The Illinois legislature recently passed a bill to limit recovery of subrogation claimants. House Bill 5823 has passed both chambers and now goes to the governor’s desk. It is expected that the governor will sign the bill. The bill says, to paraphrase, that subrogation claims are limited to a pro rata share of the amount recovered. The bill does not apply to workers’ compensation claims, medical provider’s lien, or to uninsured/underinsured claims. Subrogation claims may now be reduced by a petition with the court. Claims of entities that have not made a claim may be adjudicated. The lien is now reduced by Read more…
Category: Springfield Injury Lawyer Blog
This week the Supreme Court of Illinois resolved an arguable conflict between two statutes. It decided what standard Illinois lawyers must use when there is a wreck between an emergency vehicle, like an ambulance, and a citizen’s vehicle. It resolves an arguable conflict between the Illinois Vehicle Code and the Local Governmental and Governmental Tort Immunities Act. The facts of the case are as follows. James Harris brought a claim against Steven Thompson and the Massac County Hospital in Harris v. Thompson. Thompson was an ambulance driver for Massac Memorial Hospital. He and the plaintiff collided while he was driving the Read more…
In April of 2012, The Illinois Auditor General, William G. Holland, released an audit of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation claims. The Auditor General found many issues with the Illinois Workers’ Compensation system. The report “Workers’ Compensation Program as it Applies to State Employees” was over 100 pages. The audit indicated that there are “no guidelines for how much to award.” “For instance, a common injury such as carpal tunnel syndrome meant compensation for the loss of five percent use of the hand in one case and total disability in the other.” This is not correct. The workers’ compensation system has Read more…
Tort reform advocates frequently claim physician supply is a tort reform issue. Proponents claim that unless there is reform physicians will flee the state. As an Illinois injury claim lawyer who accepts medical malpractice claims I believe this is relevant to Illinois law because lawmakers here have tried to cap damages in Illinois medical malpractice claims three times. The Illinois Supreme Court has held these caps unconstitutional each time. In a recent article entitled “Does Tort Reform Affect Physicians Supply – Evidence from Texas“, David Hymen, Charles Silver and Bernard Black examine the question. David Hymen is from University of Illinois, School Read more…