Tennessee Injury Law Center

November 26, 2011

Will My Davidson County, Tennessee Car Accident Case Be Settled or Tried?

I was involved in a car wreck in Davidson County, Tennessee. I am thinking about filing a lawsuit, but really don’t want to go to trial. Will my case be settled or tried?

Well, if you have a valid case, you have a great deal of whether the case is settled or tried. Insurance companies usually make an offer of some amount in every case with merit. The issue is whether you will be offered a fair amount given your injuries and losses. You can always accept less than a fair amount, but sometimes you have to go to trial before you can get the justice you deserve.

It is true that less than 10% of all personal injury and wrongful death cases in which a jury trial is sought result in an actual trial – in Davidson County or elsewhere in Tennessee. But it is difficult to say whether any particular will or should be tried.

November 25, 2011

What’s Wrong With Texting and Driving?

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

I don’t see the big deal about texting and driving. I do it all the time and have not been in a car wreck.

Then you have been lucky. Not only is texting while driving illegal, but it greatly increases your risk of being involved in a car crash.

Studies report that reports that distracted driving is the No. 1 killer of American teens. Sixteen percent of all drivers younger than 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported to have been distracted while driving.

November 22, 2011

Car Hits Horse. Is There A Lawsuit?

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

I was driving on a country road late a night. I came around a sharp curve at a reasonable speed and there was a black horse standing in the middle of the road. I swerved to miss it, but hit it and then hit a rock wall on the side of the road. My car was totaled and I was injured. The man that owned the horse lived on the adjoining property. Can I sue him for my injuries? That horse should not have been on the road.

You can sue him, but you will have to prove that he was negligent in controlling the horse. Under the law of Tennessee the horse must be fenced in but if there was a fence the landowner will claim that the fence was adequate and you have to prove the landowner was negligent.

It will be important to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible to investigate this matter. It will be important to document the condition of any fence and to learn how the horse was able to escape. It will also be important to learn with the horse or other farm animals roamed off the property in the past.

November 22, 2011

What is Does It Mean If A Lawyer is Listed in Super Lawyers?

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

I am looking for a lawyer and have come across the Super Lawyers website. Should I look for a lawyer who is listed as a Super Lawyer?

Super Lawyers is a relatively new publication to this area. It provides this overview of its selection process:

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a rigorous, multiphase rating process. Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. The objective is to create a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys that can be used as a resource for attorneys and consumers searching for legal counsel. Since Super Lawyers is intended to be used as an aid in selecting a lawyer, we limit the lawyer ratings to those who can be hired and retained by the public, i.e., lawyers in private practice and Legal Aid attorneys.The Super Lawyers selection process involves three basic steps: creation of the candidate pool; evaluation of candidates by the research department; and peer evaluation by practice area.

November 21, 2011

What Happens If There Are Multiple Victims and Limited Insurance Coverage?

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

I was in a a bad car accident involving a car and a truck. Two people were hurt, and one person was killed. The total liability insurance available is a single limit policy of $300,000 and the at-fault driver does not have any assets. The insurance company has offered the group of us $300,000. How will the money be divided?

Hopefully, the money will be divided by agreement without the need for litigation. Those negotiating the case should be driven by what would happen if no agreement was reached. In other words, people should negotiate with the idea of how a court would divide the money if there was a trial.

A court would divide the $300,000 on a pro rata basis depending on the value of the claim. So, if all three claims had a total value of $3,000,000, each claimant would receive 10 cents on the dollar of his or her claim. For example, if one claim was worth $500,000, that claimant would only receive $50,000 of the total monies available.

November 20, 2011

Jury Trials In Nashville (Davidson County, Tennessee) in September 2011

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

As a Tennessee personal injury lawyer, I try to keep up with the results of personal injury and wrongful death jury trials in Davidson County (Nashville) and other cities in Tennessee.

Here are the results of the personal injury trials in Davidson County, Tennessee during the month of September, 2011:

Automobile Accident Case – Verdict for the Plaintiff for $7500
Automobile Accident Case – Hung Jury
Civil Assault – Verdict for the Plaintiff for $100,000
Automobile Accident Case – Verdict for the Plaintiff for $7430
Automobile Accident Case – Verdict for the Plaintiff for $10,041
Medical Malpractice Case – Verdict for the Plaintiff for $1,004,817

This information was collected by Clerk of Court.

November 18, 2011

What is a “Settlement Statement” in a Tennessee Personal Injury or Wrongful Death Case??

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

What is a "settlement statement" in a Tennessee wrongful death or personal injury case?

A settlement statement, sometimes called by other names such as a "distribution statement," shows the receipt of monies by a lawyer as part of a settlement and then describes how those monies are paid to the client and others.

These type of statements have been used by good lawyers for years and are now required by the Rules of Professional Conduct applicable to Tennessee lawyers. Here is the relevant language of Rule 1.5 (c): "Upon conclusion of a contingent fee matter, the lawyer shall provide the client with a written statement stating the outcome of the matter and, if there is a recovery, showing the remittance to the client and the method of its determination."

November 17, 2011

What Is The Maximum Fee A Lawyer Can Charge in A Wrongful Death Case?

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

What is the maximum fee a lawyer can charge in a wrongful death case in Tennessee?

In medical malpractice cases (now formally called "health care liability" cases after a change in the law effective October 1, 2011) the maximum contingent fee a lawyer can charge is 33 and 1/3 rd percent. In other words, the lawyer can enter into an agreement with you to charge 1/3rd of the recovery he or she is able to make on your behalf.

In all types of personal injury and wrongful death cases no statute limits or otherwise sets the amount of the contingent fee. The amount of the fee is set by agreement between the lawyer and the client. The rules of professional conduct for lawyers require that a contingent fee agreement be in writing.

November 16, 2011

How Do Lawyers Use Interrogatories?

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

I am involved in a lawsuit and I had to answer interrogatories. How do lawyers use interrogatories at trial?

Interrogatories are written questions sent from one party in a lawsuit to an opposing party about issues related to the lawsuit. For example, in a lawsuit arising from a motor vehicle collision, each driver may send interrogatories to the other ask for driving histories, including whether the opposing driver has ever received a driving citation. The party responding to interrogatories must sign a statement swearing or affirming that the responses to the interrogatories are true.

How are answers used at trial? Assume for example that you were served with an interrogatory that asked if you were aware of any witness to the car wreck involved in the case. Assume that you said in answer to the interrogatory that you were not aware of any witnesses, but then attempted to call an eyewitness at trial. Unless the opposing party had knowledge of the eyewitness by some other means, the trial judge may well exclude the eyewitness from testifying at trial because you did not include the name and address of the eyewitness in your interrogatory answers.

November 15, 2011

Why Won’t a Lawyer Take My Case?

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

I believe I have a valid medical malpractice case. A nurse put an IV in wrong, my arm swelled up with fluid, and it really hurt. I’m alright now, but my arm hurt really bad for almost a week. But no lawyer will take my case. What’s going on?

My guess is that no lawyer will take your case because the damages – pain and suffering for about a week – are so small that the cost of bringing the case is too great in relation to its value.

To prove your case, a nurse would have to testify that the nurse who cared for you made a mistake that should have been avoided. Then, a doctor would have to testify that nurse’s error caused you an injury and resultant pain.