Las Vegas Injury & Accident Attorney Blog

January 31, 2009: A tragic accident near Hoover Dam killed seven people, while nine others suffered major injuries when a bus overturned carrying Chinese tourists The accident occurred approximately twenty seven miles south of Hoover Damon Friday afternoon.

Some of the victims were jettisoned from the bus during the accident, six of which were pronounced dead on the scene.  Another passenger died hours later at  the University Medical Center.  The bus was on a tour of the Grand Canyon, with the  bus  accident occurring  around 3:00 p.m, having left Las Vegas at around 7:00 a.m,..

The cause of the bus accident has yet to be determined according to Arizona Department of Public Safety officials.  The bus and sixteen passengers overturned the bus along U.S. Highway 93 when it swerved to the right, overcorrected and then crossed the median onto ongoing vehicles.

The Law Offices of Benson & Bingham has handled numerous bus and other vehicle accident litigations, including wrongful death litigation for family members of the victims of the accidents.  Understanding how to gauge the economic compensation for a  wrongful death act is extremely difficult, yet of incredible importance since victims often have family members dependent on their deceased love ones.

If you or a family member has been victimized by such a tragic event, contact the Law Offices of Benson & Bingham to ensure your case is handled by professional wrongful death attorneys.

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Hit a cow, deer, or other animal out on the open range? Have you been injured by a dead animal on the highway call Benson and Bingham as their might be liability against the owner of the animal, or the initial car or truck that caused the death of the animal.

NRS 568.360 Duties of owners of domestic animals with respect to domestic animals upon highway.

1.  No person, firm or corporation owning, controlling or in possession of any domestic animal running on open range has the duty to keep the animal off any highway traversing or located on the open range, and no such person, firm or corporation is liable for damages to any property or for injury to any person caused by any collision between a motor vehicle and the animal occurring on such a highway.

2.  Any person, firm or corporation negligently allowing a domestic animal to enter within a fenced right-of-way of a highway is liable for damages caused by a collision between a motor vehicle and the animal occurring on the highway.

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At Benson & Bingham we recognize the pain and aggravation a personal injury case can cause an individual and their family. From the physical suffering, loss of automobile, daily trips to the doctor, and lost earnings to name a few. Every victim in a personal injury case wants the best representation. So why not choose a firm that strives to be the best.

Each file we open receives the highest attention it deserves. Only a firm that provides the absolute best attention to detail can un-turn every rock, placing your case in its greatest posture for trial. From our vocational experts, medical experts, nurse experts, security experts, biomechanical and human factors experts, investigators and accident reconstruction experts, we only use the best.

At Benson & Bingham, we work harder when you have been injured, take your needs to an unparalleled firm that cares and discovers why we are:  ”The Difference.”

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Nevada Supreme Court recognizes Expert Standards of Federal Court modifying NRS 50.275 and Federal Rule of Evidence 702 (The Daubert Standard).  It will be known as the Hallmark standard.

In a decision that came out July 24, 2008, the Nevada Supreme Court decided that Nevada District Courts and judges were not properly  admitting experts and their testimony as evidence in trials.

Basically, Nevada Law did not recognize or spell out exactly what tests should be used by Courts to classify experts and their testimony. For years, mediocre experts were allowed to testify as to what they thought based on their credentials.  For example, an expert who went to medical school and had a degree in mechanical engineering was allowed to be classified as a ‘biomechanical engineer’ per his own classification.  This will no longer be allowed.

In the ruling of Hallmark v Eldridge, 124 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 48, 2008, the court laid out the specific consideration a court and attorney must be aware of when hiring an expert and laying foundation for expert testimony in a Nevada Court.’

In a lengthy opinion, the court ruled that opinions of experts must be based on a methodology, and not generalizations.  Too often, accident reconstructionists, used to practicing in Nevada would merely do calculations of speeds based on their perceptions and make an ‘expert opinion’ based on their criteria,  ‘ to a reasonable degree of medical and/or biomechanical’ probability in an automobile accident case.  The court ruled this is in essence a joke and not expert testimony because it lacks a methodology of encompassing a totality of factors.  The following is the format an attorney must follow when assessing an
expert:

Are they qualified? Do they possess:
1.)    Scientific, technical, or specialized knowledge; proven by
a.)    Formal Schooling and academic degrees
b.)    Licensure
c.)    Employment experience
d.)    Practical experience and specialized training
2.)    Recognized field of expertise
3.)    Testable and has been tested
4.)    Publish and subject to peer review
5.)    Generally accepted in the scientific community
Do they have a methodology?
6.)    Based more on particularized facts, rather than assumptions,
conjecture, or generalizations.
7.)    If opinion was formed by calculation, experiement, or technique,
was it then controlled by known standards
8.)    Was the testing similar to conditions at the time of incident
9.)    Do the calculations experiments, or techniques have a known error rate.

***These factors are not exhaustive, may not be given equal weight, and may not apply exactly to every case.

Contact Benson & Bingham, Nevada Attorneys today before trusting your complex legal matter to any Nevada or Las Vegas personal injury attorney.

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The Las Vegas Monorail was involved in an accident Tuesday, January 13th.  According to initial reports, the Las Vegas Monorial’s brakes locked up causing vasts amounts of smoke to pollute the victims who were riding in  the air sealed cabin at the time of the accident.

This is not the first accident sustained by the Las Vegas Monorail.  At the end of August, early September of 2004, the Las Vegas Monorail was closed for several days after a 50 pound wheel of the monorail fell off on an northbound route.  Although no one was hurt, the closure inconvenienced daily passengers, as well as some of the 90,000+ attendees to the Men’s Apparel guild in California (MAGIC) Show.

Las Vegas is the home of tourism, and consequently there are many tourist or convention goer accident and  injuries. Often times, out-of-state visitors do not know where to turn if there are involved in an accident or injury.  The Las Vegas Injury and Accident Law Offices of Benson & Bingham are experienced personal injury attorneys born and raised in Nevada.  If you or a family member have been invovled in an accident, contact their Las Vegas Law Offices for a free legal consultation.

Understanding your rights, whether injured in public transport such as the Las Vegas Monorail, is the first step to ensure your injury costs are accounted.

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