Recent Blog Posts
5 Industries With the Most Workplace Injuries in Illinois
Work-related injuries can be preventable with proper precautions and safety measures, but unfortunately, they are not uncommon--accidents do happen. In the state of Illinois, an estimated 137,500 non-fatal workplace injuries were recorded in 2016 for all industries. Certain industries tend to be more dangerous than others, but understanding which industries carry the most dangers can help you take precautions.
1. Educational and Health Services
Though it may surprise some people, the educational and health services industry has the largest number of workplace injuries in Illinois. An estimated 24,300 injuries were reported in the industry in 2016. This industry includes educational institutions like schools, universities, educational support services, hospitals, and nursing facilities. Most of the injuries reported in this industry were falls, trips, and overexertion.
Brachial Plexus Birth Injury May Lead To Lifelong Symptoms
Having a child is one of the most rewarding moments in the lives of many men and women. Bringing a baby into this world is supposed to be a joyous and happy time, yet out of every 1,000 infants born in the United States, six to eight of them are born with a birth injury. In our ever-innovating society, we have the tools and resources to deliver babies safely and successfully. However, due to reasons such as negligence, time restraints, or lack of communication, preventable birth injuries still occur in the United States.
Birth injuries can manifest themselves with a variety of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe, with many of them leaving lasting effects on your infant’s health. According to a new study, brachial plexus birth injury may affect your child’s mental health later in life.
Avoiding Injuries in Motorcycle Accidents
Spring and summer bring long-awaited warmer temperatures in Illinois, and many motorcyclists will be taking advantage of the pleasant weather and spending more time on the road. While motorcycles provide a great sense of freedom, cyclists should be aware of the dangers that come with sharing the road with larger vehicles.
Without the safety features provided to the drivers and passengers of cars and trucks, motorcyclists are much more likely to be injured in auto accidents. In fact, even though only three percent of registered vehicles in the United States are motorcycles, motorcyclists account for 14% of all car accident fatalities, and motorcyclist fatalities occur 27 times more frequently than fatalities of drivers or passengers in other vehicles. In order to avoid being seriously injured or killed in a motorcycle accident, cyclists should be sure to take the proper safety precautions.
6 Steps You Should Take After a Car Accident
Whether it is a minor bump or a major fender bender, a motor vehicle accident can be a traumatic experience. In the immediate aftermath of an automobile collision, it is understandable to feel shaken up and unsure of how to proceed. However, it is important to take steps to not only treat injuries and resolve details related to law enforcement, but also to protect your ability to seek compensation for injuries caused by someone’s negligence. After an accident, be sure to take the following steps:
- Seek medical attention - Check for injuries to drivers, passengers, and anyone else involved in the accident. Be sure to offer aid to anyone who needs it, and if necessary, call 911 for immediate medical assistance.
- Contact the police - While it may seem like a good idea to avoid involving law enforcement, it is best to have an officer come to the scene of the collision to make an accident report.
Pursuing a Personal Injury Claim for Food Poisoning
When you purchase food from a grocery store or order a meal at a restaurant, you expect the food to be safe for you to eat. However, there are many cases in which contaminated food is sold or served to consumers, and food poisoning can result in a wide variety of harmful conditions. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has estimated that 48 million people become ill from foodborne diseases every year in the United States, and these illnesses result in 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. If you have been injured because of food poisoning, you may be able to seek compensation for your damages through a personal injury or product liability lawsuit.
Types of Food Poisoning
There are a wide variety of illnesses that can result from food poisoning, and some of the most common include:
Seeking Compensation for a Family Member’s Wrongful Death
For many people, losing a loved one is the worst thing they can contemplate. The death of a family member can be devastating, and their survivors are likely to experience a great deal of grief and sorrow, which can make dealing with burial arrangements, inheritances, and other legal issues incredibly stressful. When the death was caused by someone’s negligence, these emotional difficulties can become much worse, and a person’s untimely death can also result in a great deal of financial strain for their family.
Fortunately, the law allows a person’s survivors to pursue a wrongful death claim against the party or parties who were responsible, providing them with compensation for the damages they have suffered.
Wrongful Death Under Illinois Law
The Illinois Wrongful Death Act (740 ILCS 180/) defines wrongful death as “the death of a person caused by wrongful act, neglect, or default.” Any party which acted in a way that contributed to a person’s death, whether those actions were intentional or unintentional, may be found liable for the wrongful death. Negligent parties can include individuals, organizations, or companies.
Drug Manufacturers May Be Held Liable for Defective Generic Drugs
Modern medicine provides people with many treatments that can greatly improve their quality of life. There are drugs available on the market which provide people with important medical benefits for a wide variety of conditions. While we expect the drugs we use to be safe, this is unfortunately not always the case. Many drugs can cause serious harm to their users if they are used incorrectly, when they interact with other drugs, or when they result in unforeseen side effects.
When someone is injured after using a defective drug, they may be able to seek compensation from the drug manufacturers. A recent court ruling in Massachusetts may affect product liability cases involving generic drugs.
Liability for Generic Drugs
A product’s manufacturer is required to provide adequate instructions for the use of a product, as well as warnings about the potential dangers of using the product. In defective drug cases involving failure to warn, the user of a drug may be able to receive compensation if they can show that they were injured because a manufacturer did not provide the necessary warnings about the use of the drug.
Falls Are a Leading Cause of Construction Accident Injuries and Deaths
Construction workers often face dangers as part of their everyday jobs, due to the heavy materials and complex machinery they use. However, while injuries at a construction site can come from a variety of sources, the most common types of construction accidents involve a fall on a worker’s same level or to a lower level.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 991 fatalities from construction accidents in 2016, and 370 of these deaths were from falls. Fatal falls occur in a wide variety of situations, including from ladders, roofs, scaffolding, and stationary vehicles or equipment. These falls can happen for a variety of reasons, including faulty equipment, failure to follow safety procedures or use proper safety equipment, inadequate training, slippery or unstable surfaces, or unprotected holes or edges.
What Is Strict Product Liability?
When we use consumer products, we expect them to be reasonably safe. However, products often make their way through the design and manufacturing process and become available for sale even though they have some sort of defect that causes danger to people who use them. When somebody is injured by a defective product, it is important to understand the options for pursuing compensation from the parties who were liable for their injuries.
Types of Product Defects
Defective products typically fall into one of three categories:
- Design defects - A flaw in the inherent design of the product that existed prior to the beginning of the manufacturing process. For example, vehicle brakes that were not designed correctly may fail, regardless of whether the correct manufacturing processes were followed.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents in Illinois
While today’s vehicles provide more safety features to drivers and passengers than ever before, thousands of people are still injured or killed in car crashes every day across the United States. Collisions involving semi-trailer trucks are especially dangerous, due to their large size and weight. Truck accidents result in nearly 4,000 fatalities and 100,000 injuries every year, and unfortunately, many of these accidents are preventable. Drivers who have been injured in a collision with a tractor-trailer truck should understand the potential causes of these types of accidents and their options for pursuing compensation from the liable parties.
Leading Causes of Truck Crashes
Truck drivers must receive training and meet a number of requirements to receive a commercial driver’s license (CDL), and they must follow certain procedures when driving. In addition, trucking companies are required to follow specific rules and regulations designed to maintain safety on the roads. Unfortunately, drivers and their employers sometimes fail to meet these requirements, and deadly accidents can result from their negligence. Some of the common causes of these crashes include:
