Do you have questions about NY injury law? If so, you have come to the right place! Here we will address the common questions our clients have been asking for many years. Welcome aboard! If you have a question not answered here, feel free to post your question here and we will be happy to respond.
As a New York Workers’ Comp. claimant you will very likely be subjected to an Independent Medical Exam (IME). Don’t let the name fool you! There’s nothing independent about these exams. IMEs are paid for by the insurance company and the insurance company isn’t interested in an unbiased opinion.
The insurance company is interested in obtaining a medical opinion that states your condition is pre-existing, is less severe than your doctor says and/or that you are malingering. The doctor performing the IME will be listening to everything you say and watching everything you do.
To prepare our client’s for an IME, we generally invite them to watch a video and then go over the highlights. Below are some DOs and DON’Ts regarding IMEs. Read the rest…
Last week, Jim Reed and Christina Bruner Sonsire (yes, Christina got married this past weekend!) traveled to Albany to join almost 150 other members of the New York Trial Lawyer’s Association to meet with NY legislators to discuss important legislation. Discussed topics included:
Whether defense lawyers should have the right to privately meet with your treating Dr’s outside your presence or the presence of your attorney.
Whether the rules should be changed so that if you contest a no-fault denial via the no-fault arbitration process, the results of that arbitration can’t be used against you in your personal injury case.
Whether the antiquated NY Wrongful Death Law should be changed to follow the 42 other states that recognize recovery for grief.
Today, N.Y.C. attorney Eric Turkewitz, discussed the lawyers who traveled to Albany (he was there) and asked some great questions:
If you have an attorney handling a personal injury matter, is the name of your lawyer on the list? Or at least someone from his/her firm?
And if not, did s/he attend last year or the year before?
Is s/he actively working in some way to preserve the civil justice system?
And if they have never done anything in this regard, why not?
Well, I can’t answer for the MANY who “claim” to be dedicated personal injury attorneys who were NOT there but I am darned proud that two of our ZiffLaw attorneys were among the 138 truly dedicated champions of consumer rights who made the long, inconvenient but important trip to Albany. I didn’t see any other lawyers from Elmira, Corning or Ithaca which was pretty disappointing….
I always ask clients to tell the truth. However, preparing clients to be truthful often makes me uncomfortable because it’s not uncommon for a client to react as though I were accusing him or her of being less than honest. Please know that I believe that most folks strive to be truthful.
There is a popular myth that lawyers and law firms exist to win at any cost including integrity. That philosophy doesn’t pan out as well in real life as it does on TV.
One of our injury attorneys, Adam Gee wrote a recent blog post The Importance of Telling Your Attorney the Truth about a case that went south after it was determined that his client was not telling the truth. It happens every now and then that a case will swirl down the toilet because the client didn’t tell the truth.
The average Judge has probably listened to testimony day in and day out for years. He or she will pick up on inconsistencies. A statement made on cross examination that would likely be brought out on direct examination, if it were truthful, will stick out like a sore thumb to opposing counsel.
The best possible outcome can only be achieved when our clients are completely truthful about the facts of their case. The truth is the way to go because: it’s the right thing to do; it works better; and, if nothing else, it’s sure easier to remember: )
Thanks for reading,
Eric
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Eric L. Johnson
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: ejohnson@zifflaw.com
Web: http://www.zifflaw.com
Too often we have folks come in who have had work injuries and their income was unreported. While these folks are still eligible for medical benefits under the Workers’ Comp. Law, they are not eligible for wage payments because they have no reported income.
Unfortunately, if you don’t have wage payments and you can’t afford to take time off work, the medical benefit may be meaningless. Furthermore, you’re out of luck when it comes to a schedule loss of use or any payment under the Workers’ Comp. Law based on wage payments. It gets worse.
Additionally, if your income is unreported, you’re giving up not only Workers’ Comp. benefits, but unemployment benefits and Social Security benefits as well. So, if you’re thinking about not reporting your income, please think again. Come back for my next post in which I will discuss honesty and Workers’ Comp. claims.
Thanks for reading,
Eric
___________________________________
Eric L. Johnson
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: ejohnson@zifflaw.com
Web: http://www.zifflaw.com
Under New YorkWorkers’ Compensation Law you have the right to select any authorized physician for the treatment of your work related injury. Many companies, however, push their injured employees to treat with the company doctor.
Many company doctors have cozy relationships with employers, which makes it difficult for the injured employee to get good care. Many injured employees find the care from company doctors to be impersonal, unsympathetic, and even downright substandard. In some cases, the employers pressure company doctors, which interferes with the normal doctor patient relationship and may result in the injured employee being released to work prematurely.
So how can this be avoided? You must maintain control of your medical treatment. In other words, see the doctor of your choosing. Please come back for my next blog post in which I discuss the problems created by working under the table.
Thanks for reading,
Eric
____________________________________________
Eric L. Johnson
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: ejohnson@zifflaw.com
“Fatal” Mistakes Social Security Disability Clients Make
This is a short list of mistakes we have seen our clients make over the years. Whether you are our client, another lawyer’s client, or simply trying to represent yourself in a claim for Social Security Disability benefits, you should read this list carefully and maybe you can avoid making one of these “fatal” mistakes.
* Not being completely honest with the lawyer regarding medical conditions, work status, and drug or alcohol use.
* Not going to the doctor regularly or not taking all the medications prescribed by the doctor.
* Not attending all meetings scheduled with the lawyer.
* Not keeping Social Security and the lawyer informed of the client’s current address and telephone number.
* Committing a crime that would cause Social Security to question the client’s credibility.
* Saying anything untruthful during the hearing with the Administrative Law Judge.
* Continuing to smoke while claiming disability for heart or respiratory disease.
* Not reading all letters from Social Security or from the lawyer, and missing a deadline contained in a letter.
* Using illegal drugs or abusing legal drugs and alcohol.
* Not attending medical examinations scheduled by Social Security.
* Failing to tell the lawyer about every doctor the client has seen.
Thanks for reading,
Eric
____________________________________________
Eric L. Johnson
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William St.
Elmira, NY 14902
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: ejohnson@zifflaw.com
Web: http://www.zifflaw.com
We expect our food to be safe. Every day, people all across the country purchase food from around the world believing it IS safe. Federal, state and local agencies from the Food and Drug Administration to the United States Department of Agriculture to our local health departments are supposed to ensure our food is safe. Unfortunately, our food isn’t always safe. Whether due to improper fertilization, negligent safety practices in factories or gross misconduct by uncaring companies, unsafe food is entering our food supply chain with increasing and concerning frequency.
The latest case of food contamination involves unsweetened Puffed Rice and Puffed Wheat cereals manufactured by the Malt-O-Meal company in Minnesota. So far, 23 people from 16 states have been diagnosed with the same strain of Salmonella found in the contaminated cereal, and Malt-O-Meal has issued a voluntary recall. Three of the sickened individuals are reported to be from New York. Local grocery stores report that the contaminated cereal has been removed from store shelves, or that they did not carry the brand. The FDA said the recalled products were distributed nationally under the Malt-O-Meal brand name, as well as private labels including Acme, America’s Choice, Food Club, Giant, Hannaford, Jewel, Laura Lynn, Pathmark, Shaw’s, ShopRite, Tops and Weis Quality. The cereal bags have “best if used by” dates from April 8, 2008 (coded as APR0808), through March 18, 2009 (coded as MAR1809). Salmonella is a serious illness that can be fatal to children, the elderly, and those with a weakened immune system. It causes nausea, vomiting, fever, diarrhea and abdominal cramps.
If you think you may have contracted Salmonella from the tainted cereal, you should see your doctor and be tested for Salmonella. If you have a package of the recalled cereal DO NOT THROW IT OUT!!! Instead, secure the package so that no one else will consume it, attempt to locate your sales receipt showing your purchase of the contaminated cereal and consult legal counsel immediately.
There are links to additional stories about the outbreak below.
Thanks for reading,
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
Personal Injury and Malpractice Attorney
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William Street Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com
In a world seemingly dominated by all-encompassing HIPAA protections (i.e. the dozens of forms you are asked to sign when treated in the hospital) and daunting HIPAA fears (i.e. your boss’s warning that you cannot repeat, recite nor should you even remember information you learn from HIPAA sensitive documents while on the job,) the question inevitably arises: What can I do if I feel my so-called “HIPAA rights” are violated?
Proper analysis of that inquiry requires a basic understanding of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.(A complete copy of the HIPAA statute can be found at http://aspe.hhs.gov/admnsimp/pl104191.htm.)Read the rest…
I received a phone call recently from a prospective client who was struck by a car insured by Travelers Insurance while walking from his employer’s parking lot to the building he worked from. Luckily, this individual appears to have sustained only minor injuries (he was struck by the car’s side view mirror only). That didn’t stop Travelers, though, from trying to cheat him out of benefits he may be due under the policy. First, they tried to tell him that he should file a Worker’s Compensation claim through his employer, as he was walking to work at the time he was struck by the car. Nice try! Under New York State law, this type of accident is clearly the responsibility of the no-fault carrier (Travelers, in this case) NOT the worker’s compensation carrier.
When Travelers’ first attempt at shirking their obligations failed, they came up with a new story. As regular readers of this blog know, in order to bring a personal injury case for injuries arising out of a motor vehicle accident in New York, you have to have sustained a “serious injury” as defined in the New York State Insurance Law. Sometimes it is easy to tell when someone has a “serious injury”. Sometimes you can’t tell for months. Despite the fact that this accident occurred only two weeks ago, the Travelers adjuster was trying to convince this individual that he did NOT have a serious injury. Since, the adjuster claims, this individual did not sustain a serious injury, the most the adjuster can pay him under New York State law is $1,000.00
This, Ladies and Gentleman, is a bold faced, out right LIE! There is no such rule! Travelers can pay as much as they want, and they routinely pay more than this on disputed cases where serious injury is in doubt. This is just another insurance company hoping to take advantage of someone before they hire an attorney and learn the truth! That’s just part of why I love my job, having the ability to expose the lies of the insurance companies and make them live up to the obligations we pay and pay and pay them for!
Incidentally, this is not the first time Travelers has been involved in some shady dealings. See the link below.
Thank for reading,
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
Personal Injury and Malpractice Attorney
Ziff, Weiermiller, Hayden & Mustico, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com
It’s that time of year again.The days are getting longer, the weather is getting warmer and the runners and cyclists are getting restless-er.However, a word to all wise dog owners – make sure your pet does not follow suit and, following a lazy winter of prolonged naps and indoor play, become caught up in the spring fever and use all of his pent up energy to harass – or worse, injure – an innocent passer-by.
New York law imposes a high standard on dog owners, particularly owners of dogs that have ever shown “vicious propensities,” (legalese for prior displays of mean, unruly and aggressive behavior.)As a dedicated marathoner, I must say I am glad the law seeks to hold pet owners responsible for misdeeds, yet as a former and likely future dog owner, I recognize the necessity for understanding the basics of New York’s dog owner liability doctrine to avoid legal entanglements.
In brief, under New York law a dog owner is potentially liable for injuries his dog causes to another person if Read the rest…
