Liability Waiver Saves LA Fitness from Personal Injury Lawsuit
Going to the gym is nothing new, but being active has been a trend for a few years now. Some will jog or use their own treadmill to stay active, but most will frequent gyms like LA Fitness. The great thing about gyms like these is the option to work out with a personal trainer. However, for every membership, there are pages of legal paperwork that you have to sign. Usually, we think just to skip over this and sign away, but this is exactly what caused Patricia Evans to lose her personal injury case against LA Fitness. When signing up for a membership, the legal work normally includes documents like membership agreement, personal training agreement, and a release of liability. The release of liability page states something along the lines of acknowledging that you read the terms and assumption of risk. No business ever wants someone to get hurt on their premises, but they still need to have an action plan in case something does happen and in this case, it was their release of liability. While working out with her personal trainer, Evans fell while she was sprinting and performing “suicide runs.” Evans fractured both of her wrists after trying to catch herself from her fall, which also resulted in nerve damage after the healing. Evans claims that she fell after her trainer continued to tell her to go faster. However, one of the biggest holes in her case was that she was not forced to exercise and when exercising it is at her own risk. In this case, the wording would have also been crucial to her...Wording is Everything in this Personal Injury Case
Every personal injury case is unique and the latest one from Massachusetts is no different. Gun ownership can be a tricky case because there are always two sides to a story. In a Smith & Wesson case, a couple was trying to sue because of a possible defect with their product. While visiting a gun store in Murfreesboro, TN, Randy and Vicki McNeal were attempting to put their gun in its safety lock when it dropped and discharged during the fall. Mr. McNeal claims that he was having trouble locking the gun because a loose screw from the sight was in the way, causing him to drop the gun accidentally. After attempting to catch the gun, it fired and shot Mr. McNeal’s pinky finger. After the accident, Mr. McNeal needed to have his pinky finger amputated because there was no way to save it, resulting in costly medical bills. Randy and Vicki decided to sue the gun maker Smith & Wesson for $75,000 for personal injury and for their faulty product. What made this a difficult case was the wording in the couple’s claim. Simply put, an injury does not prove that a product is faulty. In addition, if a product has a defect, a company is not necessarily liable because companies do not have to make “accident proof” products. This is why many companies place multiple warning labels or booklets within the product packaging, even if the warning seems silly, it can save the company from cases like this. U.S. Judge Todd Campbell dismissed this case within federal court because the screw is not what caused Mr. McNeal...Common Mistakes When Making a Personal Injury Claim
Lawyers have many tactics to find incriminating information about you that will have your claim dismissed. However, the following are three of the most common mistakes you can make after your accident and why you should avoid them. Saying too much: Anything you say from your actual accident to your final claim can be used against you and twisted in a way you never meant. Only share basic facts with your insurance company and never say that it was your fault because all of this relays to a lower amount paid to you. We all love sharing our lives on social media, but anything shared is public and is easily accessible. It’s better to not use social media at all until your claim is resolved because the insurance lawyers will use anything to argue that you are fine and don’t need compensation. Waiting too long: It is better to get your case started immediately because many clients simply wait too long to file a personal injury claim. Many in these situations want to forget the whole thing ever happened or put off seeking medical help. You should avoid waiting too long because there is a deadline for when you can file a claim and the insurance company will wonder if you’re really hurt since you waited so long. Accepting too little: There’s nothing worse than going through the claims process only to accept too little. Many will accept the initial offer that the insurance offers, but don’t realize that the initial offer almost never covers all of the upcoming expenses. Sometimes, injuries aren’t obvious and take time to expose themselves, like continuous...Why Facebooking about your Personal Injury Case is a Big “No-No”
Social media, in general, is not good for your personal injury case. You may think that sharing details about your case – even in a private message – will make you feel better or that your friends will give you good advice, but it can actually damage the credibility of your case. Facebook is the first place that your insurance company or defendant’s lawyer will check in order to find information to use against you. Your social media accounts may be private, but there is always a way to access them, especially when a judge orders you to give the defendant’s lawyer your passwords because they believe there is something they could use against your case. Some of the aspects of social media that can be used in opposition to you include videos or photos that you are tagged in or have posted, statuses, and private messages. Defendant lawyers are looking for anything that could potentially prove that you hurt yourself at a different location or negligent person. Just be cautious when posting during a personal injury case and remember that even if you delete a post, it is there forever. The defendant lawyers and insurance companies are there to make your claim go away so they will do anything it takes, which includes reinterpreting your posts’ meaning in order to hurt your claim. The best-case scenario is to not post at all, but if you must post, try to follow these terms to avoid common social media mistakes: Let everyone know not to post anything about you, which includes tagging and messaging. Do not tell them this through...Deadliest Hot Air Balloon Accident on Record Raises Some Liability Questions
On July 30th, 2016 a hot air balloon crashed in Texas killing all 16 passengers on board. The accident is the deadliest of its kind on record in the Western hemisphere. Though the crash is still under investigation, officials believe the cause of the accident was due to contact with power lines. This unfortunate occurrence has raised some unique legal concerns and questions. Hot air balloon crashes are not very common, and the resulting injuries and/or fatalities are usually low due to capacity limitations. According to data compiled in 2011, in the 11 years preceding the study a total of 78 crashes were documented. There were five fatalities and 91 people injured a result of these crashes. It’s easy to see why the legal guidelines in such a unique situations are not well formed- the circumstances and causes in each of these accidents vary greatly. Of the hot air balloon crashes on record, the cause of the accidents include collisions with power lines and trees. Also noted as causes for accidents include avoidance of stationary or fixed objects- including powerlines. So in cases like these, how does one address liability? Hot air balloons are technically considered aircraft and as such are governed by Federal Aviation Regulations. Even though they are being controlled to a certain degree by man, they are also subject to acts of God- including wind gusts and inclement weather that may cause a loss of control. In this way, they are similar to more standard aircraft- airplanes and helicopters- that are more commonly involved in personal injury lawsuits. However, outside of an airplane or helicopter pilot...Have a question? Give us a call.
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