Here’s how attorneys can help with Harvey relief efforts

August 30, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Hope comes in many forms. In this case, it’s attorneys from around the country.

The American Bar Association Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness members are discussing potential training and outreach prospects with the Natural Hazard Mitigation Association (NHMA) and the Texas Floodplain Managers Association & Harris County Flood Control.

In the meantime, the Texas Supreme Court has issued an order allowing all out-of-state attorneys to temporarily practice in the Lone Star State to help the thousands of victims of this week’s devastating storm and flooding.

According to ABC News, an estimated 30,000-40,000 homes have been destroyed or flooded in the Houston area as a result of Hurricane Harvey. The storm made its third landfall in Louisiana as of Wednesday morning and continues to move east.

People from around the country have already contributed to the relief efforts and it’s time for more to do the same. Fellow attorneys, you can find disaster relief information on the State Bar of Texas website as well as an online volunteer form to fill out.

Click here to fill out the disaster relief form.

Understanding why lawsuits take so long

August 29, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

As the saying goes, “The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine.” Many people express frustration at the length of time it takes to receive compensation after an injury, occasionally many years. While attorneys strive to set reasonable expectations for their clients, pop culture is constantly leading us to believe that cases are resolved in a matter of weeks or months. This is simply not true.

Let’s say that you were injured in a car wreck on New Year’s Day and your injuries required eight months of treatment before you were back to your old self. Most attorneys will not send an initial demand for payment to the at-fault driver before you have finished all treatment to best protect your interests. No attorney wants to send a demand (basically an official record of what the plaintiff’s team believes to be fair compensation) six weeks after the wreck, only to find out later that your injuries require surgery and your damages cost six times more than you anticipated!

So now it’s Labor Day, and the demand has been sent. It’s customary to allow the at-fault driver’s insurance roughly 30 to 45 days to respond. Fast forward to nearly Halloween and the at-fault driver’s insurance company is denying any wrongdoing. It looks like your attorney will need to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver to compensate you for your injuries. Once the lawsuit has been filed with the Court, the at-fault driver must be properly notified and given time to respond. This can take anywhere from 45 to 90 days.

So now it’s Christmas, it’s been a full year since your injury, you have fully recovered but have a mountain of medical bills and lost wages, and your attorney is just now starting the legal fight. As you can imagine, there are dozens of additional steps along the way to reaching a resolution with the other side, and each one of those steps takes an additional 4 to 6 weeks, at least! Imagine sitting down with your friend to play a game of checkers, but there’s a catch: Each side must wait 30 days in between each move—the game would take forever! That’s a brief way of explaining how a lawsuit works—one side moves, the other side has X-number of weeks to respond.

While frustrating for clients, attorneys are doing everything in their power to get you compensated. No matter the time frame, it’s in your best interests to hire an attorney to navigate any legal obstacles that require serious expertise. Have a legal question about your case? Call our offices, one of our attorneys will be glad to speak with you.

The latest recalls from the NHTSA

August 22, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration produces a brief but informative e-blast that largely goes unnoticed. It’s basically a giant consumer alert, yet it’s tailor made for those of us who might be overly cautious (or, as we like to think, safe) drivers.

The NHTSA isn’t looking to score style points here; these blasts are as straightforward and plain as it gets. They consist of tables, laid out like a spreadsheet, with recall numbers, the name of the manufacturer, the reason for the recall, and, most importantly, the make and model years of the vehicles that might be with vulnerable. It certainly won’t be the most exciting e-blast you’ll ever subscribe to, but it may be one of the most beneficial.

We received the most recent blast yesterday morning. After parsing through the information, we came away with three notable points: First, Mazda appears to be the most recognizable brand/automaker featured on the list. The average driver should take note of models CX-7, CX-9 and the Mazda A6, which appear to have experienced problems related to passenger airbags. The second point: A slate of RV models with makes as recent as 2017 are being flagged for problems related to their headlights. Third, it’s important to take note of the recalls that deal with structural or tire-related problems, as they can pose the most dangerous and unexpected complications with potentially life-threatening results.

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V457

Manufacturer: Mazda North American Operations
Subject: Passenger frontal air bag inflator may rupture

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V464

Manufacturer: Tremcar
Subject: Rear impact guard failure/FMVSS 223

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V477

Manufacturer: REV Recreation Group
Subject: Headlight lenses may crack or break

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V482

Manufacturer: Vantage Mobility International, LLC
Subject: Rear pinion brackets may crack

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V483

Manufacturer: Utility Trailer Manufacturing Company
Subject: Improper weld allowing mudflap bracket to detach

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V486

Manufacturer: CSI Emergency Apparatus, LLC
Subject: Wheels may crack and break

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V489

Manufacturer: Conel, LLC dba McElrath Trailers
Subject: Trailer neck may detach

NHTSA Recall ID Number: 17V494

Manufacturer: Trail King Industries, Inc.
Subject: Pivot plate may crack and trailer may disconnect

Source: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Why cheap car insurance hurts you in the long run

August 21, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Each month, we take stock of the most popular posts on our blog. Invariably, one is more popular than all the others: “Here’s why your car insurance is going up in 2016.”

Granted we’re not living in 2016 anymore, but based on the evidence we can assume that people remain interested because the cost of auto insurance continues to rise each year.

Unfortunately, that means consumers make short-term decisions to save money, and that’s what brings us to the issue of substandard insurance policies.

We’ve written quite a bit about state mandates, which requires all drivers in Illinois to carry minimum liability coverage of $25,000. Substandard insurance is primarily defined as a policy that offers the bare minimum at relatively low premiums. The problem with that, however, is that substandard policies are designed to make you believe the minimum is enough to protect you when it isn’t.

One reason is bodily injury, which is practically impossible to predict. Depending on the severity of the injury, you could be looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills, where $25,000 is barely a drop in the bucket. We’re talking the cost of an ambulance, emergency surgery, a long hospital stay to recover from injuries. Those costs can be significant and financially paralyzing.

Another reason is related to your long-term health, such as your ability to perform a job, whether you’ve lost work, whether you actively participate in the community, and whether you suffer from a terminal injury.

In situations like the one above, insurance is about the only thing protecting you and others from dire situations, both health-wise and financially. You’re also making it easy for insurance companies to simply walk away from the situation when it’s no longer a legal responsibility.

Take this example. A man with a substandard policy crashes into a minivan hauling three kids. Two of them become seriously injured. As the at-fault driver with the substandard policy, your insurance is responsible for picking up the medical bills. But based on your policy, only $25,000 is collectable. Now let’s imagine that the kids’ medical bills cost upwards of $200,000. If attorneys get involved, you could be responsible for the $175,000 difference (and possibly much more) depending on the circumstances of the crash.

Let’s say you lose that lawsuit. Then it’s a matter of duking it out with your insurance company to make up for the difference, which means you’re fighting two battles, both of which you could end up losing. Badly. The above is just one example of the pitfalls of opting for substandard insurance policy.

People often ask us what types of insurance policies we recommend and whether it’s enough to protect them in times of crisis. It’s hard to give a good answer because every person is working under different circumstances. But what we often recommend is that drivers take time to look at their policy, understand it and ask questions. Discovering where you might be vulnerable is worth the effort, as is the protection that comes with a quality insurance policy.

Ken appointed Treasurer of the prestigious AAJ Trucking Litigation Group

August 14, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In more news, founding partner Ken Levinson has been elected to serve as Treasurer of the American Association for Justice Trucking Litigation Group, a prestigious leadership role that will continue through 2018. Ken’s appointment was made official during the AAJ’s annual convention in Boston. He previously served as part of the Group’s Advisory Board.

The AAJ Trucking Litigation Group is comprised of nearly 500 lawyers from around the country and is considered one of the top two most successful litigation groups of the organization. The Truck Litigation Group often addresses lax federal, state, and local enforcement of trucking laws that in turn have an adverse impact on victims of trucking crashes. The Group effectively serves as an oversight committee for the trucking industry and the laws that govern its safety standards.

With advancements in technology, the trucking industry continues to evolve at a startling rate. One of the big issues related to commerce and legislation is the advent of self-driving trucks, which experts agree is an inevitability. As an elected leader of the litigation group, Ken will work with the executive committee members to draft official stances on things like self-driving trucks and government oversight, among many other tasks. Ken and executive committee members will also prioritize the enforcement of current laws as they pertain to the protection of plaintiffs.

The AAJ provides trial attorneys with information, professional support and a nationwide network that enables them to most effectively and expertly represent clients. The mission of the American Association for Justice is to promote a fair and effective justice system—and to support the work of attorneys in their efforts to ensure that any person who is injured by the misconduct or negligence of others can obtain justice in America’s courtrooms, even when taking on the most powerful interests.

School’s back. Time to think about bus safety

August 7, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Summer’s nearly gone, and with it, a semblance of calm. Soon, students from around the country will be heading back to the classroom. Big yellow school buses will once again be prominent fixtures of city and suburban roads, stretching from late summer to the spring. Which leads us to this reminder: it’s important to talk to your kids about school bus safety.

It’s never too early to start. Organizations like AAA have already launched its “School’s Open, Drive Carefully” campaign, designed to remind adults about populated school zones and the dangers of distracted driving (including but not limited to floating on social media). The organization notes that nearly one-third of child pedestrian fatalities happen after school, the most dangerous hours for driving typically between the hours of 3-7pm. That’s prime time for school zones. Parents, it’s your responsibility to follow this tried and true advice.

Stay off your cell phone

This shouldn’t be exclusive to the school year. Traffic fatalities have increased exponentially over the last few years. safety advocates and researchers are nearly unanimous in their assessment that distracted driving is the primary culprit of such ghastly numbers. The situation becomes even more serious when children are involved. They are small and often unaware of their surroundings. The slightest distraction for any driver can have serious consequences, fatalities being one of them. But the bottom line when it comes to distracted driving is this: Stop doing it.

Remind your kids about the dangers of large vehicles

School buses are large and extremely dangerous when children are nearby. It’s not uncommon for kids to think of a school bus as a type of playground. They might think about running around and hiding behind tires, for example. Bus drivers are trained to keep an eye out for unsuspecting children, but even the most experienced driver isn’t immune to terrible blind spots. We’ve heard horror stories about children getting injured because they inadvertently stepped behind a bus that happened to be moving in reverse, or crossing the street without paying attention to oncoming traffic. Remind your kids that large vehicles, especially buses, do not cnstitute play areas.

Remind your teens about the importance of safe driving

Just as children are exposed to the dangers of the road, so are the teenagers who end up behind the wheel of a car. Many newly christened drivers start out by driving relatively short distances, e.g. between home and school. But that also means they have an even greater responsibility to account for the kids who happen to live in those same neighborhoods. An inexperienced driver is much more likely to cause havoc on the road than an adult who knows the drill. It may seem like pointing out the obvious, but to teens, the obvious is sometimes too obvious.

Remind yourself about the daily bus route

It’s unlikely that you’ll have a hard time spotting a big yellow school bus. But knowing your kids’ route to school can sometimes factor into your decision making, like whether to drive them to school yourself. Recently, our managing partner, Jay, was forced to make a tough call related to one of his daughter’s upcoming field trips. Instead of taking the conventional suburban roads, the school decided it would be faster to take the highway. Given that the bus wasn’t equipped with seat belts, Jay and his wife had to break the bad news to their daughter that she couldn’t go on the trip.

Enforce the buddy system

Adding a friend to the mix is one way of keeping two people safe at once. If you happen to be friendly with a neighboring schoolmate, there’s no harm in making it known to them both that two is better than one. The buddy system helps make sure your child ends up on the right bus, and more importantly, that they’ve got each other’s back when getting on and off.