InjuryBoard Northern Virginia Archives

• "No" to Mandatory Legal Malpractice Insurance

  Ben Glass | October 31, 2007 8:59 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  The Virginia State Bar is again considering the issue of forcing lawyers to buy malpractice insurance. Complete waste of time.Their own statistics show that 90% of lawyers who deal with the public have malpractice insurance.I think that lawyers should carry malpractice insurance but its not the business of the bar to force any business owner to carry insurance any more than it could force the...

• NY Times-Emotional Toll of Medical Malpractice

  Ben Glass | October 26, 2007 1:03 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Medical Malpractice

  There is an interesting blog at the New York Times blog today. It really points out what most medical malpractice lawyers see every day. Tremendous loss compounded by health care providers that 'close ranks' and turn their backs on patients.Not all providers of course, but many. Not deliberate, I am sure, but more of a defense reaction to "what the heck do I do now?" and not having been taught...

• "Sign Here and We'll Settle Quick"

  Ben Glass | October 25, 2007 1:04 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  We often hear from potential clients who are being pressured by major insurance companies to sign documents now and "we'll be able to settle this case real quick."This is usually a really bad move.Don't be rushed, you have time.According to published reports, attorneys Robert Brown and Guy Daugherty of Norfolk, Virginia just completed a case where the neck pain, while noted in some of the...

• Is "SueEasy.com" for Real?

  Ben Glass | October 23, 2007 8:34 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  The Wall Street Journal Blog had a post about SueEasy.com last week. Of course it blasted the site as indicative of today's "sue-happy" culture. But is the site for real? Can't tell yet. It looks to me like something a tort reformer would put up just to shoot at (and get tthe WSJ to blog about!).No legitimate trial lawyer would be involved in such a stupid site. No legitimate plaintiff would use...

• Fairfax County Police Looking for Hit and Run Driver

  Ben Glass | October 15, 2007 2:09 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  According to a Washington Post article, Lincoln Nguyen, 71, of Alexandria, Virginia was struck and killed by a car. Witnesses said that Nguyen had a green light but was not able to get across the entire intersection in time. Police are looking for a gold SUV or minivan with tinted windows and front-end damage. The information number for the Fairfax County Police is: 866-411-8477. The accident...

• Wow, Indiana's Cap is Bad Too

  Ben Glass | October 04, 2007 9:16 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Medical Malpractice

  Thanks to Wisconsin medical malpractice attorney Mike End for emailing me to point out that Indiana has a medical malpractice cap that tops out at $1.25 million dollars.Here's what's really crazy about their cap. A doctor is only responsible for the first $250,000 for any claim and then a state fund kicks in. And the doctor's total annual "cap" is $750,000. So, in Indiana, the MORE malpractice...

• Another Reason for Long Social Security Claim Delays

  Ben Glass | October 03, 2007 8:05 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  North Carolina Social Security Disability attorney Brent Adams makes and excellent point about long delays in social security disability claims. He quotes an excellent commentary from administrative law judge Ronald Bernoski, writing in the Charlotte Observer.I've got an additional theory. Fraud by the major long-term disability insurance companies. Here's how it works:Most long term disability...

• MedMal Cap Forces More Trials

  Ben Glass | October 02, 2007 5:10 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Medical Malpractice

  As we have pointed out before, Virginia is the only state in the country that caps total damages in a medical malpractice case. Most states that have enacted some form of tort reform have allowed an injured victim to recover all of their medical bills and lost wages (makes sense, doesn't it) but "capped" or limited recovery for such things as pain and suffering.No cap is a good cap but at least...

• Video Surveillance Sinks Texas Claim

  Ben Glass | October 01, 2007 10:54 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  A claimant who was caught on video (by Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston) doing things she said she couldn't do, has had her disability claim denied by a federal judge who called the claim "fraudulent." According to a September 23, 2007 opinion, Perri Lemon was shown stooping, bending and kneeling, among other things. This contrasted with the report of her condition her doctor made that...