The evaluation process of your personal injury claim is one of the most crucial moments following a car accident. It is at this point that the insurance company will determine how much your injuries are worth.
Of course, every personal injury claim is different, and each insurance company handles their claims differently. There are, however, some general procedures that most insurance companies will follow regarding a personal injury claim.
In your personal injury case, the road to success involves many, many steps. Some of them definitely involve the facts of your case, such as the nature of the accident and the nature of your injuries. Others, though, involve things that are more procedural or tactical in nature, including the process of discovery in your case. This is one of many areas in which a Louisiana slip-and-fall attorney is extremely beneficial to you. Whether you are making discovery requests or responding to them, your knowledgeable counsel can make sure that you are complying with the rules and avoiding pitfalls along the way. In one recent slip-and-fall case from Alexandria, the management of the discovery process was integral to the injured man’s success.
The plaintiff was a man walking through an Alexandria, La. hospital in 2006. As he walked across a sloped ramp that was part of a skybridge, he slipped and fell. The man was hurt in the fall, and he eventually sued for damages. Initially, the hospital admitted, within its response to a “Request for Admissions” made by the plaintiff, that the plaintiff fell in water, that the wet spot was a result of mopping performed by the hospital’s custodian, and that the custodian removed warning signs from the area when he finished mopping, which was mere minutes before the plaintiff encountered the area and fell.
It is illegal to drive without a valid driver’s license. It is also illegal for you to give permission to a person to drive your vehicle who does not have a valid driver’s license. However, just because it is illegal, does not mean people do not do it all the time.
At our office, we have recently seen an influx of auto accident cases where individuals were hit by a driver who was driving a vehicle with a suspended license. A suspended license is like having no license at all under the law. A person’s license can be suspended for many reasons. Often our clients who were hit by a driver with a suspended license to not even realize it until they see a copy of the police report.
Everyone has heard the phrase “pedestrians have the right of way.” The purpose of this blog post is to give you more information on the rights and responsibilities of pedestrians under Louisianalaw. Those rights depend on many different factors, for example, is the pedestrian in a crosswalk or not in a crosswalk? How is the visibility for the driver and the pedestrian? What other traffic controls are present in the area? Is it an emergency situation? And many other factors, which are discussed here.
If you have been to New Orleans lately, you know many pedestrians do not obey traffic signals. It is common both for locals and tourists here to disregard a red-light and cross the street. After you read this article, you may understand why pedestrians are so nonchalant about violating this law.
If you have ever looked at a map or a set of turn-by-turn directions on an online navigation system, you know that, whatever your destination, there is often more than one way to get there. Each has its own advantages. One may be faster, one may be shorter, and one may be more scenic. The law can work a little like that sometimes. If you’ve been injured because of someone else’s fault, there may be more than one way to pursue damages. The accident case of a man who fell outside a fast-food restaurant offers an example of this in action.
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When you are injured on a store or business’ property, there may be several obstacles in your way that potentially block you from success in your premises liability case. One common obstacle is the “open and obvious” rule, which says generally that, if a hazard was something that a reasonable person would have seen, the property owner isn’t liable. The key to winning is finding a way to overcome those hurdles, as one customer at a dollar store recently did in her Louisiana case, getting a renewed chance to pursue the store despite the fact that the hazard that caused her fall was a large box placed on the floor of the store.
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When it comes to auto accidents that cause injuries, many can be what you might call “typical.” For example, Driver A rear-ends Driver B, causing injuries to Driver B’s neck, back, or lower body. Or, perhaps, Driver 1 runs a red light, and Driver 2 crashes into Driver 1, causing injuries to Driver 2. Sometimes, though, your vehicle accident may be far from “typical.” Even when that happens, that doesn’t mean you cannot recover damages for your injuries.
In New Orleans, you don’t need an excuse to parade or party. Mardi Gras is one of the biggest holidays in New Orleans generating an estimated $840 million dollars each year. Mardi Gras draws millions of people, according to the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau, the city’s 37,000-plus hotel rooms are traditionally filled during Mardi Gras. Add the mass amounts of tourists in with the locals, and copious amounts of alcohol and partying – and you are bound to have a few accidents.
This year approximately 2 dozen people were injured when a drunk driver hit two vehicles and then plowed into the Endymion parade crowd at the intersection of Carrollton and Orleans Avenue. This article will discuss our legal analysis of the rights of those injured in the crash and special laws in Louisiana limiting liability of Mardi Gras Krewes under certain circumstances.
Many people have a certain stigma against lawsuits, they believe lawsuits are frivolous and only serve to drive up insurance premiums. And anyone who has been involved in a lawsuit can attest, a lawsuit is often contentious and time consuming. But have you ever taken the time to think about all of the positive aspects of lawsuits? Many haven’t. We would like to expand on the benefits of lawsuits using the recent discovery by counsel for Paul Walker in his daughter’s lawsuit against Porsche.
PAUL V. PORSCHE
We are living in a corporate world. Today, more than ever before, employees are working more. And like Donna Summer said they work “hard for the money, so hard for it honey…” Any person trying to climb the corporate ladder knows, if you don’t go the extra mile, be prepared to be replaced by someone who will. It is not uncommon for an employee to work 9-5 and then go immediately to a networking or marketing event after hours for which they receive no compensation.
As a result of the increasing burden and demands on employees, many companies offer employee perks such as cell phones, computers and company vehicles. These perks are a win/win – they come at no cost to the employee, and for the employer, there is an added benefit – the employee can easily maneuver from place to place and be accessible which turns into realized profit. Most companies have policies in place providing an employee can only use a company vehicle, phone or computer when they are “on-the-clock” and that these perks are to be used for “business purposes” only. The mix of company perks and after hours expectations create blurred lines with respect to legal liability.
Louisiana Injury Lawyers Blog