Accident and Injury Lawyer Blog

You can find four opening statement examples here.

Summary of Michigan malpractice law.

Our lawyers are now looking at Januvia (sitagliptin), which has been associated with an increased risk pancreatitis.

Our lawyers are also looking at Seroquel, and Byetta cases involving pancreatitis.

If you think you may have a Januvia pancreatitis lawsuit, call our law firm at 800--553-8082 or get a free Januvia consultation on line.

• Drug Injury Lawyer Blog Post on Januvia FDA Warning
• More Information on Januvia lawsuits
• Wall Street Journal Blog Post

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On the Legal Blog Watch, Robert J. Ambrogi gives us another example of how the Internet is intruding on jury trials. The South Dakota Supreme Court found that the trial judge did not abuse his discretion in declaring a mistrial in a seat belt defect wrongful death case because of a juror's Google searches.

You can read the entire South Dakota Supreme Court opinion here.

• Jurors and Facebook (PA trial)
• Jurors and Twitter
• The Faculty Lounge (more on Twitter and jurors)
• Twitter Marketing (Overlawyered post on one lawyer's effort to market his law practice via Twitter)

John Cord gives his thought on the Yaz MDL hearing yesterday in Richmond.

Personal injury victims want a calculator or formula to determine what their settlement should be. "How much is my case worth?" seems like a fair question. The human brain is adverse to uncertainty. In lab experiments, our wiring in this regard is underscored: we prefer physical pain to uncertainty.

Regrettably, there is no formula or calculator that shows how much money you will get in your accident case. The real world is too complex for a personal injury settlement calculator. A car accident case is worth what a judge or jury would give the injury victim.

That said, below are some links that can help you determine the value of your case by giving you information both on how claims are valued and what juries have awarded or settlements that have occurred for injuries similar to yours.

• How the Value of Personal Injury Claims Is Calculated? (how lawyers, insurance companies and, ultimately, juries calculate personal injury settlements and verdicts)
• Is There a Formula to Computer Value of Personal Injury Claims? (more on why there is no formula for settlement)
• How to Maximize the Value of Your Case (thoughts on getting the most of of your personal injury claim)

On the eve of the Yaz MDL hearing, the Drug Recall Lawyer Blog writes about the consolidation of Yaz cases in Pennsylvania. This is not a class action in the technical sense of the term but it does lead to consolidated discovery in the Yaz cases in Pennsylvania.

The hearing MDL Yaz consolidation hearing was today in Richmond but there will not be an immediate ruling.

The first of over 500 gadolinium MRI contrast NSF lawsuits is set for May 24, 2010 in Ohio.

These MRI contrast lawsuits involve gadolinium, a paramagnetic metal used for some MRI and MRA scans because gadolinium makes it easier for doctors to understand the scan's finding. However, Plaintiffs' lawyers that have filed these cases - as my law firm has - contend that the manufacturers of these contrast agents should have know that patients with moderate to severe kidney impairment would get NSF, an awful disease that causes fibrosis or scarring of the skin and tissue throughout the patient's body.

Regardless of where you stand on the question of whether the manufacturers of MRI contrast containing gadolinium were negligent - and I think plaintiffs' lawyers have a very strong argument in these MRI contrast lawsuits - it is impossible to deny how tragic these NSF cases are.

Our gadolinium NSF lawyers are investigating these MRI contrast lawsuits around the country. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with NSF/NSD, call one of our lawyers for a free consultation at 800-553-8082 or click here for a no obligation on-line case evaluation.

A jury in Texas found that the Texas Motor Speedway was negligent in an accident that left a boy with traumatic brain injuries, awarding more that $11 million in damages for his injuries.

The boy was hit by child while driving a miniature race car in the parking lot of the Lil’ Texas Motor Speedway, a paved one-fifth mile at the race track. The jury found the Texas Motor Speedway 80% responsible for the accident (and the boy's parents 20%).

I would like to know how fast they kids were driving. My kids are too young but they are going to want to drive go-carts and the like just like I did as a child. Should I let them? Depressing issues to digest.

Yamaha won the first lawsuit to go to trial in what is sure to be the first of many. A Texas jury found Yamaha not responsible for the death of a 13 year-old boy in spite of the testimony Plaintiff's Yamaha ATV lawyer presented from an engineering expert who testified that the Rhino ATV had problems with lateral stability because of its width, high center of gravity, stiff suspension and acceleration. Because of this defect, the engineer testified, the Rhino ATV rolled over at speeds as low as 11.5 mph.

Plaintiff's ATV lawyers believe more weight should have been given to the fact that Yamaha agreed to a “voluntary repair” for the Rhino in which the rear track width was widened and the rear stabilizer bar was removed.

This is bad news for Rhino ATV lawsuits (made worse by the fact that jury was only out for an hour) but the history of these type of lawsuits is that defense lawyers often win the early rounds. Our product liability lawyers will continue to review and purse Rhino ATV lawsuits, particularly in serious injury and death rollover cases. If you or someone you love has suffered a serious rollover injury or death in a Yamaha Rhino ATV, give one of our Rhino ATV lawyers a call. Our lawyers are handling Yamaha Rhino ATV rollover cases in serious injury and death cases across the country. Call us for a free consultation at 800-553-8082 or click here for a free Rhino lawsuit Internet consultation.

More Yaz problems for Bayer. The FDA warned Bayer regarding quality control issues at a plant that makes the key ingredient in Yaz, a birth control drug that has generated 50 different lawsuits for issues unrelated to its manufacturing process.

The FDA said inspectors uncovered testing problems at Bayer's manufacturing plant in Berghamen, Germany, during a March visit.FDA inspectors said the company measured the quality of its drug ingredients based on an average of several samples, instead of reporting individual tests results. Bayer shipped eight drug batches to the U.S. that were tested using this randomized method, which is not permissible under FDA regulations. The FDA's message is simple: test them all.

Along with the overpromotion of Yaz, this is one more issue that - while arguably not relevant at trial in a DVT case - underscores the disaster that is Yaz/Yasmin.

Our Yaz lawyers are now investigating for potential lawsuits and, hopefully, future settlements of Yaz, Ocella and Yasmin claims, primarily for deep vein thrombosis and victims but also for others who have suffered gallbladder injuries, a heart attack or stroke while taking Yaz or Yasmin. Call 800-553-8082 to learn more about your potential Yaz claim or click here to discuss your case with a product liability lawyer who can assist you in assessing the legal options you may have for your Yaz/Yasmin claim.

Missoula County agreed to pay a doctor $5,000 to settle his civil rights complaint after he was refused medical treatment while in jail for obstructing his efforts to provide care to a suicidal woman. After the doctor was arrested for ignoring police commands to withdraw while attempting to aid an armed suicidal woman (which sounds completely insane to me), he experienced chest pains and requested an EKG due to his history of heart problems. As part of the settlement with Missoula County, the municipality will also review the doctor’s concerns regarding policies for medical treatment for inmates.

The MDL hearing on the consolidation of the Yaz birth control cases is set for September 24, 2009 in Richmond.

Yaz, Ocella and Yasmin are three birth control pills on the market that contain the fourth generation progestin component drospirenone. Like other birth control medications, Yaz and Yasmin are combination oral drugs that use estrogen and progestin hormones. Most other birth control medications use a progestin that has been time-tested. Medical literature indicates that Yaz and Yasmine’s drospirenone increases potassium levels, which can disrupt heart rhythms, slow down blood flow, and cause clots. Those clots (thrombus) may lead to significant injuries, including strokes, heart attacks and pulmonary emboli. The FDA received over 50 reports of Yaz/Yasmin related deaths between the first quarter of 2004 and the third quarter of 2008.

If you or a loved one has used Yasmin/Yaz and have suffered from blood clots, stroke, DVT, heart attack or gallbladder injury or you are a lawyer with a Yasmin/Yaz case for which you would co-counsel, please call one of our Yasmin/Yaz attorneys at 800-553-8082 or click here for a free no obligation consultation on your potential Yasmin/Yaz lawsuit.

Perhaps President Obama's speech gave to much hope to tort reform advocates thinking his mind was open to medical malpractice caps. President Obama said on 60 Minutes on Sunday that there was no evidence that malpractice caps would make a meaningful difference in the costs of health care.

"What I would be willing to do is to consider any ideas out there that would actually work in terms of reducing costs, improving the quality of patient care. So far the evidence I've seen is that caps will not do that."

But President Obama chooses his words very carefully. "So far the evidence" is the "I don't want to lose the left but I have to keep every option open because Fox News keeps telling me my presidency rides on health care" qualifier that underscores the point I made on the night of the speech: President Obama is keep his options open on health care tort reform.

Medical malpractice lawyers - particularly malpractice lawyers in states like Maryland and Texas that have seen the impact of medical malpractice caps on their clients ability to get a recovery are parsing every word of president Obama on tort reform.

• The Theory That President Obama Will Flip on Medical Malpractice Tort Reform (and why I don't believe President Obama will alter his position)
• Anticipation of First Obama Tort Reform Speech (June 11, 2009 post)
• Post Obama's Malpractice Tort Reform Speech in June (I breathe a sigh of relief when he says no medical malpractice caps)
• President Obama's Views as an Illinois Senator (insight into where President Obama may be on tort reform and, specifically, caps in medical malpractice cases)

Ocella is the generic of Yaz/Yasmin. Not many lawyers are paying attention to Ocella lawsuits. But there is no reason to believe that Ocella claims are any different from the claims made in the Yaz lawsuits. All three drugs contain drospirenone. The combination of drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol is used as contraception to prevent pregnancy, which these drugs ostensibly do reasonably effectively when compared to other birth control pills.

The concern raised with Ocella is that, like Yaz and Yasmin, it contains drospirenone which has been is linked to an increase in potassium that causes abnormal heart rhythms. In Ocella there is particular fear with blood clots in the heart that can cause stroke, heart attack, or sudden death.

Our attorneys are now investigating for potential Ocella lawsuits and, hopefully, future settlements primarily for DVT victims but also for others who have suffered gallbladder injuries, a heart attack or stroke while taking Ocella. To speak to a lawyer about Ocella, call 800-553-8082 and learn more about your potential Ocella claim or click here to discuss your case with a product liability lawyer who can assist you in assessing the legal options you may have for your Ocella injury claim.

24/7 reports that two recently released studies in a British medical journal show oral contraceptive, including Yaz and Yasmin, "cause a dramatic increase in the risk of blood clots. The data indicates users of the pills are 6.3 times more likely to suffer blood clots that can lead to dangerous health problems such as heart arrhythmia, heart attacks and strokes."

This article further reports that:

The popular birth control pills both contain drospirenonem, a progestin that increases the level of potassium in users. Potassium helps regulate heartbeats. Elevated levels of potassium can lead to the medical condition known has hyperkalemia, which can cause potentially fatal heart rhythms (arrhythmia). The increased potassium can also raise the risk of developing gall bladder disease.

Bayer, maker of both Yaz and Yasmin, was earlier this year forced by the federal Food and Drug Administration to air commercials correcting misleading information contained in the company's earlier ads. According to the FDA, those earlier, misleading commercials failed to give viewers adequate warnings of the dangers of Yaz and Yasmin, as well as deceptively giving the impression that the drugs were approved for use in treatment of PMS (premenstrual syndrome).

A lot of lawyers are looking closely at Yaz and Yasmin because - unlike many pharmaceutical drugs - there are many options that are just as efficacious without these potential risks. There is certainly no definitive study that has found that Yaz and Yasmin are no more likely to prevent pregnancy than older battle tested birth control pills that contain levonorgestrel.

For more information on the Yaz class action MDL, visit our Yaz lawyer information center which provides a general overview of the foundation for the Yaz lawsuits, an update on what plaintiffs' lawyers are doing in these cases, an explanation of the how the Yaz lawsuits will proceed, the latest medical research on Yaz, and information on the potential association between Yaz and gallbladder injuries.

Our lawyers are now investigating for potential lawsuits and, hopefully, future settlements of Yaz and Yasmin claims, primarily for DVT victims but also for others who have suffered gallbladder injuries, a heart attack or stroke while taking Yaz or Yasmin. Call 800-553-8082 to learn more about your potential Yaz claim or click here to discuss your case with a product liability lawyer who can assist you in assessing the legal options you may have for your Yaz/Yasmin claim.

Should we expect a run of Kugel mesh hernia repair settlements? The Drug Recall Lawyer Blog reports:

Kugel hernia mesh lawsuits are beginning to settle, thanks in part to a change in defense counsel. The products, manufactured by Davol, are defective because they the plastic ring can break off, causing perforation and infections. Left untreated, these injuries can be fatal. Davol has since eliminated use of the plastic rings, in favor of a bio-absorbable ring. Now represented by the New York firm Reed Smith, Davol has signaled a change in thinking to a more reasonable approach—these can be very meritorious cases worthy of settlement, and the expense of litigation is unnecessary. There are about 1,000 cases in the Rhode Island United States District Court MDL, and about 1,200 cases in Providence state court (the manufacturer, Davol, is a Rhode Island company). Right now, 4 federal suits have been settled, and one state claim has been settled. This looks to be the tip of the iceberg, as the parties move toward the first scheduled federal court trial in March, 2010. That will be followed shortly thereafter by the first state court case in June 2010. The settlements will probably come in rapid numbers, now that discovery is coming to a close and the trials quickly approach.

In a case I blogged about back in February, an Illinois woman involved in a lawsuit over the alleged wrongful death of an 89-year-old Alzheimer’s patient has pleaded guilty to criminal neglect, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The victim died of hypothermia earlier this year after wandering out of the Arbor of Itasca nursing home in freezing temperatures. The nursing assistant in charge did not respond when Plaintiff triggered an alarm. A nursing home wrongful death lawsuit is currently pending against the Arbor of Itasca nursing home.

If you need a nursing home lawyer in Maryland or Illinois, call 800-553-8082 or click here for a free consultation.

U.S. Recall News suggests today the possibility of a Yasmin and Yaz recall:

The alleged side effects of Yaz and Yasmin can be fatal. So if they are proved to be caused by these birth control drugs, it is certainly not a stretch of the imagination to think that Yaz and Yasmin will be recalled from the market. Yet the FDA has given no indication that it intends to do so. In the end, it is their decision whether or not to recall Yaz and Yasmin.

My guess from the cheap seats as to whether there will be Yasmin/Yaz recall? My guess is no. But instead of getting recalled, Yaz could die a painfully slow death. First, the faucet of Yaz/Yasmin advertisements would die off. (Let's ignore that fact that they were obligated to keep running ads by the FDA to fix past misrepresentations about Yaz/Yasmin.) Then, Bayer comes out with a new birth control pill that - low and behold - does not contain drospirenone. Finally, instead of recalling Yaz, Bayer stops manufacturing Yaz. If this happens, Yaz claims will be much easier to settle. It is very hard for a drug company to settle claims without taking the drug off the market or drastically changing the warning label on the drug.

For more information on the Yaz class action MDL, visit our Yaz lawyer information center which provides a general overview of the foundation for the Yaz lawsuits, an update on what plaintiffs' lawyers are doing in these cases, an explanation of the how the Yaz lawsuits will proceed, the latest medical research on Yaz, and information on the potential link between Yaz and gallbladder injuries.

If you or someone you care for has used Yasmin/Yaz and has suffered from blood clots, stroke, DVT, heart attack or gallbladder injury, or you are an attorney with a Yasmin/Yaz case for which you would co-counsel or you think might be a candidate for a lawsuit or future potential global settlement, please call one of our Yasmin/Yaz attorneys at 800-553-8082 or click here for a free no obligation consultation on your potential Yasmin/Yaz lawsuit.