ANOTHER Gas Truck Accident in PA– A Future Trend in the Twin Tiers?

Posted on January 12, 2011 by Jim Reed

: Photo Courtesy: Lonnie Frost

As I posted before, due to the Marcellus Shale exploration and drilling in the area, I strongly believe that we are going to see a huge increase in very dangerous big truck accidents in the Northern Tier of Pennsylvania and Southern Tier of New York. A story on WETM-TV today (pasted below), shows that my prediction was spot-on.

Frankly, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to make this prediction. Let’s face it, with tons more big trucks– water trucks, pickup trucks, well-drilling trucks– driven by drivers from distant states (have you ever seen so many Oklahoma and Texas license plates in Wellsboro before?) who are working 12-14 hours a day and who are hurrying to and from their work, collisions are bound to happen.

But the sad and tragic part is that these collisions are going to be bad. REALLY bad! Because when BIG truck meets small car, horrible injuries and death often result.

Now, you are probably saying to yourself” ”OK Jim Reed, as a NY and PA truck accident lawyer, all these truck accidents are good for your business so your sure-as-hell are loving it, aren’t you?”. And I can honestly tell you that although my business means the world to me because I already have two kids in college (and a third hopefully going soon!) so my business pays my bills, I HATE to see people’s lives destroyed in these accidents.

TRUCK ACCIDENTS DESTROY REAL LIVES

When you sit with a husband who lost his wife and the mother of his three young kids because a drunken idiot well-driller crushed her car to smithereens, you forget about your business and you feel the pain that such a loss inflicts….. That pain is something that never goes away no matter how much money I recover for the widower who now has to face life without the love and support of his true love. Sad stuff.

But what I CAN do is help that widower cope with the loss– I can make sure all the bills get paid, I can make sure that he can afford to hire help to help out with the kids, I can make sure he has both financial and emotional support during what is probably the toughest loss he has ever endured. And I can feel good about that…..

Thanks for reading and make sure to hug your loved ones EVERY day.

Jim

_________________________________

James B. Reed

NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer

Ziff Law Firm, LLP

Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com

Office: (607)733-8866

Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)

WETM-TV STORY

Blossburg Officials Looking Into Alcohol Playing Role In Crash

Blossburg, P.A. – A natural gas worker lost control of his truck Monday morning in Tioga County, Pennsylvanialeaving a path of destruction behind.

Around 1:30 Monday morning, the driver of a Mercer Well Service truck lost control on Main Street in Blossburg. Blossburg Police stated that the truck first hit the Robindale Energy Services sign. Then, the truck hit a telephone poll causing it to snap. From there, the truck destroyed bushes and shrubs in front of the Southern Tioga Administration Building and hit their sign. The truck then side-swiped the Blossburg borough’s flag poll. It finally came to rest hitting a tree. School Superintendent Joseph Kalata told WETM 18 News that the incident could have been much worse.

“Shrubbery and so forth you can look at the devastation there, it’s shocking to see a rock in front of your building, but we can replace the shrubs and luckily it didn’t cause any further damage, it didn’t hit the building, it didn’t hit the porch or anything like that,” said Kalata.

Blossburg Police told WETM 18 News that the truck was traveling at high speeds with five people inside. Amazingly, no one was hurt. Police stated that they are investigating whether alcohol played a role. Businesses along Main Street that WETM 18 News spoke with stated that they are trying their best to go about their day.

“I’ve seen a lot of action across the street with a poll being snapped off and the road being blocked off. I assumed I was going to be in the dark, but found out it was just a telephone line that has been down all day,” said SuperStars store owner Scott Mahr.

“It’s very fortunate that it didn’t affect any of our buildings and didn’t affect any more damage than it already did,” said ChadWick’s store owner Chad Henry.

The driver’s name has not been released. Police stated that Mercer Well Service is paying for all of the damages and have been very corporative during the entire process. Mercer officials did not return our call for comment.

In Pennsylvania, Cell Phone Using Drivers Could Face Punitive Damages

Posted on December 17, 2010 by Adam Gee

We see them every day – its seems like the driver of every 3rd car on the road is distracted. Some are talking on their cell phones, some are texting. Some are checking their e-mail or surfing the web. Some are doing all of the above! But all of them are distracted, and they put the rest of us in danger. As an injury attorney who represents people injured by distracted drivers, it makes me angry. As another driver on the road, distracted drivers make me nervous. As a motorcyclist, distracted drivers scare the hell out of me!

Study after study shows that distracted drivers are just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than drunk drivers. But people who would never consider driving drunk don’t even think twice about pulling out their cellphone and updating their facebook status while cruising down the highway at 80 mph.

We all know the behavior is dangerous. We all know the behavior is illegal. Now, Pennsylvania has made it possible to punish distracted drivers for their dangerous behavior.

In most injury cases, the victim is entitled to be fully fully reimbursed for their economic damages as well as non-economic damages like past and future pain and suffering, but juries aren’t allowed to punish the defendant by awarding the Plaintiff more money. Punitive damages are just that – an award of money to the Plaintiff which is meant to punish the Defendant for particularly egregious behavior. Punitive damages are rarely allowed – they are reserved for those cases where a Defendant’s behavior is so careless as to be considered “reckless”.

A recent case in Pennsylvania (Deringer v. Li, No. GD10-019081 pending in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County) has cleared the way for punitive damages to be imposed in cases where a distracted driver causes an accident. The reasoning behind this decision is that the dangers of using a cell phone while driving are so well known and the extent of the distraction necessary to engage in those activities is so great that the behavior goes beyond mere negligence and constitutes reckless behavior. While this is a wonderful decision for Plaintiffs, it is far from the end of the story. Ultimately, it will be up to a jury to decide whether to award punitive damages, and if there is an award it will be subject to judicial review. But the threat of punitive damages alone may be enough to change someone’s behavior.

Unfortunately, sometimes it takes the threat of something like punitive damages to get people to change their behavior. Pennsylvanians now face a very real threat that their careless, reckless behavior could result in punitive damages. Hopefully New York follows Pennsylvania’s lead.

Please don’t use your cell phones while driving. The lives of my kids and your kids may depend on it.

Thanks for reading, and drive safe!

Adam
_______________________________
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
NY and PA Injury and Accident Attorney
The Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com

Visit the NY Biker Law Blog at www.NYBikerLawBlog.com!

Pennsylvania Tanker Crash Is a BAD Sign of the Changing Times

Posted on October 21, 2010 by Jim Reed

Tioga County Tanker Truck Rearends Car

A horrific rear-end tanker truck crash in Tioga County, PA forced the emergency airlift of two young men from Wellsboro. Sad to say but I think this crash, and many other recent crashes like it, are just the tip of the iceberg for what I expect will be MANY more serious truck vs. car accidents in our area.

As an injury lawyer who has handled countless New York and Pennsylvania car crash cases over the last 25 years, I have started to see a disturbing new trend of many more large truck vs. small car accidents. This trend is the direct result of the greatly increased truck traffic in the Twin Tiers area due to the gas and oil exploration and drilling. Everywhere you go in the area– Elmira, Horseheads, Corning, Wellsboro, Towanda, Waverly– you see huge trucks– tankers, dumptrucks, drilling rigs– and you see the effects of all this truck traffic– crumbling roads, mud smeared roads, leaking fluids. But we are also seeing a huge increase in very seriously people due to car and truck crashes. Car accidents always have the potential for serious injury but when you combine the substantial weight of these big trucks running in to much smaller vehicles you have the recipe for disaster– catastrophic injuries and death.

Although many in the community talk about the good things that the gas drilling can bring to the area, many forget about the downsides. Sad to say but I fear that we are going to see more of our friends and neighbors injured by big truck accidents. We all know that these big trucks are often going too fast, can’t slow down as quickly as a car and are often operated by tired drivers who are working 12 hours shifts 14 days in a row.

Like I said, this is a recipe for disaster…… Now don’t get me wrong, as an injury attorney handling truck accident cases, I know this trend will be good for my business but as someone who lives here, whose family lives here, whose friends live here, I am deeply concerned about local safety. Long ago, I learned that if I do a good job for my clients, I will have no shortage of work and fortunately that has always proved to be true. Accordingly, I can honestly say that I am not looking to see any more people injured and I would be quite happy to see fewer injured people. In fact, as someone who sees first-hand the devastation suffered by the seriously injured, I do everything in my power to educate people to be as safe as possible to avoid injury. But what I know is that none of us can control the actions of other drivers and that’s why I am so concerned about the local consequence of the increased truck traffic. I hope I am wrong about this trend……..

Thanks for reading, Jim

_________________________________

James B. Reed

NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer

Ziff Law Firm, LLP

Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com

Office: (607)733-8866

Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)

Here is the story by the Elmira Star-Gazette that got me thinking about this issue as posted:

Two injured when water tanker hits car in Tioga County

A Wellsboro teenager and his passenger were injured Tuesday when the car they were in was rear-ended by a water truck in Richmond Township, Tioga County, Pa.

State police at Mansfield said Michael T. Watkins, 19, and Joshua E. Bailey, 22, were airlifted to Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre after the crash, which occurred near U.S. Route 6 and Westgate Road.

The crash took place around 10:50 a.m. when the water truck struck the rear of the passenger car, operated by Watkins, as the car was waiting to turn onto Westgate Road.

Watkins and Bailey were extricated from their vehicle by mechanical means and were flown to Robert Packer Hospital by Guthrie Air and Lifeflight.

Watkins was treated at the hospital and discharged. Bailey was transferred to another hospital. A Packer nursing supervisor would not say where Bailey was transferred.

The truck operator, Michael Brostrom, 37, of Wellsboro, was ticketed for driving at an unsafe speed.

Police said Watkins was not wearing his seat belt.

NY Accident Lawyer Offers Do’s & Don’ts for Insurance Medical Exams (IME)

Posted on May 20, 2010 by Jim Reed

In a previous post here on the NY Injury Law Blog, I explained the truth about “Independent” Medical Examination (IME) with the insurance company’s doctor. In the original post: “IME Doctors Change Diagnoses for Insurance Company Exams”, I explained how some doctors deliver the diagnoses that the insurance companies want – because the insurance companies pay fees to the doctors.

If you bring an injury lawsuit or file a no-fault claim in New York or Pennsylvania, the insurance carrier has a right to have you examined by a doctor of their own choosing. This is usually referred to as an “IME” which is an acronym for “Independent Medical Examination.” Don’t let this phrase fool you. There is absolutely nothing that is “independent” about this examination.

An IME is an examination paid for by the insurance company with the hope that they will be able to get ammunition from their doctor that will permit them to terminate or minimize their obligation to fully compensate you for your injuries.

Because these exams are NOT “independent,” I refer to an IME as an “INSURANCE Medical Exam.”

Let’s face it, the insurance company is sending you to THEIR doctor with the hope that they may show you are not as disabled as your doctor says. This is a Dr. who is paid a lot of money by the insurance company to tell them exactly what they want to hear: namely, that you are not injured.

Therefore, the “independent” medical doctor who you are going to see will try to show that you are exaggerating, malingering, magnifying your symptoms, or just pretending.

I wouldn’t represent you if I thought that you were guilty of any of these situations. Nevertheless, sometimes doctors make a “mountain out of a molehill” because they are conditioned to believe that most claimants are malingering, pretending, or exaggerating. Some doctors automatically find, and will testify that the results of their examination indicate that you are malingering, pretending, etc.

The defendant’s doctor is listening to EVERYTHING you say and watching everything you do. He will dictate a report of what he sees and hears immediately when you leave his office.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SHOULD NOT DO OR SAY AT INSURANCE MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS:

• Don’t lie. Ever. A single lie can undermine your whole case.

• Don’t try to outsmart the doctor. You can’t do it.

• Don’t drive yourself to the visit. Try to have your spouse, friend or neighbor drive you.

• Don’t talk about your accident, injuries, insurance company or case in elevators, common areas or doctor’s waiting room.

• Don’t wear dangling jewelry or earrings.

• Don’t jump on and off of the examination table at the doctor’s office.

• Don’t come in tight jeans or cowboy boots.

• Men, don’t come unshaven.

• Ladies, don’t come with make-up on or wearing high heels.

• Don’t leave the doctor’s office in a running trot or quick walk and jump into your car, because the doctor is probably watching you from his or her window.

• Don’t use medical jargon or fancy terminology when discussing your case or describing your symptoms.

• If you are complaining of a neck injury, don’t twist your head back and forth when the doctor is moving about the room in an effort to follow his movements.

• Don’t discuss money or any plans of retirement with the doctor.

• Don’t discuss your marital situation with the doctor unless the exam is for a psychological injury. Your marital situation is not relevant to the present examination. This is a physical examination.

• Don’t exaggerate your problems. Be truthful, but conservative. On the other hand, don’t minimize your problems. Just tell it like it is.

• Don’t moan, groan and wince or grimace in pain every time the doctor touches you. No matter how lightly or heavily the doctor may touch you, be natural, be yourself, tough it out as best you can. However, if what he is doing hurts you, honestly tell him that he is hurting you.

• Don’t ask the doctor for medication or pain pills.

• Don’t talk about your labor union to the doctor.

• Don’t talk to the doctor about the insurance carrier, attorneys or the adjusters.

• If you have a bad back, don’t bend down and untie your shoes. Wear loafers and kick them off/slide them on.

• Don’t allow the insurance company’s representative to be in the examining room with you when the doctor examines you. Simply explain to the doctor that you deem physical examinations to be private and would like to have the representative leave the room. Be polite and sincere when you say this.

• Do not discuss with the doctor the amount of your claim or the amount of wages you used to make. Politely decline to do so by saying that the insurance company has that information.

• Do not discuss with the doctor whether you have any hearings coming up on your case.

• Do not discuss what you deserve for a settlement or your plans for spending the money you may get.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SHOULD DO OR SAY AT THE INDEPENDENT MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS:

• Be honest and cooperative with the doctor.

• Be pleasant. At the same time, you should not behave in such a fashion that the doctor can say you were laughing during the examination.

• Be concerned. Be serious. Be polite. Give the doctor accurate, but brief, history on how your accident or injury occurred.

• Give the doctor an accurate history of your job details and what you do in terms of lifting, bending, stooping, carrying, and walking.

• If the doctor asks you about any previous injuries or illnesses you had before the present one, be honest and tell him the nature of any injuries you had, and whether you had surgery in connection with those previous injuries. On the other hand, do not volunteer information.

• If the doctor asks if you have had any previous workers’ compensation claims, you should say to him, “I’ve had previous workers injuries” (if that is true). However, you should always disclose any injury whether it is work related or not if the doctor asks you for a previous history of injuries.

• Be aware that the doctor is sometimes performing the same test on you in more than one fashion and in more than one way. For example, the doctor may test your legs when you are sitting up and when you are lying down. This is the same test. Therefore, if you complain of pain inconsistently, the doctor is going to make note of it. Don’t try in any way to magnify or exaggerate your pain. Let the truth come out and we will obtain a more favorable report from the doctor. If you exaggerate your pain, or if you are inconsistent, or if you try to impress the doctor with the significance of your pain, this will only give the doctor ammunition with which to hurt your case.

• If you are totally disabled, explain to the doctor that if there was any way you could be back at work, you would be there.

• If you have a long work history (a long history is 5 years or more) emphasize to the doctor that you have worked for this employer for a significant number of years and you would like to get back to work.

• If you have a short history of work with the employer and you enjoyed your job, explain to the doctor that although your employment with this employer was brief, you enjoyed working there and would like to return to work.

• When you are giving a history to the doctor as to how the accident occurred, please mention all injuries that you suffered as a result of this accident. For example, if you mainly injured your back when you fell, but you also hurt your knee, mention that you hurt your left or right knee (as the case may be). If, when you tried to stop your fall you pushed out your hands, mention that your primary pain is in your back, but you tried to break your fall with your hands and you also bruised them.

• Remember, the person who tells the doctor that he/she does absolutely nothing all day is less likely to be believed than a person who says, “I try to be active or I try to do some chores, but I suffer for it the next couple of days.”

• Finally, ask the doctor to send a copy of his or her evaluation to your treating doctor.

IMPORTANT: IME doctors will often exaggerate the time they spent questioning and examining you. To combat this, it is imperative that you keep track of the time you spent with the doctor. Do not be obvious about doing so but glance at your watch so you can accurately advise us of the times.

ALSO IMPORTANT: As soon as you are home, sit down and write down every detail you can recall of your exam (i.e. time spent with a nurse or doctor, questions asked by the doctor and your answers, tests performed by the doctor, etc.). We understand that you can’t remember everything but just do the best you can.

If you have any questions your IME, contact us. The Ziff Law Firm even has a videotape to help clients prepare for an IME. Please contact our office for a consultation, and check the post “IME Doctors Change Diagnoses for Insurance Company Exams” to be forewarned about this important part of your injury case.

Thanks for reading and let me know if you have any questions,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

E-mail me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

Your “Independent” Medical Examination (IME) with the

Insurance Company’s Doctor

If you bring an injury lawsuit or file a no-fault claim in NY or Pennsylvania, the insurance carrier has a right to have you examined by a doctor of their own choosing. This is usually referred to as an “IME” which is an abbreviation for “Independent Medical Examination”. But don’t let this phrase fool you. There is absolutely nothing that is “independent” about this examination. This is an examination paid for by the insurance company with the hope that they will be able to get ammunition from their doctor that will permit them to terminate or minimize their obligation to fully compensate you for your injuries.

Because these exams are NOT “independent”, I refer to an IME as an “INSURANCE Medical Exam”.

Therefore, the “independent” medical doctor who you are going to see will try to show that you are exaggerating, malingering, magnifying your symptoms, or just pretending.

The defendant’s doctor is listening to EVERYTHING you say and watching everything you do. He will dictate a report of what he sees and hears immediately when you leave his office.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SHOULD NOT DO OR SAY AT INSURANCE MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS:

· Don’t lie. Ever. A single lie can undermine your whole case.

· Don’t try to outsmart the doctor. You can’t do it.

· Don’t drive yourself to the visit. Try to have your spouse, friend or neighbor drive you.

· Don’t talk about your accident, injuries, insurance company or case in elevators, common areas or doctor’s waiting room.

· Don’t wear dangling jewelry or earrings.

· Don’t jump on and off of the examination table at the doctor’s office.

· Don’t come in tight jeans or cowboy boots.

· Men, don’t come unshaven.

· Ladies, don’t come with make-up on or wearing high heels.

· Don’t leave the doctor’s office in a running trot or quick walk and jump into your car, because the doctor is probably watching you from his or her window.

· Don’t use medical jargon or fancy terminology when discussing your case or describing your symptoms.

· If you are complaining of a neck injury, don’t twist your head back and forth when the doctor is moving about the room in an effort to follow his movements.

· Don’t discuss money or any plans of retirement with the doctor.

· Don’t discuss your marital situation with the doctor unless the exam is for a psychological injury. Your marital situation is not relevant to the present examination. This is a physical examination.

· Don’t exaggerate your problems. Be truthful, but conservative. On the other hand, don’t minimize your problems. Just tell it like it is.

· Don’t moan, groan and wince or grimace in pain every time the doctor touches you. No matter how lightly or heavily the doctor may touch you, be natural, be yourself, tough it out as best you can. However, if what he is doing hurts you, honestly tell him that he is hurting you.

· Don’t ask the doctor for medication or pain pills.

· Don’t talk about your labor union to the doctor.

· Don’t talk to the doctor about the insurance carrier, attorneys or the adjusters.

· If you have a bad back, don’t bend down and untie your shoes. Wear loafers and kick them off/slide them on.

· Don’t allow the insurance company’s representative to be in the examining room with you when the doctor examines you. Simply explain to the doctor that you deem physical examinations to be private and would like to have the representative leave the room. Be polite and sincere when you say this.

· Do not discuss with the doctor the amount of your claim or the amount of wages you used to make. Politely decline to do so by saying that the insurance company has that information.

· Do not discuss with the doctor whether you have any hearings coming up on your case.

· Do not discuss what you deserve for a settlement or your plans for spending the money you may get.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SHOULD DO OR SAY AT THE INDEPENDENT MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS:

· Be honest and cooperative with the doctor.

· Be pleasant. At the same time, you should not behave in such a fashion that the doctor can say you were laughing during the examination.

· Be concerned. Be serious. Be polite. Give the doctor accurate, but brief, history on how your accident or injury occurred.

· Give the doctor an accurate history of your job details and what you do in terms of lifting, bending, stooping, carrying, and walking.

· If the doctor asks you about any previous injuries or illnesses you had before the present one, be honest and tell him the nature of any injuries you had, and whether you had surgery in connection with those previous injuries. On the other hand, do not volunteer information.

· If the doctor asks if you have had any previous workers’ compensation claims, you should say to him, “I’ve had previous workers injuries” (if that is true). However, you should always disclose any injury whether it is work related or not if the doctor asks you for a previous history of injuries.

· Be aware that the doctor is sometimes performing the same test on you in more than one fashion and in more than one way. For example, the doctor may test your legs when you are sitting up and when you are lying down. This is the same test. Therefore, if you complain of pain inconsistently, the doctor is going to make note of it. Don’t try in any way to magnify or exaggerate your pain. Let the truth come out and we will obtain a more favorable report from the doctor. If you exaggerate your pain, or if you are inconsistent, or if you try to impress the doctor with the significance of your pain, this will only give the doctor ammunition with which to hurt your case.

· If you are totally disabled, explain to the doctor that if there was any way you could be back at work, you would be there.

· If you have a long work history (a long history is 5 years or more) emphasize to the doctor that you have worked for this employer for a significant number of years and you would like to get back to work.

· If you have a short history of work with the employer and you enjoyed your job, explain to the doctor that although your employment with this employer was brief, you enjoyed working there and would like to return to work.

· When you are giving a history to the doctor as to how the accident occurred, please mention all injuries that you suffered as a result of this accident. For example, if you mainly injured your back when you fell, but you also hurt your knee, mention that you hurt your left or right knee (as the case may be). If, when you tried to stop your fall you pushed out your hands, mention that your primary pain is in your back, but you tried to break your fall with your hands and you also bruised them.

· Remember, the person who tells the doctor that he/she does absolutely nothing all day is less likely to be believed than a person who says, “I try to be active or I try to do some chores, but I suffer for it the next couple of days”.

· Finally, ask the doctor to send a copy of his or her evaluation to your treating doctor.

If you have any questions about the above, please let us know now, before your IME. If you have not already viewed the videotape regarding preparing for your IME, please contact our office to set up an appointment to see the videotape before your IME.

Ziff Law Firm, LLP

303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902

Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062

Toll Free 1-800-943-3529

www.zifflaw.com

5 Important Signs That a Debt Collector Has Gone Too Far

Posted on April 14, 2010 by Jim Reed

My colleague Matt Hughson, a bankruptcy and real estate attorney with the Ziff Law Firm, recently posted a guest posts on his blog, the NY Bankruptcy Law Blog, by Sergei Lemberg, a Stamford, Connecticut, attorney and consumer advocate.

I wanted to share Sergei’s post on the NY Injury Law Blog as well, because although it may seem to be off-topic, dealing with medical debt is a serious problem for many of injury victims. They may be facing huge hospital bills at the same time they are unable to work because of an accident.

Sergei is best known for helping his clients get fair and just treatment from debt collectors and for protecting the rights of his clients under the Lemon Law. Here’s Sergei’s take on debt collection and how you can get relief from hounding by collectors:

“Debt collection calls usually make people mad, frustrated, and sometimes even hopeless. Debt collection agencies are known for socking it to people when they’re down, and will use any number of tactics to take advantage of vulnerabilities in an attempt to get people to pay.

Most people don’t know that there is a very strict federal law that regulates what collectors can and cannot do when they’re attempting to collect a debt. It’s called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If a debt collection agency violates the FDCPA, it can be sued in federal court. You, as a consumer, can receive up to $1,000, any actual damages, and payment of your attorney fees.

But how do you know when a debt collector crosses the line?

Here are the TOP FIVE five transgressions that Debt Collectors TRY to GET AWAY WITH:

1. Embarrassing you. Embarrassment can take a number of forms, but the FDCPA is very clear that shaming you is against the law. For example, it’s illegal for a debt collector to send you a postcard in the mail, or an envelope with writing on the outside that indicates the letter is an attempt to collect a debt. Similarly, an agency can’t publish your name or tell others that you owe money.

2. Sending fake documentation. Debt collection agencies often send mailings that look as though they’re official court or government documents. This is against the law. This is a favorite tactic because unsuspecting consumers often respond to what they perceive as official mail.

3. Calling you at all hours of the day and night. The FDCPA says a debt collector can’t call you early in the morning, late at night, or at work – unless you’ve indicated that you’d like to be called at those times. In addition, debt collection agencies can’t repeatedly call and hang up, or call to the point of harassment.

4. Charging you more than you owe. Third party debt collectors will often try to get every penny they can, and will try to tack on a “collection fee” or extra interest charge. This is illegal.

5. Misusing postdated checks. In an attempt to make the harassment stop, consumers will often send a debt collection agency a series of postdated checks. All too often, the collector will deposit those checks early, leading the consumer into even more hot water as he or she racks up bank overdraft charges. The FDCPA prohibits this practice, and requires that debt collectors send you written notice of their intent to deposit your check.

Difficult to believe that people in business – even the business of collecting debts – try to get away with these tactics. Unfortunately, if you don’t know your legal rights, that’s just what they’ll do: Get away with it.

Check out Sergei’s Web site, StopCollector.com, for more information about your rights if you’re in debt.

Thanks for reading,

Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

E-mail me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

Error in Judgment Rule FINALLY kicked to the Curb in Pennsylvania

Posted on December 23, 2009 by Christina Sonsire

For the past two years I have been litigating a medical malpractice case involving a woman who was catastrophically injured at a hospital in Northern Pennsylvania when her surgeon cut the wrong part of her anatomy during a routine procedure. The case is seated in Federal Court in the Western District of New York because the woman is a resident of New York and the hospital is located in Pennsylvania. Under the rules governing diversity jurisdiction — a situation where the parties reside or are domiciled in different states — the Federal Court is required to apply Pennsylvania law to the action.

The case is still being litigated, and therefore I will not divulge the details of the woman’s injuries or how the injury occurred. In fact, the interesting part of the case for now does not involve the malpractice itself, but rather the defendants’ primary defense to it.

Throughout the litigation the defendants have relied upon a principle called the “Error in Judgment” rule. Under this principle, a surgeon could be excused for his negligence by claiming that although in retrospect it appears he made errors during a procedure, he used his best judgment at the time and therefore did not violate the standard of care. The main problem with the defense for injured people is that it theoretically excuses medical providers for all but intentional conduct, leaving plaintiffs with little recourse.

However, it appears the days when a surgeon can argue “I thought I did it right at the time and therefore am not to blame” are over, at least in Pennsylvania. In August, Pennsylvania’s Superior Court handed down a ruling in Pringle v. Rapaport, 2009 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3267 (2009) where it held the “Error in Judgment” is inconstant with Pennsylvania law.

Pringle is a medical malpractice case involving a child who suffered extensive nerve damage in his neck as a result of shoulder dystocia, a condition in which an infant’s shoulder is stuck behind his mother’s pubic bone at the time of delivery. The child’s parents sued the delivery physician, claiming the physician negligently executed a maneuver (the “corkscrew maneuver”) to dislodge the child’s shoulder, resulting in injury. The parties agreed the physician correctly diagnosed the child with shoulder dystocia and appropriately chose to administer the corkscrew maneuver. The only remaining issue was whether the physician properly executed the maneuver. At trial, the Court instructed the jury, inter alia, physicians “are not liable for a mere mistake in judgment”. Id. at 1-4.

On appeal, the Superior Court – after addressing several seminal Pennsylvania cases dealing with the “Error in Judgment” charge – held the question of whether a physician exercised sound judgment is not relevant to whether the surgeon committed malpractice. Id. at 40-42. Indeed, the Court further reasoned the “Error of Judgment” charge “is inherently confusing and has no place in medical malpractice cases” for at least two reasons:

“[I]t wrongly suggests to the jury that a physician is not culpable for one type of negligence – the negligent exercise of his or her own judgment”; and

“[I]t wrongly injects a subjective element into the jury’s deliberations”…and may lead the jury “to conclude that only judgments made in bad faith are culpable – even though a doctor’s subjective intentions while rendering treatment are likewise irrelevant to the issues placed before a jury in a medical malpractice action.”

This is very good news for people who suffer injuries due to medical malpractice in Pennsylvania, and will hopefully result in greater safety and caution in hospitals.

Thanks for reading!

Christina Bruner Sonsire, Esq.