Posted on December 00, 0000 in Personal Injury

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted people all over the world, including the United States. Over the course of the last year, we have adjusted to a new normal. In Illinois, many schools, offices, stores, restaurants, and bars temporarily closed to stop the spread of the virus. As a result, many people purchased gifts online this holiday season. Almost anything can be bought through online shopping, such as clothing, makeup, books, appliances, furniture, or electronics. Most manufacturers have quality control processes intended to identify manufacturing defects before their products are released to the public. However, mistakes made during this process can lead to defective goods being distributed to retailers and sold to unsuspecting consumers. In these situations, a user could be at risk of suffering a serious injury due to a flaw in design or production.

How a Faulty Product Can Harm Users

Since you can buy practically anything on the Internet these days, it can be difficult to determine the quality of these products if you cannot see them or try them in person. Although clothes cannot really cause you harm, other types of products can be dangerous if they do not work properly. For example, improper wiring may lead to an electronic or motorized toy or device to malfunction and catch fire, causing the individual who is using it to suffer first-, second-, or third-degree skin burns. Similarly, a faulty device could electrocute a person in some cases if it does not include adequate directions or warning labels. In other cases, missing or broken parts make them dangerous for users.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

With the winter weather here, Illinois can become icy this time of year which means slippery streets. If you were to slip and fall on someone’s property, the owner may become responsible for your accident. However, there are some instances when the property owner is not held accountable for your injuries. Take precautions this year by understanding some important questions you may decide to ask if you are injured in a slip and fall accident.

Who is responsible for my injury resulting from a slip and fall accident?

Just because you fall on someone’s property does not mean that they are always responsible for the accident. There may be a number of reasons as to why you fell that have nothing to do with the owner. Yes, it could be the property owners fault but if it is not their fault then it might be yours. This is important to keep in mind when determining liability. Remember, if the owner of the premise caused the spill or other slippery or dangerous surface then they are legally responsible for the injuries you suffered.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

In cartoons, when one character slips on a banana and falls on the ground, we are all supposed to laugh at the character’s ignorance and somewhat hilarious consequences that follow. For over fifty years, this type of slapstick comedy was a common way to get audiences to laugh and have a carefree time. Unfortunately, the reality is nothing like cartoons. In fact, when a person slips and falls, he or she may suffer some very serious injuries and may even die, depending on the level of complications that follow the slip and fall.

Slip and Fall Injury Statistics

Slip and fall injuries can be very serious if not treated right away. More women than men will experience a slip and fall accident in their lives, and of the more serious slip and fall injuries is a bone fracture.

• Over eight million emergency room visits are because of a slip and fall injury.
• Five percent of people who fall will experience a bone fracture, and they may even lose several weeks of work, depending on the severity of the injuries from the slip and fall accident.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

Having a baby can be one of the most exciting experiences in a person’s life. For a woman, especially, giving birth is both exciting and frightening. During the nine-month period, there are many safety measures that women must take in order to protect herself and her baby. One of the most common injuries that pregnant women and their unborn babies endure comes from slip and fall accidents, potentially causing serious complications to both parties.

What Can Happen After a Slip and Fall Accident?

Pregnancy has a massive change on the woman’s body. Since her center of gravity adjusts so significantly, she often has difficulty maintaining her balance. Slightly over 25 percent of all pregnant women experience a fall at some point in their pregnancy. Even though there may be few complications after some falls, some of the potential complications to look out for include but are not limited to:

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

A fall in a retail store or restaurant can come at any time. What should have been a quick grocery shopping trip can turn into a painful accident that requires extensive medical care and time off work.

While such an incident happens in the blink of an eye, getting you the compensation you deserve can take much longer. At our firm, we strive to get our clients compensation as quickly as possible while still protecting all of their rights.

There are numerous hazards that could cause a slip in fall in a retail store or restaurant. When business owners fail to take proper care to provide a safe environment for customers, they risk the health of everyone. It is important to hire an attorney to keep these businesses accountable.

In our legal practice, we see many hazards, again and again, that cause slip and fall accidents. These include:

• Uneven surfaces. A business owner has an obligation to provide a business that has reasonably even surfaces. There may be small variations in the surface, but there are safety standards in place that set how large the variation can be. Larger variations in surface height must be marked. Floors and flooring materials contribute directly to more than two million fall injuries each year.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

In our firm’s 10 years of representing clients, one misconception that comes up regularly is that if you fall on someone else’s property, you have a viable lawsuit against them. This is not the law in Illinois, and slip and fall accidents can be much more difficult to prove.

The Deciding Factor on If You Can Recover Damages

Often the fact that determines if you have a case is if you can prove if the condition that caused your fall was known or should have been known to the property owner/occupier. In some cases, you can prove that the property owner knew about the dangerous condition and did not fix it. For example, you may be able to get video surveillance footage of a store employee mopping and not putting out warning signs.

More common, however, is that you can prove that a reasonable property owner should have been aware of the dangerous condition. For example, you may be able to secure the testimony of another customer who can testify to the fact that the dangerous condition had been present for weeks before your fall.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

Winter conditions make functioning daily more dangerous. Slips and falls are one of the most common accidents and they can result in a variety of injuries from scrapes and bruises to breaks and fractures. What is important in a lawsuit following a slip and fall is negligence on behalf of the property owner. This can be a business, private property, or public government property that you fall on.

What Is Negligence

Negligence is when a person could have done something about a situation, failed to do so, and a person got injured because of that failure. A couple examples of negligence are:

• A driver going significantly over the speed limit and gets in a car accident;
• An accidental overdose of medicine administered by a health provider; and
• A business not mopping up a spill and someone falls.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

A slip and fall can happen anywhere. Whether on private property or in a business, a slip and fall caused by negligence can result in compensation for the injured party to cover medical expenses, suffering, or lost wages. Falls can result in a variety of injuries, and like a car accident, some injuries may not be obvious.

Negligence Explained: When it comes to a slip and fall, if the accident could have been prevented, a property or business owner may be negligent. They may not be aiming for someone to be injured, but it was their lack of action that makes them responsible. This may include wet floors or poor lighting. Even if a property owner was knowledgeable about the danger, they have a minimal obligation to post a warning or barrier. Negligence is a key factor in winning a slip and fall case.

After experiencing a slip and fall on someone else’s property, you may not know where to turn. It is important to act quickly for the statute of limitations in Illinois for slip and falls is only two years. Follow these guidelines for after experiencing a fall because of another’s negligence.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Slip and Fall Accidents

It is easy to mistake footing and trip, but what happens if a slip and fall is caused by property owners’ negligence? Property owners have a responsibility to keep their home or business safe for other invited occupants. A slip and fall may not sound like a big deal, but they can leave permanent damage, or even death, to a victim. If trauma is caused to an individual because of negligence, they may be eligible for compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages.

What Is Negligence?

In regards to property, negligence is knowing about or ignoring an issue, that caused a person to get hurt. Property owners, both private and businesses, are expected to keep reasonable maintenance of a property for the safety of invited parties. A personal injury case relies on the plaintiff being able to prove negligence. For example, if a person slips in a grocery store and sustains a head injury, they may have a case for negligence if there was no wet floor warning. Who is allowed on the property is also a contributing factor in whether someone can call negligence. If someone trespasses in an abandoned barn and the floor collapses, and the trespasser obtains a head injury, the property owner would not likely be held liable because the injured person was breaking the law.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Truck Accidents

The National Transportation Safety Board has determined the most likely cause of the truck accident which severely injured comedian Tracy Morgan and others, and killed another person.

The Federal Agency has determined that driver fatigue was the cause of the crash.  The agency found that the truck driver had driven 12 hours to work before starting his 14-hour shift as a truck driver.

The crash happened when the truck rear-ended a van on the New Jersey Turnpike in June of 2014.

The official NTSB Press Release can be viewed here.

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