On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Asbestos-Related Disease or Illness on Monday, February 20, 2012
An Illinois court will soon be hearing an appeal of a $17.8 million verdict concerning employee injuries and illnesses that came about due to asbestos exposure. This case was interesting in that the trial jury had concluded that a number of companies conspired with each other to keep quiet any information concerning the hazards of asbestos. Now whether such a conspiracy did exist is being questioned.
One problem in trying asbestos related litigation is that the actual exposure to the asbestos may have happened long ago, and often the company that was actually responsible for the exposure has gone bankrupt or is out of business. Research into the dangers of asbestos may have been almost nonexistent more than 50-years ago, and the research that did exist was of a questionable nature or had no significance whatsoever.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Premises Liability on Thursday, February 16, 2012
We are in a locality ripe for many different kinds of premises liability lawsuits. There are many buildings around Chicago that are in dilapidated shape and likely to fall down at anytime. Such a circumstance recently did occur on the South Side when a three-story building partially collapsed resulting in traffic being diverted and four people being taken to the hospital.
Five separate ambulances were called to the accident site where a portion of the roof of the building collapsed and fell onto the street. Three of the individuals injured were in fair to serious condition as a result of the collapse, and another individual taken to the hospital was listed in good condition. The accident occurred at 12:30 p.m. during the middle of the week when there were would have been a number of individuals in the vicinity.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Swimming Pool Accidents on Monday, February 13, 2012
A recent drowning in a swimming pool accident that received national attention demonstrates why individuals in Chicago should take swimming pool safety seriously. Recreation officials admitted that they allowed swimmers to use a murky swimming pool at the same time that a drowned woman's body remained submerged and unnoticed by those at the pool.
The pool was cloudy enough that it took two days to discover the woman's body. Nevertheless, with such cloudy conditions in the pool, the pool remained open to the public (including children) until the woman's body was discovered. Those recreation officials in charge of maintaining the pool had been criminally charged with reckless endangerment of children that were using the pool.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Dog Bites and Animal Attacks on Thursday, February 9, 2012
Two more pit bulls were involved in a recent dog attack in Chicago. An elderly couple pet sitting for one of the dogs watched as the pit bull suddenly attacked one of their dogs. The pit bull then turned on the couple.
When the police arrived on the scene a number of minutes later, the victim of the attack was covered with blood and was still being savaged by the pit bull. The police attempted to get the pit bull to release the grip, but when this failed the police then had to shoot the dog to save the victim's life. The wife of the man attacked was also injured after being bit a number of times on the arm.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Asbestos-Related Disease or Illness on Monday, February 6, 2012
There is often a criticism of the way asbestos cases are heard in that such matters are allegedly tried in an assembly line fashion at the courts. Currently, in Madison County in southwest Illinois, there are 506 mesothelioma cases filed in 2010 while there were only 137 cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in the entire state in 2007.
Part of the reason that many of the cases are filed in one court (as in most matters concerning venue) is the convenience of the parties. A former judge that has heard a large number of such cases felt that it made more sense for a corporation to defend the cases in one single venue than to be forced to defend the cases in a variety of venues across the country.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Premises Liability on Thursday, February 2, 2012
The Illinois governor is making various appointments to a work injury panel which has been formed in part because of the high premiums that employers pay for Workers Compensation' insurance within our state due to workplace accidents. Likewise, a number of proposals have been passed requiring that arbitrators appointed to Workers' Compensation cases be attorneys that have received training in conducting such procedures and who have to follow and abide by the same ethical practices as judges.
The reforms are expected to decrease Workers' Compensation costs by approximately 9 percent and save Illinois employers around $500 million a year. Yet the policy behind the reforms in saving costs does not necessarily coincide with increased workers' safety.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Slip and Fall Accidents on Monday, January 30, 2012
Chicago residents probably understand more than most locations that slip and fall accidents can be extremely serious in nature. A recent jury verdict of $2.3 million concerning a slip and fall injury validates this point. While shopping at a Kroger's Grocery Store, the plaintiff slipped on a piece of crushed fruit in front of the deli and then fell down upon his back.
The fall resulted in the plaintiff suffering a spinal cord injury, and he was forced to undergo several surgeries concerning the placement of hardware to stabilize the spine. The plaintiff's medical expenses were $135,000. More importantly, he has not been able to return to his job as landscaper and will likely continue to be deprived on his wages due to his injuries.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Premises Liability on Friday, January 27, 2012
A Chicago woman recently died in a fire just as she was stepping off of an elevator. The woman probably never realized what was happening until it was too late as the elevator door opened up to temperatures in excess of 1,500 degrees.
It has been speculated that the premises where the accident occurred likely violated various building codes. An elevator consultant stated that elevators are required to be fitted with fire sensors on every floor to prevent these types of occurrences. However, this particular building was constructed in the 1950s and therefore was not required to meet national building codes established in 1975.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Dog Bites and Animal Attacks on Tuesday, January 24, 2012
A jogger from Chicago lost his left foot and part of his left leg during a dog attack that occurred along the shores of Lake Michigan. Two pit bulls attacked the jogger who was quoted as saying: "They gnawed at my body like hamburger."
The jogger attacked was under the impression that the dogs may have been trained to kill. The jogger's attempts to fight off the dogs may only have agitated the animals even more as the dogs became even more aggressive. Even an attempt to rescue the man from the animals did little to fend the animals off. The dogs finally were shot by the police to end the attack.
On behalf of Cavanagh Law Group posted in Asbestos-Related Disease or Illness on Friday, January 20, 2012
Though such verdicts are sometimes set aside on other grounds, lawsuits in Illinois and elsewhere involving exposure to asbestos are sometimes coming back with jury verdicts of more than six figures. A Mississippi judge set aside such a verdict against Union Carbide that could have cost the company $322 million.
The verdict would likely have been reduced in any case due to restrictions in Mississippi on punitive damages. But though this particular jury verdict was vacated because a judge on the bench had a possible conflict of interest concerning the case, another jury may still come back with a substantial verdict.
