Tennessee Injury Law Center

May 24, 2010

Injury From Car Wreck Hurts Business

I was injured in a car wreck – it wasn’t my fault. I own my own business and I have missed a lot of work. Am I going to be able to recover damages for the impact of the wreck on my business?

One of the biggest challenges of a personal injury lawyer is representing self-employed people in personal injury cases. It can be very difficult to prove the loss of income of self-employed people, but the task is made easier by having a long history of earnings, good records of receipts and expenses, and injuries that are significant enough that a jury (or insurance adjuster) can clearly understand how the injuries impact the business.

Other than these basic statements, whether the loss can be shown will depend on the facts of each case. An experienced personal injury lawyer will give you guidance on how to document your losses as best you can.

May 21, 2010

Physical Therapy is a Pain

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I got hurt in an accident and my doctor said I should go to physical therapy. The therapist is 20 miles away and it is very inconvenient to go to therapy. Plus, it doesn’t seem to do any good. Will it hurt my case if I just stop going?

First, let me suggest you set the thoughts about your legal case aside for a moment. Your doctor prescribed physical therapy because he or she thought it would help you. It might not. But it might. The daily or even weekly progress you see in physical therapy might be small, but you still need to go to physical therapy because you want to do what you can to reach a full recovery.

Going to physical therapy may not help your case, but not going as the doctor asked you to do will probably hurt your case. Insurance adjusters and jurors may conclude that you may not have been having the problems you say you were having (or are having) if you followed your doctor’s advice. If you have to go before a jury in your case the jury will be told that it is your responsibility to minimize your damages.

May 20, 2010

Can I Be Sued?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

A neighbor fell off my porch the other day and he had to be taken to the doctor with a broken arm. Can I be held responsible for this?

Only if it is determined that you did not keep the premises in a reasonably safe condition for him and other guests on your property. Therefore, it is important to understand how he came to fall of the porch. Did the railing break? Was it rotten? Did he fall over the rail? Was he sitting on the rail? Was there no rail there at all? Did local building codes require a rail? And so on.

There are all sorts of questions that must be asked to determine whether you can be held responsible for what happened.

May 19, 2010

Will My Stupid Mistake Many Years Ago Hurt My Case?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I was arrested for underage drinking when I was in high school 10 years ago. I was put on probation for a year. Now I got hurt in an car accident and the other driver’s lawyer wants to know if I have ever been arrested. Do I have to tell the truth about it – it happened so long ago? Is it going to come out in court that I was arrested?

Don’t worry about it. In a lawsuit your opponent gets to ask you questions about your background. The area of questions that can be asked during the "discovery" period in a lawsuit is very broad, much broader than questions that will be permitted in court at trial. So, your opponent can ask about prior arrests and you should tell the truth about what happened.

Will it come out in court? It almost certainly will not if you tell the truth about what happened. If you lie and your opponent finds out about it, what happened will probably come out in court, not because of what happened 10 years ago but the fact that you lied about it when asked in the lawsuit.

May 18, 2010

My Case Has Settled? Now What?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

My personal injury case just settled and I have $45,000 after paying my medical bills and my lawyers. I have never had this much money in my life. What do I do with it?

You are not seeking legal advice here – this is financial advice. However, many of our clients have asked this question over the years and I will share some general thoughts.

First, you should set aside some money for what many people call an “emergency fund.” The emergency fund should be three or, even better, six months of the money that you need to operate your household. It should be kept in a savings account or a money market account and should only be used for emergencies – an unexpected car repair or medical bill or to meet normal expenses if you lose your job. You will gain an unbelievable peace of mind by having this amount of money in the bank.

May 17, 2010

I Have to Pay My Insurance Company Back

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I was in a car accident and broke my wrist. My health insurance paid my medical expenses. I sued the driver that caused the wreck and received a settlement for $75,000. My lawyer says I have to re-pay my health insurance company out of my settlement. Is that correct?

It almost certainly is correct. My health insurance companies have a provision in their contract with you that if you incur medical expenses and later recover those expenses from the person who caused you to get hurt and incur the expense you must re-pay the insurance company.

There are some exceptions to this rule. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you determine whether you have the obligation to re-pay your health insurance company and whether there is a way for you to reduce the amount you are otherwise obligated to pay it.

May 11, 2010

Passenger Injured in Bus Accident Wants to Know Rights

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I was visiting Nashville on a bus tour that started in Rockford, Illinois. The bus driver wasn’t paying attention, ran a red light, and our bus got hit on the side by a pick-up truck that was coming from our left. The truck hit the bus right under where I was sitting, and I received a broken ankle. I have missed three weeks from work and incurred lots of medical bills. What are my rights?

Bus companies that operate in interstate commerce have an obligation to follow federal laws that are very similar to the laws that over-the-road truckers have to follow. They must register with the federal government and follow numerous regulations designed to enhance passenger safety. Some of these regulations include strict rules about how many hours a day the driver can operate the bus and the qualifications of the bus driver. Others ban the use of drugs and alcohol before driving and require testing of bus drivers after certain types of accidents.

Since it appears the bus driver was at fault and the wreck occurred in Tennessee, Tennessee law will apply and you will be able to recover damages for lost wages, lost future earning capacity, past and future medical expenses, pain, suffering, disability, disfigurement and loss of enjoyment of life. Federal law may also play a role, because a violation of federal regulations applicable to the driver or the bus company may be admissible in the Tennessee case.

May 10, 2010

The Lawsuit Explosion

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

It seems like everybody is suing everybody. How many personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits are filed in circuit court every year in Tennessee?

Believe it or not, the number of lawsuits for personal injury cases and wrongful death cases in Tennessee is staying about the same, despite the increases in population.

There were 10,659 such cases filed in circuit and chancery court in Tennessee for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2009. In the previous year there were 11,171, so filings were down about 5%. The year before (ending June 30, 2007) the total number of filings were 10,165.

May 7, 2010

What Are Interrogatories?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I am in a lawsuit and just got sent interrogatories. What are they?

Interrogatories are written questions that one person in a lawsuit sends to another person in a lawsuit. The party that receives the interrogatories must answer them in a certain period of time, unusually thirty days.

Your lawyer will guide you through answering the interrogatories. It is very important that you tell the complete truth when you answer the questions. The failure to tell the truth will have an adverse impact on your case.

May 6, 2010

The Wheel of My Car Fell Off! What Are My Rights?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I was driving my car when the wheel fell off. I lost control of the car and had a wreck. I ended up in the hospital with lots of broken bones and a concussion. I have missed three months of work. Do I have any rights?

You might. However, it will be very important that to find and keep the car you were driving and the wheel that came off the car. This evidence is essential to determining if you have a valid case and proving your case if you actually have one. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you find your vehicle.

If you find the car and wheel on your own, take steps to preserve it from the elements and from any other damage. Do not do any independent tests. Do not do any work or alter it in any way. Make sure it stays in a secure place until your lawyer can help you with preserving it.