Personal Injury Law

New York Dog Bite Case--Protect Your Legal Rights

Posted on October 02, 2008
If you are bitten by a pit bull in a Bronx County dog bite incident, for example, here is a list of what you should and should not do: Find out immediately from the dog owner if the animal has had its rabies shots so you are aware of the extent of this potential risk; Try to locate and identify any witnesses to the dog bite, and if possible, obtain the names, addresses and phone numbers of these witnesses; Immediately report the incident to the local police precinct or division to have a report prepared; Question the owner of the dog, assuming the owner will tell you this, as to whether the dog ever exhibited any "dangerous propensities" previously, including biting, jumping on people, or even aggressive barking--this is critical information in establishing fault against the dog's owner; Obtain from the owner the name, address and phone number of any homeowner or renter's insurance company, and with this information, make an initial claim against that insurance company; Get immediate treatment for your injuries, especially in cases of severe trauma and where it is unclear if the dog has been vaccinated against rabies; If possible, try to obtain photographs of the dog by requesting that a family member or friend assist you in this effort; DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES sign any release sent to you by an insurance representative who offers to pay your medical or hospital bills in exchange for your signed release which prevents you from bringing a claim for your pain and suffering and emotional trauma; DO NOT GIVE ANY SIGNED STATEMENT OR A TAPE RECORDED INTERVIEW TO AN INSURANCE AGENT; Do not speak with the owner of the dog if he or she calls you after the bite, other than to obtain insurance information or more information about the dog's history and vaccination records...

The Do's and Don'ts When You Are Injured In An Accident

Posted on September 25, 2008
When you or a family member are involved in a New York motor vehicle accident, slip and fall accident in the Bronx, from a dog bite, or on a construction site, for example, it is vital to remember the following: Immediately get treatment at a hospital, doctor's office, or clinic, as insurance companies consider very closely the time between an injury and treatment...

Arthroscopic Surgery Won't Cure Arthritis According To Study

Posted on September 12, 2008
A report in the New England Journal of Medicine confirms a 2002 study that arthroscopic knee surgery is not effective in reducing the joint pain or stiffness associated with arthritis. Arthritis is caused when cartilage that protects bones at the joints (knee, hips, shoulders, hips) wears down abnormally, causing pain and stiffness due to the bones rubbing together...

Allstate Named America's Worst Insurance Company

Posted on September 05, 2008
The American Association of Justice recently released their report named "The Ten Worst Insurance Companies in America: How They Raise Premiums, Deny Claims, and Refuse Insurance To Those Who Need It Most." In the report, Allstate is cited as the worst insurance company in the U...

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New York City Councilman Seeking Ban On Text Messaging Drivers

Posted on September 02, 2008
New York City Councilman David Weprin has introduced a bill which would ban the sending or reading of text messages while driving within New York City. As the Queens Democrat stated: You're not looking at the road and you don't have both hands on the wheel when driving while text messaging...

Heath Ledger's Accidental Drug Overdose Part Of Growing Trend

Posted on August 05, 2008
Deaths such as actor Heath Ledger's drug overdose from a mixture of medications have soared since the 1980's according to a study published in The Archives of Internal Medicine yesterday. The authors studied 50 million death certificates since 1983, and found that there were more than 224,000 fatal medication errors, including mixing prescription drugs with alcohol and street drugs...

Putnam County Town Supervisor Pleads Guilty to DWI

Posted on July 30, 2008
In a follow up to our July 25 blog, Michael Rights, the Southeast Town Supervisor, pled guilty to driving while intoxicated this week in connection with his July 20th arrest in which he was charged with two DWI counts. Rights was sentenced to enter what is commonly referred to as the DDP or Drinking Driver Program, a seven week course required of all drivers convicted of a New York DWI, must pay a fine of $1,000, and his driver's license has been revoked for 6 months by Judge Spofford of Carmel Town Court...

Putnam County Official Has Second DWI Arrest In 13 Months

Posted on July 25, 2008
Putnam County Official Michael Rights, the Southeast Town Supervisor, was arrested at 3:00 AM this past Sunday on DWI charges when he failed to dim his bright lights and allegedly failed several Field Sobriety Tests at the scene. Rights was taken to police headquarters in Carmel and a chemical test apparently revealed that he had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of above 0...

Expired Tires Causing Needless Deaths And Serious Injuries

Posted on July 22, 2008
There was a shocking and sobering story on the ABC's 20-20 program several weeks ago. Tires sold throughout this country in stores such as Sears, Wal-Mart, and Goodyear have expiration dates, and become dangerous after 6 years regardless of whether they have ever been placed on a vehicle and put in use...

90 Year OId Staten Island Man Mauled By Neighbor's Pit Bulls

Posted on July 18, 2008
90 year old Henry S. Piotrowski of Staten Island was mauled by two pit bulls in his yard earlier this month, causing severe injuries which required doctors at Richmond Hospital to amputate one leg. The two male pit bulls were apparently owned by Mr. Piotrowski's neighbor, and managed to get into the yard through a fence which separated Mr...

Westchester County Close To Approving Social Host Bill

Posted on July 14, 2008
The Westchester County Board of Legislators appears ready to approve a Social Host Law by this fall. Under the proposed bill, Westchester would join other counties such as Nassau and Suffolk in imposing criminal penalties on adults who allow those under under the age of 21 to drink alcohol on their property...

New York DWI Charges Against Three Wrong-Way Drivers

Posted on July 09, 2008
Over the last month, DWI charges have been filed against three motorists driving the wrong way on local highways. Most recently, on July 1, New York State troopers arrested a Mohegan Lake resident for driving south on the northbound lanes of the Taconic Parkway in New Castle...

Westchester Police Seek To Curb Motorcycle Fatalities

Posted on June 30, 2008
Since 2007, there have been seven fatal motorcycle crashes in Westchester County . The vast majority of these Westchester County motorcycle accidents have been caused by two factors: speed, especially around curves, and the rider's failure to wear helmets...

Local Legislators Targeting Immigrants With Criminal Convictions

Posted on May 15, 2008
Under a federal plan known as the "287g" program, local legislators including Ron Ball, R-Carmel are seeking to arm local police with the ability to start deportation proceedings against Putnam County illegal immigrants convicted of felonies. Essentially, Ball's plan is to implement the federal government's 287(g) program on a statewide basis, by which local police or correction officials would perform deportation duties normally handled by the U...

Westchester County Car Accident Verdict

Posted on May 12, 2008
This past week, our firm won a significant Westchester County car accident verdict in a case in which Allstate Insurance, as its custom, refused to make a reasonable offer. The case was simple. Our client, a woman in her late fifties, was hit by a car while walking to work and suffered a left hand injury, and other injuries of lesser severity...

Just Say No To Inquiring Insurance Investigators

Posted on April 20, 2008
Our personal injury clients in New York slip and fall cases, automobile accidents, various premises liability cases and construction accidents are often contacted within a few days of the accident by "concerned" investigators hired by insurance companies (especially Allstate, State Farm, Progressive, New York Central Mutual and Countrywide) allegedly to "help" them or "assist you in any way we can...

Westchester County DWI Charge Against Teacher With Children In Car

Posted on April 16, 2008
In the latest installment of our series on mothers driving while intoxicated with their children in the car, in a Westchester County DWI this week, a 35 year old teacher named Karen Kayser was charged with aggravated DWI, and two misdemeanor counts of child endangerment for driving with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0...

Westchester County Corrections Officer Victim Of Drunken Driver

Posted on April 11, 2008
A Westchester County Corrections Officer was severely injured on April 6, 2008 when his car was rear ended by a drunk driver on the Sprain Brook Parkway, two miles north of the Jackson Avenue exit. Mr. White's Land Rover flipped over several times as a result of this Westchester County car accident...

Medication Errors Injure 1 Of 15 Hospitalized Children

Posted on April 08, 2008
A study conducted by The National Initiative For Children's Healthcare Quality, using a new scientific detection method, has determined that for every 100 hospitalized children, there are 11 drug-related harmful events. These include medicine mix-ups, accidental overdoses, and bad drug reactions...

Putnam County DWI--Bar Owner Sentenced To 9 Months

Posted on April 02, 2008
Following up on our February 4, 2008 post "Fatal Putnam County DWI Crash Leads To Conviction Of Bar Owner", on February 24th, Paddock Tavern owner Ray Knox Jr. was sentenced to 9 months in the Putnam County jail for his conviction of allowing his off-duty bar manager Sandra Longchamps to be served alcohol while visibly intoxicated...

Dennis Quaid's Twins Almost Die From Massive Overdose Of Heparin

Posted on March 28, 2008
Supplementing our February 29, 2008 post "Blood Thinner Heparin Tied To Several Deaths", the actor Dennis Quaid appeared on "60 Minutes" last Sunday to reveal every parent's nightmare: He and his wife almost lost their newborn twins last year at Cedar's Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles due to a massive overdose of the blood thinner Heparin, manufactured by Baxter International...

Westchester County DWI--First Person Convicted Under New Vehicular Manslaughter Law

Posted on March 25, 2008
In a Westchester County DWI case, this week Shaheed Emery became the first person convicted in Westchester County under the new First Degree Vehicular Manslaughter charge, as the result of a fatal New York drunk driving crash on the Sprain Brook Parkway last year...

Study Shows That More Than 60% Have Pain 1 Year After Accident

Posted on March 21, 2008
The Journal Archives of Surgery published a study on March 17th which found that a year after an injury in a car accident, slip and fall or other types of accidents, 63 percent reported that they still had substantial pain related to the injury. The over 3,000 patients studied were 18 to 84 years of age, who had survived a traumatic injury...

New York Construction Accident Kills Seven People

Posted on March 19, 2008
On March 15, 2008, in a fatal New York construction accident, a construction crane collapsed on East 51rst Street in Manhattan, killied seven people and injuring several others. Aides to the Manhattan borough president, Scott Stringer, said they had been told by the Office of Emergency Management that the crane fell on two buildings, destroying one at 305 East 50th Street and partly collapsing the building at 301 East 50th Street...

New York DWI Charges Against Public Officials

Posted on March 17, 2008
New York DWI Charges have been filed against three public officials in the last month: two drunk driving charges against prominent figures, and the third against a New York City police officer. On January 30, in a Rockland County DWI case, former Rockland legislator and State Assembly member Ryan Karben was arrested and charged with Driving While Intoxicated when he crashed his Acura into a utility pole in Ramapo, New York...

Immigration Department Admits Wait For Green Card And Citizenship Now 18 Months

Posted on March 14, 2008
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services USCIS acknowledged that due to a huge increase in applications for green cards and citizenship in July of 2007, the average waiting time for legal residency and citizenship is now 18 months. The surge in applications in July of 2007 (7 times more than the average month), which resulted in the increased waiting time from approximately 7 months to 18 months, was due to applicants submitting their papers just before the almost 50% increase in fees on July 30, 2007...

U.S. Supreme Court Now Considering Protecting Drug Manufacturers From Lawsuits

Posted on March 10, 2008
Following up on our blog "U.S. Supreme Court Deals Blow to Lawsuits Against Defective Products", the Court heard arguments on February 25 in Warner-Lambert v. Kent, to determine whether drug manufacturers should receive similar protection from lawsuits that the Court handed out to medical device makers earlier in February...

U.S. Supreme Court Deals Blow to Lawsuits Against Defective Products

Posted on March 04, 2008
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that private lawsuits against medical device manufacturers are not permitted when the device in question complies with federal requirements. Essentially, the Court's decision in Riegel v. Medtronic is another example of the U...

Blood Thinner Heparin Tied To Several Deaths

Posted on February 29, 2008
The Food and Drug Administration announced on February 28 that "potential deficiencies" at a Chinese plant that produces the active ingredient in Heparin, a blood thinner used to treat blood clots during dialysis and after some surgery, is a possible cause of 21 deaths, as well as hundreds of allergic reactions including vomiting, nausea and difficulty breathing...

Do You Need a Private Attorney in New York Insurance Cases?

Posted on February 25, 2008
Our White Plains, New York office gets numerous calls and e-mails from clients confronted with a scenario in which they have been sued for more than their insurance coverage, and they receive a notice from the insurance company stating the following: "You may wish to retain a private attorney at your own cost and expense to protect your interests over and above your insurance coverage...

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