Tennessee Injury Law Center

February 18, 2011

Liability for a Dog Bite

I live in the country in Tennessee. My dog runs loose. The dog bit a neighbor kid over at his house about 700 feet down the road. The dog never bit anyone before. Am I responsible for what my dog did? I thought every dog got one free bite?

A dog’s owner used to be able to avoid responsibility for a dog bite if he did not know the dangerous propensities of the dog, but that is no longer the law if the bite occurs off the dog owner’s property. Subject to several exceptions, if you let your dog run at large, you are responsible for injuries caused by your dog even if you had no reason to believe the dog was dangerous.

You report the bite to your homeowner’s insurance as soon as possible. Your homeowner’s insurance policy may provide you with some protection in the event you are asked to pay medical bills or get sued by the neighbor.

February 17, 2011

What Damages Can A Parent Recover in a Personal Injury Case for a Minor Child?

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

My son was bit by a neighbor’s dog. What rights do I have in a lawsuit against the dog owner?

You have the right to recover medical expenses that you paid or were paid by your insurance company. (You almost certainly have to repay your health insurance company out of the settlement or judgment.) You can also recover damages for loss of services of your child.

Under Tennessee law, you cannot recover damages loss of the relationship between you and your child because of the injuries or for your emotional distress at seeing your child deal with his injuries.

February 17, 2011

Can A Parent of an Adult Child File a Personal Injury Case for the Adult Child?

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

My 22-year old son was hurt in a car wreck. Can I file a lawsuit for him?

No, unless he is so severely injured or suffers from some type of disability that he is deemed incompetent. If he is incompetent, there are formal proceedings which must be filed to have him declared incompetent in the eyes of the law. If that happens, a conservator will be appointed and he or she will have the power to file or defend a lawsuit. If you are appointed the conservator, you would have that right.

However, if your son is competent, he is the only one who can file suit on his behalf. You can help him find a lawyer and can give him assistance in preparing the case, but the decision to file and the right to file is his and his alone.

February 15, 2011

Can I Bring A Lawsuit For My Daughter?

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

My 10-year old daughter was hurt in a car wreck. Her dad and I are divorced. Can I file a lawsuit on her behalf?

Yes, if you are the custodial parent you are permitted to bring a lawsuit on your daughter’s behalf. If you are not the custodial parent the appropriate person to bring the lawsuit is your daughter’s father ( I assume that he is the custodial parent).

Even if you are the custodial parent and have the right to file suit, you should work with the child’s father and try to maintain a united front in the litigation.

February 14, 2011

What Does It Mean When You Have Liability Insurance Policy Limits of $50,000 / $100,000?

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

I was in a car wreck yesterday. It was probably my fault. I looked at my automobile liability insurance policy and it says that I have liability limits of $50,000 / $100,000. What does that mean?

It means that for any one car wreck that is your fault your insurance company will pay a person injured in the wreck up to $50,000 in losses and damages they suffer. If more than one person is injured in the wreck, the company will pay, on your behalf, up to $100,000 but no more than $50,000 for any one person.

So, if one person was hurt in the wreck, the insurer will pay no more than $50,000 in damages. If two people were hurt, the insurer will pay up to $100,000, but no more than $50,000 per person. If three people were hurt, the insurer will pay up to $100,000, but no more than $50,000 per person. Note that each person who is injured does not automatically get $50,000 – they must demonstrate amount of their damages and can recover up to $50,000 each.

February 12, 2011

I Was Hurt By a Big Truck in Tennessee? What Damages May I Recover?

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

I was hurt in a wreck with a big truck in Tennessee? What damages are available in a trucking accident claim?

Answer: In a personal injury cases, you can recover monetary damages for past and future medical bills incurred because of the injuries, past and future physical pain and suffering, past and future mental or emotional pain and suffering, loss of earning capacity, disability, lost capacity for the enjoyment of life, and disfigurement.

A significant part of many personal injury claims in the recovery of the reasonable medical bills necessarily incurred as a result of the incident. To the extent that the injuries likely require on-going medical bills in the future, those future medical expenses can also be recovered.

February 11, 2011

Does Tennessee Have PIP Coverage?

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

I was hurt in a car wreck. I used to live in Kentucky and we had PIP coverage. Is there PIP coverage in Tennessee?

Answer: No. Tennessee does not have a no-fault system and therefore does not have PIP (Personal Injury Protection) coverage as a part of automobile or truck liability insurance policies issued in Tennessee. So, if your bought your auto insurance coverage after you moved to Tennessee you do not have PIP coverage.

Note to those people who live in a state that has no-fault and PIP coverage and who are injured in a wreck in Tennessee: your insurance policy may give you benefits not available to Tennessee residents. If you are from out-of-state but were injury in a car or truck wreck in Tennessee, the attorneys at Law Offices of John Day, P.C. will be happy to review your insurance policy and determine what benefits it provides under the circumstances.

February 10, 2011

Are Insurance Companies Afraid To Go To Trial In Personal Injury Cases?

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

I am thinking about filing a personal injury case. I think I have a solid case that the insurance company will be afraid to try in front of a jury. Are insurance companies afraid to try cases?

Not really. For the typical insurance company, the analysis is all about money.

In other words, insurance companies evaluate risk. At the end of the day, they determine whether they will likely win a case or lose a case. They look at how much a jury might award, how much a jury is likely to award, and how little a jury might award. They have lots of statistics from which to make this judgment, and they often have very good lawyers help them evaluate a case.

February 9, 2011

Can I Hire an Out-of-State Lawyer for a Medical Malpractice Claim?

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

I think I have a medical malpractice claim in Tennessee. I live in Tennessee and the malpractice occurred in Tennessee. Can I hire an out-of-state lawyer to represent me in this case?

Yes, although the out-of-state lawyer must either have a Tennessee law license or must work with a Tennessee lawyer on the case.

The more important question is why would you hire an out-of-state lawyer to represent you? There is a real advantage to hiring a lawyer who is familiar with Tennessee law (the law of every state is a little different, and Tennessee has some very unusual aspects to its medical malpractice law) and who knows the way our legal system works. There are some very good medical malpractice lawyers in this state who have experience in a wide variety of medical malpractice cases, and thus it rarely makes sense to go to the trouble of finding an out-of-state lawyer to work on a case.

February 9, 2011

Placing Caps On Damages in Medical Malpractice Cases Will Lower Doctor Malpractice Insurance Rates, Right?

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

I keep hearing that Tennessee doctors pay a lot of money for malpractice insurance and that if we limit the right of patients to bring lawsuits doctors will save money on insurance. Is that right?

There is no reason to believe that malpractice rates will be dramatically or even materially reduced if the Tennessee Legislature caps damages in medical malpractice cases.

Here are a few statistics that address the issue. In 2010 an internist in Tennessee paid $7076 for $1,000,000 worth of medical malpractice insurance. This provided the doctor for up to $1,000,000 for any single act of malpractice and total payments for three or more claims of $3,000,000 in any year. The rate for this insurance was 23.11% less than it was in 2009.