Illinois Injury Lawyer Blog

The Chicago injury lawyers at Levin & Perconti want to make our readers aware of a huge recall that popular car dealer Toyota issued to address pedal and floor mat defects. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has closed its investigation of Toyota after the company issued the product recall of over two million vehicles in the United States last week to address accelerator pedals that may get jammed in carpeting or entrapped in floor mats. Stressing that the recent product recall is not related to any newly-discovered defects, Toyota stated that “While our actions up to now have led to a substantial reduction in reports of acceleration concerns, we […] agreed that Toyota would take these additional steps to help ensure that acceleration concerns are further reduced.”

The Chicago Tribune reported that the pertinent Toyota models that are in need of gas pedal repair are the 2008-2011 model year Lexus LX 570, 2010 Toyota RAV4, and the 2003-2009 Toyota 4Runner. Additionally, the following models are subject to the product recall to replace the floormat and retention clips: 2006-2007 Lexus RX 330, RX 350, and RX 400h, and 2004-2006 year models of the Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid. In order to protect drivers against the potentially unsafe vehicles, Toyota has laid out an extensive number of repairs that it will be required to make. There has been skeptical reactions to the product recall among plaintiffs’ attorneys. One plaintiff attorney who is addressing wrongful death lawsuits against Toyota stated his belief that there is more to the recent recall than just floor mats entrapping the gas pedal.

More information about the Toyota product recall is available at Chicago Tribune.

After two separate Chicago car accidents, including one involving nine cars on the southbound Dan Ryan Expressway on the South Side of Chicago, eleven Chicagoans have been hospitalized with personal injuries. Chicago police are currently trying to figure out what caused the Chicago crashes because the road at the time was dry and the sun was shining. According to an Illinois State Police District Chicago trooper, the first car accident occurred at 8:36 a.m. in the express lanes near 33rd Street. In that crash, as many as five Chicago people were hospitalized with non-life-threatening personal injuries. Shortly after 9:00 a.m., a separate wreck occurred between the local and express lanes near 26th Street on the South side of Chicago. This car caused some havoc on the highway because nine cars crashed and six individuals were taken to area hospitals.

Two people from the Chicago car accident were in fair condition and one was in good condition; they were taken to Mercy Hospital and Medical Center in Chicago. Two other Chicago car accident victims were taken in fair condition to Northwestern Memorial Hospital. One more Illinois car accident victim was taken in fair condition to Saint Anthony Hospital. Nine other people who were in the Chicago multi-car accident declined to be taken to a hospital. The multicar accident near 26th Street began when someone who was driving in excess of the speed limit rear-ended another car. An Illinois State Police trooper added that the earlier car accident appeared also to be someone not observing the rules of the road given the good driving conditions.

Visit the Chicago Sun-Times for more information on the Chicago car accidents.

An auto recall was announced recently that may affect our readers. Ford Motor Company stated that it will recall nearly 150,000 F-150 pickup trucks to fix air bags that could deploy without any warning. The government had raised concerns about the product safety problem. Ford specified this week that the product recall covers trucks from the 2005-2006 model years in the United States and Canada. Ford characterized the product recall as a “relatively low risk.” Nonetheless, the risk exists that the air bags can deploy inadvertently. This product recall is much smaller in scope than what the government had requested. Last month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told the Ford company that the product recall should cover 1.3 million vehicles from the 2004-2006 model year, citing dozens of personal injuries.

Products liability is an area of Chicago personal injury law that focuses on dangerous and defective products. In addition to motor vehicle problems, “products” in this instance covers a wide range of categories, including medical devices, machinery and tools, food and tobacco, toxic chemicals, firearms, household products and appliances, toys, recreational equipment, and clothing.

Continue reading "Ford announces recall of 150,000 pickup trucks" »

While we frequently address the product liability and Chicago wrongful death that our readers need to be aware of when they leave their home, we do not always discuss the dangers within your home that can be caused by simple oversight. You childproof your home to avoid dangerous injuries to your children caused by product liability. You make sure your teens do not drive while texting and you get check-ups for your family to keep them healthy. Additionally, you will want to pass these food safety tips onto the family cook.

There are steps that you can take to prevent personal injuries caused by foodborne illness. Wash your hands frequently. Nothing helps to prevent passing on germs like getting into the habit of frequent hand washing, especially while cooking. Keep your cutting board clean. Salmonella, E. coli, and other bacteria can be found on cutting boards that have been used. Be extremely careful to keep your cutting board clean. Keep one cutting board for meats and a second for fruits and vegetables. Additionally, use the dishwasher to clean a plastic cutting board and a scrubber on a wooden one. When you have leftovers, you should put them into the refrigerator no longer than two hours after serving the meal. While you’re near your refrigerator, also check the interior temperature of your refrigerator to make sure that it is not higher than 40 degrees and the freezer is at an even 0 degrees. Finally, do not hesitate to buy and use a meat thermometer. These are not reserved for only Thanksgiving day turkey!

Read more about avoiding salmonella poisoning by visiting The Chicago Sun-Times.

Nearly 500,000 bassinets have been recalled due to a risk of the bassinets collapsing. The recalled products are manufactured by the Burlington Basket Company of Burlington, Iowa. The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the child product recall last Wednesday. According to the U.S. CPSC, there have been 10 reports of incidents where the bassinets collapsed because the basket’s folding legs were not locked in place. Those incidents where the products collapsed resulted in two infants suffering personal injuries that included a bruise to the head and a bruised shoulder. The product recall involves all of the Burlington Basket bassinets that were manufactured before June 2010 and covers models with folding legs attached to the basket with white plastic pins. These recalled products were sold between January 2003 and August 2010 by Amazon.com and Walmart in addition to other retailers. They were pried around $50.00. The CPSC warned consumers who own the bassinets to stop using them immediately.

If you own the bassinet, do not return it. The company is providing a free kit with detailed instructions on how to properly assemble and firmly lock the bassinet’s folding legs into place.
Read more about the child product recall at CNN.com.

In instances where a child is injured by a product, the Chicago injury attorneys want to point out that generally the child cannot file a product liability lawsuit without the help of a parent, adult, or guardian. This is important to note because children are at high risk for injuries including those caused by birth injuries, cars and other motor vehicle accidents, fireworks, playground equipment, ingestion of household products, household fires, traumatic brain injuries, or product liability. For example, as we recently blogged about, nearly 30 children are injured daily by unsafe cribs.

The president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) responded recently to an article in the Madison County Record warning of approaching doctor shortages in Illinois. However, as the ITLA President Todd Smith points out, the story contains false conclusions from incomplete representations of the true picture of Illinois’ medical field. The quoted physician from the Illinois State Medical Society has ignored several facts about medical care in Illinois. Over the years, Illinois has consistently increased its number of physicians. Mr. Smith pointed out that ISMS used to report that we had a current physician shortage. After being confronted with the facts of our increases, the dialogue has conveniently shifted to the “future” crisis that Illinois will allegedly face. In fact, a recent survey funded in part by ISMS demonstrated that there is an actual oversaturation of physicians in the largest populated area of our state.

The hard evidence confronts the myth that doctors are fleeing our state. There has never been a decline of doctors in Illinois for forty-five years according to the American Medical Association. The ISMS spokesperson says that the weather, malpractice lawsuits, and reimbursements are to blame for why doctors do not want to set up shop in Illinois. However, the claim that the malpractice lawsuit climate results in physicians lacking interest is almost laughable. The examples provided included a county where only 1-2 medical malpractice lawsuits have been filed per year over the past 10 years. Further, there is no excuse for the doctors in that county to have to pay high insurance premiums. These doctors should pick a different battle and fight for insurance reform – the real culprit!

Visit the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association website to read more about the truth behind the Illinois physician numbers.

A couple has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a hospital and some employees after their daughter lost part of all four of her limbs due to a bacterial infection. The child’s parents brought her to the hospital in November of last year after she had experienced a persistent fever, skin discoloration, and weakness. The parents watched as their child became sicker and sicker while they waited for five hours in the emergency room. The father of the injured child allegedly begged doctors and nurses to treat his daughter. Eventually, he forced his way into another office and demanded immediate medical help.

By that point, unfortunately, bacteria had ravaged more of the child’s body and she had to be flown to a different hospital. The child had streptococcus A and due to the spreading infection, both of her feet and her left hand were amputated and part of her right hand was removed. The child is in intensive rehabilitation therapy now and may need therapy and care in the future. Because of the uncertainty for the future, the child’s parents have filed a medical malpractice lawsuit seeking an unknown amount of damages. According to the medical malpractice lawsuit, the hospital “chose to negligently staff, operate, and supervise the emergency room” resulting in the daughter’s extensive surgeries.

Our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers handle a variety of medical malpractice claims for clients in Chicago and throughout Illinois, including those involving delayed diagnosis and missed diagnosis.

If you want to read more about the injured child or medical malpractice lawsuit, please visit Fox40.

Our Chicago wrongful death lawyers were astounded to learn that an average of 26 children are hurt by cribs every daily. Illinois has had its fair share of public crib recalls, thanks to our diligent Illinois attorney general. Now, a recent CNN article addresses that the problems with cribs are widespread.

According to a new study in the journal Pediatrics, an average of 26 children suffer crib-related personal injuries daily. Roughly 9,500 children are treated yearly in the emergency room for crib-related injuries. From 1990 to 2008, there were more than 181,000 children under the age of 2 taken to emergency departments around the country for injuries related to at least one of the nursery products. The most common cause for a child’s personal injury was falling and 83% of the nursery injuries suffered came from cribs. One researcher explained that children are top-heavy and topple forward when they start to lean over the top of a rail of a crib.

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has advocated for safer cribs for years. More than 11 million cribs, playpens, or bassinets have been recalled since 2007 and recently the CPSC announced a voluntary product recall of approximately 500,000 bassinets. Recently, the Illinois attorney general’s office alerted Illinois residents to the Jardin Illinois crib recall. The Jardin cribs were recalled after the slats or spindles broke on some cribs, causing a gap and resulting in the entrapment of four infants. The Illinois attorney general has a hotline you can call if you are concerned about your crib at (888) 414-7678.

For more information on the injuries caused by cribs, visit CNN.com .

A recent Letter to the Editor from Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) president Todd A. Smith published in the Moline Dispatch this week addressed the so-called need for workers compensation reform in Illinois. Mr. Smith, a Chicago trial lawyer, responds to a recently published editorial called “Priority 1: Workers’ comp.” Mr. Smith states that most of the “reforms” discussed thus far have been at the expense of Illinois injured workers. Mr. Smith responds that we agree with the editorial that any type of fraud – on the part of employers and employees – existing in the Illinois workers compensation system has to be eliminated in order to reduce costs. ITLA’s position has always been in favor of giving the power to the appropriate authorities and allowing them to crack down on abusers because any abuse of the system should not be tolerated whatsoever.

Contrary to the ideas proposed thus far, Mr. Smith points out that if there are problems for the business community, and the premiums they pay for coverage, one should closely look at the insurance industry and its lack of regulation. ITLA has urged that legislators seriously focus on insurance reform. Here’s an interesting fact that Mr. Smith raised: pending claims have dropped in the past decade from 80,000 to 50,000; nonetheless, insurance company premiums continue to rise. How does that make sense? The argument that the workers’ compensation system in Illinois costs jobs is a myth. Ford Motor Company just made a long-term commitment to Illinois and companies are moving to Illinois. In any debate, we should focus on the workers’ rights first and foremost. Injured workers should not be subjected to reduced benefits in an already compromised system.

Read more about the insurance reform we need by visiting the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association website.

The American Association for Justice has published a useful primer for understanding our nation’s health care debate. As reforming our country’s health care system will be a major agenda item for the new Congress and administration, we need to be tuned in to the cost of health care and the driving forces behind the debate. In years past, there has been a lot of focus on restricting patients’ rights to hold negligent medical providers accountable for medical malpractice, but little focus on actually reducing and eliminating preventable medical errors. In part, this is due to the exploitation of the medical negligence “crisis” by interest groups with agendas to push.

Preventable medical errors – medical malpractice – kill and seriously injure hundreds of thousands of Americans yearly. If the Centers for Disease Control were to include preventable medical errors as a category, it would be the sixth leading cause of death in the United States of America. Nonetheless, the debate surrounding the medical negligence policy debate has revolved around other extraneous factors, such as doctors’ insurance premiums. Thus, the discussion has essentially ignored the fundamental problem. Preventing medical errors will dramatically lower health care costs, reduce doctors’ insurance premiums, and protect the health and well-being of patients.

Contrary to what Fox News and other exploiting companies want you to believe, few injured patients ever file medical negligence lawsuits and fewer still file frivolous claims. 70 percent of patients who experience medical errors are not told by their doctors; nearly one half of the nation’s doctors admit to not reporting incompetence or medical errors.

Our Chicago personal injury lawyers encourage you to read the entire Medical Negligence primer at the American Association for Justice website.

A record Illinois jury verdict was announced in an Illinois railroad injury lawsuit. The plaintiff, a railroad conductor, lost both of his legs after being struck by a train. The jury awarded the Illinois personal injury victim $10 million for loss of normal life, $6.3 million for pain and suffering, $10 million for disfigurement, $4.2 million for life care, and $2.5 million for wage loss.

On Easter Sunday in 2007, the Illinois railroad injury plaintiff was working as a conductor for an interstate railroad company, switching cars in the railroad’s Rock Island, Illinois railyard, when he was struck by a train. The Illinois railroad accident victim sustained massive injuries to his upper thighs and lower abdomen, fractures to both legs and multiple areas of his pelvis, and subsequent surgical amputation of both legs. The victim had worked only one year and five days for the railroad at the time of the accident. He was in a Marine Reserves unit and scheduled to go to Iraq a few months later. The plaintiff is currently unemployed. In the Illinois railroad accident lawsuit, the plaintiff argued that the railroad was negligent in violating numerous safety rules while switching cars and violated federal communication regulations governing train operations.

Continue reading "Illinois jury awards railroad accident victim $30 million verdict" »

Nationwide, many product liability lawsuits have been filed alleging defects and flaws with the prosthetic hip devices. The multi-million dollar product liability lawsuits filed show that too many patients - upwards of 13,000 patients – have either reported problems with their prosthetic hip device or risk experiencing pain and failure far sooner than the normal lifespan of hip replacements would ordinarily suggest. Historically, hip replacements have been expected to last up to 20 years. But, the DePuy ASR Hip Resurfacing System and ASR XL Acetabular System was recalled last year when reports indicated that one of every eight DePuy hip implant patients required revision surgery within five years of receiving the DePuy system.

The DePuy product liability victims have reported pain, infection, and mobility issues with the failing hip replacement system. Additionally, the DePuy hip replacement recall lawsuits are alleging that metal debris originating from the ASR Hip Resurfacing System and ASR XL Acetabular System leave metal debris that can introduce toxic levels of metals, such as chromium and cobalt, into patients’ surrounding bone, tissue, and bloodstream. As one hip recall plaintiff stated, the recall has “come too late for thousands of Americans…who will now live with the consequences of these faulty devices for years, if not the rest of their lives.” Litigants point out that DePuy began receiving adverse reaction reports as far back as 2007, but waited three years to pull the trigger on the DePuy hip replacement recall. One attorney indicated that his clients who have had DePuy hips replaced as soon as a year or two following the original surgery.

DePuy product recall victims have been affected by this recall in Illinois. Chicago personal injury attorney Steve Levin was recently interviewed about DePuy hip replacement lawsuits. Follow the link to Lawyers and Settlements to read more about the DePuy product recall allegations.

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association President Todd A. Smith recently responded to a Daily Herald editorial that repeated falsehoods and misconceptions surrounding doctor supply in Illinois and perpetuated the myth that Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit caps will lower health care costs. Mr. Smith pointed out that the Daily Herald article regarding doctors fleeing our state cited the Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine so-called “study.” The suggestion is that doctors are fleeing Illinois because of Chicago personal injury lawyers and medical malpractice lawsuits. The study, however, clearly states that the Chicagoland area physician market is “oversaturated.” We have more doctors than are otherwise needed, which appears to be the opposite of doctors fleeing.

The survey showed that a majority of the physicians leaving the state of Illinois are those that never planned to stay. The new doctors are returning to their home states as originally planned, not fleeing the state because of the fear of our civil justice system. Additionally, facts show that the number of doctors in Illinois has been steadily increasing. According to the American Medical Association, the number of Illinois physicians licensed and engaged in patient care has never declined in the past 45 years. The editorial that Mr. Smith was responding to called for caps on non-economic damages, which will do nothing to bring down liability insurance premiums, attract doctors to our state, or most importantly, protect patients from negligent doctors. Medical malpractice lawsuit caps have been ruled unconstitutional by the Illinois Supreme Court three times. Mr. Smith urged that it is time to move the discussion forward and focus on the issue that will truly benefit doctors and patients.

Visit the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association to read the entire letter from Mr. Smith debunking the Illinois medical malpractice caps argument.

Every so often, a serious carbon monoxide poisoning makes the national news. This week, fifty four individuals received personal injuries after suffering carbon monoxide poisoning during a youth hockey tournament. Several teens, children, and adults were treated for varying degrees of severity of carbon monoxide poisoning. Luckily, none of the patients faced life-threatening injuries. Several individuals were released, but a couple of people were held for further treatment.

In situations like this, when an accident or injury occurs to a visitor on another person’s property, the property owner may be held legally responsible, or liable, if the victim can prove that the owner’s negligence led to the personal injury. Injuries on properties can include those from exposure to toxic or hazardous substances such as lead or mold, slip and fall accidents, dog bites or maulings, or drownings. Premises liability plantiffs must prove that the property owners either failed to maintain the property or created unsafe conditions which caused the personal injury, knew about the unsafe hazard but did not alert visitors or tenants to this fact, was not careful concerning unsafe conditions which might attract children, or took actions or neglected conditions that caused damage to a neighboring property.

Continue reading "Carbon monoxide sickens dozens at hockey game" »

Although modern breast implants have been around for many years, product safety questions continue to plague the surgery. The latest development last week occurred when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported that it was investigating a possible link between breast implants and an increased risk of a rare cancer: anaplastic large-cell lymphoma. Quite frightening is the fact that as many as sixty women have developed the rare cancer, among the 5 million to 10 million worldwide with implants. The disease arises in scar tissue that forms around the breast implant, either silicone or saline implants, and is treatable.

The FDA stated that the risk of cancer is miniscule and women with implants do not need to undergo tests or have implants removed if they are not having problems. But, all individuals with breast implants should be aware of the symptoms of the anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL), which include swelling, pain, or lumps around the implants. The product safety concerns with the surgery has not resulted in diminishing popularity. In fact, breast augmentation surgery is the most popular elective cosmetic surgery in the country. This is in spite of the surgery’s product liability history. For example, the FDA banned silicone implants in 1992 because of fears that silicone leaking from the implants could trigger autoimmune disease or other health problems. The ban was lifted in 2006, but the US manufacturers were asked to continue to collect data on women and monitor implant safety. Since the ban has been lifted, nearly every patient electing for this surgery picks the silicone implants.

You can read more about the product liability concerns at LA Times.com.

We have recently blogged about opposing the bill limiting medical malpractice lawsuits and now we have heard about a new bill that is concerning. Recent news have shown how the Egyptian government has shut down their Internet, shutting down free speech and the right to peacefully organize inside their country. Those of us in Illinois and the United States think that such a hindrance on free speech and the Internet could happen here. But, two leading Senators are re-introducing a bill – that was rejected last term – that would give any future President the same unlimited power to shut down free speech by just pulling the plug on the Internet. If the new bill is identical to the bill that was considered last year, the law would abridge our 7th Amendment right to hold cable, telecom, and internet service companies liable for mishandling the Internet.

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A recent editorial about the Illinois workers’ compensation system prompted Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) President Todd A. Smith to respond and set the record straight. Mr. Smith told the Chicago Tribune that the recent editorials have again sided with insurance interests and against the rights of injured Illinois workers. Your recent editorials regarding workers compensation shows your paper has once again sided with insurance interests and against the rights of injured Illinois workers. Mr. Smith stated that ITLA’s position has always been in favor of empowering the appropriate authorities, allowing them to crack down on abusers of the system. Any abuse of the workers’ compensation system should not be tolerated. However, Mr. Smith points out that the Chicago Tribune editorials overlook some of the legitimate problems about workers compensation and focus on taking away the rights of Illinois injured workers.

Mr. Smith suggests that a closer look should be taken at the Illinois insurance industry and its lack of regulation. Pending workers’ compensation claims have dropped in Illinois during the last decade from approximately 80,000 to around 50,000; however, insurance company premiums continue to rise. Mr. Smith urges that workers’ rights should be at the forefront of any workers compensation reform debate. Injured Illinois workers should not be subjected to reduced workers’ compensation benefits. Those Illinois injured individuals who are hurt on the job should be allowed to choose their own doctor and have access to quality healthcare. They should also be adequately compensated in the event of an Illinois workplace injury. Most importantly, Mr. Smith stated that the efforts at workers compensation reform should not come at the expense of injured Illinois workers with legitimate honest claims.

Follow the link to the Chicago Tribune to read more about the ITLA response about workers’ compensation reform.

While President Obama’s State of the Union address was inspiring and thought-provoking, one statement brought concern. President Obama indicated his support for some type of federal law limiting medical malpractice lawsuits. Shortly thereafter, the House Republicans introduced H.R. 5, which contains a $250,000 cap on non-economic damages and stringent limits on attorneys’ fees. The bill indicates that it would not only apply to medical malpractice claims, but also to drug and device cases, nursing home abuse and neglect lawsuits, and claims against the insurance industry. Plus, the bill preempts state laws that provide additional protection to patients.

How disappointing that both the President and the sponsors of the bill have targeted this sector of the civil justice system. The bill is drawing opposition from the right side too – Tea Party advocates have stated that the bill provides a “marker for the differences between the too-business-friendly Republican establishment who dominate Washington and the Tea Party-oriented, limited-government Americans of all parties.” This medical malpractice limiting bill does nothing to stop medical malpractice, which kills up to 100,000 Americans annually and personally injures up to ten times that number. This bill does not act to improve hospital hygiene, medical records technology, or other medical practice. Medical malpractice lawsuits cannot exist if there is little or no medical malpractice. Can’t we work towards improving medical treatment?

Continue reading "Federal Law limiting medical malpractice lawsuits would hurt victims" »

A recent documentary called Hot Coffee is making some steam as it documents “tort reform.” Its showing at the Sundance festival rendered a very favorable verdict. The subject matter of Hot Coffee is our country’s tort system and will likely be deplored by corporations and special interest groups, such as the United States Chamber of Commerce. Hot Coffee has been called a “potent and provocative documentary.” The filmmaker, Susan Saladoff, presents a strong case against corporate America, which she exposes as using sensationalized lawsuit settlements to push public opinion against frivolous lawsuits. Ms. Saladoff highlights the infamous McDonald’s personal injury lawsuit where the personal injury plaintiff was awarded millions for spilling hot coffee on herself. Offering perspective on the infamous lawsuit, the filmmaker showed many “man-in-the-street” interviews, which indicate that the general public’s uninformed view of the case was that it was outrageous for someone to use over hot coffee.

The film even goes to the length of interviewing the elderly plaintiff as well as showing the graphic medical photographs of the horrific burns that the personal injury plaintiff suffered in her private areas. Ms. Saladoff also addresses the initial response from McDonalds, which was characterized as arrogant and dismissive when the elderly woman initially sought only to have her medical bills covered. All of this time, when the elderly plaintiff was suffering severe harm, McDonald’s had in its possession numerous other reports where customers had been similarly injured by their “too hot” coffee.

Visit Reuters to read more about the legal documentary.