Monthly Archives: April 2012

Assault

Family of Beaten and Killed Man Sues

The family of Eric Benson, a man who was assaulted and killed in Portland two years ago, is now suing the attacker and the bar he was at before the assault.  Benson’s family claims that negligence and recklessness in the lawsuit filed in Cumberland County Superior Court against the assaulter, William Googines, and the operators of the Oasis bar.

Googins had made sexual advances on Benson’s friend.  When Benson stood up for the girl, Googins punched him.  Benson struck his head on the ground and died hours later.  Googins was convicted of assault.  Benson’s family is seeking unspecified damages.

Product Defect

MLB Veteran Umpire Sues Wilson Sporting Goods

Ed Hickox, a Major League Baseball veteran umpire, is suing Wilson Sporting Goods over his umpire mask.  On April 18, 2009 a foul tip struck him hard in the mask, causing a concussion and left ear injury.  He had to sit out the rest of the season, and is now suing Wilson and its parent company.  He claims that Wilson manufactured a faulty mask that “cracked into pieces upon impact and didn’t protect an umpire in the way it is reportedly designed to do.”

However, this is not the first time Hickox is suing Wilson.  Two years ago, he sued and won $775,000 from a similar foul ball incident.  Interestingly, no other suits against manufactures from umpires are known.  Hickox is also suing for mental anguish as he has had several surgeries and ongoing medical expenses.  His wife is also a plaintiff as she has been forced to care and assist her husband in excess of normal amounts.  The amount the two plaintiffs are seeking is undisclosed.  This definitely seems to be an interesting case considering the history of the plaintiff and the difficult task the lawyers have in proving that Wilson was extremely negligent in order to win punitive damages on top of actual damages.

Traffic Accidents

Southwestern Energy Corp. Sued by Woman after Collision

In the summer of 2010, a Smith County woman’s car was hit by a Southwestern Energy Corp company vehicle.  Two minor children were passengers in the car at the time of the incident.  The Energy Corp vehicle changed lanes and hit the rear of the woman’s vehicle.  The plaintiff claims that the defendant failed to control his speed, properly apply his brakes and properly keep a lookout.  All of these factors led to him hitting the woman and two children.

The plaintiff is seeking damages for physical pain, mental anguish, lost earnings, physical impairment, medical expenses, lost earning capacity, interest and court costs for both her and the children.  Currently, it is awaiting trial.  The plaintiff’s lawyer requested a jury trial.

Accidents at Work

DuPont Allowed the Vapors that Killed Welder to Collect

In 2010, a welder was killed due to DuPont allowing flammable vapors to go undetected.  The welder’s torch ignited the blast, killing him.  US Chemical Safety Board Chairman, Rafael Moure-Eraso said that this type of accidents “occur at an alarming rate….This is not limited to one corporation.”  However, this explosion was especially concerning because it came after three safety lapses at another DuPont plant.  One of the safety lapses even resulted in the death of a worker and another being exposed to toxic gases.

This case happened because DuPont employees who were unfamiliar with the danger cleared the welder to begin maintenance.  Clearly, DuPont has some safety issues, especially when it comes to disseminating safety information.

Attorney Malpractice

Texas Attorney Malpractice Suit

Tiffany Johnson and Anderson Johnson III, individually and on behalf of minor children, filed a lawsuit against their personal injury attorney following their car accident.  They claim that their personal injury attorney was negligent, and are also suing for fraud and breach of fiduciary duty.  The plaintiffs claim that in 2009 they hired the attorney after a serious automobile accident.  The attorney then settled the suit for only $60,000 without their consent.  If this is true, it is clearly a breach of his fiduciary duty.

The family is now seeking court costs, damages and attorney fees.  They feel they have been unjustly represented and are not happy with the settlement amount or how the settlement occurred.

Class Action

Class Action Suit against DuPont

A class action lawsuit has been brought against DuPont Chemical Company with regard to their new weed killer.  It claims that the weed killer, Imprelis, is killing trees, shrubs and ornamental planets.  While it is extremely good at killing dandelions, ground ivy, weeds, etc. it is also good at killing trees, especially those with short root systems.

The suit seeks damages for all the property that was injured, an injunction barring DuPont from selling the product and punitive damages.  The prosecution argues that DuPont was either negligent in testing Imprelis or reckless in bringing it to market.  The prosecution attorneys are urging those who have dying trees in areas where Imprelis is used, to take photos and to not credit the dying trees to drought or bad weather.  They expect this class-action to unfold over the next couple of years.

Defective Drugs

NuvaRing Lawsuits Near One Thousand against Merck

Alonso Krangle LLP is leading the lawsuits against Merck over the NuvaRing.  The claimed side effects include: blood clots, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, heart attacks, strokes and wrongful death.  In Merck’s 10K it reported that more than 950 NuvaRing lawsuits have been filed.  These cases include effects such as blood clots, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, heart attacks, strokes or wrongful death.  Many class action and individual lawsuits are currently pending against Merck.  The majority of them will appear before a court in Missouri and New Jersey.

The prosecution claims there was a failure to warn the public and medical community of known and potential dangers of the drug, breach of warranty, consumer fraud, negligence, and common law fraud.  Consumers are also seeking punitive damages.  Many of the class actions are still accepting individuals who feel they have experience these side effects.  Contact one of them today if you have used NuvaRing and experienced any of the above.

Defective Drugs

Breast Cancer Survivor Awarded Four Million

A jury recently awarded $4 million to a breast cancer survivor for compensatory and punitive damages.  They found that her hormone-replacement therapy drug Prempro caused the breast cancer.  And, Wyeth, Inc, the manufacturer of the drug, failed to provide adequate warnings regarding the knowable risk.  Prempro was a dangerous product and Wyeth was negligent in testing, studying and investigating the risks.

The jury took less than a day to deliberate and deliver a verdict.  This indicates that the plaintiff’s case was strong and the link between the drug and cancer was clear.

Defective Drugs

Pfizer Birth Control Pills Didn’t Work

Women who became pregnant while taking Pfizer’s contraceptives are now suing.  Pfizer issued a recall notice because some of the drugs were improperly packaged.  However, this has left many with pregnancies and a life-changing experience even though they were responsible.  Pfizer recalled one million packages of birth control pills, Lo/Ovral, and Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol tablets.

The defective table packages included pills that were out of sequences or the wrong number of inert pills was included.  This left women unprotected for several days each month.  Consequently, women became pregnant.  The women who are suing are suing for the compensation necessary to deal with the consequences.  This could include doctor bills, loss of pay, baby expenses and more.

Insurance

MaineCare Cuts Inspires Federal Lawsuit

MaineCare, Maine’s version of Medicaid, cut benefits for hundreds of legal immigrants.  This measure was supported by Governor Paul LePage.  The lawsuit is now being brought forth by Maine Equal Justice Partners and the ACLU of Maine Foundation in behalf of Hans Bruns, a man who lost his benefits while battling cancer, along with 500 others.  The advocacy groups argue that MaineCare is putting people in jeopardy of dying from treatable illnesses.

Last summer, state lawmakers imposed a five-year waiting period for legal immigrants to qualify for MaineCare.  This affected the 500 people and individual mentioned above.  Bruns has been a legal permanent resident since late 2007 and began receiving MaineCare benefits in December 2010 after he became disabled.  These benefits were then eliminated in October 2011, and several months later he was diagnosed with a rare cancer.  Now, it looks as though he will die before he reaches the five-year mark allowing him to receive MaineCare benefits.

The lawsuit claims that the change in eligibility violates the US Constitution because it treats legal noncitizen residents differently from US citizens.  They reference the Equal Protection Clause which applies to every person, regardless of citizenship.