Uninsured Motorist In Wisconsin November 9, 2009
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury, Motorcycle Collisions, Wisconsin Auto Accidents.Tags: helping small firms with big cases, personal injury, Uninsured Motorist Coverage
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What happens if you are involved in an auto accident and the at fault person says they have no insurance. How do you know if they are lying?
One of the “tricks of the trade” is using the State’s resources and power to pull the at fault driver’s license for a year or until payment of damages is made.
The form that is sometimes used is t342. I suggest you call the Wisconsin DMV or a person injury attorney with any questions about what to do when confronted with this situation.
Jury Trials – The Importance of Facts September 29, 2009
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: jury trial, personal injury, verdict, Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney
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If you don’t read Anne Reed’s blog then you’ve been missing out on a ton of great tips and news related to jury trials. It’s on my IGoogle page and I anxiously await every post.
Anne’s latest post is about a personal injury trial from California. In short, you can argue with emotion, logic or both but many times the facts themselves are the most powerful.
Anne will be speaking at this year’s Wisconsin Solo and Small Firm Conference. Don’t forget to register asap.
Nursing Homes Questioned About Dispensing Drugs September 7, 2009
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in Personal Injury Law.Tags: Nursing Home Abuse, personal injury
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Check out this Journal Sentinel story about Nursing Homes.
Six nursing homes were searched by the DEA:
The nursing homes were:
Beaver Dam Care Center in Beaver Dam; Colony Oaks Care Center in Appleton; Heritage Square in Greendale; Mount Carmel Milwaukee in Greenfield; Village Gardens in Green Bay; and Woodstock Health and Rehab in Kenosha.
The story alleges that these nursing homes may have been dispensing prescription drugs without doctor’s authorization.
Rotator Cuff Injury June 18, 2009
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in Motorcycle Collisions, Personal Injury Law, Wisconsin Auto Accidents.Tags: personal injury, Personal Injury Law, rotator cuff injury, wisconsin personal injury, Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney
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“Rotator Cuff Injury”
I think this is a phrase that is pretty widely used. We often hear announcers talk about a rotator cuff injury during a football game. It’s pretty common. But, this phrase is so widely used that it may not be completely understood. Everyone assumes that everyone else knows what it means.
Well, the Doe Report has some medical illustrations of a shoulder and rotator cuff. Take the opportunity to look it over. It is pretty interesting stuff.
Personal injury attorneys use these types of illustrations often to help teach juries about the objective findings of injury. People can talk and talk but looking at picture often makes the information sink in.
Injury at Work January 8, 2009
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in Motorcycle Collisions, Personal Injury Law, Wisconsin Auto Accidents.Tags: car accident, injury compensation, personal injury, Personal Injury Law, Wisconsin car accident lawyer
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I was asked recently about a worker’s compensation question. For full disclosure I handle only workplace injuries against third parties. For example, if you are driving a work vehicle and involved in a car accident I would help you obtain compensation for pain and suffering, mileage to the doctor, doctors bills, property damage, rental vehicle and lost wages etc. This claim is against the at fault driver, i.e. the third party.
In addition to the claim against the at fault driver the injured person has a claim with workers compensation insurance. These types of claims are called first party claims. I don’t handle these. But, I work with attorneys across Wisconsin who do a great job.
Anyway, the question was whether an employer can force an employee to sign a contract to waive any worker’s compensation benefits.
This is what I found from Wisconsin’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance:
An employer subject to the Act may not withhold or
collect any money from employees or any other
person, including independent contractors and
subcontractors, to pay for worker’s compensation
insurance. To do so is illegal. Also, no agreement by
an employee waiving rights to compensation is valid.
[s. 102.16 (3) and 102.16 (5), Wis. Stat.]
I hope this answers your question!
Jon Groth is a Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney handling cases throughout Wisconsin and most recently in Wauwatosa, West Allis, Sheboygan, Plymouth, and Germantown.
If you’d like to submit a question or case please complete a case submission form.
Tech Savvy Trucks Saving Lives? September 12, 2008
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: personal injury, truck accidents, Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney
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The Department of Transportation released a report stating that fatalities involving truck (semi-tractor trailers) collisions are down almost 4%. One of the reasons may be the additional of collision avoidance and lane departure warning/monitoring systems.
This reminded me of some recent semi-truck matters I’ve handled. If you are injured because of a trucker’s negligence be sure to immediately request a copy of the trucks “black box,” gps system and other tracking data. Nowadays, most every truck company keeps tabs on their trucks. This information can be invaluable to the prosecution of a claim for personal injuries.
Jon Groth is a Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney handling cases throughout Wisconsin and most recently in Hartford, Jackson, New Berlin and Wauwatosa.
Side Note About the Business of Personal Injury Law August 12, 2008
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: personal injury, wisconsin personal injury, Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney
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Ever wonder why a whole bunch of kind-of-related web pages will show up when you search on google or yahoo. For example, when you type “Wisconsin Dog Bite Attorney” attorneys from Illinois, Michigan and California pop up in your results. (Quick hint: Make sure you read the entire web page and know where your attorney is licensed. Or, when you call ask if they have the ability to file a lawsuit in your state.)
I think the reason is embedded keywords. You can’t see them unless you look at the “source” of the web page. I’ve cut and pasted from a few websites that came up when I searched for “Wisconsin Dog Bite Attorney”.
I thought the content was interesting:
meta name=”keywords” content=”milwaukee, wisconsin, wi, kenosha, racine, chicago, il, injury, accident, lawyer, attorney, lawsuit, damage, scarring, negligence, auto, car, motor vehicle, premises liability, livestock, pet, dog, pit bull, doberman, cow, cattle, animal, bite, bitten, attack, property, attorny, atorney, attornies, lawer, laywer, medical malpractice,birth injuries,nursing home negligence,personal injury,car accident,auto accidents,products liability,wrongful death,animal attacks,premises liability,transportation accidents,misdiagnosis,doctor error,medical mistakes,construction liability,commercial litigation,cerebral palsy, palsy,brain damage,cancer misdiagnosis,hospital negligence,nursing home abuse,slip and fall,tractor trailer collisions,boating accident,car crash,dog bites,aviation accident, wreck, lawyers, attorneys, legal, law, firm, lawfirm, practice, Illinois, Wisconsin, IL, WI, Chicago, Aurora, Rockford,Naperville,Joliet,Springfield,Peoria,Waukegan,Elgin,Schaumburg,Wheaton,Urbana,Rock Island,Moline,Lake Forest,Zion,Antioch,Gurnee,Kenosha,Racine,Lake Geneva,Pleasant Prairie,Twin Lakes,Aturtevant,Burlington,Beloit,Janesville,Monroe,Kenosha County,Racine County,Walworth County,Rock County,Green County
Notice there are lots of mispelled words just in case you and me are in a hurry and don’t know exactly how a city or “attorney” is spelled. Also, “cow” and “cattle” are embedded in a “dog bite” search. Kind of weird, huh?
Save your client’s time July 17, 2008
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: personal injury, wisconsin personal injury, Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney
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In personal injury law once a lawsuit is filed time seems to slow to a crawl. In Wisconsin, defendants have 45 days to answer, judges can often take as long as they want to call a hearing to set the schedule of the case. Once the scheduling hearing comes along the deadlines set may be a year away.
There is little that a plaintiff can control concerning a lawsuit’s timetable. So, the things that a plaintiff’s attorney can control must be in the plaintiff’s best interest, i.e. move the case along.
One quick, and relatively easy, way to speed up the process is to file the plaintiff’s witness list with the Summons and Complaint. This can save up 60 or 90 days in the litigation process. Also, serve your interrogatories and requests for production of documents with the Summons and Complaint. The sooner the plaintiff has important information about the defendant the sooner depositions can be taken and the sooner the trial will come.
Jon Groth is a Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney handling cases throughout Wisconsin and most recently in Beloit, Racine, Sheboygan and Wauwatosa.
Structured Settlements – not exciting but very important July 15, 2008
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: personal injury, structured settlement, wisconsin personal injury
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I’ve had the luxury of working with some premier structured settlement planners over the years. Personal Injury attorneys call on these professionals if an injured victim receives a sizable settlement or verdict and there is the need to ensure that the victim will have these funds, guaranteed, for years to come.
In general, what is a structured settlement?
- It’s a settlement in which some or all proceeds are paid over time instead of all up front.
- It must be written into the settlement agreement;
- The obligation to make payments is assigned by the defendant (at fault insurance company) to an assignment company which purchases an annuity;
- The “customer” buying the annuity is an assignment company NOT the injured party;
- The payout is fixed and determinable.
Structured settlement is are smart ideas in many cases. Ask your personal injury attorney whether your case or your child’s case fits the criteria.
Umbrella for Coverage July 14, 2008
Posted by Attorney Jonathan Groth in FAQ Personal Injury.Tags: homeowners policy, personal injury, umbrella policy, underinsured motorist coverage, wisconsin personal injury
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Here is an insurance tip. Ask your insurance agent about an umbrella policy. An umbrella policy will provide a large sum of liability coverage (oftentimes $1 million or more) over and above your home owners coverage and can be added to your auto insurance coverage.
In Wisconsin, the Court of Appeals has ruled that insurers issuing umbrella policies that are excess over primary automobile liability insurance must provide underinsured motorist coverage. See Nault v. West Bend Mut. Ins. Co., 2007 AP 1670 (released May 20, 2008). So, if you have an umbrella policy ($1 million) and are in an serious auto accident caused by an underinsured motorist (let’s say for example the at fault driver only has insurance coverage totalling $25,000.00) you will be protected by your $1 million policy.
Take advantage of Wisconsin law. Ask your insurance agent about it. Relatively speaking, an umbrella policy tied to your auto insurance policy is inexpensive. It’s the smart choice.
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