HBO Documentary, Hot Coffee, Reveals Truth About Tort Reform

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HBO released a documentary film this month called Hot Coffee, which debunks many of the myths about runaway juries and the tort reform lobby in the U.S.

The first story they discuss is about Stella Liebeck, who famously sued McDonalds in the early 90s after she spilled hot coffee on her lap. A product liability case was brought alleging that the coffee was too hot. Ms. Liebeck won a 2.86 million dollar judgement before a New Mexico jury. This verdict brought a swell of outrage from the media and from Congress. The funny thing was that neither the media nor members of congress ever looked at the actual facts of the case before rushing to judgement. The directors of Hot Coffee point out that Ms. Liebeck suffered serious burns to legs and pelvic region, which led to numerous surgeries and permanent scarring and pain and suffering. They also pointed out that McDonalds, up to that point, had received over 700 complaints of burns due to the temperature of their coffee, yet failed to take any action. The film also points out that following this verdict, McDonalds decided to lower the temperature of their coffee based on these safety concerns. Finally, the film also points out that the judge lowered the judgement against McDonalds down to $486,000.

I encourage everyone to watch this film and listen closely to each of the case studies. The photos of Ms. Liebeck, by themselves, will make you re-think your position on the McDonalds Hot Coffee case and tort reform in general.

The media, the Republicans in Congress and the Tort Reform lobby do an excellent job of shielding the truth about personal injury in this country.  Watch the film and encourage your friends to watch as well. What if this was you or someone you love who was seriously injured by the wrongdoing of someone else or some giant corporation?  Would you want Congress to determine how much you or your loved one is owed?  These types of cases are why we have juries and why the 7th amendment was enacted. I guarantee you will re-think your views on tort reform after watching Hot Coffee.

Click here to watch the trailor for this documentary.

If you or someone you know has been injured in serious accident or has personal injury case, call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

Insurance Institute For Highway Safety Says SUVs Are Safer Than Ever

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USA Today published an interesting article last week about the safety developments of SUVs.  The improvement in SUV safety is largely due to the installation of electronic stability control, says the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Stability control, which uses brakes and engine power to keep vehicles on the road, was introduced more quickly on SUVs.  The death rate for SUV drivers dropped 66% from 82 per million vehicles for 1999-2002 models to 28 per million for 2005-2008 models.

Unfortunately compact vehicles are not nearly as safe when involved in a car crash. The death rate for drivers of small, four-door cars was 72 per million vehicles for 2005-2008 models, down 35% from 110 per million in 1999-2002 models.”The rollover risk in SUVs used to outweigh their size/weight advantage, but that’s no longer the case,” says Anne McCartt, the institute’s senior vice president for research.”It’s a dramatic change and a testament to the incredible effectiveness of electronic stability control,” she says.

The question that remains is what can car makers do to improve safety of smaller vehicles.  This data creates somewhat of a dilemma because federal regulators continue to require auto makers to develop smaller, more energy efficient vehicles that are more eco-friendly. Is there a way to develop and manufacture safer vehicles that are also energy efficient. This is the challenge that both lawmakers and auto makers will face in the coming months and years.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com. 

Chicago Launches ‘Pedestrian Plan’ To Make City Streets Safer

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The Chicago Tribune reported today about a new initiated launched by the city of Chicago to help promote safety for pedestrians.  The plan is to reduce car crash-related pedestrian injuries by 50 percent. Almost all vehicle crashes involving pedestrians result in injuries.  “We have to set a goal of zero pedestrian fatalities and then find meaningful steps to get there,” said deputy transportation commissioner Luann Hamilton.

The “Chicago Pedestrian Plan” begins this week with the first of eight public meetings this summer to collect input on improving safety for pedestrians across the city. Recommendations and an action plan outlining the top priorities will follow in a draft report scheduled for release by year’s end, said Kiersten Grove, pedestrian safety coordinator at the Chicago Department of Transportation.  Possibilities include pedestrian countdown timers at crosswalks that are becoming more prevalent citywide; curb bump-outs that improve safety by shortening the distance of crosswalks; and median islands that provide a safe place for pedestrians who find themselves in the middle of a crossing when traffic signals change.

City officials, meanwhile, said they are studying whether additional laws are needed to force better compliance with traffic laws affecting pedestrians. They said it is too early to determine the effectiveness of a new state law the General Assembly passed last year requiring drivers to stop — rather than yield — to pedestrians in crosswalks.

This is a necessary plan undertaken by city officials. A city like Chicago where there a so many walkers in just about every neighborhood in the city, needs leadership by its’ officials to help make streets and crosswalks safer for pedestrians. We will be watching closely to learn the results of the meetings taking place this summer.

If you or someone you know has been injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago car accident attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

Mayor Emanuel Announces Chicago’s First Protected Bike Lane

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I have written in the past about former Mayor Daley’s steps to make Chicago a more bike-friendly city.  It appears that Mayor Emanuel is picking up where Daley left off as he announced that a stretch of Kinzie Avenue in River North will contain the first protected bike lane.  The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the lane designated lane is located closest to the curb, flanked by a roughly four foot-wide “buffer lane” and a row of parking. This results in 12 feet between bicyclists and the flow of vehicular traffic.

“I am proud that we are gonna have the first protected bike lane in Chicago with many more miles to come. I’m glad that Chicago will go from basically being in the middle of the pack as it relates to bike lanes to leading the pack. Planners [from around the country] will come to our city and see what the future holds: an integrated approach to transportation where biking is an essential ingredient.”

City leaders view this expansion as not only a promotion for bicyclists but also a way make city streets safer for everyone.  Newly appointed Transportation Commissioner Gabe Klein said the “holistic approach” to transportation that he favors is about “much more” than just protected bike lanes. “It’s about balancing our right-of-way for the safety of all users,” he said. “When we add bike lanes like this, we make it safer for pedestrians. We actually make it safer for motorists, and we slow motorists down.”

I will be following closely to see when and where the city will designate additional ‘bike-only’ lanes. It will be interesting to see if this leads to less bicycle – motor vehicle accidents, including dooring accidents.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a Chicago bicycle accident or a Chicago vehicle accident, then contact Chicago car accident attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

A Recap Of Changes To The Illinois Workers Compensation Act

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Illinois Workers Compensation reform was a major issue during this year’s Spring legislative session. As of the Sunday before the final day, the bill appeared to have failed, resulting in no changes. But alas, Illinois House legislators worked hard to pass the bill and move forward to Governor Quinn for his signature.  The Chicago Sun times provided an excellent description of how the bill was passed, which can be read here. 

As an Illinois Workers Compensation attorney that represents Petitioner employees, I first have to ask whether the changes stripped away any rights and protections for Illinois workers.  The short answer is yes. Below are the major changes and how they will affect Illinois workers. My thoughts are in italics.

Section 8(d)(1)
 
The changes to  this section of the Act involve wage differential claims.  The previous law stated that when an employee returns to work with a lower average weekly wage than the wage held prior to being injured,  the worker would be entitled to receive 2/3 of the difference between the two wages every week for the rest of his or her life. The new law states that wage differential claims that occur after September 1, 2011 shall be effective only until the employee reaches the age of 67 or five years from the date the award becomes final, whichever is later.

The new law definitely strips the award potential for Illinois workers, but, in my opinion, this is a not a major blow the rights of Illinois workers. The law still allows for the same award, but it is limited basically to a worker’s retirement age. I would have preferred not to see this change, but it is not a drastic change.

Section 8(e)(9) 

The new law makes specific changes to hand injuries involving carpal tunnel syndrome due to repetitive or cumulative trauma. The new law states that the value of the hand be returned to their pre-2005 scheduled amount of 190 weeks, and places a disability limit of 15% loss of use of the hand in such cases, unless clear and convincing evidence can show an award should exceed this amount. In such cases the award should not exceed 30% loss of use of the hand.

Apparently lawmaker and the insurance company lobbyists believed there was excessive fraud when it came to carpal tunnel syndrome cases. I could not disagree with this change more, but, it must be remembered, that the new law does not eliminate carpal tunnel or repetitive trauma claims, it merely limits them to 15% of the hand and decreases the number of weeks a hand is worth down to 190. The interesting question here is what will qualify as clear and convincing evidence when determining whether and injured hand is worth more than 15%. I would imagine that there is clear and convincing evidence when more than one surgery is performed on the hand and the medical testimony clearly connects all treatment to the work injury. If this is the case, I have to believe that the arbitrators will find that the injury is worth more than 15%. This is one area of the new law to keep a close eye on.

Section 8.2

The new law contains medical fee schedule modifications. The new law states  that if a fee schedule amount is in place, effective September 1, 2011, the charge shall be no more than 70% of the fee scheduled amount. If a fee schedule amount cannot be determined, the default reimbursement shall remain at 76% until September 1, 2011 at which time a 53.2% reimbursement rate shall apply.

Above is just a very brief synopsis, but this is probably the biggest amount of reform in the Act. It basically means that the treating doctors will receive less money pursuant to the new fee schedules.  On its’ face, this change does not directly affect Illinois workers or take away any of their rights. Although, one could argue that, due to the lower fee schedules, fewer doctors will be taking workers compensation patients because they do not want to take lower fees. This could possibly lead to a smaller pool of doctors to choose from an ultimately impact the type and/or quality of treatment  workers receive . It is too early to tell at this point whether this will affect quality of treatment but it is something to follow.

There were many other changes to the Act, but these are the main ones I wanted to point out and discuss. I am not pleased with any changes that strip away workers compensation rights for my clients, but, all in all, it could have been worse, and sometimes you have to compromise with the other side of the aisle.

If you or someone you love has been involved in an Illinois work accident or needs help on their Illinois workers compensation claim, then call Chicago workers comp attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384.

Chicago Mayor Emanuel Requests Stricter Supervision Of City Workers After Car Accident

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The Chicago Sun-Times reported last week of Mayor Rham Emanuel’s reaction to a dangerous car accident caused by a city sanitation worker who was alleged to have been driving drunk at the time of the car crash. Mayor Emanuel met with Streets and Sanitation head, Tom Byrne, and requested tighter supervision of city workers who drive vehicles. Specifically, Emanuel noted, “one of the things I said to Commissioner Byrne was I want to know what steps need to be taken so, in the future, this does not occur again — both at the level of management and at the level of employees,” Emanuel said.  “You take these moments, you deal with them and there are lessons learned for future. And I’ve directed Commissioner Byrne to come back with recommendations.”

Simply firing the city worker involved in this car accident is not enough for the new mayor. The worker in question, Dwight Washington, is accused of driving with more than twice the legal limit of alcohol in his system after allegedly plowing his city vehicle into a crowd of people in the Gold Coast neighborhood, injuring eight (8).  Emanuel would like to see specific steps to help prevent this type of accident happening again by also making sure people take the proper driving lessons to obtain a license.

Random drug and alcohol tests are required only for city employees who hold commercial drivers licenses. Because Washington was a laborer assigned to empty garbage cans and collect stray debris, he was not subject to that requirement.

Laborers are tested only after getting into accidents on the job. Washington was tested after a job-related accident in March 2010 that resulted in property damage, but his test for drugs and alcohol “came back negative,” said Matt Smith, a spokesman for the Streets and Sanitation Department.

“Random drug [and alcohol] testing for laborers would have to be negotiated with the union. The city cannot implement the tests unilaterally,” Smith said in an e-mail response to the Chicago Sun-Times.

It will be interesting to see what types of recommendations that Commissioner Byrne will have for the mayor and the city counsel. As mentioned above, it may not be see easy to require stricter testing without negotiating that change through its’ contract with the union. And that change may not take place until the current contract expires and a new contract is negotiated.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago car accident attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

Is Transportation Secretary LaHood A Hipster?

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U.S. Transportation Secretary was asked this question in an interview with theThe Huffington Post  this week, and shockingly, he said he did not know what that term meant. That’s a good answer Ray.  Regardless, the secretary lauded major metropolitan cities such as Chicago for their efforts to increase bicycle safety.  He stated that his department would be looking into measures to encourage automobile drivers to observe better safety standards when it came to bicyclists cohabiting the roadways.

LaHood praised various cities for restructuring transportation policy around cleaner forms of transit, singling out the construction of bike lanes to encourage biking as particularly effective. But with additional bikers on the road come additional risks. And as head of the Department of Transportation, LaHood noted  his “concern” over the “way that bikers are treated when they are on streets. I’m concerned that people that are driving cars have a level of respect for bikers, and that’s the reason that we have these bike lanes,” said LaHood. “Bikers have as much right to the streets as anybody driving a car and I am concerned about [their safety].”

Chicago, under Mayor Daley, was on the forefront of increased bicycle use around the city with separate lanes being created on almost every major street. Incoming mayor, Rahm Emanual, plans to follow through with what Daley started. Emanuel has pledged to create a “world-class bike network” and has hired Gabe Klein, former head of Washington D.C.’s Department of Transportation, to fill that role in the Windy City. Further, this blog reported a few weeks back that Illinois is finally recognizing dooring accident as actual motor vehicle accidents that require police and parties fill out mandatory Illinois Crash Reports.

Ray LaHood is probably not a hipster, but it is good to see that his administration is taking bicylce safety seriously and are looking for ways to decrease bicycle accidents.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a Chicago bicycle accident or Chicago car accident, then call Chicago accident attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

IDOT Looks To Reduce Traffic Issues On The Eisenhower

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The Chicago Tribune reported this week that there are additional plans to help reduce traffic gridlock on the Eisenhower.  While the Eisenhower was completely repaved over the last year, which was much needed, but there remain bottleneck tissues in and around the Chicago loop.  To help alleviate these problems, IDOT is performing studies to help reduce traffic and eventually reduce the number of Chicago car accidents.

The possible solutions being examined include widening the Eisenhower to four lanes in each direction for the entire length of the highway. The expansion would make room for “managed lanes” handling car-poolers, express buses or drivers willing to pay tolls to commute more quickly during rush hours, according to IDOT planners.

IDOT is also apparently working with the CTA and Pace to consider expanding rail lines and bus access, which would hopefully alleviate some of the traffic. 

The problem at this point appears to be a lack of funding.  IDOT is  the Illinois Tollway to develop concepts for possible toll lanes that would be priced with a sliding scale of fees based on the time of day and traffic loads, the officials added.

The Eisenhower also has the highest car crash rate among area expressways, about 2.2 accidents per 1 million vehicles per mile in the area between Kostner Avenue and Interstate Highway 88, according to an IDOT study. About 6,000 accidents occurred from 2006 through 2008, IDOT said. Of particular concern are crash hot spots at the 25th Avenue, Harlem Avenue and Austin Avenue interchanges, officials said.

Everyone who drives in and around Chicago has been frustrated with traffic on 290 and how it effects 90/94 when entering and leaving the loop. Let’s hope there is some creative thinking going on at IDOT that will help improve the area, which will hopefully lead to less car accidents.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago car accident attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

‘Directed Traffic Safety Initiative’ To Set Ticket Record

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The Naperville Sun recently reported that the ‘Directed Traffic Safety Initiative’ – – which is in its’ sixth year – – will probably break a record for the number of traffic tickets issued. The initiative, which includes the Naperville, Aurora, Bartlett, Hoffman Estates, Joliet, Plainfield, Shorewood, Streamwood, Warrenville and West Chicago police departments, is aimed at promoting traffic safety, which in turn, will hopefully lead to fewer car accidents.

This year the initiative posted police officers along Route 59 where Naperville police issued 182 tickets.

That tally is likely to double and perhaps more than triple once final statistics are compiled and submitted by the other 14 police agencies that participated in the annual initiative.  Naperville Police Sgt., Lee Martin, was somewhat discouraged with the number of tickets as they had let the public know about the initiative through various media outlets. “We’d actually like for the totals to have been lower,” said Martin, who supervises his department’s traffic unit. We were hoping people would pay more attention than this. Despite our best efforts to warn people ahead of time and during the event … it looks like it might be a record day for enforcement totals,” Martin said.

Martin said Naperville police issued 93 seat belt-related citations; 47 speeding tickets, including one to a motorist driving 83 mph in a 45 mph zone; 15 citations to motorists driving without insurance; and four to unlicensed drivers. The remaining 23 tickets were issued for a variety of other infractions, he said.

Remember to try your best to obey the speed limit and wear your seat belt so that you will not only avoid costly traffic tickets, but could also avoid potentially dangerous car accidents.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago accident attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free consultation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.

Study Reveals Hungover Surgeons More Prone To Make Mistakes

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In interesting new study was released by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in the Archives of Surgery are more likely to make mistakes after an evening or night of drinking.

To measure the degree of that impairment, the researchers invited eight surgeons and 16 students out for a night on the town. Half the students and all of the experts were encouraged to down as much booze as they wanted until they felt drunk. The rest of the students weren’t allowed to touch any alcohol, but still went out for dinner. The next day, the merrymakers, hung-over or not, went to the lab to perform a type of camera-guided surgery that uses a few small incisions instead of one big one — so-called laparoscopy. The surgery was done on a virtual reality system, not a real person. That turned out to be fortunate, because both the surgeons and those students who had been drunk did worse than when they were tested before the party.  At 9 AM, hung-over students made about 19 errors on average, while those who hadn’t been drinking made only eight. This difference hadn’t been seen before the night out, and faded over the day.

This is an interesting revelation as typically the medical profession does not regulate or restrict surgeons from drinking the day or night before surgery. It will be interesting to see if the medical profession takes a stricter approach to drinking the day or night before performing surgery.

If you or someone you know has a Chicago medical negligence or Chicago medical malpractice case to review, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consulation at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com.