In Illinois several appellate court cases had held that a petitioner in a workers compensation claim must show that he or she had been exposed to a risk of injury to a degree greater than the public in order to prove a compensable accident. The Supreme Court in Illinois has now been corrected that rule by holding that an injury victim need only prove he or she got injured and work-related accident. The case is called McAllister vs Illinois Workers Compensation Commission. This case applies to common everyday activities like standing from the kneeling position, bending, reaching, or twisting. In older Read more…
Category: Springfield Injury Lawyer Blog
Illinois law has method by which a court can order a civil litigant to undergo physical or mental examination. The point of the rule is to make sure that both sides have the ability to examine a party. In other words, it would not be fair for the defendant if the plaintiff got to pick all of her medical providers and the defendant could not have their own doctor examine the litigant. Illinois Supreme Court rule 215 is a procedure allowing doctors to examine patients. The doctor is supposed to prepare a report within 21 days of the examination. In Batson Read more…
I’ve always wondered how much tort litigation deterred bad conduct. The word tort means bad act. Tort litigation is intended to both reimburse the victim of bad acts and to deter future bad acts. Studies tend to show that in motor vehicle accidents the laws really do not substantially effect peoples’ driving. Most people assume that this is because drivers of vehicles do not wish to get in motor vehicle accidents because they could be hurt or killed. They have a built deterrent factor – injury. Medical providers do not have the same incentive. People may very well have an Read more…
With medical bills getting more and more expensive, it seems that people will fight more about whether or not medical bills are reasonable and necessary. In Illinois, for a party to introduced bills into evidence, they are required to prove that the bills are reasonable, necessary, and related. Usually, by the end of the case the defense has agreed to stipulate to allow the medical bills into evidence. Plaintiffs often use requests to admit in an attempt to get the defense to agree to allow the bills into evidence. Typically, the defense will refuse to admit the pills are reasonable Read more…
As a Plaintiff’s lawyer I’m always concerned about naming the right corporate defendant. People frequently set up numerous corporations and LLC’s to protect them from liability. They often have similar names. If you look at the Cyberdrive website and look up any Corporation you will find numerous ones with similar names. To make matters worse, people who own a lot of rental property typically set up one big LLC with a different sub – LLC for each property. This can make suing the proper defendant very difficult. This came up in the recent case of Angell vs. Stantefort Family Holdings LLC. Read more…
Witness disclosures are frequently an issue in jury trials. Lawyers are required to make disclosures in civil jury trials concerning what witnesses they intend to call, and what those witnesses are expected to say. The rule is intended to prevent surprise for litigants. It is also frequently used as a sword by the opposing lawyer to keep evidence out. This became an issue in the medical malpractice claim entitled Wilson vs. Moon. In Wilson, the plaintiff’s decedent was a young man, 23 years old, who suffered a pulmonary embolism which killed him. The plaintiff’s decedent went to the emergency room complaining of Read more…
Perry Mason bringing the bad guy to justice in the courtroom. Twelve Angry Men. The OJ Simpson “if it doesn’t fit, you must acquit” murder trial. Think you know trials? You might be surprised to know that, contrary to media depictions and public perception, actual jury trials have become uncommon over the past quarter century. What does that mean for the average person who rarely sees the inside of a courtroom and only consults an attorney when something unexpected and generally negative happens in their lives? This blog post is based on a 2014 article by Marc Galanter & Angela Read more…
Illinois law has method by which a court can order a civil litigant to undergo physical or mental examination. The point of the rule is to make sure that both sides have the ability to examine a party. In other words, it would not be fair for the defendant if the plaintiff got to pick all of her medical providers and the defendant could not have their own doctor examine the litigant. Illinois Supreme Court rule 215 is a procedure allowing doctors to examine patients. The doctor is supposed to prepare a report within 21 days of the examination. In Batson Read more…
Permanent total disability in Illinois worker’s compensation claims mean that a person is entitled to total disability for life. If someone is a permanent total they are entitled to two-thirds of their average weekly wage for life. This is much like temporary total disability, but it is permanent. Many people confuse total permanent disability with the designation of the “Person as A Whole”, which is five-hundred weeks of disability. Five-hundred weeks of disability is 9.6 years; whereas, permanent total disability lasts for an injured worker’s life. There are three ways to get a permanent total disability. First there is what Read more…
In Illinois Worker’s Compensations victims are entitled to two doctors and their referral chains. When we get cases in, often workers have already used one of their choices. We have had many people come in who have been referred to a doctor of the employer’s choice. When the employer does this they often misrepresent or suggest to the worker that they are required to go to these particular doctors. The selected doctor is often pro insurance company and not very friendly to injury victims. This selection can have a huge impact on a person’s case by the time the case Read more…