Articles Posted in Personal Injury

In order to maintain an action for negligence in Georgia, the plaintiff must show that the defendants’ conduct was directly responsible for the injury complained of. Many times, there is more than one wrongful act which cause the injury. In these situations, the plaintiff carries the burden against each defendant by proving that each wrongful act caused “or substantially contributed to” the injury. In other words, in order for the plaintiff to prevail at trial, she must show that it is more likely than not that the defendants’ actions, either alone or in concert, caused her injuries. Singleton v. Phillips, 494 S.E.2d 66 (Ga.App. 1997).

Many times, this issue is fiercely litigated in Georgia injury cases. In fact, this precise issue arouse in a recent Fulton County State Court case and the Judge gave the following charge to the jury:

“In order for the plaintiff to recover, you must find that the Defendant’s negligence was the proximate cause of her injuries. Proximate cause is a legal term. When a person’s act or failure to act directly and immediately causes an injury, it is the “proximate
cause” of that injury.

The proximate cause of an injury must be more than a remote or trivial factor. However, it does not have to be the only cause of harm. Liability may be imposed when a defendant’s conduct played a substantial part in bringing about the injury, even if some other forces for which the actor was not responsible contributed to the harm in some way.” As defined by Black’s Law Dictionary, proximate cause is “that which, in a natural and continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces injury, and without which the results would not have occurred. that which is nearest in the order of responsible causation. That which stands next in causation to the effect, not necessarily in time or space but in causal relation. The proximate cause of an injury is the primary or moving cause, or that which, in a natural or continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces the injury and without which the accident could not have happened, if the injury be one that might be reasonably anticipated or foreseen as a natural consequence of the wrongful act. An injury or damage is proximately caused by an act, or a failure to act, whenever it appears from the evidence in the case, that the act or omission played a substantial part in bringing about or actually causing the injury or damage; and that the injury or damage was either a direct result or a reasonably probable consequence or the act or omission.

This is the proper charge and it illustrates very effectively how the jury should view the issue of negligence. While this is not the only way to charge the jury on this issue, it is the most appropriate.
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In Georgia, the insured owns a bad faith claim against his insurance company if the insurer does not accept the insured’s time-limited demand to settle within the policy limits. This claim was established by the seminal case in Georgia of Southern General Insurance Company v. Holt.

This scenario usually arises in a situation when there is a very serious personal injury which far exceeds the policy limits of the at-fault insured. The plaintiff’s attorney will usually send all the information that the insurance company could reasonably need to evaluate the case and make a 10-day demand to settle the case for the policy limits. This is commonly referred to by Georgia injury lawyers as a time-limited Holt Demand. While the facts and damages of each car wreck case are unique, most insurance companies look evaluate case value, at least to some degree, based upon: (1) the venue in which the defendant would be sued if the case were to go into litigation; (2) whether there is clear liability or whether there is a question about who caused the accident; (3) the injuries sustained in the wreck; (4) the amount of property damage to the cars involved in the wreck; (5) whether the injured person is taken by ambulance from the scene to the Emergency Room; (6) whether the plaintiff has continuity of medical treatment or whether there are large gaps in the treatment; (7) whether the plaintiff has been out of work due to the wreck and the amount of lost wages claimed by the plaintiff; (8) whether there is a permanent injury caused by the wreck; (9) the amount of medical bills; and (10) the quality of the plaintiff and defendant.

This is not an exhaustive list, and case value can vary greatly, based on many other intangibles that could add value to your case and cause the case to lose a bit of value. These intangibles sometimes will become clear once the case is developed and the settlement package is being prepared. Other times, facts come out during the litigation process that greatly impact case value.
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A herniated disc is one of the most underrated injuries that can result out of a car accident, or slip and fall. A herniated disc occurs when the cushion or jelly between the spinal vertebrae is pushed out from the sudden impact. When this happens, the jelly comes in contact with the sciatic nerves, causing intense pain that radiates down the back and legs. Herniated discs are also known as slipped discs or ruptured disks. These can also occur as a result of workplace trauma, car accidents, premises liability slip and fall cases, and many other type of accidents.

A herniated disc can cause intense pain that can make it impossible for the injured person to go resume normal activities. The pain typically occurs as a kind of electric shock pain. These shock waves of pain travel down the arms in the case of a herniated disk in the cervical region. In the case of a herniated disc in the lower back region, there may be sharp pricks of pain radiating down your legs and into the feet. You may also have other painful and uncomfortable tingling, and sensations of numbness. There may also be muscular weakness and fatigue, which often will worsen over time unless prompt medical care and treatment is sought by the injured party.
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The Atlanta City Council is expected to approve the settlement of a lawsuit brought against the City by a 62-year-old woman who was jailed for asking a police officer “why” she and friends had to move from a sidewalk where they were talking about an upcoming funeral.

A council committee has accepted the city attorney’s recommendation to settle the case, but the settlement must be approved by the entire city council. The claimant spent almost 10 hours in jail on a charge of disorderly conduct brought by an officer who already had a troubled history with the Atlanta Police Department.
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Congratulations to Attorney Robert J. Fleming for once again being selected as one of Georgia’s top lawyers by Georgia Super Lawyers Magazine. Only 5% of attorneys in Georgia receive this distinction. Selection to the Super Lawyers list provides third-party validation of a lawyer’s practice and positively influences client hiring decisions by providing an additional objective reason to select a Super Lawyer in Georgia.

Mr. Fleming also enjoys the highest rating (“AV”) in both legal professional ability and ethical standards awarded by the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory. Ratings are based on confidential and candid evaluations submitted by lawyers and judges throughout the world. Over one million lawyers are rated with less than 15% achieving an “AV” rating.  This distinguished rating signifies that a lawyer has reached the height of professional excellence. Mr. Fleming has been named many times as one of Georgia’s “Super Lawyers” by the publishers of Law & Politics Magazine and Atlanta Magazine. He has been admitted to practice in all Georgia and Texas State Courts, and the Northern District of Georgia and Southern District of Texas federal courts*.  Mr. Fleming has successfully litigated catastrophic  and complex lawsuits throughout Georgia and the rest of the country in association with local counsel in a number of states.

Attorney Robert J. Fleming has been handling wrongful death cases, automobile accident cases, personal injury cases, dental malpractice and medical malpractice lawsuits for individuals and families who have been harmed, injured or died as a result of the carelessness or negligence of another for more than 20 years in and around Atlanta, Georgia and its surrounding areas, including Alpharetta, Austell, Avondale Estates, Chamblee, College Park, Conyers, Duluth, Decatur, Doraville, Hapeville, Johns Creek, Jonesboro, Lawrenceville, Norcross, Peachtree City, Riverdale, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Stone Mountain, and Smyrna. If you have been seriously injured and would like quality legal representation, contact Robert J. Fleming directly on (404) 525-5150 or contact us online.
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You’ve been seriously injured in a car accident, pharmacy error or other type of accident. You have tried being reasonable and “working it out” with the insurance company, to no avail. You are now in the market to hire a Georgia Injury Lawyer. And boy, there sure is no shortage of lawyer ads on TV, in the yellow pages, on the radio, on billboards, on the side of city buses, inside MARTA trains, or on the internet. How does one decide.

The truth is: there are plenty of Georgia injury lawyers, but only a handful of top-notch lawyers who can effectively handle your case and get you an amount of money in settlement or at trial that can positively change your life. Here are a few things that you may want to consider when you are seeking the lawyer that will help you and your family:

(1) Experience. How long has the lawyer been practicing law? How long has he or she practiced in Georgia injury law? How much “first chair” trial experience does this particular lawyer have? Don’t be lulled into thinking that experience is not the most important criteria, because it certainly is. But, not just experience, but successful and meaningful experience is the key here. There are plenty of “experienced” lawyers who have practiced for over 20 years and have never tried a case to verdict. Plenty more who have simply watched other lawyers in their firm try the case (and then claim that they “tried” the case). As an informed potential client, ask specific questions and demand specific answers. You might be surprised with what you hear.

There are new laws in place which affect how Plaintiff lawyers must handle personal injury settlement funds in Georgia. Starting July 1, 2009, insurance companies are subject to new reporting requirements which may hold up the settlement and payment to Georgia residents who have been injured in car accidents and other types of personal injury claims.

Under the new laws, liability insurers (including workers’ compensation insurers and group health plan insurers) are required to determine whether any individual who files a claim against the insurer or any entity insured or covered by the insurer would be entitled to Medicare benefits. If so, the insurer must provide Medicare with that person’s identity and any other information that may be required by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary). This information must be furnished to Medicare within the time specified by the Secretary after the claim is resolved through settlement, judgment, award or other payment, regardless of whether there has been an admission of liability. Obviously, the insurance company must obtain the information from the personal injury plaintiff in order for them to be able to report it to Medicare and comply with the new laws.

Failure of the insurance companies to comply with these new requirements could result in penalties. If an insurer or other Responsible Reporting Entity fails to notify Medicare in accordance with these guidelines, a civil penalty of $1,000 per day will be charged per claimant. In addition, Medicare now has the right to audit these entities who pay out to injured plaintiffs, and these entities must comply with the new registrations requirements. The practical result of this: insurance companies who write settlement checks will not release them to the plaintiff’s attorney who settled the case until the new Medicare reporting requirements are met. While this is not a huge deal, it may hold up some settlement payments. Most clients are anxious to receive the settlement funds once the case has resolved, and this is something that we take into account early in the process to avoid any unnecessary delay in you getting your personal injury settlement money.

On October 2, 2009, MADD Georgia will hold its annual 5K walk to help raise the public’s awareness of the Georgia drunk driving. The event, previously known as “Strides for Change,” is called “Walk Like MADD” and will be held at Zoo Atlanta.

As experienced personal injury lawyers who represent victims of Georgia Drunk Drivers, we applaud the efforts of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (“MADD”) and wish them great successes in this worthy event. It is a sad fact that so many accidents in Georgia are related to drugs and alcohol. This is especially true during the Holiday which are fast approaching.

While all car accident victims possess a claim and potential lawsuit based on the negligence of the at-fault driver, the victim of a DUI accident also possesses potential claims for punitive damages. Driving while drunk is an added element of this type of lawsuit and is based upon the legal understanding that one who drives while drunk is grossly negligent. Georgia courts define “gross negligence” as being “equivalent to (the) failure to exercise even a slight degree of care” and “lack of the diligence that even careless men are accustomed to exercise.”