A couple is filing a personal injury lawsuit against American Airlines, alleging that their baby received personal injuries when an airline employee yanked a stroller from her mother who was holding the baby. The parents were at Chicago O’Hare International Airport preparing to board a flight when an airline employee approached them, trying to get them to board the plane.
Continue reading "Lawsuit alleges Airline employee injured baby" »
A 52 year-old Chicago-area man has died from injuries received after a truck accident. The accident victim was operating a DitchWitch excavator when a box van ran off the road and struck the excavator. He flipped the excavator over and pinned the victim underneath.
Continue reading "Chicago-area gas employee dies after truck accident" »
Today is expected to be one of the biggest shopping days of the year. In the hectic atmosphere of finding the best deals, Levin & Perconti wanted to highlight what toys to avoid. Many toys have been recalled because of product liability concerns. Some of the toys are choking hazards, others pose burn hazards, and other contain excessive amounts of lead. More information on all of the following toys and additional recalled products are available on the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.
Continue reading "What toys to avoid when you go shopping today" »
Thanksgiving is a time for food, fun, friends and family. The attorneys at Levin & Perconti want to wish all of our readers and their families a Happy Thanksgiving! Although we all want to enjoy our time eating and relaxing with friends and family, we do need to recognize the dangers of food poisoning in the kitchen. Nobody wants a delicious meal to make them or their guests ill. Small mistakes in the kitchen can lead to foodborne illness.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has estimated that 76 million Americans get food poisoning yearly. This food poisoning leads to approximately 5,000 deaths every year.
Continue reading "Avoid food poisoning at Thanksgiving" »
The attorneys at Levin & Perconti recently read about a jury award in Lawyers & Settlements.com in a landmark personal injury lawsuit. Last week, a jury awarded a woman $300 million in a tobacco lawsuit. This is the largest single award to an individual who has filed a lawsuit against a tobacco company. It is expected to be appealed by the defendant Philip Morris.
The personal injury plaintiff was twenty years old when she started smoking and did not quit until she was 45 years old. Almost twenty years later, the plaintiff now suffers from emphysema and needs a lung transplant. The plaintiff hopes to receive the award after any possible appeal so that she can afford the lung transplant.
Continue reading "Smoker awarded $300 million in personal injury lawsuit" »
JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest credit card lender, will remove clauses from its contracts that force consumers into arbitration. The attorneys at Levin & Perconti were very pleased when we learned about this JP Morgan Chase decision. The American Association for Justice issued a statement explaining that this decision is a large win for consumers, who previously had no recourse because of rigged forced arbitration proceedings. Forced arbitration is when you are forced to settle a dispute outside of court, AAJ adds that unfortunately other lenders and corporations still insist on forcing their employees or customers into one-sided arbitrations to escape accountability.
Continue reading "JPMorgan Chase & Co. removes forced arbitration clauses" »
The attorneys at Levin & Perconti received a recent update from the American Association for Justice and wanted to spread the word about this bill recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. The much needed bill aims to restore standards required to file court cases and strengthen the basic legal protections of Americans. The bill comes after two U.S. Supreme Court decisions unexplainably added difficulty for litigants seeking justice in many civil cases.
Continue reading "Open Access to Courts Bill introduced in Congress" »
Heiden v. DNA Diagnostic Center, No. 2-07-0620 (11/9/09) found that a post judgment motion to extend time for filing notice of appeal of ruling on motion which challenges judgment, per Rule 303(a)(1), is necessary for the appellate court to have jurisdiction. A "Motion to Reconsider" which is actually a request to clarify judgment is not a challenge to judgment. This case will greatly impact all Illinois law.
Recently, Illinois nursing homes have finally been getting a lot of attention from the Illinois legislature. The legislature intends to pass some more regulations overseeing the conditions in nursing homes to prevent Illinois nursing home abuse. Nursing homes are not the only facilities in the press.
Recently, another scary story caught the news regarding an Illinois retirement complex. Four cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been linked to a retirement community in Illinois. Two of the cases have been fatal. Investigators have focused on the atrium area in the retirement complex which includes a pool, spa, and waterfall as a possible source of bacteria that thrives in warm water.
Continue reading "4th case of legionnaires’ disease at Illinois retirement complex reported" »
The Food and Drug Administration has warned Illinois pharmaceutical company Abbott Laboratories over manufacturing violations at its pharmaceutical plant in Illinois. A letter posted on the FDA’s website states that Abbott distributed some parts of devices after the company become aware of circuit flaws. The FDA did not name the devices in question. The FDA said that it wants Abbott to notify the agency within 15 days of August 12 of how it plans to prevent the problems in the future.
To read more about the FDA warning.
Levin & Perconti wanted to highlight a recent piece of drug liability news that may affect you or someone you know. This week, the FDA warned that popular drugs like Prilosec and Nexium can weaken the effect of Plavix. The drug interactions are concerning to the many Americans who take the drugs. The drugs may no longer be as effective to people if they also consume omeprazole. Millions of Americans take Plavix to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. However, the drug can cause side effects like an upset stomach, so many people take drugs like Prilosec and Nexium. According to a notice on the Food and Drug Administration’s website, the anti-clotting benefits of Plavix are cut almost in half when taken with over-the-counter or prescription Prilosec.
Continue reading "Warning issued against concomitant use of Plavix and omeprazole" »
Jiffy Lube has agreed to settle a personal injury lawsuit with the family of an 88 year-old Illinois injury victim who was hurt due to a fall at a Chicago Jiffy Lube. The personal injuries resulted in the victim’s untimely death four weeks after the fall. Susan Novosad of Levin & Perconti represented the victim’s family in the wrongful death lawsuit.
Continue reading "Chicago family reaches $850,000 settlement in premises liability lawsuit" »
CNN.com recently featured an Op-Ed by Anthony Tarricone, the president of the American Association for Justice. The interesting Op-Ed highlighted the recent uptick in “lawyer blaming” that opponents of health care reform are using. Mr. Tarricone summarized it quite nicely when he wrote, “Somehow, the fringes of the GOP have made health care about trial lawyers and medical malpractice. Instead of focusing on how to fix our broken health care system, opponents of real reform would rather limit the legal rights of injured patients. Talk about misguided priorities.”
As attorneys at Levin & Perconti see on a daily basis, medical negligence affects real people. Studies indicate that up to 98,000 people die yearly from preventable medical errors, and countless more are severely injured. Mr. Tarricone compared this statistic to two 737s crashing daily for a year. If this were to happen, would we blame the airlines or the passengers? And, would we question the FAA?
The attorneys at Levin & Perconti wanted to share some great news with other attorneys – Legal opinions are now available on Google Scholar! Google Scholar users have the ability to search for specific opinions related to broad topics, such as product liability law. Completeness cannot be guaranteed, but this will definitely help access to legal opinions.
Click here if you are interested in learning more about Google Scholar.
CVS Pharmacy has reached an $875,000 settlement and will stop sales of expired products, including food, medicine, and baby formula. The agreement was announced on Tuesday. Investigators had bought expired goods in 60% of CVS stores they canvassed.
To read more about the expired products settlement.
KIRO-TV has reported that consumer investigator has received documents concerning Apple iPod personal injuries from the CPSC. The documents reveal that on a number of occasions, iPods have suddenly burst into flames, started to smoke, and possibly even burned their owners.
To read more about the iPod personal injuries.
The CPSC has begun to investigate other stroller brands following the Maclaren recall. The million stroller recall by Maclaren after reports of finger amputation has prompted the CPSC to look at all “umbrella strollers.”
To read more about the umbrella stroller investigation.
Drugs that are used to stimulate red-blood cell production in cancer patients may increase the risk of venous thromboemboolism. In 2007, the FDA required a strong warning on the labels of the drugs and suggested limiting their use to patients with low red blood cell counts.
To read more about the link of anemia drugs and blood clot risk.
Chicago Tribune recently reported that AstraZeneca, a pharmaceutical company, paid a Chicago psychiatrist $490,000 over a decade to travel the nation promoting Seroquel. Seroquel is an anti-psychotic drug that the psychiatrist used to medicate thousands of mentally ill residents in Chicago-area nursing homes. This Chicago psychiatrist has been accused in the past of overmedicating and neglecting nursing home residents.
To read more about the Chicago psychiatrist’s conflict of interest.
Target has reached a settlement in an expired products and mispricing lawsuit. Target has agreed to pay $375,000 to settle the product liability lawsuit. The retail giant will establish a position for a senior manager who will ensure advertised prices match what customers are charged.
To read more about the Target settlement.
A 3 year-old Illinois boy was in critical condition after falling into a swimming pool at his home over the weekend. The boy was outside with his father who was working in the yard. The father believed the youngster had gone into the home, but after 10-15 minutes the parents could not find him inside. He was found floating in the swimming pool.
Levin & Perconti is saddened yearly by the personal injuries that Chicago-area individuals, especially children, suffer by drowning in pools. If you have a pool or live near pools, please take a moment to read the tips on preventing drowning.
To read more about the Illinois child drowning.
A symposium to discuss issues related to Chinese drywall is currently underway. The symposium will take place this week. Experts from the Consumer Product Safety Commission plan to discuss research on the drywall and what could be done to fix these product liabilities.
To read more about the symposium.
The Los Angeles Times recently reported that Consumers Union has found measurable levels of the chemical additive BPA across a range of foods. The foods include foods commonly contained in households, including some that were labeled BPA-free. BPA has caused adverse effects in several animal studies.
To read more about the BPA findings.
E. Coli kills two people and sickens many. Ground beef may be responsible for the recent E.coli outbreak linked to illness in more than two dozen people. The suspect beef was produced by Fairbank Farms, which issued a voluntary recall Saturday for 545,699 pounds of ground beef products.
To read more about the deaths linked to E.coli poisoning.
A death investigation is being conducted after a 56 year-old Chicago man fell three stories to his death from his porch. The man was deceased by the time the paramedics responded.
To read more about the Chicago man’s death.
A 4 year-old Chicago boy suffered severe burns after playing with a lighter in his Chicago apartment. He has died from his injuries. No criminal charges were filed in the case.
To read more about the Chicago boy’s death.
A jury recently awarded a family a $850,000 wrongful death verdict for the death of their son in a baseball game. The jury found that the maker of the aluminum baseball bats failed to adequately warn about the product’s dangers. The 18 year-old wrongful death victim was hit in the head by a ball.
To read more about the $850,000 jury award.
A Chicago personal injury lawsuit has been filed against the leasing agent of the Ogilvie train station. The injured man filed the lawsuit after a slip-and-fall accident resulting from a leak in the roof.
To read more about the Chicago slip-and-fall.
A Chicago personal injury lawsuit has been filed against the leasing agent of the Ogilvie train station. The injured man filed the lawsuit after a slip-and-fall accident resulting from a leak in the roof.
To read more about the Chicago slip-and-fall.
The Huffington Post recently posted an article looking into the often secretive U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its “tort reform” branch, confusingly named as the Institute for Legal Reform. The Institute is attempting to limit citizen’s right to jury trials and right to justice.
To read more about the “tort reform.”
Toyota is being examined for “instantaneous shut off device” buttons that officials are saying were a contributing factor in the August 2009 crash that killed a family. Investigators claimed that this, along with other car crashes, may have been prevented with a warning label located near the ignition start button.
To read more about the push start button investigation.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently hosted its “Legal Reform Summit,” an event dedicated to malign trial attorneys and hurt the civil justice system. In response, the American Association for Justice released a report entitled “They Knew and Failed To.” The report highlights multiple instances of corporate negligent conduct, knowing about it, and failing to inform the public. The report focuses on faulty products, food safety, faulty autos, and more.
To read the AAJ report.
A Chicago-are construction worker directing traffic at a suburban work site was struck and killed by a truck. The deadly accident happened Halloween morning and killed a 56 year-old Illinois man.
To read more about the deadly car accident.
The Law Bulletin reports that the plaintiff has settled her premises liability lawsuit for $500,000. The plaintiff was a social guest of the defendant’s third floor tenant. She suffered multiple fractures and blunt head trauma when the porch railing gave way as she leaned against it. The victim fell three stories.
To read more about the premises liability settlement.
An Illinois wrongful death lawsuit has reached settlement according to the Law Bulletin. The plaintiff was the defendant’s rear seat passenger when he suffered personal injuries. The personal injuries resulted in quadriplegia and his death five moths later.
To read more about the Illinois personal injury settlement.
The Law Bulletin has reported that the family of an Illinois wrongful death lawsuit have settled their wrongful death lawsuit for $3 million. The Illinois wrongful death lawsuit followed a motorcyclist’s death after an SUV struck the motorcycle victim.
To read more about the Illinois wrongful death settlement.
The purpose of this blog is to deliver news and information that is relevant to our areas of practice. The news and information reported on this blog represent the legal actions of attorneys throughout the United States. Our firm does not claim to represent plaintiffs in all of the lawsuits, settlements, and jury verdicts reported, only those noted as Levin & Perconti cases.
