Maryland & DC Personal Injury Lawyer

(All to) Close Encounters

2010-08-26T11:54:45Z

I do a lot of daily walking and as I work in Rockville, this means dealing with both traffic and impatient drivers. While much has been said about the danger to pedestrians who listen to I-Pods, or IM one another, I haven't seen much about the other side of the equation. More and more electric or hybrid cars as well as scooters are on the road. The nature of these vehicles is such that they produce less noise, and what little they do emit is usually lost in the urban background. And while I will be the first to admit I sometimes exhibit the common sense of a box of rocks, (listening to my MP3 player while trying to cross the street in rush hour!), even without my headphones, I have a difficult time hearing almost any vehicle behind me, especially a small one. And while I do look around when I cross a street, drivers making turns on red seem more than happy to view the Maryland statute giving the right-of-way to pedestrians as more of a suggestion than the law.

Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to the problem. Commuters are not going to slow down and change their driving habits any more than pedestrians are. And it seems an accident involving a pedestrian wearing headphones and a driver in the crosswalk is just a lawsuit waiting for a jury. And while I will probably continue to listen to my Tangerine Dream, after a few personal close calls and having seen the results of "Auto v. Person", I now walk like I ride my BMW R65, the person with the most metal, wins!

Cell Phones, Texting, and Good Dental Hygiene

2010-08-03T18:54:04Z

     On May 20th, Maryland became the 8th state nationwide to enact a ban on driving while using a hand held cell phone. But the driver has to be observed speeding or involved in some other primary offense to be cited for cell phone use. While this could help make our roadways safer, there are studies that suggest that talking on a hands free phone is no less distracting than using a hand held phone. And if you're involved in an accident while using a cell phone, the opposing party could check your phone records to check whether you were on your cell at the time of the accident.

     But cell phones are only part of the "distracted driving" problem. I commute by bus every day, and have a chance to see many of these accidents waiting to happen. I've seen a driver eating a sandwich with one hand while typing into his GPS with the other, (and I will never understand why you need a GPS in rush hour traffic.) There was one person texting in her car, glancing up occasionally to see which lane she was in. I even saw one driver brushing his teeth on Rt. 270 while his truck apparently drove itself to work!

     Unfortunately, there will always be people with better things to do than drive, so until our lawmakers see fit to put some teeth into laws that actively discourage negligent behavior, we will continue to see people injured by drivers who think that texting is a great way of killing time while behind the wheel.

What is my case worth?

2010-06-15T17:59:31Z

Clients who have been injured by the negligence of others often wonder, "What's my case worth?" The answer to this question depends on many things. Your lawyers need to investigate the facts of your case, learn about the extent of your injuries, review and analyze your medical records and bills, determine the extent and duration of your physical injuries, find out if you have lost income because of an inability to return to work, and learn whether you may need further medical care in the future and whether any of your injuries will be permanent. We need to learn how your injuries have impacted your daily life. We may also need to interview witnesses, speak with your doctors and hire experts to help prove your case. If we can prove that your injuries were caused by the negligence of someone else, you are entitled to recover the cost of your medical care, prescriptions, any necessary replacement services, lost wages, pain and suffering resulting from the negligence, and compensation for any permanent injury that you suffered. It is almost never possible for a lawyer to estimate the value of your case accurately when you first discuss the case with him or her.

Contingency Fees

2009-08-14T19:19:59Z

As many of you know most personal injury lawyers charge a contingency fee. Some people advocate limiting the rights of injured parties and seek to eliminate or change the availability of the contingent fee arrangement. The folks who promote this view are not friends of people who are injured in automobile/trucking accidents, by medical negligence or by dangerous premises. Here's why:

Contingency fees make it possible for injured people to obtain competent and sometimes extraordinary representation from attorneys who are the equal of the attorneys hired by insurance companies and wealthy corporations. Lawyers who represent injured people often invest hundreds and sometimes thousands of hours of their and their staffs' time to obtain fair compensation for their clients' injuries and losses. If contingency fees were not available, injured folks would have to pay their lawyers substantial fees to obtain adequate representation. Imagine paying an attorney a fee for every six minutes he or she worked on your personal injury case...this would cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars whether you won or lost. A contingency fee allows you to aggressively pursue your claim without owing thousands of dollars in fees should you lose.

When you hear of a person or group suggesting that contingency fees should be limited, remember that you are not charged a fee unless there is a recovery, and there are no costs involved in sitting down with a personal injury lawyer to learn if your case has merit. Insurance companies hire top-notch lawyers to defend their insured; shouldn't you have the same opportunity? The contingency fee levels the playing field between you and rich and powerful insurance companies.