Indiana Personal Injury Lawyer

Indiana Car Accident Attorney

Car Accidents, News & Articles, Personal Injuries, Truck Accidents No Responses »

Jan 192011

In Indiana, where they use a ‘comparative fault’ concept of holding each party responsible for the accident at fault? Their responsibility or limit of damages is restrained by their amount of fault. Thus, having an Indiana Car Accident Attorney involved from the start of the accident investigation is paramount. State or Local law enforcement will do their best to investigate the crash and will be prepared to present their case in court if needed. The insurance companies will have well prepared and trained attorneys to represent their interests. They certainly do not want to hand out money or set precedence if they do not have to. Without a well-versed and able Indiana car crash lawyer to protect their interests, the driver is left to fend for him or herself.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, contact our Indiana Car Accident Attorney now!

In most cases soon after a car accident the police or an accident investigator response to the scene and starts an investigation. If the accident involves a truck the state department of transportation might also investigate. If there is hazardous waste involved, the fire department will assist. If the wreck is serious, investigators may close the road and take measurement, pictures and statements from witnesses to help determine fault.

What you may not know is that sometimes the insurance company’s opinion may override the auto insurance claim report. While this does not happen often, it can happen. In addition, insurance companies do not take this responsibility lightly. Representatives of the insurance companies are well trained to investigate accidents and make these rulings. In most cases the rulings benefit the insurance companies, not the parties involved in the accident. Keep in mind that usually two different (or more if it is a multi-vehicle wreck) are involved in these types of situations.

Determining Accident Fault through Investigating
One of the first aspects of determining fault is to analysis what the drivers were doing at the time of the accident.

Here are some examples of the Indiana driver duties or responsibilities pertaining to safety:

Cell phone use
Alcohol or Drugs
Speeding
Unsafe vehicle equipment
Not obeying traffic controls

The accident lawyer and investigator will determine:

Did the driver “breach” any of those duties?
What actually caused the accident
Who or what is also at fault or could be held responsible for the damages

Sometimes even if the driver appears to be at fault for the car accident, that is not the case. For example, if a drunk driver is on the highway and is struck head on by someone driving on the wrong side of the road, which is at fault? The drunk driving condition of the one driver might not even be introduced as evidence. The drunk driver might have made it home safely if the driver breaking the traffic laws had not hit him.

An Indiana accident lawyer can help determine who is at fault. Depending on the investigation and faultfinding procedures, your expenses could be covered by the other driver’s policy. However, this does not always happen. That is why if you were injured you may need to seek legal action to recover your expenses for damage to the vehicle and medical bills. If you are approached by the other driver’s insurance company about a possible settlement DO NOT agree to anything until you have consulted with your own accident attorney.

Indianapolis Car Accident Lawyer

Car Accidents, News & Articles No Responses »

Jan 182011

Millions of people are injured in car accidents every year, according to recent statistics. Furthermore, in busy areas like Indianapolis, Indiana, there are a large number of those accidents every year, as well; often on major interstates. However, some major intersection are reported to have the most accidents in the Indianapolis area. What many people may not realize is that those with car accident related injuries have the right to contact an Indianapolis injury attorney and file a personal injury lawsuit.

If you or a loved one has been hurt in a car accident, contact our Indianapolis Car Accident Lawyer now!

Determining Fault in Car Accidents

Generally, determining fault in a car accident can mirror who is charged with a traffic violation in relation to the accident. While the legal actions are separate, once a city or state has found a driver guilty of a traffic violation in relation to an accident, there is no doubt that the court will consider that conviction when deciding any civil suits arising from that accident.

In other situations, there is no specific law violated in a traffic accident. In those cases, there may be a number of elements to help courts determine guilt:

Police reports
Where the damage occurs on the car
Testimony of witnesses
“No doubt” liability, in which courts generally find that a driver rear-ending another, or a driver making a left-turn into traffic moving straight forward, will generally be found liable.

If the injury lawyer in Indianapolis determines from that evidence that there are grounds for their client to pursue a personal injury suit, they will file a lawsuit in the Indianapolis courthouse.

Determining Compensation

Once it is established that the victim of a car accident has grounds to retain an injury attorney in Indianapolis and file a personal injury lawsuit, that injury attorney in Indianapolis must determine the amount of compensation to seek.

There are a number of elements that Indianapolis injury lawyers consider when calculating this amount:

The amount of medical expenses incurred by the victim
The degree of pain and suffering they experienced
Any wages lost as a result of the injury
Possibly, all the legal expenses resulting from the accident

In cases where the driver exhibited willful or egregious recklessness, the court may award punitive damages to the plaintiff to further motivate the defendant to drive more carefully in the future.

Obtaining Help

It is imperative that victims of car accidents who are injured and filing personal injury suits take full advantage of their right to contact injury lawyers in Indianapolis to find one who is experienced in these kinds of cases, is a good communicator, and has a winning record. As laws and court processes become more complex, the need for a skilled Indianapolis injury lawyer grows, as well. Victims must find those who can provide the guidance and aggressive representation required to win an award that is appropriate for the suffering resulting from an injury accident.

Hockey and TBI

News & Articles, Personal Injuries 1 Response »

Jan 062011

Hockey is arguably one of the most physical professional sports. Hockey players are constantly getting body checked, slammed into boards, falling to the ice, slapped by a stick, hit by a dense, speeding puck or getting punched during a fight. If that isn’t bad enough, hockey players take part in one of the longest regular seasons of any sport, effectively taking on harsher pain for a longer amount of time throughout the year. Risk of injury couldn’t be clearer as you all too commonly see hockey players missing their front two teeth. With all of the injuries that can occur, one of the most dangerous is a traumatic brain injury (TBI). A TBI is a silent injury that can cause harm to the mind and body of an individual. An injury to the head or brain can alter someone’s life and can even require long-term rehabilitation and care from a skilled nursing facility. These injuries are often far too common in the sport of hockey and if not properly treated can permanently leave a hockey player’s life challenging than the game they play.

TBI is an injury that Philadelphia Flyers player Ian Laperriere knows all too well. In game 5 of an NHL playoff game with the New Jersey Devils, Laperriere took a slap shot to the face that immediately caused him to bleed excessively from the wound above his eye and lose sight. Laperriere was diagnosed with a brain contusion after having a MRI a few days later. While Laperriere may have originally thought that losing sight in one of his eyes was the worst of the two injuries, in reality the bigger concern could wind up being the long-term effects of the brain injury.

A concussions have been dismissed as minor injuries because the physical nature of most sports causes them to occur regularly, but, frequently occurring or not, they are still head injuries where the brain is forced to move violently within the skull and the way it functions could change permanently. When the brain moves in such a manner, it can bruise, bleed, and even tear, which can cause irreversible damage to the victim. For a sport like hockey, this type of injury is very common and unfortunately at times ignored. Many hockey players don’t take into account the possible effects of the injury and because it might not seem like a serious problem exists at first, they keep on skating as if nothing occurred. Their unawareness of the injury makes it so much more dangerous because a mild brain injury can turn into a life threatening injury in a very short period of time without seeking immediate medical treatment.

Studies by the National Academy of Neuropsychology’s Sports Concussion Symposium in New York have shown that since 1997, 759 NHL players have been diagnosed with a concussion. Broken down, that averages out to 76 players per season and 31 concussions per 1,000 games of hockey. That is far too frequent of an occurrence for such a serious injury. It’s a frightening statistic that should send up a red flag to hockey officials that actions need to be taken to further prevent this type of injury from occurring.

The best, and sometimes only, treatment for TBI is prevention. For the National Hockey League new rules are being considered that preserve the game but also help protect the players. Rule changes concerning blindside hits, rink size (which effects players space from each other and their proximity to walls), and stronger helmet requirements all have been considered to help curb TBI and its effects. This demonstrates that the NHL is aware of the seriousness of the injury and is taking proactive steps to help prevent it from happening.

Hockey is one of the most popular sports in North America and has millions of people participating in it every year. Unfortunately, the sport comes with the risk of a TBI. With the right awareness of the injury and the necessary precautions in place, the game should be able to continue with players excited to lace up their skates and enjoy it.

Written by Chelsea Travers
Chelsea Travers is an outreach representative for CareMeridian, a subacute care facility located throughout the Western United States for traumatic brain injury rehabilitation, spinal cord injury or medical complexities, such as neuromuscular or congenital anomalies.