Christoffel Law Group PLLC

What are my odds of winning a medical malpractice suit?

2022-02-28T23:10:05Z

Suffering adverse effects from medical treatment can be a devastating event in anyone’s life – especially if that injury could have been avoided had the medical professionals paid closer attention or taken greater care. Even so, the prospect of bringing a medical malpractice lawsuit can be intimidating. You may not feel ready to move forward with filing a suit until you have a better idea of your odds of victory. What does it take to win a medical malpractice suit?

Negligence lawsuits

Medical malpractice suits are a special kind of negligence suit. In any lawsuit for injuries that result from negligence, the attorney for the plaintiff (the person bringing the lawsuit) will have to prove:

that the defendant (the person or entity being sued) had a duty to act in a certain way
that the defendant violated that duty by acting carelessly or recklessly
that the plaintiff suffered actual, demonstrable harm, and
that the plaintiff’s injury was the direct result of the defendant’s breach of duty

What sets a medical malpractice suit apart from a standard negligence lawsuit is that medical professionals have specific duties to their patients that regular people do not have towards each other. Because of their special training and expertise, and because of the trust their patients put in them, medical professionals have a strict standard that they must comply with when performing medical procedures.

The standard of care

The minimum standard of competency for medical professionals comes from their industry as a whole. In other words, courts decide if a doctor acted negligently by comparing his or her actions with those of the average member of their profession. If a doctor misdiagnosed a disease that most other doctors would have recognized accurately, then that doctor may be liable for malpractice. Likewise, if a doctor makes an avoidable mistake when carrying out a procedure that the average doctor paying close attention would not have made, a malpractice suit may be on the table. There is no way to know for certain beforehand whether you will be able to successfully recover for medical malpractice. Even so, knowing how courts determine liability can give you a general idea of whether you have a valid claim against the medical professionals that caused your injury.

Teen truck drivers present new risks on interstate roadways

2021-12-20T23:20:56Z

Safety advocates warn that a move to help ease the nation’s supply-chain difficulties for consumers and businesses may also increase the risks for motorists on Texas roadways. The trucking industry says it is 80,000 drivers short of meeting the needs for moving cargo across the country. A provision in the recent infrastructure bill allows truck drivers as young as 18 to drive big rigs across state lines.

Pilot project raises concerns over motorist safety

The new law creates a three-year pilot project lowering the required age for truckers who cross state lines from 21 to 18. Highway safety groups opposed the measure, citing statistics showing teenagers are four times more likely to be involved in a motor vehicle crash than drivers who are at least 20 years old. The nonprofit Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety group says putting inexperienced, risk-taking teenagers behind the wheel of 80,000-pound trucks is reckless and dangerous, as this age group already experiences higher fatal crash rates.

The pressure is on to relax other safety standards

Due to the nation’s continued supply-chain woes, the trucking industry is also urging the government to roll back other federal requirements over driver rest. Under current Department of Transportation rules, truck drivers must:

Limit driving to 11 hours in a workday
Cap driving hours to 70 per week
Take at least one 30-minute break during the first eight hours of a shift

The previous administration put an exemption in place allowing drivers who make shorter trips to work 14-hour daily shifts. Many proposals to relax these standards were made before the pandemic, but Congress has not supported easing rest requirements for truckers so far.

Tactics that point to bad faith insurance

2021-08-04T21:03:09Z

A car careened into the display window of your local business. Damage is everywhere throughout the front of your office. Shattered glass strewn about, office furniture and equipment scattered in heaps and pieces, and puddles of coffee throughout due to the shattered coffeemaker. For years, you have dutifully paid for property insurance. And now is the time that you need the support of your insurance company to help you restore your business. But it balks, and the hesitation bewilders and frustrates you. Why does your insurance company decide not to pay? In denying your claim, it contradicts your agreement. This may be a situation that calls for filing a bad faith claim.

Delays investigation, changes your policy

Denying your claim, failing to investigate or being slow to act on your case are grounds for a bad faith insurance claim. The following represent examples of how insurance companies act in bad faith:

Does not explain the details of your policy and how it applies to your insurance claim.
Denies your claim, citing questionable and unclear rules even though your policy declares that coverage is justified.
Relies on procrastination, delaying your claim.
Changes the policy soon after you file an insurance claim.
Ignores protocol and performs a shoddy and incomplete investigation. This stage must be done in a timely matter.
Unexpectedly cancels your insurance policy.
Gives you the runaround, making uncalled for and unnecessary demands such as making additional doctor visits and providing duplicate copies of documents.

You should not have an uneasy relationship with your insurance company. However, sometimes, what you thought was your ally turns out to be

How safe will the roads be this summer?

2021-05-21T18:25:58Z

For over a year, many people took steps to stay home due to the pandemic. With the loosening restrictions here in Texas and across the country, the summer travel season is looking to grow significantly. More travelers mean much riskier roads because of…

Increased congestion

The first hazard any driver will see this summer is heavier traffic on the roads. Heavier, busier traffic means that highway travel at peak times will be more dangerous. In a high traffic area, at high speeds, any lapse in judgment or mistake can turn into a dangerous collision in the blink of an eye.

Unskilled drivers

This year, like every year, will have thousands of new, unskilled drivers on Texas’s highways. Perhaps, they just got a license this year; maybe they got a license two years ago and didn't have anywhere to go. Perhaps they got a license ten years ago, and the last year at home has made them rusty. People tend to overestimate their skill and ability severely, and that includes drivers.

Distracted drivers

On top of drivers who aren't ready to drive, you have drivers distracted by many factors. The top distraction is, of course, smartphone usage. But there are normal human distractions such as:

Eating while driving
Arguing while driving
Children demanding attention
Lack of sleep

These are distractions that you can’t simply quantify, and they can cause a driver to lose attention at a critical moment.

Poorly maintained roads

Few people talk about how road conditions can contribute to car accidents. We often talk about the other drivers and the controllable personal behaviors, but if the road is in bad condition, accidents can be unavoidable.

Staying safe requires vigilance

The most effective stance you can take is to watch other drivers and watch where you’re driving. Even with all precautions, you may still find yourself with injuries after an accident. If you do have an injury that wasn’t your fault, you deserve representation who will aggressively pursue compensation on your behalf.

Advanced auto safety tech and the Texas Tesla crash

2022-04-04T19:49:40Z

If you drive about 50 miles north of Friendswood, through the heart of Houston, you’ll arrive in Spring, Texas. The area recently made headlines when a 2019 Tesla Model S crashed and burned, killing the two men inside. Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman said the electric car was traveling at a high rate of speed when it failed to negotiate a slight curve, went off the road, slammed into a tree and burst into flames.

Too much trust in tech?

Herman made news of the motor vehicle crash go viral when he stated that no one was in the vehicle’s driver’s seat at the time of the wreck. The comment ignited widespread speculation that the men had engaged the Tesla’s Autopilot – a feature that’s a form of self-driving – and had paid the ultimate price for trusting far-from-perfected technology. Tesla CEO and founder Elon Musk responded to the news almost immediately, saying that data retrieved from the vehicle showed that its Autopilot mode had not been engaged.

Safety checks undone

A Tesla spokesperson pointed out that the company’s vehicles have safety checks to ensure that there’s someone in the driver’s seat with hands on the wheel before Autopilot can be activated. Because the crash vehicle’s seatbelts were found unbuckled, and because damage to the steering wheel suggested it might have been struck by a driver’s head, Tesla concluded that someone had been in the driver’s seat at the moment of impact. However, a couple of days later, a Consumer Reports engineer showed that Tesla’s safety checks could be easily defeated by buckling the driver’s seatbelt and placing weights on the steering wheel. It isn’t clear that this tragic crash will have a long-term impact on safety regulations or research, but it certainly contributes to the skepticism surrounding advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) on many new vehicles – rapidly evolving technologies that will one day culminate in truly autonomous, truly self-driving vehicles. Current ADAS tech includes features such as forward collision warning and automatic braking, rear collision warning (often with rearview cameras and parking sensors) and auto braking, blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control and lane-departure warnings.

Looking toward a SAFE future

Recently introduced in the U.S. Senate, the Stay Aware for Everyone (SAFE) Act, would require the federal Department of Transportation to conduct research and determine if drivers with ADAS-equipped vehicles become reliant on the technology and then complacent and disengaged – self-defeating developments, certainly, if they’re widespread. If research indicates a significant driver-disengagement issue exists, the bill directs the Transportation Department to mandate the installation of driver-monitoring systems to mitigate the problem.

Staying alert, staying safe

Monitoring systems track drivers’ eyes and issue reminders to stay alert, and they can even pull a vehicle to the side of the road and stop it if a driver is dangerously disengaged or distracted. If the SAFE Act proposal becomes law, it might well help to make advanced safety tech more effective – and safer. In the short-term, let’s hope that people listen carefully to automakers who caution that ADAS can help to prevent motor vehicle crashes, but that drivers must continue to pay attention to their most important task – driving.

Five things to do in the immediate aftermath of a car wreck

2021-02-04T17:30:03Z

The consequences of a car accident can follow a victim for a lifetime. Medical bills, lost income, and property damage a just a few of the worries that a victim will soon struggle with after a car wreck, and the compensation they earn from the wreck may be the resource they have to recover the costs. The cost of a car accident involving medical attention can be thousands of dollars or more. As expensive as an accident may be, there is no guarantee that the compensation you receive will accurately reflect these costs. Here are five steps you can take after a serious accident to help maximize your compensation:

Get medical attention

Even if you feel fortunate enough to have been able to walk away from an accident, you may have sustained more injuries than just some cuts and bruises. A doctor can look for signs of a traumatic brain injury and also establish your medical status following your accident. This doctor's report can be a valuable tool in your compensation claim to prove any injuries that you received from the accident.

Call the police

A police report can be especially valuable in determining liability after a car accident, Which is why you want to create as accurate of a report as possible. When the police arrive at the scene of an accident, they can create a report that is an accurate description of the accident's consequences, and they can also call in the necessary help for both medical care and cleanup of the accident.

Take pictures

If you were able to, take as many pictures and videos of the scene of the accident as possible. This evidence will help show exactly what happened at the accident scene, which can be a valuable asset in your pursuit of compensation. When you exchange information with the other driver, be sure to take pictures of their insurance information and their driver's license.

Gather testimony

Witness testimony is another valuable tool that you can rely on to secure your maximum compensation. Talk to anyone that may have seen the accident, and gather their contact information and record their statements as to what they saw while you were both at the scene of the accident. A person's memory is freshest immediately following an event, so this is your best opportunity for your most accurate testimony.

Call an attorney

It is not easy to secure the best possible compensation for your injuries, but the guidance of an experienced personal injury attorney can help you do just that. Consult with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible to begin your claim for fair and full compensation.

The differences between first-party and third-party insurance claims

2020-11-05T19:28:49Z

If you’ve been involved in an accident or have suffered some form of property damage, you will have to deal with insurance companies at some point. The type of claim you will need to file depends on the circumstances surrounding your case. Understanding the differences between first-party and third-party insurance claims is essential to making a strong claim and ensuring that the claims process proceeds as smoothly as possible.

First-party insurance claims

When you purchase an insurance policy to cover damages and losses to your property, this is considered first-party coverage. As such, a first-party insurance claim happens when you make a claim directly with your insurance provider. You must make any claims in good faith. Your insurance company is also required to practice good faith in the handling of your claim.

Third-party insurance claims

A third-party insurance claim is filed by one party against the other party’s insurance provider. Most third-party claims involve liability issues. For example, if a person is injured on your property, they may file a claim with your insurance carrier.

Differences in compensation

Compensation for first-party claims is limited to the terms of the policy. This is not true for third-party claims. A person who files a third-party claim may seek compensation for damages that a first-party would not be entitled to, including compensation for lost wages and pain and suffering. Whether you’re making a claim with your insurance company or whether another party is seeking compensation, you should work closely with a legal professional to ensure your interests remain protected throughout this process.

What constitutes insurance bad faith in Texas?

2020-08-07T20:24:56Z

When you pay your insurance premiums, you assume your insurance company will cover you if you need to file a claim. That is how insurance works, after all. Too often, however, insurers try to avoid paying claims or try to pay as little as possible. So, what can you do if your insurer refuses to pay? In Texas, you may have a bad faith insurance claim.

What does your insurance policy cover?

Insurance companies will often argue one of two things when responding to your claim:

That your policy does not cover the damage for some reason
That even if your policy does cover the damage, they don’t owe you as much as you claim

Both of these excuses could be bad faith, which the company uses to underpay, deny or delay your payment. The insurance company counts on you not understanding your own policy so that you do not question their denial. They may point to some exclusion in your policy to blame the denial on. For example, many policies do contain exclusions for things like flooding or earth movement, requiring you to buy separate coverage for such events.

Understanding the cause of the damage

When trying to figure out if the event that caused the damage is covered in a policy, you may find that it was actually a series of events that led up to the damage. So, which one is to blame? Insurance lawyers use the term “efficient proximate cause” when referring to the main cause of an event. This may or may not be the last thing that happened in the series of events. There are a few steps you can take on your own, including:

Request a written explanation of the company’s reason for denying the claim, including the relevant policy provisions and facts.
Review the letter for their explanation and see how it compares to your own understanding of the events.
Either write to the company yourself or have an attorney write to dispute the reason for the denial.

Sometimes this is enough to make the insurance company realize you know your policy and your rights and pay the claim. If you still face obstacles, you may want to have an insurance law attorney take a look at your policy and the insurance company’s response, if you have not yet done so. You could have a legal claim for bad faith.

Welcome To Our Blog

2020-08-13T15:09:33Z

We established this blog to share stories and information about topics relevant to our practice. Our intent is to regularly provide posts highlighting legal issues of local, state and national interest that we think you will find interesting. Check back later for updates.