Sandusky Personal Injury Lawyer - injury

Full coverage may not cover you in a Sandusky, Ohio car accident | Sandusky, Ohio car accident lawyers

Chuck Boyk — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:21:00 GMT

Even though you buy full coverage auto insurance to protect you and your family in an Ohio car accident doesn't mean that you will be fully covered.

Our Toledo, Ohio car accident lawyers see cases where an Intrafamily Exclusion is deeply written in an auto policy, which denies coverage if the Ohio car accident is caused by a family member. Many families do not know that their full coverage policy contains this exclusion - even though they pay extra money for what they think is full coverage.

Our Toledo, Ohio car accident lawyers urge drivers to double check with their insurance agents to see if this clause is present in their policy. If it is, make arrangements to change coverages. An Ohio car accident is jut that - an accident. Everyone should be entitled to compensation after an Ohio car accident, regardless of who causes it.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a Toledo, Ohio car accident, contact our office to receive your FREE copy of The Ohio Accident Book.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Toledo, Ohio workers' compensation lawyer on work injuries

Chuck Boyk — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 10:42:00 GMT

Our Ohio workers' compensation attorney Dale Emch discusses Ohio work injuries in his most recent Toledo Blade column, "Legal Briefs." If you or someone you know has been injured on the job, contact our office today for your FREE copy of The Ohio Work Injury Book. General legal questions to be considered in "Legal Briefs" can be sent to Ohio car accident lawyer Dale Emch at demch@charlesboyk-law.com or to 405 Madison Avenue, Suite 1200, Toledo, Ohio 43604.

Dear Dale: Assume someone has a worker's compensation claim with an allowable diagnosis of lumbar radiculopathy along with a psychiatric diagnosis. Can the worker be declared to have reached maximum medical improvement for the back injury and still keep open the psychiatric claim?

Answer: The quick answer is yes.

The worker's compensation system in Ohio is designed to pay for injured workers' medical bills and replace a portion of their wages if the injury renders them unable to work. Sometimes a worker sustains more than one injury and those injuries can resolve at different times.

You referred to maximum medical improvement, which indicates a familiarity with the worker's compensation system. Those folks speak a language that leaves the uninitiated scratching their heads and wondering what was just said. Maximum medical improvement means that the worker's injury is about as good as it's going to get. That doesn't mean the person has completely recovered, just that the doctors believe the person has healed to the extent possible.

Before workers reach maximum medical improvement, they can receive compensation called temporary total disability. (See, it's more lingo. People who spend a lot of time in the worker's compensation world speak in abbreviations like TTD and MMI.) Temporary total disability pays injured workers a portion of their wages while they're recovering. Once they reach maximum medical improvement, workers who haven't fully recovered may be eligible to receive compensation for any permanent injuries.

So, in your scenario, the worker you're speaking about has a back injury and a psychiatric issue related to the workplace accident. If the worker's back has improved to the extent possible - even if recovery isn't 100 percent - that portion of the claim can be resolved. If the accident led to a permanent back problem, the worker would be eligible for a payout based on the percentage of impairment or, if the injury renders the worker unable to gain sustained employment, the worker could receive compensation to replace his or her wages.

A resolution can be reached on the back injury while keeping the psychiatric claim open. If the workplace accident caused psychiatric problems that render the worker unable to work for a period of time, the person could receive temporary total disability. Or, the worker may be able to work, but needs to have any mental health treatment covered.

The worker's compensation system can be confusing at times, but there are resources that provide good information. The state's Web site can get you started. The address is www.ohiobwc.com.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Parents sue after daughter is killed at hotel | Ohio wrongful death attorneys

Chuck Boyk — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:45:00 GMT

The parents of the 21-year-old a former homecoming queen filed a $100 million lawsuit against the hotel, Days Inn Corp., for the wrongful death of their daughter, citing that a hotel failed to preform employment background checks after hiring illegal immigrants.

The woman suffered wrongful death after she was killed in a Tennessee hotel this past September.

A Days Inn employee used a master key to let himself into the room where the woman was staying during her business trip, then sexually assaulted and killed her. Her body was found a week later in a nearby lake.

Tragic deaths like this one are so sad, but they are also common, and our Ohio wrongful death attorneys see the devastation these types of horrible crimes can cause.

If you need help dealing with the tragic loss of a loved one, contact our office today to order your free copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book to learn your rights.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Ohio amusement park lawyers | Kentucky teen receives settlement after tragic amusement park accident

Chuck Boyk — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:42:00 GMT

Roller coaster injuries, falls from thrill rides, or injuries caused by workers' unsafe practices can all have devastating consequences. Our Ohio amusement park injury attorneys handle cases where people are injured at amusement parks, and they see how serious these injuries can be.

Kaitlyn Lasitter, a teenager from Kentucky, received a settlement from a Six Flags Amusement Park after her feet were severed during a thrill ride in June 2007. The ride malfunctioned, causing a cable to snap, swing down, and cut off the 13-year-old's feet.

Her parents later sued the Kentucky amusement park for negligence and failure to properly test, inspect, maintain, and operate the ride. The lawsuit states that if the machine operator would have pressed the emergency stop button right away, Kaitlyn probably would have only suffered cuts and scrapes.

Doctors were able to reattach her right foot, but part of her left leg had to amputated. The settlement, which is to be kept confidential, will provide lifetime care for the girl.

If you or someone you know has been injured while at an amusement park, contact our office today for your free consultation and case evaluation.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Dog bite liability discussed by Ohio dog bite lawyer Dale Emch

Chuck Boyk — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:47:10 GMT

Are you responsible if your dog bites someone else? What do you do if you dog injured another person? Ohio dog bite lawyer Dale Emch discusses the flip side to dog bite injuries in his most recent Legal Briefs column. If you have a general legal question you would like to see addressed, including those on Ohio car accident settlements, Ohio work injury payments, or medical malpractice, contact Dale today at demch@charlesboyk-law.com.

I heard that a dog's owner isn't responsible for a dog bite if the person bitten was trespassing. So, if I was throwing the football around with my son in my backyard and the ball went into my neighbor's yard, would my neighbor be responsible if his dog bit me when I crossed into his yard to pick up the football?

Let me give you some of the basics about Ohio dog bite law before I zero in on your question. Under Ohio law, the owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog is liable for any injuries caused by the dog. It's a very strict rule that can have some harsh results. For instance, if my dog, Simon, ran out in front of a car, causing the driver to swerve off the road and hit a tree, I'd be responsible for the driver's injuries. And that would be true even if a friend was walking Simon for me and he got away when I wasn't in town. The law imposes strict duties on dog owners, including those who have dogs as headstrong as Simon.

Given the number of dog-bite cases our law office handles, I understand why the law has developed in this way. I've represented children who have been scarred for life and adults whose dog-bite injuries have caused them to be hospitalized for days. It would be little solace to those people if the owners could escape liability by saying, "Gee, our dog has never bitten anyone before, so we had no idea this would happen." There's no such thing as a free bite in the civil arena under Ohio law.

That said, people owning or keeping dogs do have certain defenses. Under the law, it's a defense if the person who was injured was committing or attempting to commit a criminal trespass, committing or attempting to commit any criminal offense other than a minor misdemeanor, or was teasing, tormenting, or abusing the dog. So, the law includes some common-sense protections for dog owners or keepers in limited circumstances.

The key to your question is whether your neighbor would have a defense because you were considered a trespasser. The Ohio General Assembly amended the law this year to change the defense of trespass to criminal trespass. That could be significant, and I expect the change will be the source of some legal wrangling over the next few years. Prior to the change in the law, a number of courts ruled that the trespass defense was available to dog owners whether the trespass was civil or criminal.

It sounds like a small thing, but it could be crucial in a lot of cases. The distinction lies in the difference between a criminal and civil trespass. Boiled down, someone commits a criminal trespass when they knowingly enter the land or premises of another - without privilege to do so - or remain on the land or premises after receiving notice in some form that they're on someone else's property. While there's more to the criminal code section dealing with trespass, that's the general gist.

For the purposes of a civil trespass, on the other hand, it doesn't matter whether the trespasser knew or received notice he was trespassing.

So, let's look at the distinction using the framework of your question. Let's say you had to jump a fence to get into your neighbor's backyard to retrieve the football. It would be hard to say that you didn't commit a criminal trespass because you knowingly entered your neighbor's property.

Let's look at a different scenario. Let's say you were playing football on someone else's property and you had no idea where the property line was. If you inadvertently crossed the property line and the property owner's dog bit you, I would argue that you hadn't committed a criminal trespass and the dog owner would be liable. Under the old version of the law, it didn't matter whether you knew where the boundary line was for the purposes of a civil trespass. If you were bitten on someone else's property and you had no privilege to be there, you were out of luck, at least for purposes of pursuing your claim under the state statute.

As an aside, the concept of privilege is important here. For instance, a letter carrier has the right to enter your property to deliver mail. So the trespass defense wouldn't apply. Or, in your scenario, if your neighbor had seen the ball go over the fence and waved you over to come get it, you wouldn't be a trespasser.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Research finds ATV accident wrongful deaths skyrocket with expired CPSC regulations

Chuck Boyk — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 11:12:00 GMT

Statistics on ATV accidents as well as the ATV accidents our office handles are devastating, especially when the ATV accident has jeopardized a child’s health and safety. Our Toledo, Ohio ATV accident attorneys depend on research performed by our office, along with research performed by government agencies, to provide accurate information to the general public.

That is why we are including the following report by Robin Ingles, which was published in December 2007 in the Washington Post. The report focuses on ATV accidents and the number of wrongful deaths and injuries resulting from them.

Read the following excerpt from Ms. Ingles’ Washington Post article, “Which Toys Are Okay? Don't Ask the Safety Police.”

One of my first projects as a statistician in the Directorate for Epidemiology at CPSC was to generate statistics on injuries and deaths associated with all-terrain vehicles. I read hundreds of police reports and autopsies of children and adults who had died when their ATVs rolled onto them or when they crashed into trees because the vehicles were too big and powerful to control.

Each spring for five years, I sat at my desk behind stacks of fatality reports that rose higher than my head. One year I hung a wall map by my desk and put dots at the location of each death: red for children, yellow for adults. By my third year on the project, West Virginia was obliterated by the tiny dots. Eventually I realized that there were too many deaths to track on a map, and it was too depressing.

In the 1990s, the industry had been bound by strict regulatory agreements with CPSC, but they had expired in 1998. Since then, the deaths and injuries have skyrocketed: In 1999, an estimated 536 people died on ATVs. By 2004 that number had climbed to 767. If current trends continue, the number of ATV deaths will soon exceed 900. In 2005, U.S. emergency rooms treated an estimated 136,700 ATV-related injuries. Last year they treated even more. A quarter to a third of the dead and injured were children.

Industry representatives suggest that the increase in injuries and deaths is the result of higher sales, but CPSC's own statistical research -- what little of it the agency has released -- shows that other factors are at work.

Click here for the full article.

If you or someone you love has been injured in an ATV accident, order your FREE copy of The Ohio Accident Book to learn your rights.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Ohio ATV accident lawyers learn from State of Oregon mom

Chuck Boyk — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 18:01:00 GMT

Sue Rabe fought hard to get Oregon Senate Bill 49, “Kyle’s Law,” passed, which would prohibit anyone under 12-years-old from operating an ATV. It would also put stronger restrictions on ATV riders between 12 and 15 years of age, and make helmet use mandatory.

Sue knows firsthand the devastation that ATV accidents can have on a family. Our Toledo, Ohio ATV accident attorneys had help continuing their blog series on ATV safety from this mother, also the co-founder of Concerned Families for ATV Safety.

The Rabe family lost their son, Kyle, to an ATV accident when he was only 10 years old. He had been riding for over a year and a half without any accidents. His parents write on the website that he was a very cautious, skilled rider wearing boots, gloves, several layers of clothing and a full face, approved helmet.

But all of those factors did not prevent an ATV accident.

“It’s devastating,” said Sue Rabe of Turner, Oregon. “Kyle was three months shy of his 11^th birthday. Until you have children, you won’t understand that they become your number one. They are everything to you.”

While Oregon Senate Bill 49 did not pass, Sue believes that all of the lobbying and attention that Kyle’s Law received helped save lives.

“Last year not one child in the state of Oregon died in an ATV accident,” Sue said. “The year before, eight kids died. Apparently someone is listening.”

Stay tuned for our on-going series on ATV accidents as we report the information that Concerned Families for ATV Safety and Sue Rabe has provided us with.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Injuries caused by ATV accidents can be devastating

Chuck Boyk — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 18:09:43 GMT

As discussed in our last blog, ATV accidents can frequently be seen with the use of a Yamaha Rhino.

The Rhino’s high center of gravity and narrow wheelbase makes it tip easily, which can lead to ATV rollover accidents. The rollbar and seatbelts do nothing to protect the lower legs, which can be ejected during a tip or roll.

Injuries from an ATV accident can include broken arms or legs, including hands and feet. Often during a rollover ATV accident, the driver’s leg becomes pinned under the 1,100-pound ATV, crushing the limb. There have been cases where the injury to the leg leads to amputation.

Children involved in an ATV accident are more likely to suffer wrongful death. Their small bodies cannot control the weight of the ATV, making it easier for them to run into another object, roll the ATV over, or fall off the vehicle.

Severe head wounds are one of many injuries that can happen to kids during ATV accidents. Brain injuries, fractures, and spinal cord injuries can often occur, which could lead to wrongful death.

If you or someone you love has been injured in an ATV accident, order your FREE copy of The Ohio Accident Book to learn your rights. Contact our office today for your free consultation and case evaluation.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

Emotional distress questions answered by Toledo, Ohio car accident lawyer

Chuck Boyk — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:27:00 GMT

What happens is someone else’s recklessness causes you to suffer emotional distress? Are you entitled to any sort of compensation? Toledo, Ohio car accident lawyer Dale Emch addresses the issue of emotional distress as a type of personal injury in his most recent Toledo Blade “Legal Briefs” column.

Dear Dale: I am interested in finding out whether I can make a claim against my doctor for causing me tremendous emotional distress. Could you please address this issue in your column?

ANSWER: The quick answer is that people can sue for infliction of emotional distress, but without knowing the specifics of your situation, it's really tough to say whether you have a claim. I'll try to provide you with enough information about the law so you can decide whether you have a case worth pursuing.

Under Ohio law, people can bring claims for intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent infliction of emotional distress. The two are very different - one requires purposeful behavior, while the other is similar to an accident. It's sort of like the difference between someone who purposely rams his car into another driver's vehicle, as opposed to the person who causes a routine traffic accident because he took his eyes off the road.

A claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress requires extreme and outrageous conduct caused by someone's intentional or reckless behavior. The person bringing the claim has to demonstrate serious emotional distress.

Here's an example of intentional infliction of emotional distress: Let's say Bob, a CPA, decides to destroy his business rival, Barbara, by sending anonymous letters to some of her best customers that she's being investigated by the FBI for embezzling clients' money and, by the way, that she's also having an affair with a 16-year-old boy.

Further assume that poor Barbara's client base begins to dwindle and that her husband divorces her because he's heard the rumor about the 16-year-old. Finally, let's say that all the stress from the business failure and her divorce causes Barbara to experience a severe depression as well as debilitating anxiety attacks for which she seeks mental health treatment.

Fortunately, Barbara finds out that Bob is the culprit of her financial and emotional demise. In this case, she can bring a claim against Bob for intentional infliction of emotional distress (as well as a lot of other claims). As the Ohio Supreme Court put it, it's the type of behavior that would make someone exclaim, "Outrageous!"

Barbara would be able to sue for her medical bills for the mental health treatment she received, the pain and suffering she experienced, her lost wages, and punitive damages designed both to punish Bob and serve as an example to others that such outrageous conduct won't be tolerated in our society.

A claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress generally would result from accidental conduct. Here's an example: John, while fiddling with the radio, loses control of his car, runs up onto the sidewalk and strikes little Rodney who is taking a walk with his mother, Marjorie. Rodney survives, but Marjorie develops post-traumatic stress syndrome and enters extensive counseling to deal with her mental health issues.

In this case, Marjorie would be able to bring a claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress. Some of the factors to consider would be that she witnessed the scene of the accident - in fact, she was almost physically injured herself, she suffered a direct emotional impact, and Rodney was related to her.

Marjorie would be able to seek compensation for the bills incurred to treat her post-traumatic stress syndrome, the pain and suffering she experienced, and wages lost from missing work. Unlike with intentional infliction of emotional distress, she wouldn't be able to seek punitive damages because John's conduct was not purposeful or reckless - it was simply an accident.

I can't answer whether you have a claim because I don't know the details, but I hope this provides a framework for you to examine your situation.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk

General legal questions on car accidents, dog bites answered by Toledo, Ohio attorney

Chuck Boyk — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 10:44:00 GMT

Do you have a general legal question you would like answered?

Toledo, Ohio car accident lawyer Dale Emch answers readers general legal questions on everything from car accidents, workers’ compensation, medical malpractice, or wrongful death. Contact our office if you would like to have your general legal question considered for Attorney Emch's Toledo Blade column, "Legal Briefs."

Dear Dale: My father-in-law purchased a new car that has continued to have the same engine problem. He's taken it in for repairs, but the problem keeps happening again and again. He's fed up and wants to know what his rights are.

ANSWER: It sounds like he may have purchased a lemon and could be entitled to a new car. In certain situations, Ohio's Lemon Law protects consumers who have purchased new cars that are plagued by problems.

The law applies only to new cars that are less than 1 year old or have fewer than 18,000 miles, whichever happens earlier. First of all, the dealer or manufacturer must be given a reasonable opportunity to make any repairs necessary so that the vehicle conforms to the warranty. You might be able to get a new car or a full refund if any of the following factors apply:

• If repairs have been attempted at least three times on essentially the same problem, but the problem persists.

• If one attempt has been made to repair a problem that could cause death or serious bodily injury, and the problem still exists.

• If the car has required eight or more repairs, not necessarily for the same problem.

• If the vehicle has been out of service for repairs for a cumulative total of 30 days.

If the consumer decides to replace the lemon, Ohio law requires that the new vehicle must be acceptable to him. Alternatively, a full refund of the purchase price can be demanded. The purchaser of the lemon also can recoup costs such as fees charged for cancelling a loan or lease, or towing costs and vehicle rental fees.

Despite the law, the consumer may run into a dealer or manufacturer who won't make things right or who believes that you don't have a right to seek the relief contemplated by the law. If that's the case, the lemon's owner can file a lawsuit seeking to recover the damages incurred. The law also allows for the recovery of attorney's fees and court costs if the consumer wins the case. That said, if certain factors are met, the consumer could be forced into arbitration, which essentially is an out-of-court hearing in front of a neutral party.

So, your father-in-law could be entitled to a new car or a full refund if the factors listed apply. It's important that he documents all of the problems and repair attempts so he can exercise his rights under the law. He should start a file and hold on to all of the paperwork associated with the vehicle.

For more information, check out the informative site the Ohio Attorney General's Office has put together on the Lemon Law at www.ag.state.oh.us/citizen/consumer/lemon_law.asp.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chuck Boyk