Philadelphia Top Injury Lawyer Blog

Manslaughter charges were filed in New York this week that point to a potentially worrisome Philadelphia personal injury issue. Two construction workers died in a May 2008 construction accident when a giant construction crane fell apart, sending pieces of the 200-foot tall crane crashing onto the construction site and a nearby apartment building. Investigation found that the crane owner had recently had the crane repaired, hiring an obscure Chinese firm over the Internet to weld a critical component. Shortly thereafter, the weld failed, killing two workers at a Manhattan construction site. The crane owner's attempt to save money during these difficult financial times imperiled construction workers and the public.

The incident raises some serious questions for construction workers and the public. As the recession drags on, Philadelphia business owners, particularly those in the construction trades, continue to be squeezed financially. How many construction equipment owners are resorting to cheap equipment repairs or cheap parts to save money? How many construction workers are being forced to work with faulty equipment because their employers don't have the money to finance often expensive repairs?

In these difficult financial times when jobs are at a premium, particularly in the hard-hit construction trades, workers are disinclined to risk unemployment by blowing the whistle on employers who take liberties with safety standards. Workers may have no way of knowing when equipment repairs are substandard. It is even possible, though less likely, that construction equipment owners may be duped by unscrupulous repair services. Faulty construction equipment repairs could be placing Philadelphia construction workers and Philadelphia residents at serious risk of personal injury or even death should a serious construction accident occur.

When a construction accident occurs in Philadelphia, comprehensive investigation by a skilled personal injury attorney can uncover the true cause of the construction accident and determine actual fault and responsibility.

A hospital stay is fraught with worry and anxiety for both the patient and his or her family. But when a patient is discharged, there's a reasonable expectation that the patient is on the road to recovery and is being sent home with the medications and instructions that will promote full recovery. According to a new study by the Commonwealth Fund, a private New York research group, hospitals are not meeting expectations when they discharge patients and too many Philadelphia patients are winding up right back in the hospital as a result.

The Commonwealth Fund study found that preventable medical errors and negligent hospital discharge procedures forced more than 13,000 elderly and disabled of Pennsylvania patients to be readmitted within 30 days of hospital discharge. The two most common medical errors were sending patients home without required antibiotic prescriptions and not providing written post-hospital care instructions to patients at the time of discharge. Lack of follow up procedures to insure that patients were taking required medication and that they were correctly following post-hospitalization instructions was also cited as a frequent contributor to hospital readmission.

According to the Commonwealth Fund, preventable hospital mistakes cost Medicare and taxpayers approximately $12 billion each year. Medicare and several federal health care reform bills would tie hospital payments to readmission rates, paying less to hospitals that showed a higher incidence of patient readmission. In the Commonwealth Fund study, Pennsylvania hospitals showed a preventable readmission rate of 19.7%, at the high end of the national median.

The conditions most likely to require hospital readmission were: heart failure, pulmonary disease, pneumonia. cardiac stent placement and major hip or knee surgery. When Philadelphia hospital personnel fail to provide proper medication or patient care instructions at discharge, necessitating readmission, a case for medical malpractice can be made. Patients have been known to suffer serious personal injury complications and even die from these preventable medical errors.

Philadelphia personal injury lawyers and Philly consumers were appalled to learn that Toyota has for years been collecting car crash data but failed to reveal or share it to protect consumers. According to an Associated Press investigation published this week, Toyota has consistently stone-walled authorities by denying access to vital information about vehicle accidents collected in the event data recorders installed in every Toyota car and truck. As part of their continuing quality control efforts, most auto manufacturers use event data recorders, also called EDRs, to record engine, computer and other operating system data about their vehicles. Working much like the "black box" devices used in commercial airplanes, these electronic recorders provide the manufacturer with vital data about the vehicle's performance -- and failure -- if it is involved in a car accident.

Most automakers allow open access to EDR data. This data can be invaluable to police and insurance investigators as well as Philadelphia personal injury lawyers trying to determine the cause of an auto accident or truck accident. The Associated Press investigation found that Toyota frequently refused to share critical information with crash victims and accident survivors. When forced by personal injury attorneys during court proceedings to provide EDR data, Toyota frequently provided blank or incomplete data sheets or initiated out-of-court settlements. Unlike other auto manufacturers, Toyota EDRs use proprietary software that effectively restricts access to EDR information by auto accident investigators. According to the Associated Press, last week only one computer in the entire U.S. was equipped with the software necessary to read Toyota EDR data.

Toyota's recall of 8 million vehicles plagued by runaway accelerator and faulty brake problems has affected thousands of concerned Philadelphia car owners. If you own a Toyota car or truck and have been involved in an accident, contact a Philadelphia personal injury attorney for a free case evaluation.

Shopping for Philadelphia medical professionals these days isn't that different from shopping for a good auto mechanic. Both professions are populated by good and bad practitioners. The difference, of course, is that if your Philly auto mechanic does a bad job, you're merely annoyed. If your doctor does a bad job, you could suffer debilitating personal injury or die.

Like good auto mechanics, good doctors are usually found by word-of-mouth recommendations. Mechanics have the edge in that AAA ratings and Angie's List help assure Philadelphia customers that they'll receive satisfactory service. There's no Angie's List for the medical profession, but something similar is under construction.

The national Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank is being developed to alert Philadelphia hospitals and other members of the nation's medical community about disciplinary and professional actions taken against doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare workers. There are numerous cases where a physician or medical worker has left a hospital under the cloud of medical malpractice only to start practicing in a different hospital or community without penalty, his new employers and patients unaware of previous complaints. The national data bank is an attempt to plug this loophole and assure Philadelphia patients that they are receiving quality medical care.

The problem is that hospital and medical boards in Philadelphia and other cities are not reporting disciplinary actions to the data bank. ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative journalism group, recently brought the problem to the attention of Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Miscommunication between federal, state and local agencies is partly to blame. Delinquent agencies appear to be making an effort to update data bank reporting. Philadelphia malpractice lawyers believe the national data bank has the potential to reduce personal injuries from medical malpractice, reduce the potential for Philadelphia medical malpractice by denying problem doctors the opportunity to practice, and ensure that Philadelphians receive quality medical care.

Eighty-five inches of snow! A normal winter in Minnesota or North Dakota where brutal winters are the norm; but in usually temperate Philadelphia it's a record that has closed airports, halted trains, downed power lines, sent school children home, caused cars to careen into each other and sent Philly residents sliding across sidewalks. Mother Nature's most recent wallop has contributed to numerous Philadelphia personal injury accidents and several deaths. Philadelphia car and truck accidents, slip and fall accidents and personal injury accidents caused by snow blower malfunctions have increased in the wake of the latest Nor'easter to blow through Philadelphia.

Yesterday, Pennsylvania highway officials cut the maximum speed on I-476 and later banned tractor-trailers because of dangerous whiteout conditions. Accident reports on I-95 exceeded troopers' ability to respond and non-injury accident victims were instructed to exchange information and struggle home. A woman and her son died and her husband and two other children were rushed to the emergency room yesterday when their car slid off icy I-80 in the Poconos. Amtrak suspended service for several hours along its heavily trafficked Boston to Washington corridor when a high-speed train struck and killed two Philadelphia pedestrians just south of the city yesterday morning.

The snow dumped on Philadelphia is so wet and heavy that it's clogging snow blowers, increasing personal injury risk to fingers and hands as people struggle with malfunctioning snow blowers, attempting to unclog snow-packed chutes. Mixed with rain, the wet snow is causing an icy slip and fall hazard for Philadelphia pedestrians skidding along sidewalks and attempting to traverse ice-slicked parking lots.

When weather plays a role in personal injury accidents, it takes exacting investigation by a highly experienced Philadelphia personal injury lawyer to determine legal fault. If you have suffered a personal injury accident during this latest round of storms, contact an expert Philadelphia personal injury attorney to assess your claim and explain your legal rights.

Philadelphia pediatricians joined their fellows across the country this week in asking food manufacturers to redesign foods that commonly cause choking deaths and injuries to the nation's children. Approximately 70 American children under the age of 10 die every year in food-caused choking deaths. Another 10,000 U.S. children under the age of 14 are rushed to hospital emergency rooms because of food-related choking incidents, some of which cause serious personal injury. When food obstructs a child's airway, the child can stop breathing, shutting down the oxygen supply to the brain and vital organs. Serious injury, debilitating brain damage and death can occur.

The American Academy of Pediatrics this week issued a policy statement asking manufacturers to make foods commonly marketed and served to children less hazardous to their health. The Academy asked food manufacturers not only to develop new, safer foods but to redesign the shape, size and texture of existing foods to remove choking risks. As an example, hot dogs, a favorite childhood food, are cylindrical and roughly the same diameter as a child's throat. Their shape and popularity with children make hot dogs a formidable choking hazard. The pediatric group emphasized that they aren't proposing that manufacturers stop making certain foods, just that they redesign them so they will no longer be a choking hazard.

Pediatricians also want the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to require choking hazard labels on foods associated with child choking deaths and personal injuries. In their policy statement, they asked the FDA to evaluate foods, develop and enforce a risk rating system, require warning labels on foods, and educate the public about food-related childhood choking risks. Pediatricians also urged parents and child care workers to learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation and choking first aid techniques so they are prepared to help their children in a choking emergency.

If your child's health has been placed at risk by a food-related choking hazard, a Philadelphia personal injury attorney can evaluate your case and inform you of your legal rights.

Despite the snow stacked along Philadelphia streets, it won't belong before Philadelphia homeowners are trading in their shovels for driveway squeegees. Spreading a new layer of thick, black, tarry sealant over asphalt driveways is an annual right of spring in Philadelphia. In use for more than 50 years, driveway sealant helps keep asphalt from cracking and crumbling, extending the life of asphalt driveways and parking lots. However, a new study reveals that using coal tar-based sealants could present a product liability issue that endangers the health of Philadelphia families.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is investigating recent studies that have found dangerous levels of toxic compounds in many commonly sold driveway sealants. Driveway sealants are made from either petroleum or coal tar. While petroleum-based sealants have not been targeted, coal tar-based sealants can contain dangerous concentrations of toxic polyaromatic hydrocarbons, or PAH. Carried into homes on the bottoms of shoes by weekend warriors, PAH breaks down and becomes part of the household dust you breathe every day. These toxic compounds do additional damage to the environment when tiny grains of sealant are dislodged by car tires, brooms or snow shovels and carried into streets where rain water eventually washes these lethal compounds into Philadelphia's streams and rivers.

In a 2009 study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey, the level of PAH found in household dust inside apartment buildings where parking lots were coated with coal-tar sealant was 25 times greater than normal. Published in the January 2010 issue of the Environmental Science and Technology journal, study authors expressed concern about the effect of PAH particles and dust on babies and crawling toddlers. Increased PAH in household dust could cause personal injury to asthmatics, the elderly and those suffering from pulmonary ailments or lung disease.

If you are concerned that you or a family member may have suffered personal injury from breathing PAH dust from driveway sealant, schedule a free consultation with a Philadelphia personal injury lawyer to investigate your rights.

The number of deaths blamed on Toyota accelerator defects rose to 34 this week as more personal injury lawsuits were filed against the beleaguered auto maker by consumers in Philadelphia and across the nation. An additional 1000 complaints concerning the brake system on Toyota's popular Prius hybrid were also filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this past week. The sharp uptick in public attention was spurred in part by publicity about personal injury investigations into injuries and deaths allegedly caused by Toyota's possibly defective auto design or manufacture. As often happens when personal injury lawsuits start flooding the courts, people who have suffered similar accidents begin to make the association between their own experience and that of others and decide to come forward.

In the past few months, problems with gas pedals, brakes and floor mats have resulted in the recall of 8.5 million Toyota vehicles worldwide. In early February, the government had received just 124 complaints about Toyota vehicles. Publicity and personal injury lawsuits quickly raised public consciousness to the point that barely one week later the government had received 1120 complaints. Consumer concern has already sparked three Congressional hearings with the government now looking into possible problems with the design of Toyota's electromagnetic system.

As often happens, it is not until people are injured or killed that manufacturers or distributors take responsibility, admit to product defects and take corrective action. It can take expert investigation by a Philadelphia personal injury attorney to uncover actionable evidence of manufacturer liability. In order to be considered defective under the law, a product must be deemed unreasonably dangerous. Issues used to prove defective product liability include:

• Design defects prior to product manufacture
• Defects in the manufacturing processes
• Incomplete or fraudulent product marketing

By Toyota's own admission, the company has violated at least two of the above issues. Toyota owners who have experienced a vehicle problem should consult an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney to see if they are eligible for compensation for their loss.

While no medical malpractice suit has been filed and no charges of negligence or wrongful death have been made, the shocking death of powerful Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha following routine gallbladder surgery serves as a reminder of the many risks and potential opportunities for error during any surgical procedure, no matter how minor. At 77, Representative Murtha's age may have increased his risk; but even so, life-threatening complications from gallbladder surgery are exceedingly rare. More than half a million Americans have their gallbladders removed without incident every year. But, as with all surgical procedures, there are always risks.

As a doctor labors with laparoscopic instruments to pull a swollen, inflamed gallbladder through a tiny incision in the patient's abdomen, the doctor can mistakenly cut into the patient's intestine, liver or bile duct. If the hole is undiscovered, infection can set in. If the surgeon tears even the tiniest hole in the intestine during gallbladder surgery, massive, life-threatening infection can set in quickly as bacteria-laden waste from the intestine leaks into the sterile environment of the abdomen. This is apparently what happened to Representative Murtha. Although his family has refused to comment on his death, a family friend confided to reporters that when the Representative died he was battling a major infection caused by damage to his intestine during gallbladder surgery.

A surgical accident, even one that takes a life, does not always indicate negligence or medical malpractice. Each case is unique and must be carefully reviewed. Philadelphia personal injury lawyers with an expertise in medical malpractice have the knowledge and professional resources to thoroughly investigate the possibility of physician negligence or surgical error when patients are injured or die as a result of surgical complications. If you believe you or someone you love has been the victim of a surgical error or medical malpractice, an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney can review your case and apprise you of your legal options.

The tragic suffocation deaths of three infants have prompted the recall of all Generation 2 Worldwide and ChildESIGNS drop-side cribs. The Consumer Products Safety Commissions (CPSC) warned parents in Philadelphia and across the nation to stop using the recalled cribs immediately. Parents were also warned not to attempt home repairs of these defective product cribs but to discontinue their use immediately.

More than 20 personal injury complaints about the recalled cribs have been received by the CPSC. The most tragic problem occurs when defective plastic hardware breaks causing the drop side of the crib to detach from the corner. Infants and toddlers can roll into this space and become wedged and trapped. Unable to escape, children can suffocate against the mattress or strangle. All three reported infant deaths occurred when infants suffocated after becoming trapped between the mattress and broken drop side of one of the recalled defective crib models.

Other injuries associated with the faulty design of the recalled drop-side cribs include serious bruising when children became trapped in broken cribs, falls and broken bones from children falling out of cribs after the drop side detached, cuts and bruises when mattress supports detached suddenly, and entrapment in sagging mattresses when supports failed. In some cases, babies were able to crawl out of defective cribs when the supports that were supposed to contain and thereby protect them failed.

Recalled cribs were manufactured by a now defunct Alabama company and sold at Wal-Mart, K-Mart and other discount retailers. Philadelphia parents should check their baby's crib for a label on the head or footboard identifying the cribs as Generation 2 Worldwide. ChildESIGNS may be printed on the teething rail of some recalled cribs. Parents can contact the retailer where the crib was purchased for remedy.

Drop-side cribs have an increasing source of concern. If your child has been injured in a drop-side crib, contact a Philadelphia personal injury attorney for a free case evaluation.

When a Philadelphia car accident occurs that results in personal injuries, investigators first consider human error and roadway conditions, the two most common causes of car crashes. Vehicle failure is a less obvious cause of car and truck accidents and is often considered an anomaly until the same incident begins to show up repeatedly in police or insurance records. Often, it is careful investigation and legal prosecution by an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney that first reveals a connection between a design or manufacturing defect and a rising accident rate.

Defective designs have recently forced Toyota to issue three recalls that have affected many Philadelphia Toyota owners (see our previous post). At least 29 personal injury law suits centered on car accident, defective product, negligence or product liability claims have already been filed against the auto maker in the U.S. and Canada. Some U.S. personal injury attorneys have filed class action suits. Class action lawsuits are filed on behalf of a group of people who share the same grievance, allowing the group to bring the claim to court collectively.

Philadelphia residents who agree to participate in a class action suit against Toyota should realize that in doing so they give up their individual rights to pursue litigation in the matter. In class action law suits, judgment of a single case determines the claims, rights and remuneration for the enter group. Personal injury attorneys recoup their fees and expenses from any settlement which is then split between all parties to the suit. The greater the number of people involved in the suit, the smaller the individual payout. Should the judgment go against the defendants, some individuals who may have suffered greater loss than the majority also lose their right to sue.

Before deciding whether or not to join a class action lawsuit, Philadelphia Toyota owners should contact an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney for a free case evaluation.

The latest Disney movie The Princess and the Frog was a Christmas holiday hit. Merchandising tie-ins have been popular sellers with young girls and their parents, so the recent finding of high levels of toxic metal in themed jewelry sent shock waves through Philadelphia homes and retailers. High levels of the toxic metal cadmium were found in Chinese-made The Princess and the Frog pendants being sold exclusively at Wal-Mart stores. The discovery comes on the heels of the Christmas recall of Chinese-made cadmium-laced children's jewelry at Wal-Mart and Claire's stores.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which began testing children's metal jewelry for cadmium after the December scare, announced the voluntary recall of 55,000 Chinese-made pendants by Rhode Island jewelry company FAF Inc. Cadmium is a known carcinogen that, like lead, can hinder children's brain development, although federal regulations do not currently require testing for cadmium in children's jewelry nor do they set a maximum limit on the amount of cadmium in a product. In response to the recall, Disney acted to require cadmium testing of all products bearing its brand and halt in production and distribution of products when cadmium is detected. Philadelphia Wal-Marts voluntarily pulled The Princess and the Frog children's jewelry from shelves and will provide a refund or replacement product for affected items returned to their stores.

Chinese whistle blowers say they noticed factories substituting toxic cadmium for non-toxic zinc around 2003 when cadmium prices dropped significantly. Chinese manufacturers preferred cadmium not only because they could save money on the cost of raw materials for making children's and fashion jewelry for foreign markets but because the metal was malleable at lower temperatures, ensuring cheaper production costs. Congress is now considering legislation that would ban cadmium from children's jewelry and toys.

When Philadelphia children suffer personal injury from toxic toys or defective products, Philadelphia personal injury lawyers can initiate product liability suits to bring manufacturers and distributors to account and protect the public and our children.

The biggest night in football is nearly here. For fans, Super Bowl Sunday means trash talking with your buddies, snacks, beer, zany commercials, endless highlights and, of course, the Big Game. You'll watch the game ensconced in the comfort of your comfy easy chair, but dozens of high school fans will watch from their wheelchairs. One in 100,000 high school football players suffers a serious, paralyzing spinal cord personal injury and hundreds more suffer serious concussions that result in permanent disability or degenerative brain disease.

The serious personal injury suffered on the field by a pro football player gets a lot of press. When Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook was struck in the head and knocked unconscious during the Washington game, Philly fans were horrified. A second concussion in San Diego was even more frightening, placing Westbrook at risk for long-term brain damage. Recent research linking concussions to degenerative brain disease has drawn attention to what the press is calling pro football's concussion crisis . Some argue that pro players are paid to take such risks, but what of the 140,000 concussions suffered every year by children who play football in Pop Warner leagues or on school teams? And what of the spinal cord injuries that paralyze some of those kids?

Former football players who have experienced debilitating injuries and parents caring for children forever damaged by football injuries have been working to raise public consciousness about the dangers of playing football. Medical experts say that young Philadelphia players with their still developing bodies are at greater risk than adults for serious personal injury while playing football. Parents of injured athletes charge that inadequate or improper training, overly aggressive coaching, lack of immediate medical attention, and lack of trainers and ambulances at games contribute to the severity of personal injuries suffered by Philadelphia children on the football field.

If your child is injured playing sports, a Philadelphia personal injury lawyer may be able to help you recover funds needed to pay for medical expenses and care for your child.

Beset by massive recalls, Toyota, once considered among America's premier auto brands, has seen its image plummet with Philadelphia consumers. Government officials and safety agencies have criticized the Japanese auto maker for failing to respond promptly to personal injury accidents caused by faulty auto design. Two different problems involving the accelerator have prompted recalls of several Toyota models that are highly popular with Philadelphia residents. A Congressional hearing is scheduled for this week.

Five people have died in two different personal injury car accidents caused when the accelerator pedal got caught in the floor mat. That design flaw led Toyota to recall 3.8 million vehicles last fall. Last week, Toyota recalled an additional 2.3 million vehicles because of a potentially dangerous sticky accelerator. While the National Highway Transportation Safety Board has reported no confirmed deaths resulting from Toyota's sticking accelerators that doesn't mean none have occurred. It can take months to accurately determine the cause of fatal and personal injury car accidents.

When fatal or serious injuries occur in a Philadelphia car accident, Philadelphia personal injury lawyers investigate to determine the cause. When a defect in the design or manufacture of a vehicle is found to be at fault, it is often the ensuing Philadelphia personal injury lawsuit that shines a national spotlight on the problem and warns the public of the danger.

In Toyota's case, it has been largely reported in the press that while North American Toyota officials quickly expressed concern about these car defects, the company's Japanese headquarters had to be prodded to issue recalls and address design flaws. Consternation over the wide scope of Toyota's accelerator problem caused the auto maker to take the unheard of measure of stopping production at its U.S. manufacturing plants while developing a solution.

Philadelphia residents who have been injured a car accident that may have been caused by a flaw in Toyota's accelerator should contact a Philadelphia personal injury attorney for a free case evaluation.

After this weekend's heavy snow and this past week's below-freezing temperatures, slip and fall accidents in Philadelphia are on the rise. If you are looking for personal injury legal advice, a Philadelphia personal injury attorney can help. There are actions victims can take after a bad slip to help their case.

The number one mistake people make after an injury has happened is that it is not reported to the store or place of business as soon as, or shortly after, an accident happens. In some cases if the injured person waits over a week or longer, the case may be more difficult to litigate.

The reason the slip and fall injury report must be filed soon after an accident is because the lawyer must prove in court that the business or property owner had prior knowledge of the hazard. For example, if a slip occurs on an ice patch on a sidewalk in Philadelphia, contrary to popular belief, the city is not liable for the upkeep of sidewalks and walkways. Rather, the businesses and/or property owners bordering the sidewalk where the accident has happened may be liable by not properly maintaining these thoroughfares.

However, a patch of ice on the sidewalk is not necessarily a liability issue for the business owner either, depending on the time of day or the weather condition of the entire area that day. Ephemeral conditions such as ice patches can be difficult to prove otherwise, because even the best personal injury attorney must convince the court that the property owner had prior knowledge (or "notice") of the ice hazard.

By filing a report quickly, as well as consulting a personal injury attorney, the time and conditions are recorded legally. Personal injury lawyers have extensive experience with winter slip and fall cases, and can quickly provide legal advice. Don't wait to get savvy legal advice and then lose your right for injury compensation by not informing the injury location business owner quickly.