Las Vegas Injury & Accident Attorney Blog

Many motor vehicle accidents are caused by drivers not paying attention. One of the leading types of car crashes are T-Bone accidents or side impact accidents from incautious drivers running red lights. With the current volume of cell phone drivers and text messaging teenagers on the road, failure to yield traffic citations are at an all time high. Often times injuries resulting from a t-bone accidents are severe such as: brain trauma, spinal cord injuries, broken ribs, fractured arms, broken legs, and fractured hips to name a few.

Ensuring your legal rights are protected during the rehabilitation stage may be crucial in the financial outcome of a personal injury claim. With Benson and Bingham’s combined twenty years of legal knowledge you can recover with confidence. Call us at 702-382-9797.

Over the past decade Benson & Bingham has been helping personal injury victims with on-the-job and at-home injuries caused by defective products. However, most personal injury victims are unsure if they have a case against a product manufacturer.

In focusing on a product we look at several aspects to determine whether or not that product is defective. First, did the defect exist at the time the product was designed. In other words, does this product have a design defect. Even if the product came off the manufacturing line as it was designed, it is still defective in its original design. Secondly, has a safely designed product become dangerous because the manufacturer did not follow plans or specifications while making the actual product. Third, we look to see if the product has inadequate directions or warnings notifying the user of the potential dangers associated with the product. Any product can be defective ranging from infant or baby car seats, baby toys, lawnmowers, car tires, automobiles, and even industrial machinery.

Often Benson & Bingham will retain engineering experts to determine whether or not you have a products liability case. In some circumstances the manufacturer will be held to a “strict product liability” standard rather than a “negligence” standard. Many victims of a defective product case suffer serious injury or death, including loss of a limb, loss of sight, paralysis, burns, or brain damage. If you believe you have a defective product liability case contact Benson & Bingham at (702)-382-9797 and speak to one of our attorneys to see if you have a “strict products liability case”.

Recall for Toyota one of Auto Industry's Largest Recalls Ever

Have you been affected by the Toyota Motor Recall?  Toyota’s apologies come a little late given the enormous consequences that will forever plague this troubled company.   Everyday more information is leaked about the issues of Toyota recalls and Toyota accidents, and the real problem inside the computer systems causing rapid, unexpected acceleration is still a mystery.  Often the brakes do not help overcome the forward movement.  From floor mats, to steel pedal friction issues, to accelerator module problems Toyota has a myriad of unreasonably dangerous issues.  Benson & Bingham is spearheading its own litigation for the victims of this horrible tragedy.  If you need a Toyota Attorney to fight for your rights call Benson & Bingham.

Vehicles

2005-2010 Toyota Avalon

2007-2010 Toyota Camry

2009-2010 Toyota Corolla

2008-2010 Toyota Highlander

2009-2010 Toyota Matrix

2004-2009 Toyota Prius

2005-2010 Toyota Tacoma

2007-2010 Toyota Tundra

2009-2010 Toyota VENZA

Alleged Accelerator Problems

2009-2010 Toyota RAV4

2009-2010 Toyota Corolla

2009-2010 Toyota Matrix

2005-2010 Toyota Avalon

2007-2010 Toyota Camry

2010 Toyota Highlander

2007-2010 Toyota Tundra

2008-2010 Toyota Sequoia

What to Do if your Toyota or Lexus Rapidly accelerates?

Toyota Vehicles can rapidly accelerate without depressing the gas pedal.  If your vehicle does rapidly accelerate, attempt to use the brake to overcome the forward movement, and quickly shift the vehicle into neutral.  It appears this is the only way to stop the car.  Most cars will stop with brake use, however, these cars will not as they are electronically controlled.  Don’t worry about the engine revving as the engines are electronically controlled to not over revolutionize.  Do not turn of the car or pull the keys out or you might lose the steering wheel function.  Once the vehicle drifts to a safe stop, you may take the keys out.  Remember to stay calm as smart drivers will remain calm is a stressful moment—it just may save your life!

What did Toyota Know and When Did they know?

Toyota Motors is now under the gun for what they didn’t do.   The television is blasting with new ads creating this “we are on our problem and its fixed” theme in the wake of a serious image problem created by horrific car accidents with Toyota vehicles suddenly accelerating for no apparent reason.   As if a phantom is controlling the vehicle, the cars act by themselves, and what’s worse is that the driver has no control in stopping.  This issue is by no means new to Toyota and their upper management.  Toyota USA is now defending their response to the fatal crashes indicating their recalls and fixes were appropriate.  The problem appears to have been much greater than Toyota is acknowledging.  The internal reports of accidents from dealerships and the NTSB have likely showed a trend of accidents going back many years, and they have kept this a giant secret.  To avoid the catastrophe that has emerged anyway, Toyota tried to save money by not publicly addressing the lethal problems plaguing the now recalled models.  Investigations will reveal the internal notes, tests, and history of accidents that they sat on without notifying the public of the true danger.  This nightmare is just beginning for Toyota, as it appears it did not do the right thing.  Instead, they did the wrong thing by internalizing and ignoring the public safety issue.  Corporate Criminal Charges are likely as this reckless behavior has serious legal consequences.  If you or a loved one has been affected by an out of control Toyota call the Toyota victims rights attorneys at Benson & Bingham.

Toyota Motor Testifies before Congress regarding the serious malfunctions of its products and the major recall.

Of importance is the brake pedal assembly, the computer system controlling acceleration, and the response of the company in the wake of the mounting evidence of problems including Toyota Crashes, Fatal Toyota accidents, and Toyota recall.   As of February 23, 2010, The President of Toyota will be testifying before members of Congress to address the serious issues of their products.

Search Terms:

Clark County Toyota Attorney, Nevada Personal Injury attorney, Las Vegas Toyota Attorney, Toyota Lawyer-Toyota Crash Lawyer, Toyota Crash Attorney, Nevada Toyota Lawyer, Personal injury lawyer Nevada Toyota, Lexus Personal injury lawyer, Toyota Personal injury lawyer, Las Vegas Toyota Attorney, Wrongful death Toyota lawyer



Car Accidents can be avoided if everyone uses proper care.  The problem is that we are human and we err.  Often we go beyond just making careless mistakes, but do things that personal injury attorneys love:  reckless behavior.    So what is the difference between reckless behavior and negligent?  Under definition, negligence equates to just breaching a duty owed—in essence being stupid:  day dreaming through a red light, grabbing that spilling coffee as you hit the yellow light that turned red, simply missing the big red stop sign, or playing with the radio as you crash into the rear end of the family wagon on the highway.  These are the mistakes we make as drivers.  The problem is when we do the next level of culpability: encountering a dangerous situation that you know to be dangerous, and do it anyway—that is recklessness.  This is a very fine line to adjudicate.  Is it reckless to drive a car after you have been drinking—many think so.  In fact, public policy finds that we want to discourage this behavior so much we will assign punishing damages to those persons.  Elements of punitive damages are designed to punish drivers or their employers for conduct that is “reprehensible.”

We find it reprehensible to get intoxicated and drive a deadly weapon.  We find it reprehensible to shoot a gun into a crowd thinking we will miss.  We find it reprehensible for a truck driver to do crystal methamphetamine and drive for 48 hours straight, or for airline pilot to cockpit the airplane after a few beers.  So, the question begs:  is it reprehensible to drive a vehicle using a cell phone?  We know it is dangerous.  We know it is distracting, but yet most of us do it.  Cell phones while driving cause deaths.   In California last year, the engineer on a train was “texting” on his cell phone when the train collided with another.  Reprehensible?  Yes.   What do you think?

Employers also must be careful not to condone or encourage cell phone use for its employees on the road.   The consequences are dire.

NRCP 68 and NRS 17.115 are the governing rules for Offers of Judgments as they relate to prevailing parties.  These rules are extremely important for Las Vegas personal injury lawyers who litigate cases in Nevada.  A failure to properly submit an Offer of Judgment can cost your client dearly in attorney fees and costs.  Normally, costs are awarded to the prevailing party in a lawsuit.  The award of attorney fees, however, are governed under the rules of offers of judgment.  An offer of judgment (OOJ) can be submitted anytime after a party is served.  There are factors known as “Beatty Factors” that control specifics of the fairness of the OOJ; for example, the timing of the OOJ, and the fairness of the other parties knowledge of the facts so that they could actually make a reasonable assessment of the risk.  The failure of accepting an offer of judgment can cost the losing party thousands in attorney fees.

In the Estate of Miller, 125 Nevada Adv. Op. No. 42 September 24, 2009, the court ruled that judgment on Appeal can qualify as a “more favorable judgment” for purposes of the fee shifting provisions of the NRCP 68.  It also rules that appellate fees are recoverable, and that those pro se persons who represent themselves and later hire an attorney can get those fees awarded for the attorney who defended or prosecuted the case.

Accidents in Las Vegas have a pecking order with respect to which insurance policy must cover first, second, third, fourth, etc.   The owner’s policy of the at-fault party is the primary coverage.  Then, the driver’s policy may be utilized if the damages warrant.  Often the coverage of the victim’s insurance (1^st party coverage) would then extend benefits through the UM benefits (under-insurance coverage).  Then finally, if the driver and owner were different persons, and the driver possessed a separate policy that policy may also be utilized if the damages were great enough.

When multiple “at-fault” drivers cause an accident, the law of joint and several liability kicks in, whereby the victim can collect 100% of his/her damages from either party.  So, if a party has minimal coverage and the other at fault has commercial limits, the commercial limits policy would then be on the hook for the total damages.   Skilled personal injury attorneys will attempt this approach.  If there are no concurrent tortfeasors, then each of the separate acts may be argued as one with hopes that the events appear to be in concert.

The Nevada Supreme Court recently outlined procedural rules for collection on insurance policies for damages in a car accident.  A passenger who is injured by two concurrently negligent drivers may recover from both the permissive driver’s single insurance policy liability benefits based on the permissive driver’s negligence and under-insured motorist benefits based on the other driver’s underinsured status.

The anti-stacking rules set forth in the prior Nevada Cases are not implicated when a passenger whose injuries are attributable to two jointly negligent drivers, exhausts the liability limits of the permissive driver’s policy without satisfying his or her damages, and seeks recovery under the permissive driver’s underinsured motorist policy based on the other diver’s underinsured status.  This ruling came down in the case of Delgado v. American Family Insurance Group, 125 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 44., October 1, 2009.

If you need a Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorney that understands complex insurance laws call the office of Benson & Bingham:  702-382-9797.

Q: Contracted food poisoning while on business trip to Las Vegas. Was staying at The Palms Hotel, and hosting an event there. Was there with quite a few colleagues and two of us ate the same room service lunch, and several hours later were both violently ill – right before a very important business event. EMS was called and a report was filed. What steps do we need to take next. EMS said that our systems were indeed food poisoning. I also missed all my business meetings at the conference I flew out to Las Vegas for. What should next steps be? This happened this week.

A: Dear potential Client:

Food poisoning cases are very hard to prove unless evidence is collected.  Typically, the food that is poisonous is obviously not around as it was consumed.  Therefore, it is necessary that lab tests are obtained to show that it was indeed food poisoning.  Most often, the stools must be tested, or some other blood test to show the foreign bacteria/virus/or parasite was present.  It certainly helps that both of you were in fact suffering the same type of illness after consuming the same room service type of lunch.  Did you in fact have the same food, or did you order the same entree?

The next consideration is whether your damages are worthwhile in pursuing.  A mere case of a few hours of sickness may not be worthwhile pursuing (albeit it is most often very painful) due to the expense of the case.  We normally only represent victims who have suffered hospitalization, or very severe cases of food poisoning as the expense of the case can offset the actual damages.  I would not rely on an EMT diagnosis, even though you may have had classic symptoms of poisoning.

E. coli and salmonella (amongst hundreds of pathogens that could cause illness) are very common and dangerous.  It is important to figure out what strain of pathogen and then relate it to the food, if possible, and put together a case. Food borne illness is an ever-present threat that can be prevented with proper care and handling of food products, and the casino industry has its fair share of liability due to this and other preventable actions.

There are million cases of food borne diarrhea disease occur each year in the United States, costing billions in medical care and lost productivity so you are not alone!

Truly yours,

Joe

Q: I am contacting you on behalf of my boyfriend. One year ago he was hit by an uninsured driver while on his motorized scooter. He suffered a broken collar bone along with leg injuries. It was in some time since the accident on 5-18-2008. He was out of work for 3 months and has about $20,000 dollars in medical bills. If you can prove me with any information on this case that would extremely help.

Thank you, Client A

A: Dear Client A:

Thank you for your inquiry. It truly is a nightmare and unfair situation when you have been a victim and then their is no compensation for your injuries, and you are stuck with medical expenses through no fault of your own.  The unfortunate reality is that you likely have no plausible place to turn given that most uninsured drivers do not have assets to protect; therefore any lawsuit would likely be futile.  If the individual was drunk or was cited in the accident involving the scooter, I suggest contacting the Clark County Victims of Crime Division where they can possibly reimburse some of your medical expenses.

Truly yours,

Joseph L. Benson II, Esq.

Q: I am a 47 year old woman. After a blood test, my general MD informed me I had borderline hypothyroidism, but he felt I did not need any medicine. However, he sent my records to my OB/GYN do to a perimenopausal hormone indication. My OB/GYN told me that I did need thyroid medicine, and prescribed 60mg of Armour Thyroid. On my third day of taking the prescribed drug, I was rushed to St. Rose (on Eastern) with heart attack-like symptoms.
I was admitted, and after two days of extensive testing, I was told there was nothing wrong with my heart, but my thyroid levels were extremely elevated. Upon my release, I went back to my general MD who said I was  experiencing a Thyroid Storm do to the wrong dosage of prescribed thyroid medicine (Forest Labs – the maker of Armour has a 15mg and a 30mg). I lost a week of work, had an angio procedure done in my right leg artery and continued with symptoms (loss of breath, dizziness, etc) for a month – until blood test confirmed my thyroid level was returning to normal. My insurance has paid the vast majority of the medical bills, although I have been stuck with the deductibles. My question is – do I have a case against my OB/GYN?

She has claimed she is not responsible for how my body reacted to the drug she prescribed, even though there were lesser dosages available. Thank you. Also – I am not on any other prescribed medication, so there was no chance
of a reaction to another drug.

A: It sounds like someone may be liable, however, not sure whether your damages are large enough to justify pursuing a case as the costs of suit may exceed your eventual recovery. You need to seek the advice of an endocrinologist who specializes in thyroids and get that doctor’s advice on the amount of medicine you were prescribed. I would not trust a “general doctor” or OB GYN on a thyroid issue. Seek advice from a specialist and contact us if you have any long term effects of the treatment.

Very truly yours,
Joe

Q: My wife, my brother and I were taking the escalator inside one of the casinos on the strip. I was exiting at the top of the escalator I noticed that my foot was being pulled into the escalator I did not see a marked safety shut off switch so at this point I began to panic as my foot was being pulled into the panel beneath the skimmer plate at the top of the casino’s escalator. In order to free myself I had to twist my leg where i could reach down to unfasten my tiva sandal in the process of doing this I tore my meniscus disk which required me to have surgery at  an Orthipedic Hospital.

The casino security asked me if I was ok and I told them that I was until about 3 to 5 minutes later I could feel a sharp stabbing pain in my knee. I also saw one of the security guards pick up a broken piece of the escalator and they also took my teve which was torn into shreds so the casino had their EMT take a look and he said my knee was swollen – the next day I went to the urgent care in Arizona were they gave me some painkiller the following week I went to the knee doctor and he said I would have to have surgery on my knee.  It has now been one year and seven months I only have a couple of months before my case expires. Another Las Vegas Attorney has had the case for that long and I have only received two letters from them after about a dozen phone calla that I  made to them.  I don’t feel as if though they have really done anything for me up this point, they said they had an offer of $25,000 and that was last month. My medical bills were around $20,000 I will be going to Las Vegas next month and I was wondering if you might be interested in taking my case over and also if I would have to pay the Other Las Vegas Attorney. Thank you for taking the time to read this!

A: It appears that your case may need to be litigated to get full value out of it.  If the escalator company is found to be liable, your claim is certainly worth more.  The Other Las Vegas legal firm will be able to put a lien on it for whatever his hourly rate is or 1/3 of $25K.  How exactly did the escalator eat your shoe?  Did you have a loose strap?  In any event, we are always interested in sitting down with you.  By the way, did you actually have an attorney working on your case?

Joe