RECENT SUCCESS STORY: $4,000,000 SEMI-TRUCK ACCIDENT SETTLEMENT
Why Are People Suing the Makers of Invokana?
I'm sure we've all seen or heard ads with a stern-voiced lawyerly looking actor telling us about the dangers of a particular drug. They're pretty standard fare on mid-afternoon and late-night television. In recent months, a slew of ads targeting the drug Invokana, a diabetes medication, aired on stations around the country. These commercials usually...
Florida Casino Boat Fire Presents A Tricky Legal Situation
It was all over the news recently when a casino boat in Florida caught fire, resulting in the death of Carrie Dempsey, 42, and leading to at least 8 other injuries. At first, I had no intention of writing about the accident, which seemed likely to be a straight-forward case of a negligent boat operator...
Do I Sue the Trucking Company or the Truck Driver?
Recently, I read about a truck accident that took place up in Hartley County, Texas. An 18-wheeler, driven by Keldrick Chappell of Dallas, 40, allegedly sideswiped a passenger car driven by Stanley Smith, 78. Mr. Smith reportedly died from injuries sustained in the accident. As much as the accident report, it caught my eye when...
How Does Suing Amtrak Work?
In the wake of the deadly Amtrak trail derailment Tuesday, December 19th, near Dupont, Washington, a lot of people are pretty ticked off with Amtrak. The accident left 3 people dead. They are Jim Hamre, 61, Zack Wilhoite, 35, and Benjamin Gran, 40. In addition, nearly 100 people suffered injuries, which varied greatly in their...
Why Aren’t Drunk Drivers Charged With Murder?
Drunk driving is a terrible crime. Unsuspecting victims are hurt and killed every day by this all-too-familiar pattern: Someone is over-served, stumbles out to his car to go home, and plows into another vehicle or pedestrian to dire effect. If a police investigation proves that the intoxicated driver was responsible for hurting someone, that driver...
Astronaut Mark Kelly Doesn’t Seem to Understand How The Law Works
In a recent interview, astronaut turned political activist Mark Kelly sat down with a reporter from Politico to talk about gun regulations. Specifically, Mr. Kelly spoke of the need for tighter restrictions on guns in order to prevent gun violence. When the conversation eventually arrived at the topic of those pesky Republicans in Congress, who...
If South Carolina Can Mandate Liquor Liability Insurance, Why Can’t Texas?
Good news, South Carolinians! Legislators in your state passed a law in June requiring bars and restaurants that sell alcohol past 5 p.m. to have liability insurance policies of at least $1 million. Under the new law, these businesses will need to show proof of such a policy before they are able to obtain or...
Strong Winds: Acts of God and “Acts of God”
Hurricane Harvey may have dissipated, his awful work complete, but no sooner did the vicious storm subside than his girlfriend Irma turned up to continue in his absence. My heart goes out to those suffering through the intense rains and flooding, the gale-force winds, and the cumulative threat to life and property. Sadly, the Gulf...
NBC News Gives Its Trusting Readers a Wrong Interpretation of the Law.
A news piece I recently encountered tried to summarize Texas policy about certain kinds of auto accidents, but the piece itself shows a highly flawed understanding of the very laws it attempts to explain. It's wrong of them to spread that faulty information, considering how many readers will likely accept their version as gospel truth--after...
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...
