Slip and fall cases are among the top five most common personal injury claims, attorneys with Jacksonville’s Harrell & Harrell say.

Personal injury law is a complex multi-faceted legal field. And it’s a busy one! According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics, there are 32 million emergency room visits each year due to injuries – nearly 180,000 of which result in death.

When a person’s actions or negligence causes injury to or the death of another, it can be difficult to measure the losses. For injured victims, medical care and costs can persist for years. Lost wages and future loss of earning capacity also demand compensation, but a fair amount is not easily calculated. And of course, there is no dollar amount that can make up for the loss of a loved one.

Personal injury attorneys with Jacksonville’s Harrell and Harrell specialize in helping victims secure fair compensation for their losses in the event of a serious injury or death. Among the top PI claim types are:

• Traffic / Auto Accidents: More than 6 million traffic accidents occur annually in the United States. These involve not just motor vehicles, but bicyclist and pedestrians as well. And America’s growing addiction to their smart phones and other mobile devices mean roadway accidents are on the rise.
• Workplace Injuries: Upwards of 3 million non-fatal workplace injuries are reported each year. Another 5,000 are fatal. Today’s tight economy and scarcity of jobs mean the actual rate is likely much higher, as many employees are afraid to report injuries. But depending upon the severity and frequency, injuries to necks, backs and limbs can significantly reduce a victim’s ability to continue making a living.
• Assault: The U.S. Bureau of Justice reported more than 2 million simple assault cases in 2010 alone. Many of the resulting personal injury claims come in conjunction with other issues including domestic violence, drug or alcohol abuse or workplace violence. But it’s not just bodily injury that assault claims cover. Victims often can seek damages for emotional distress as well.
• Slip and Fall: Each year, more than 8 million slip and fall accidents happen, with upwards of 540,000 resulting in disabling injuries. They’re the single most common reason for emergency room visits and can cost an average $28,000 in medical and physical therapy bills, and lost wages.
• Products Liability: Unsafe medical devices, defective furniture and electronics, faulty children’s toys – all have led to product liability claims numbering an estimated 20,000 filed each year, and they’re among the costliest. Products liability cases have the second highest median damages awards, averaging $300,000 per claim.

If you or your dependents suffer bodily hurt due to the actions or negligence of another, contact an experienced personal injury attorney immediately. Jacksonville’s Harrell and Harrell, with offices throughout Northeast Florida, in Orlando and in South Georgia, specializes in PI cases of all types. Contact us at 800-251-1111.

Recalled Monassen Hearth Systems Vermont Castings Aura Direct Vent Fireplace

Winter holidays are all about home and hearth and hearty meals. But three products you may plan to use over the coming months have proven unsafe. The Consumer Product Safety Commission and three companies have

Dangers remain long after storms like Hurricane Sandy pass by, say personal injury attorneys with Jacksonville’s Harrell & Harrell.

Though she’s since died down and disappeared, Hurricane Sandy, the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, tore a $20 billion swath of devastation through portions of the Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States and the effects will plague residents for many months. Though Florida wasn’t hit this time around, the Atlantic Hurricane season runs through the end of November. And come June, it’ll start all over again.

Here in Florida, where personal injury law firm Harrell and Harrell has offices in Jacksonville, Orlando and throughout the northeastern part of the state, residents are well versed on how to prepare for a hurricane. But many are unaware of the deadly dangers that remain in the weeks after a storm passes. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) are warning residents in hurricane-impacted areas of these safety concerns, and Harrell and Harrell is urging Floridians to take note in the case of a future storm aiming for our area.

A top concern is the loss of electrical power and the resulting risk of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning from portable gas-powered generators, as well as electrical shock from downed power lines. Generators should never be used indoors, including in garages. Instead, place your generator as far from your house as possible to avoid dangerous and install a CO alarm, regularly checking and changing the batteries. CO poisoning also can be caused by charcoal grills or camp stoves, which can be tempting to use when your stoves and microwaves are unusable. Remember that CO is odorless, colorless and virtually undetectable without an alarm, and that the CO levels created by generator exhaust are equal to that of multiple running cars. It can incapacitate and kill you and your family within minutes.

Candles also pose a fire risk. Never leave them unattended while lit and take care to place them away from curtains, bedding or anything flammable. If you have natural or propane gas appliances or tanks with valves that have been underwater, never light a candle or strike a match, as it can spark an explosion. Leave the home immediately, leaving your doors and windows open, and call 911.

Stay away from any down wires including cable TV feeds, as they could still be live with deadly voltage. Never handle or operate electrical appliances or components while standing in water. Even if your power comes back on, do not use electrical appliances or outlets that may have been under water.

Before the next hurricane season hits, download safety information from the CPSC, FEMA and the USFA. And if you or your dependent is injured as a result of a post-storm accident or incident that could have been avoided, call a Harrell and Harrell personal injury attorney in Jacksonville, Orlando or Brunswick, Ga.

Portable gasoline-powered generators can certainly come in handy during Florida's hurricane seasons. But you must take precautions, say product liability attorneys with Jacksonville's Harrell and Harrell.

Here in Florida, storm season means it’s just a matter of time until your home or business loses power for a few hours, or even several days. That’s why thousands of area homes have generators on the ready throughout the Atlantic hurricane season, which lasts from June 1-November 30 and peaks in September each year. But while they’re certainly convenient, generators also can be dangerous, say product liability attorneys with Jacksonville’s Harrell & Harrell.

A new study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in conjunction with the National Institute of Standards of Technology and the University of Alabama, demonstrates that readily available technology can significantly reduce deadly carbon monoxide emission rates on some portable gasoline-powered generators, giving consumers more time to detect a problem and escape. That emission control technology already is used on motor scooters and small motor cycles and works by using closed-loop electronic fuel injection and a small catalyst. Test results showed that the change boosts consumers’ escape time (the time between onset of obvious symptoms and incapacitation) from eight minutes to 96 – more than an hour and a half – for people who are in their garage with the generator running. Those inside the home while the generator runs in the garage have an even greater timeframe to escape the potentially deadly fumes.

As manufacturers decide whether and when to modify their products according to the CPSC study results, personal injury attorneys in Jacksonville urge consumers to take safety precautions, noting that carbon monoxide from portable gasoline-powered generators kills more than 70 people each year. In fact, generators are to blame for the majority of non-fire CO deaths associated with consumer products, accounting for 43 percent of CO deaths, compared to 33 percent for heating systems.

If you plan to use a gas-powered generator this hurricane season:

• Place generators as far as possible from your home;
• Never run your portable generator inside your home or attached garage, or near windows or vents;
• Install CO alarms on each level of your home and outside sleeping areas. Note that 93 percent of CO-related deaths involving generators happen in homes without CO alarms;
• Have an escape route planned and practice it frequently, particularly as winter or the storm season begins;
• If you suspect a CO leak, get out of and away from your home and call 911 immediately.

If you or your family are injured because of a faulty gas-powered portable generator, contact the personal injury attorneys at Jacksonville’s Harrell and Harrell by calling 800-251-1111.

What would a world without lawyers look like?

In favor of law, order and litigation, would things get settled the old fashion way? Would the foreclosure crisis solve itself?

Watch this brief video and let us know your thoughts!

World without lawyers

Helping to spread the word about the upcoming Ask A Lawyer event to be held tomorrow. Here’s a cut and paste from the Florida Bar’s website detailing the event.

JBA partners with local corporation to offer ‘Ask-A-Lawyer’ – The Jacksonville Bar Association and the Grace and Truth Community Development Corporation have teamed up to offer an “Ask-A-Lawyer” event from 9 a.m. – noon on Saturday, Nov. 6, at Gateway Town Center, 5000 Norwood Ave. Ask-A-Lawyer will be held in conjunction with the Grace and Truth CDC’s Empowerment and Health Fair. Ask-A-Lawyer is a relaxed, convenient place for people to come in and talk about their legal problems. In some cases, legal representation may not be required. In some cases, brief counsel and advice from a licensed attorney may be all the assistance a person needs. Herein lies the inspiration for the JBA Pro Bono Committee’s Ask-A-Lawyer event. During the event, attorneys will conduct individual, 10-to-15-minute consultations. People who participate in Ask-A-Lawyer must sign statements verifying that they understand that the interviewing attorney will not be opening a case. The interviewing attorneys are simply there to provide some legal guidance and information on additional community resources. For matters that may require full representation, persons may be referred to Jacksonville Area Legal Aid or to the Jacksonville Lawyer Referral Service. The participating attorneys have expertise in many areas of law and can provide direction regarding family law matters, employment, landlord/tenant, wills and estates, criminal law, bankruptcy, and foreclosures to name a few.

Imagine being scared to tell your employer about something dangerous or illegal going on in the workplace for fear of being fired. Well it happens everyday in big cities like New York at large corporations or smaller cities, like Jacksonville, whether or not you work for a large company or small.

Thankfully there are whistleblower statutes in place to protect the employee. It’s not going out on a limb to say that the employer still has the upper hand since they monitor and control so much of today’s electronic data that flies around the internet and company networks. Most larger companies also have vast amounts of resources (money) to keep these lawsuits from ever getting off the ground.

Here’s a success story from the NY Times about a recent whistleblower lawsuit. Luckily, there are trial lawyers out there still willing to risk their time and money to represent clients on a contingent fee basis and front the costs of pursuing these cases.

If we can help, give us a call at 800-251-1111

www.harrellandharrell.com

As corporations become more and more fearful of lawsuits stemming from their own negligence, they continue to try to protect themselves by making their customers and clients sign arbitration agreements as part of their contracts. These arbitration agreements eliminate the right for you to bring your case in front of a judge and jury if you’ve been injured due to a corporation’s negligence.

The Boston Herald recently did a story on nursing homes that take advantage of some of our most at-risk citizens by urging seniors to sign complex nursing home contracts with arbitration agreements tucked away inside. This means that the nursing home is less likely to pay for gross negligence or outright abuse of its patients because arbitration agreements almost always result in lower awards for victims and less legal fees for the facility.

Harrell & Harrell has experienced nursing home abuse lawyers in Jacksonville that can talk to you about your case if you or a loved one have been the victim of nursing home abuse. Please contact us by phone or send us an e-mail if you have any questions.

I saw this on the news last night and also received an e-mail from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) about the recent crib recall. Here’s the link to the recall. Three strangulations have been reported due to the faulty crib’s design. It urges parents to stop using the cribs immediately and do not attempt to fix them.

Please contact us by phone or send us an e-mail if you have any questions.

www.harrellandharrell.com

Here’s a link to a lengthy NY Times article that attorney Charlie Douglas forwarded to me. His comment to me was that it was absolutely horrifying and I would agree after reading the recent article.

With advances in modern technology comes some unknown risk but to know that the risks have been knowingly hidden from the public is flat out wrong and immoral.

Call or e-mail us with your personal injury questions. Don’t settle for less than you deserve.

www.harrellandharrell.com