shapes, forms, and faces. The cerebrum hemispheres are further divided into four sections, or lobes—parietal, frontal, temporal, and occipital.

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Cerebellum

Monday, February 9th, 2009

The cerebellum, about the size of two large plums, lies under the lower back of the skull. It has a right and a left side and handles two main functions: maintaining balance and coordinating movement. Damage to the cerebellum may therefore cause difficulties in coordination and balance (for walking and standing).

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Brain Stem

Friday, February 6th, 2009

The brain stem, about the size of the little finger, sits at the base of the brain and is an extension of the spinal cord. The brain stem has two main functions: control of basic life processes (such as breathing and heart rate) and arousal and consciousness (that is, alerting the thinking part of the brain). As a result, damage to the brain stem may reduce arousal and alertness and impair breathing, heart rate, and sense of touch. Twelve cranial nerves based in the brain stem run through the rest of the brain.

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Regions of the Brain

Thursday, February 5th, 2009

As shown in the diagram to the right, the brain has three main regions: the cerebellum, the brain stem, and the cerebrum. All three regions work together yet each has its own special functions. Most brain injuries affect several areas of the brain.

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Four Components of the Brain

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

The Brain Injury Association’s booklet, “Living With Brain Injury: A guide for and about adults with moderate to severe brain injury” contains a diagram of the brain and a description of various portions of the brain. The next four blogs will set forth that diagram and address each of the four components of the brain discussed in that pamphlet.

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