- Brooks Schuelke | March 30, 2008 1:47 PM |
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FDA & Prescription DrugsSome warnings hit home. The FDA has now issued warnings that the popular asthma drug Singulair may be linked to suicidal thoughts. This is particularly disconcerting because Singulair is a popular prescription with children (including one of my own). If you or your child takes Singulair, please discuss these risks with your doctor.For more information from my Injuryboard brethren, you might...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 29, 2008 10:31 AM |
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Medical MalpracticeOne of the benefits of tort "reform", according to its supporters, is that reform is supposed to increase access to care by making more physicians available. But in Ohio, the data is now in. Five years after the state enacted medical malpractice caps, there are fewer doctors delivering babies. Recent data also questions the claim that tort reform was necessary due to rising insurance rates. ...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 28, 2008 10:13 AM |
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Medical MalpracticeIn a disturbing new trend, many doctors and other medical groups are requiring patients to enter into arbitration agreements prior to the doctors providing medical care. There are many problems with pre-dispute arbitration agreements, and the biggest in my mind is that the patient is giving up rights without the benefit of counsel. Most people don't know that arbitration can be as expensive...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 26, 2008 8:46 AM |
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Workplace InjuriesEarlier this month, a crane collapsed in New York City, and now, less than two weeks later, another crane accident has occurred in Miami. The NYC collapse was an existing crane, but in Miami, the crane fell during installation at the construction site of a 40 story apartment building. The crane fell into a house being used by the construction company as an office. Two workers were killed,...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 24, 2008 8:52 PM |
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Automobile AccidentsThey say you've made it when people know you by one name. And in the world of Texas Tejano music, there are few, if any, bigger stars than Emilio. Unfortunately, the Grammy winner suffered serious injuries after a bus wreck this weekend. Emilio apparently sustained severe head injuries in the wreck, and he is taking part in a study using hypothermia to treat his brain injury. While this...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 19, 2008 8:17 AM |
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Medical Malpractice"It's bigger than AIDS. It's bigger than breast cancer. It's bigger than auto accidents. And yet no one seems to really be aware of the problem."That's a quote from Dennis Quaid talking about medical errors. Over 100,000 people a year are killed by medical errors, but the public doesn't seem to know about the problem. Though his twins are doing fine after their well publicized experience...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 18, 2008 10:42 AM |
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Workplace InjuriesDriving through downtown Austin, it seems there are more cranes in the sky than buildings. And whenever we drive under one of the cranes, I know my kids look skyward nervously. Unfortunately, those fears became reality in New York this weekend, as four workers were killed, and at least three more are missing, after a crane collapsed at a worksite. Sadly, reports are that many in the...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 17, 2008 9:43 AM |
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Medical MalpracticeWe had previously posted about the medical malpractice case filed by John Ritter's widow. After a long and grueling trial, the case came to a close last Friday when the jury found that the two remaining doctors had not committed medical malpractice in providing treatment to the actor. Prior to this trial, the hospital and other entities had entered settlements with the family.The case can be...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 15, 2008 12:27 PM |
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MiscellaneousI have a long-held belief that one of the root causes behind the increase in cost of litigation is the occurrence of more and more frivolous defenses asserted by insurance companies and defense lawyers. Today marks my third story about frivolous defenses, and this story comes from a 2006 patent case in Tyler. That case involved a suit against Microsoft. The judge found that Microsoft's...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 14, 2008 11:53 AM |
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Automobile AccidentsEarlier this week, the Austin Police Department released a list of the five Austin intersections with the most car wrecks in 2007. The intersections are:(1) East Riverside Drive at Pleasant Valley (29 car wrecks); (2) North Lamar Blvd. and W. Koenig Lane (27 car wrecks, but also most convenient place for wrecks as it's populated with auto repair shops and dealerships);(3) West Parmer Lane and...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 13, 2008 12:09 PM |
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Automobile AccidentsOne of the biggest problems facing Austin police is the increase in auto-pedestrian collisions. This week alone there have been two auto-pedestrian fatalities on Austin's roads. The second auto-pedestrian fatality, which occurred Tuesday night, was the 11th traffic fatality of the year. This is a problem that has continued from last year, when auto-pedestrian wrecks accounted for 24 of the 63...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 11, 2008 8:06 AM |
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MiscellaneousOne of the hot topics in prevention of auto accidents is how to reduce the number of people (particularly teens) who text message while driving. There are numerous statistics, but I find that the video from the news story below shows a lot more than mere numbers. The story follows a Clemson study that puts teen drivers in a driving simulator and asks them to text message while "driving" in...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 10, 2008 9:31 AM |
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MiscellaneousEarlier, there was an exchange among blogs, including Des Moines Injuryboard member Steve Lombardi, about the value of listserves for attorneys. Instead of rehashing each sides' views, I refer you to my earlier post about our trial lawyer listserves. Steve had another post on the subject recently. And after reading it, I can't say that I disagree with anything he had to say. If I understand...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 08, 2008 1:28 PM |
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Automobile AccidentsThis week, Allstate Insurance Company filed a suit in a Texas US District Court against 67 defendants, including chiropractors and law firms, alleging that they were improperly soliciting car wreck victims as clients. Under Texas law, personal injury lawyers are limited in their abilities to contact victims of car wrecks. To get around this limitation, some unscrupulous attorneys have...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 06, 2008 10:38 AM |
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MiscellaneousAs stated in a tort reform post earlier, I believe one of the big problems driving the cost of litigation is insurance companies and defense lawyers asserting frivolous defenses and taking frivolous positions. I have griped and moaned about the lack of coverage, but I haven't done anything about it. Now, I'm going to quit being lazy and try to highlight some of these situations.In November of...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 05, 2008 8:04 AM |
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MiscellaneousThere have been numerous stories lately emphasizing that text messaging while driving (an increasingly frequent occurrence) significantly increases the risk of auto accidents. For example, one study finds that a person texting while driving is six times more likely to be involved in a car wreck. And one study finds that texting is the number one distraction for teen drivers. But statistics are...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 04, 2008 8:28 AM |
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Automobile AccidentsThis week, the Austin American Statesman posted an article that discussed the increase in car wrecks due to street racing. The problem of street racing really came into focus nationwide in February when 8 observers were kill in Maryland when a drag racing car wreck spilled over into the crowd. But street racing isn't just a problem in Maryland. It's also a big issue in Texas. The National...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 03, 2008 8:56 AM |
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Automobile AccidentsThis weekend was another sobering reminder about the risk of auto accidents on Austin's roads. Yesterday, a teenager died in a car wreck on Texas 71 near Bee Creek. This is one of the most dangerous stretches of road in town. Since October 2006, eleven people have died in auto accidents on this two mile stretch. In fact, Austin news station KXAN ran a story just last week talking about the...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 02, 2008 1:31 PM |
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Medical MalpracticeThere has been a bit of a debate recently about doctors and hospitals billing for services when they commit medical malpractice. Indeed, since last fall, hospitals in 10 states have agreed to waive fees for certain errors called "never events" because experts say they should never happen. But MSNBC has a new story about a medical malpractice charge that may take the cake. As the story...
- Brooks Schuelke | March 01, 2008 8:53 AM |
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MiscellaneousThe "tort reform" movement is one of the most successful marketing jobs in modern day America. And one of the key components of that marketing has been an effort to try and convince the American public that frivlous lawsuits are a big part of the problem. But that's far from the truth.In my experience, the biggest factor in the cost of litigation is frivolous defenses --- insurance companies...