The Worst DUI Week of the Year Is Why We Need Dram Shop Laws.
Independence Day is statistically the most DUI-accident prone day of the year. People don't drink hard just on the day itself, though--it has become a week-long celebration for some. All that alcohol creates far more serious risks than the occasional finger-flaying lesson about fireworks, and yet some unscrupulous bars are comfortable with over-serving it to...
The Lesser of Two Evils in the Law: Alabama Edition
It's often a throwaway line when people write that "we have the best justice system on earth, even though it's not perfect." While those of us who write about the law for a living often extol the virtues of our legal system, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that sometimes the law is...
Retire the Fire: The Hazards of Flaming Food and Drinks
Sometimes ordinary folks with a thirst for adventure order flaming drinks, in which the alcohol in the cocktail is set ablaze as part of the presentation. It's quite a sight, but is it worth the risk that comes from adding fire to the situation? A recent incident in a Denton suburb made me wonder. Here's...
A Fire In a 2015 Nissan Juke Shouldn’t Have Been Possible After a 2014 Recall.
In late 2014, Nissan issued a serious recall related to its Juke model vehicle, classified as a "subcompact crossover" or "mini SUV." As you can see below, it resembles a standard SUV but is scaled down to sedan or hatchback proportions. Despite using a showroom picture, I'm not trying to sell anybody this car. I...
When Open-and-Shut is Anything But: The Detailed Defenses in Trucking Accidents
Sometimes we at the firm read about cases that seem fairly open-and-shut. Having worked on thousands of personal injury cases, we know they often get a lot more complicated than they seem at first blush. Attorneys are trained to examine those complications--intentionally seeing the trees instead of the forest. Sometimes an accident's details aren't obvious...
Drop Danger: SIG Sauer P320 Gets Recalled “Voluntary Upgrade” Program
Shooters beware: Adding to the unsettling category of weapons that are dangerous in ways other than they're designed to be, Swiss-German firearms manufacturer SIG Sauer Inc. has issued an advisory--not a recall--about one of its popular pistol models. While I always applaud a proactive effort to prevent injury or death, a couple of details about...
There’s a Lesson in Potential Jurors’ Hate-Filled Interviews About Martin Shkreli
"The Internet is written in ink," as they say. Many people observe these guidelines without trouble, but others seem to thrive on riling people. Martin Shkreli, the infamous "Pharma Bro," seems to be one of the latter type, but he found out recently the same lesson we've tried to impart to clients for years: Watch...
The Cliché “Lawsuit Type” Is a Bad and Harmful Misconception.
When people are injured by negligence--by an auto accident or a malfunctioning product, or while on a dangerous property, to name but a few possibilities--they reach out to us to learn about their rights and what they should do next. We welcome their calls, of course, but when we talk to them one puzzling refrain...
TriggerTech Recalls Several Crossbow And Rifle Triggers for Dangerous Breakable Components
A recent announcement from Canadian aftermarket manufacturer TriggerTech caused some concern, as it involved misfires of weapons that had been modified with their drop-in trigger assemblies. Naturally we at the firm take recalls for weapons and their components very seriously because of the obvious disasters that can come from their malfunctions. Which Products Are Affected?...
Adios Amoebas: Water Parks and Premises Liability
If you run a business, you'd better know what it takes to make sure your customers have a safe and satisfactory experience there. There are genuine accidents--things nobody could possibly have seen coming--and then there are incidents that likely could have been avoided with appropriate levels of pre-emptive caution. For example: If you run a...
The Real Takeaway From the Matal v. Tam Decision
The Supreme Court of the U.S. recently ruled that individuals have the right to trademark offensive words and phrases for the sake of using them as company or product names. This unanimous decision is absolutely a victory for proponents of free speech (even if it seems like the mean-spirited kind), but it actually has a...
Did Jelly Belly Engage in Deceptive Trade Practices With How They Labeled Their “Sport Beans?”
A California woman is currently spearheading a class-action suit against Jelly Belly, the candy company behind the bags of jellybeans in candy aisles everywhere. The company is credited for its diverse lineup of jellybean flavors like Buttered Popcorn, Toasted Marshmallow, and Strawberry Daiquiri.. The suit's plaintiff takes issue with the declared ingredients of some of...
Dallas Police’s 911 Problems and Their Legal Implications
Ordinarily we at the firm wait for news releases about problems or events in the Lone Star State, but because we can't count on them to get their facts about the law straight, we've elected to be proactive with some recent troubles in Dallas. Over the weekend, two police departments in Dallas suburbs--Plano and Rowlett,...
Lubbock Accident Shows Appearance Doesn’t Match Reality
There is an old joke that when you don't know what a Shakespeare play is about, just say it concerns "appearance versus reality" and you'll always be right. For years, we've said something similar about almost every car accident that appears in the news. Crash victims call us up all the time with tales of...
How Might New Safety Equipment Affect Texas Work-Injury Law?
Industries with a lot of manual labor have heavily invested in developing safety equipment for their employees. Goggles and hard hats may not look like much, but they're carefully designed and rigorously tested to protect as many eyes and noggins as possible. Harnesses, gloves, reflectors, and other pieces of safety gear follow the same idea:...