Northern Virginia Personal Injury Lawyer - Miscellaneous - Most Commented

Josh Hancock lawsuit against bar would not fly in Virginia

Ben Glass — Tue, 29 May 2007 17:50:32 GMT

Apparently the father of Josh Hancock, the baseball player who died recently while driving drunk (and not wearing a seatbelt and talking on the cell phone) has filed suit against a number of entities, including the driver of the car that had stalled on the road, the pickup truck that had stopped to assist that car and the bar where Hancock spent several hours allegedly drinking. I don't know what Missouri law is on the subject but that case wouldn't make it out of the gate here in Virginia.

Here, if you are in any way, even one percent, responsible for your own mishap, you lose. In Virginia, even if the bar served him and he went out and killed someone else, that other person's family wouldn't win against the bar.

Not to minimize his death.. .his death is tragic...this lawsuit is silly.

Maybe his father's time would be better spent telling his son's story to a whole bunch of high school kids.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

More on the $67,000,000 Dollar Pants Case

Ben Glass — Wed, 02 May 2007 08:43:32 GMT

I know many are probably starting to read about the crazy lawyer (a judge, no less) who is suing a dry cleaners here in Washington, D.C. I've blogged about it (as have others) and it's starting to pick up some national momentum.

Just wanted everyone to know that on the various lawyer listserves this guy is receiving universal condemnation! Since he is suing pro se, he's actually a good example of how lawyers protect the system because no legitimate lawyer would have taken his case. (Maybe the reason he is pro se is that no one WOULD take his case.

Here's one thought: Maybe he's someone who is doing this IN ORDER TO PURPOSELY ATTEMPT TO HARM THE COURT SYSTEM. In other words, he's doing this (and he continues, even though he's getting all negative publicity) with the specific intent of making it harder for legitimate claimants to have their day in court.

A stealth plaintiff? Just a thought.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Senate Finally Questioning Dubious Disability Insurance Practice

Ben Glass — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 06:24:49 GMT

Its about time that someone investigated this practice of the major disability insurance companies:

Because their group policies allow them to reduce their payments to claimants if the claimant gets social security disability payments they often require claimants to apply for social security disability even though they know darn well that they won't qualify.

Most long-term disability policies protect you and provide payments if you can't work at your occupation...but you don't need to be so disabled that you would qualify for benefits, yet UNUM and the other "majors" often require claimants to go through the process, even to the point of forcing claimants to appeal initial SSDI denials.

This is extremely wasteful of government resources and is probably part of the reason why there is a huge back up of claims-processing for social security claims

The New York Times has this story this morning.

My book, Robbery Without a Gun, exposes other deceptive practices of the disability insurance companies.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Consumer Alert--Tread Cautiously With the Lawyer Directory Websites

Ben Glass — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:21:28 GMT

An email sent today to lawyers across the country should cause consumers use extreme due-diligence when searching for a lawyer on the Internet.

DUI1.com, a very popular and highly ranked (in Google) website solicits people who have been charged with drinking while driving and who are looking for a lawyer to defend them.

Their site says:

If you're charged with a Driving While Intoxicated offense, it's possible to have your charges dismissed with the assistance of a skilled DWI legal counselor. You must act NOW! Click on a state and then county or city to locate a fully qualified drunk driving defender or use our easy search to locate a defender via county, city or zip code.

But, in an email sent to thousands of lawyers across the United States today, they solicited lawyers to sign up to be one of their fully qualified drunk driving defenders.

Know what their stated qualifications were to let a lawyer represent you?

Here's the text:

Do Your Know How to Plead a Client Guilty? If Yes, You Are a Qualified DUI Lawyer. DUI1.com will run TV ads nationally this 4th of July weekend and all 6 major US holidays. You can see the ad here or visit the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpFK4wWgkxY . While we are the Number 1 result on Google for DUI related term, we remain committed to increasing our member's case loads and set a new standard in DUI Defense. Over 99% of DUI cases are pled before going to trial. This makes DUI Defense one of the most lucrative areas of the criminal defense practice. At DUI Defenders we remain committed to producing results for our members.

(The actual full email is here....read it if you don't believe me.)

Ok, so they can run a business and get lawyers to pay fees to be a member of their website. The teaching point for consumers is that you better look a little closer than the fancy copy on the website! For example, Richmond, Virginia attorney Bob Battle has written a book for DUI defendants in Virginia that explains just what questions you need to ask your lawyer. DUIAnswer.com, another lawyer directory, offers free books that explain the process and the questions you should be asking.

I've written a book for consumers, the Truth About Lawyer Advertising. Its available at Amazon.com

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Sorry, another stupid lawsuit

Ben Glass — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 05:23:27 GMT

Seems a Houston man used 1-800 Flowers to send his love interest flowers and a card. Problem was, it wasn't his wife. So, to be careful, Leroy Greer told the flower delivery company to not send him a receipt. They didn't.

But they did send a thank you card to his home later.

Guess what happened next?

Yes. His wife, curious, calls the flower company and gets receipt faxed over. Then she files for divorce. Now he's suing 1-800 Flowers for 'breach of contract."

Give me a break. That's like telling a co-hort in crime "hey, if the police asks, say it wasn't us."

People do need to take personal responsibility for their actions. Yes, technically, 1-800 Flowers did 'breach' their agreement to not let his wife know about his affair...but the whole thing starts with his dishonesty with his wife.

This is not a reason to take up the federal court's time and hopefully, a judge or jury will see it that way as well. Hie is represented by Houston attorney Kennitra Foote.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Disciplinary investigation into $65,000,000 dry cleaner lawsuit?

Ben Glass — Wed, 09 May 2007 13:29:23 GMT

Jon Haber, CEO of the American Association for Justice has written a letter to the District of Columbia Bar, asking that it open an investigation into Judge Roy Pearson, for his pursuit of the $65,000,000 dry cleaner lawsuit.

We have previously commented on this lawsuit and posted some of actual pleadings.

Jon Haber letter to District of Columbia Bar Association

May 8, 2007
Mr. James Sandman
President
District of Columbia Bar Association
1250 H St. NW, Sixth Floor
Washington DC 20005
Dear Mr. Sandman:
As a member of the District of Columbia Bar, I believe that the widely reported actions of Mr. Roy Pearson, Jr. in pursuing a $65 million dollar lawsuit against a local dry cleaning business appear to constitute a serious abuse of the civil justice system and warrant a disciplinary inquiry from the Bar.

Media reports indicate that Mr. Pearson, an administrative law judge and member of the District of Columbia Bar has relentlessly pursued his lawsuit against Custom Cleaners, a family-owned dry cleaner, for temporarily misplacing a pair of his suit pants. Despite an apparently generous settlement offer that includes the return of the once-missing suit pants, news reports indicate that Mr. Pearson has maintained his action over a two-year period, filed thousands of pages in documents and made damage claims that appear to be farfetched and unjustified. Moreover, it appears that Mr. Pearson's actions in this matter are consistent with his behavior in prior legal disputes, where he has followed courses of action both that appear both vexatious and disproportionate to any legitimate claim.

The American civil justice system ought to be a point of pride, both to the public and the profession. It enables those who, in good faith, believe that they have been wronged to pursue justice and have an impartial tribunal resolve responsibility. Only in such a courtroom can everyone - regardless of wealth, connections or political clout - stand on a level playing field of justice.

Our court system has no place for those who abuse the instruments of justice for personal gain or the intimidation of others, rather than just compensation. That Mr. Pearson occupies a position of public trust as an administrative law judge, in addition to his membership in the Bar, further intensifies the dishonor that his apparent actions have cast on both the system and the profession. As attorneys, we have a special obligation to preserve the integrity of our civil justice system.

Our commitment must be to strengthening the civil justice system so that deserving individuals can get justice, wrongdoers are held accountable, and efforts to weaken basic legal protections are repelled.

For actions inconsistent with the oath and office of our learned profession, I urge that the District of Columbia Bar investigate this matter and take appropriate disciplinary action.
Sincerely,

Jon Haber
Chief Executive Officer, American Association for Justice

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Pet Food Recall Class Action Lawsuits

Ben Glass — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 10:38:31 GMT

The first class action lawsuit, with 95 pet owners, has been filed in Wisconsin.

The lawsuit, against Menu Foods Inc.,alleges that it produced and distributed pet food that might be dangerous, and possibly deadly, to animals.

We have received several calls on these cases and will help coordinate Virginia claims. We will be working with other firms nationally who are handling the Menu Foods pet food recall case.

Here are the recalled brands:

Recalled cat foods

Americas Choice, Preferred Pets; Authority; Best Choice; Companion; Compliments; Demoulas Market Basket; Eukanuba; Fine Feline Cat; Food Lion; Foodtown; Giant Companion; Hannaford; Hill Country Fare; Hy-Vee; Iams; Laura Lynn; Li'l Red; Loving Meals; Meijer's Main Choice; Nutriplan; Nutro Max Gourmet Classics; Nutro Natural Choice; Paws; Pet Pride; Presidents Choice; Price Chopper; Priority US; Save-A-Lot Special Blend; Schnucks; Science Diet Feline Savory Cuts Cans; Sophistacat; Special Kitty Canada; Special Kitty US; Springfield Prize; Sprout; Stop & Shop Companion; Tops Companion; Wegmans; Weis Total Pet; Western Family US; White Rose; and Winn Dixie.
Recalled dog foods

America's Choice, Preferred Pets; Authority; Award; Best Choice; Big Bet; Big Red; Bloom; Cadillac; Companion; Demoulas Market Basket; Eukanuba; Food Lion; Giant Companion; Great Choice; Hannaford; Hill Country Fare; Hy-Vee; Iams; Laura Lynn; Loving Meals; Meijer's Main Choice; Mighty Dog Pouch; Mixables; Nutriplan; Nutro Max; Nutro Natural Choice; Nutro Ultra; Nutro; Ol'Roy Canada; Ol'Roy US; Paws; Pet Essentials; Pet Pride - Good n Meaty; Presidents Choice; Price Chopper; Priority Canada; Priority US; Publix; Roche Brothers; Save-A-Lot Choice Morsels; Schnucks; Springfield Prize; Sprout; Stater Brothers; Stop & Shop Companion; Tops Companion; Wegmans Bruiser; Weis Total Pet; Western Family US; White Rose; Winn Dixie; and Your Pet.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Virginia Police Shooting Case Heats Up

Ben Glass — Sun, 14 Jan 2007 22:39:02 GMT

The sad case of Salvatore Culosi, the local optometrist gunned down by a Fairfax County SWAT team last year when they went to arrest him for allegedly running a gambling ring got sadder as investigators confirmed that the SWAT team should never have been there for his arrest in the first place.

According to published reports, a police review says Fairfax County police went overboard in using a SWAT team to arrest Culosi.

The young optometrist died January 24th after being struck in the chest by a single bullet fired by police officer Deval Bullock.

Bullock has been disciplined and you can expect a major lawsuit to be filed. The Culosi family is represented by Alexandria Attorney Bernard DiMuro.

The report prepared and made public by officials just two days ago acknowledges that Culosi -- an optometrist with no criminal record -- was not a high-risk arrest.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

Hazard from Texting While Driving

Ben Glass — Sun, 24 May 2009 08:12:54 GMT

According to a recent study conducted by researchers at Eastern Virginia Medical School and Children’s Hospital of the Kings’ Daughters in Norfolk, driving while text messaging or fiddling with an MP3 player is an even greater hazard than talking on a cell phone while driving.

In the study, the researchers had 21 teenagers between the ages of 16 and 18 take part in a series of simulated driving experiments.

Donald Lewis, MD, chief of Eastern Virginia Medical School’s department of pediatrics and co-researcher said that each teen was asked to get behind the wheel of a simulated vehicle and drive through simulated scenery, in rural, then urban settings, in 10-minute intervals.

The participants were first asked to drive with no distractions involved. Afterward, the were asked to drive through the same scenes again, but text messaging, talking on a cell phone, and finally operating an MP3 player.

Lewis said the findings did not surprise the researchers, but referred to them as “frightening.”

In the tests involving distractions that required finger movement, the participants steered the virtual vehicles erratically, weaving in and out of lanes and running over virtual people.

Lewis said that the worst driving came when the participants were text messaging, likely due to being required to look down in addition to moving their fingers.

Lewis said the mistakes the participants made included dramatically slowing down and weaving more than a foot outside their lane.

The participants were required to have at least six months of experience. Teens diagnosed with attention disorders or with a history of unsafe driving were excluded. Also excluded were teens who reported the use of alcohol or excessive amounts of caffeine.

According to Lewis, a growing body of research suggests that texting while driving is a rapidly increasing issue. Young drivers in Virginia are banned by law from using their cell phones while driving, but Lewis says that it would be difficult to enforce due to the difficulty of judging a driver’s age.

A recent American Automobile Association study said that people text messaging while driving increases the risk of an accident by 50 percent. Some states have banned texting while driving and Lewis says he believes they all should.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass

WhoCanISue.com Won't Attract Real Trial Lawyers

Ben Glass — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 06:36:27 GMT

Time Magazine has an article about a new attorney referral marketing website and Time is using it to take another shot at lawyers....and rightfully so this time...except that I don't believe the website was built for real trial lawyers. I don't think that any legitimate personal injury lawyer would sign up for WhoCanISue.com.

The WhoCanISue site looks like it was invented by tort reformers to have something else to shoot at (oh, I almost forgot, its election season...time to go lawyer hunting by some). I mean, what legitimate lawyer would pay $1,000 a month or more to be listed on a site that actually makes fun of lawsuits?

The tagline "The Legal Process Made Easy" is not one that any responsible personal injury lawyer would use because those legitimate injury attorneys who actually take case to trial (as opposed to spending millions on advertising to settle everything for 2 cents on the dollar) KNOW that litigation is not easy. They know that insurance companies have a huge advantage (more money, more time to wait for the results) in lawsuits and that litigation is plain tough.

Moreover, the graphic on the WhoCanISue webpage, a guy falling on a banana peel, is a ridiculous caricature of jokes made about lawsuits. No legitimate trial lawyer would head down that path.

What I find most interesting about the whole Time article is that Time is not allowing comments at its site about the article. Therefore Time is not allowing you to participate in the conversation. Wonder why that is? Could it be that Time has a vested interest in helping to promote a straw man and then taking shots at it?

Stay tuned.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ben Glass