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Archive for May, 2009
Wrongful Death Suits
Wrongful death suits are litigation filed against someone who is responsible for a person’s (wrongful) death. This isn’t a criminal matter. It is civil law.
A wrongful death may take place literally anywhere, at any time and occur at the hands of a variety of people. “For instance, a wrongful death may involve a medical error, a murder, or a faulty product or equipment,” outlined Lance and Laura Sharp of the Sharp Firm of Austin, Texas. While the reasons for a wrongful death are virtually endless and no one denies that a death occurred, many people don’t “get” why a wrongful death suit is really necessary.
In the case where there is a deliberate killing, the general public figures that justice will be done through the criminal courts. They don’t comprehend why someone would hire a wrongful death attorney to file a civil claim. “There are two different courts involved in settling a criminal case as opposed to a wrongful death case, and they each rely of different standards of proof,” explained Lance Sharp.
In a criminal court, the defendant must be proven to be guilty beyond all reasonable doubt. “On the other hand, civil courts only need a preponderance of the evidence,” said Lance Sharp. This means a civil court only needs to have enough evidence that points to the guilt of the defendant. In some instances, when a criminal court declares a person not guilty, filing a wrongful death suit in civil court provides the family with a shot at getting justice.
It is far more common, however, in wrongful death cases the charges are laid against people who have accidently caused a death as a result of their negligence. Needless to say, these cases are fraught with some very volatile emotions and for this reason it makes good sense to hire a highly skilled wrongful death attorney, familiar with these kinds of issues. Such an attorney may be found at the Sharp Firm in Austin, Texas, where Lance and Laura Sharp have over 40 years of combined legal experience.
Wrongful death cases may award damages for medical costs, funeral expenses, loss of wages, loss of companionship, and many other items that a good attorney will not only know about, but will fight aggressively in court to win these damages for their client. In some respects, civil suits brought as the result of a wrongful death serve as a reminder to others that the law is indeed keeping a watchful eye on them.
To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.
The Trauma of Brain (TBI) Injuries
It’s virtually inevitable that those who suffer traumatic brain injury and survive will be left with some form of difficulty for the rest of their lives.
One of the most telling differences in a traumatic brain injury survivor is a change in their personality. “Much of that however, is dependent on the severity of the initial trauma, the victim’s original personality, and where the injury to the brain is located,” explained Lance and Laura Sharp of the Sharp Firm of Austin, Texas. These factors alone will usually dictate what type of deficits may be present in a TBI patient.
The most common differences in TBI patients have been noted as being short-term memory loss, lacking in motivation, difficulties remaining focused, lack of empathy, impatience, a marked increase in being self-centered, depression, bouts of anger, poor judgment, and the inability to follow written instructions. “This isn’t to say that every TBI case will manifest with these symptoms, but there are many that do, in addition to other difficulties as well,” commented Lance Sharp.
In TBI cases, it is critically important to contact a highly skilled TBI attorney who is able to fight for damages that will sustain the injured party for the rest of their lives. The accident may have only happened once, but the TBI is always with the victim every day after the accident. “There are extensive changes in lifestyle for many TBI patients as well, not to mention the sometimes extensive rehabilitation that they need to undergo in order to be able to cope with life, as they now know it,” explained Lance and Laura Sharp of the Sharp Firm of Austin, Texas,
Only a thoroughly qualified TBI attorney will be able to lay out the areas where damages may be claimed in a TBI case. They are many and varied, but having a reputable lawyer assist clients in formulating a life plan to achieve a reasonable lifestyle for the future is vital to a client and their families.
A TBI lawsuit is a lengthy process and the attorney chosen must fight aggressively for the welfare of their client. Clients would be in good hands with the Sharp Firm in Austin, Texas, headed by Lance and Laura Sharp who have over 40 years of combined legal experience at their fingertips.
To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.
Causes of Large Truck Accidents
If there is one thing that causes complete havoc and often death on the highways these days, it’s big rigs involved in crashes.
There usually isn’t any contest winner when it comes to a large rig colliding with a passenger vehicle. Most accidents of this nature result in extremely serious injuries, if not fatalities. What is food for thought are the numbers of large trucks cruising on our highways, and that number is well over 14,000,000 according to the Bureau of Transportation statistics.
The most recent statistics available for truck crashes from 2007 indicate total injuries reported were in the range of 81,000, with over 4,500 being fatal crashes. The numbers don’t get any better when tracking non-fatal accidents either, with over 55,000 injury crashes logged.
What’s going on here? Why are there are so many large rig crashes? Many of the reasons don’t take too much thought, and the first things that generally come to mind are speeding, driving while under the influence of some illegal substance, driving while drunk, driver fatigue, and tire blow outs.
There are many other reasons, most of which are not quite as common, but do figure into the fatality statistics, such as driving too fast for the weather or road conditions, not yielding the right of way, driving aggressively, backing up without using due care and attention, improperly trained drivers, driving without a proper license, overweight loads, and vehicle or maintenance failures. With all that going on, it’s not much wonder the rate of accidents on the nation’s highways is as high as it is.
The difficult thing about a trucking accident happens to be that trucking companies are regulated by the federal government. A lawsuit in this area can get quite convoluted and is one of the major reasons you really need to hire an experienced and aggressive attorney with a good track record in handling big rig crashes.
Consider this added bit of information about truck drivers when you are wondering why the rate of accidents involving big rigs is so high. A truck driver may earn roughly 30 cents a mile. If that trucker wants to hit the $32,000 mark a year for salary, s/he is going to be driving a LOT of miles. Many of those miles are done with one thing in mind, cutting the overhead costs of operation. This leads to drivers who speed, drive past their log out time and drive more aggressively in order to make a decent wage.
If you or someone you love has been involved in a big rig crash, immediately consult with a highly-skilled, large truck crash attorney in order to get justice.
Lance Sharp of The Sharp Firm is an Austin personal injury lawyer specializing in personal injury and accident law in Austin Texas. The lawyers at The Sharp Firm have a collective 40 years experience in being Austin injury lawyers. To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.
The Car Accident Insurance Run Around
The most annoying thing ever is getting the total run around from your car insurance company after you have had the misfortune of having an accident.
If you’re really tired of the stalling, procrastination and nitpicking your car insurance company is handing out due to your car accident insurance claim, take a number and stand in line. Next to trying to get good seats for the Super Bowl without paying a fortune, fighting with an insurance company ranks right up there in second place. The good news is that you don’t have to put up with it.
There are things you can take into your own hands and get them done, knowing that you have the ultimate option of hiring a highly skilled attorney to get to the bottom of the insurance merry-go-round for you. To get started, make the obligatory phone call to the claims department. You have every reason to expect to get polite service and answers to your questions; after all you pay insurance, which pays that person’s salary.
Always start off by asking the person’s name and then either record the call or take a good set of notes with complete details about the date and time, etc. If you don’t like what you are being told because it seems unreasonable, or you aren’t happy with the way the call is handled, make it a point to ask for the name of the supervisor. Once you have completed the call, make the trek to the Post Office and mail all your documentation to the person you talked to, or send it all by email. This is an alternative method of getting your point across if the phone call doesn’t produce results.
If the documents and phone call(s) don’t make any difference, track down the complaints department if they have one. Do the same thing with the complaints department that you did with the frontline people, including sending in your documents once again. Make sure to also include a copy of your detailed notes and whom you spoke to in this second package.
If all else fails, head for the local insurance department and file a formal complaint. However, having said that, it would make much more sense to hire a highly skilled attorney who is able to handle cases like this and get them settled expeditiously without getting the run around to which you were subjected. While you may ask yourself why a lawyer would get better results, the answer is related to an insurance company preferring to settle quickly and as reasonably as possible without landing in court.
Lance Sharp of The Sharp Firm is an Austin personal injury lawyer specializing in personal injury and accident law in Austin Texas. The lawyers at The Sharp Firm have a collective 40 years experience in being Austin injury lawyers. To learn more about Austin personal injury lawyer, Austin injury lawyer, Austin personal injury, visit Sharpfirm.com.
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