What is a Claim?
A claim is a legal action concerning physical or mental harm suffered by the plaintiff due to the defendant’s negligence. In the case of insurance claims, it is a request made by the insured to the insurance company for coverage and compensation for damage or injury. A claim is sometimes also referred to as a Cause of Action.
What is a Claim?
Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute defines a claim as, “a set of operative facts creating a right enforceable in court.” Making a claim is how the process of a plaintiff filing a lawsuit and eventually receiving damages from a defendant begins. A claim must be present in order for a lawsuit to go forward. If one is not present in a specific instance, then that lawsuit will be dismissed. Examples of types of claims include claims to insurance companies, personal injury claims in cases of negligence, claims on breaches of contract, property claims, and employment claims such as unpaid wages, wrongful termination, or discrimination. A defendant may make a counterclaim against the claim of a plaintiff.
Claims can sometimes be dismissed even if there is an intent to file a lawsuit. Rulings in cases such as Ashcroft v. IQBAL and Bell Atlantic v. Twombly have determined that claims need to contain important information. They must be plausible on their own and establish a likelihood of liability. This is how claims can lead to fair compensation, resolution of disputes, and protection of rights.
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Young Drivers In Denial That Distracted Driving Affects Them
Just last week we reported on a study from the University of Leeds that found drivers with just one hand on the wheel that are engaged in a “secondary task” are at increased risk of an accident. Now, researchers at Bridgestone Americas report that while teenage drivers realize distracted driving is dangerous, they don’t see everything that takes one hand off the wheel as a distraction.
The survey, that underscores the findings by those at the University of Leeds, found that even though many teenagers and young adults claim they understand distracted driving, they are in denial that it affects them. In fact, one-third of those surveyed admit to reading text messages while driving, and nearly 25% surveyed do not believe that talking on the phone while driving is dangerous.
The company surveyed 2000 drivers aged 15- to 21-years-old. Among the findings, the researchers found that the young drivers measure their level of safety as a driver by the fact that they haven’t been in an accident or ticketed. […]
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Widows Sue PA Bars for Serving Drunk Driver
July 1, 2011, two men leading the Last Chance Motorcycle Club, a group of riders who have overcome alcohol and drug addictions, were ironically struck head-on by a drunk driver, resulting in the death of two men and injuries to four others. Now, the injured men and the widows of the deceased men have filed a lawsuit against the driver responsible and three bars that served alcohol to the drunk driver.
The group of motorcyclists was traveling from New Jersey to a friend’s funeral in Pennsylvania. As they traveled on Route 512 in Bangor, PA, a pickup made a wide turn, crossed the center line and plowed head-on into the group traveling in the opposite direction. The driver was charged with vehicular homicide while driving drunk and aggravated assault.
Under Pennsylvania’s “dram shop law,” business owners can be held liable for the sale of alcohol to patrons who are clearly and visibly intoxicated. […]
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“Buckyballs” Magnets Pose Serious Risks to Young Children
Buckyballs magnets pose dangerous swallow hazard for young children
After learning that a 3-year-old child suffered from tears in her lower intestine and stomach after swallowing 37 Buckyballs, the company is once again warning consumers that the magnets are not toys. The Buckyballs magnets were voluntarily recalled by the company in May 2010 after the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned of a swallowing hazard to young children.
The Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that the Oregon child underwent surgery to remove the magnets that had snapped together inside her stomach, resembling a bracelet. She is expected to recover. Last year, a sixth-grader in California underwent surgery after swallowing eight of the magnets.
Buckyballs are a set of round, high-powered magnets that are meant to be used by adults as a stress-relieving desk toy. However, a serious danger is raised when a child swallows more than one magnet. […]
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Car Accident Report – Car Accidents Claim Lives
Fatal car accidents around the country
Father and Child Die in Pennsylvania Head-On Accident
A Wednesday night crash in Nicholson Township, about 25 miles outside of Scranton, PA, left a man and his 3-year-old daughter dead. The Times-Tribune reports the deceased man was driving a Chevy Silverado when he apparently crossed the center line on West Nicholson Road and struck a Dodge pickup head-on. The driver of the Dodge was treated for minor injuries at the hospital and was later released. The police report the child was not restrained in the vehicle and died from “massive traumatic” injuries. She and her father were both pronounced dead at the scene. Police are continuing to investigate the accident.
Chain-Reaction Accident in CT Caused by Drugged Driver
Police in Norwalk, CT say a woman who was on a day-long crack binge, and was fleeing officers, […]
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Ohio Oral Surgeon Faces Second Lawsuit
The Chronicle-Telegram reports a retired Lorain, Ohio oral surgeon is being sued for an undisclosed amount by a patient who claims she “was injured and was caused to suffer seizures, neurological damage and other severe and debilitating injuries, some of which were permanent in nature,” during treatment in Dec. 2010.
According to the article, a motion attached to the lawsuit seeks a 90-day enlargement of time to file an affidavit of merit, stating “there is strong reason to believe a cause of action exists” against the surgeon and unnamed nurses, dental assistants and/or health care professionals that the suit lists as defendants.
The physician had previously been sued when a 13-year-old patient died after receiving sedation prior to oral surgery in December 2010. The doctor’s insurance company paid $1 million to the family of the deceased girl, and the 81-year-old physician stopped giving intravenous sedation and agreed to retire in September. […]
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Family of Injured Kentucky Nursing Home Patient to Receive $1 Million Settlement
According to an article in the Lexington-Herald Leader, a Fayette, Kentucky Circuit Court jury awarded the family of a nursing home patient $1 million for negligence resulting from a January 2009 incident. The Alzheimer’s patient, in her late 80s, at Lexington’s Cambridge Place Nursing Home suffered extensive injuries in a fall after she went missing from her room.
The lawsuit alleged the woman suffered broken bones in her face, bleeding in her brain, and a serious cut on her forehead, and various other injuries, after she fell from her Merry Walker, a walker that includes a seat, and was later found severely injured in an equipment storage room.
The case was previously reviewed by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the attorney general’s office. An adult-protection worker found that the woman was a “victim of caretaker neglect and had been exposed to an extreme safety risk.” […]
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Ohio Family Awarded $4.2 Million in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
The family of an Ohio woman who died of a heart attack after being treated at Wheeling Hospital (WV) in 2009 has been awarded $4.2 million by an Ohio County jury. The lawsuit was filed against Dr. Stephen Heirendt and EMPG of West Virginia, Inc.
The woman went to Wheeling Hospital, complaining of chest pains, where she was treated by Heirendt. The suit claimed that the doctor did not follow appropriate standards of care, ultimately leading to her heart attack 11 days later. The woman was 43-years-old.
The family was awarded $1.5 million for sorrow and mental anguish, $1.5 million for loss of services, $300,000 for loss of household services and $872,000 in lost wages.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a form of medical negligence, you may have a medical malpractice claim. Our attorneys at Munley Law are experienced and successful medical malpractice litigators and we fight to protect the rights of patients. […]
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NC Medical System Charged with Negligence to Pay $25 Million
A father has been awarded $25 million by a Cumberland County, North Carolina jury after finding the Cape Fear Valley Health System negligent in reporting signs of child abuse against the man’s son. The boy, who lived with his mother at the time, eventually suffered brain injury after additional abuse.
FayObserver.com reports that the lawsuit alleged if the hospital had reported signs of child abuse when the boy was initially treated for a broken wrist and other broken bones that he would not have received a beating later that “caved in his skull and took away his ability to talk or use his arms and legs.”
The young boy was taken to the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in 2003 when he was six years old. At the time he had surgery on his wrist, he was also vomiting, and further x-rays revealed an old rib fracture. […]
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Pennsylvania Woman Awarded $23 Million in Medical Malpractice Case
WFMZ-TV reports a Lehigh County, Pennsylvania jury has awarded a Lehighton woman $23 million in a medical malpractice case. The woman had both legs amputated after her home care nurse failed to evaluate and report an infected catheter for appropriate treatment.
The lawsuit alleged the delay in reporting the infection led to a bloodstream infection that ultimately required the woman’s legs to be amputated below the knees.
The jury found the nurse and her employer, St. Luke’s Miners Memorial Home Care, negligent in caring for the plaintiff.
A spokesman for St. Luke’s said, “As with all malpractice cases, this is a complicated situation, but the resultant jury award is excessive and shocks the conscience.” The spokesman did not indicate if they would appeal the verdict.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a form of medical negligence, […]
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North Carolina Physician’s Assistant Found Negligent in Mother’s Death
A physician’s assistant (PA) was found negligent in the death of a 42-year-old woman from congestive heart failure less than two months after giving birth to twins at The McDowell Hospital in Marion, NC. The lawsuit was brought by the husband who claimed the defendants did not do all they could to save the life of his wife.
The man will be awarded $667,000 in the case where he was seeking $6.8 million. The suit was filed against seven doctors, one physician’s assistant, Asheville Radiology, The McDowell Hospital and McDowell Emergency Physicians. Most of the defendants settled out of court, however, two doctors, the PA and McDowell Emergency Physicians took the case to court.
The woman was diagnosed with pneumonia after giving birth in February, 2008, and was prescribed a medication for treatment upon her discharge. Suffering from shortness of breath and nausea, the woman returned to the emergency room several times within the following weeks and was again treated for pneumonia. […]
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Contra Costa County to Pay Over $13 Million in Wrongful Death Lawsuits
Last week, Contra Costa County was ordered to pay over $13 million to settle two separate lawsuits. In one case they will pay $1.5 million to the family of a man shot by sheriffs in a wrongful death claim. The second suit requires they pay $11.7 million to the family of a man who died in a crash on a county road.
The county will pay $1.5 million in the case of a man who was shot in 2009 in the emergency room at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center. The man had checked himself in for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal symptoms. He became agitated and attempted to cut the restraints off himself with a knife. His children, who filed the lawsuit, claimed the deputies used excessive force.
In the other case, jurors found the county failed to keep the road safe during road resurfacing work after a man died when he was struck by a vehicle that ran off the road after he stopped to help another driver. […]
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Car Accident Round-Up – Teens Involved in Serious VA and NY Accidents
Car accidents claim lives around the United States
Teenagers Die in VA Car Accident
A car accident in Portsmouth, VA late Saturday night left two teenagers dead and one seriously injured. The accident that occurred on Elmhurst Lane near Victory Boulevard apparently was the result of speeding. The car swerved off the road then struck several trees and a utility pole ejecting two of the occupants and pinning the third in the car. The two girls that died were 16-years-old. The third occupant, a 17-year-old male, was hospitalized with unspecified injuries. Police are unsure of who was driving the car.
Former KY Governor’s Son Dead After Single-Car Wreck
According to the Lexington-Herald Leader, former Kentucky governor Julian Carroll’s son, Bradley, died in a single-car accident Sunday in Franklin County, KY. Carroll was traveling south on US 421 near the Versailles Road overpass when his Ford Explorer went off the right side of the road, […]
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Iowa to Pay $875K After Hospital Error Resulted in Amputation of Leg
The Des Moines Register reports that the state of Iowa has settled a lawsuit filed against the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics after a young girl went to the hospital in 2007 for a stomach surgery, and had to have her leg amputated after she developed compartment syndrome.
The state will pay $875,000 to the now 16-year-old girl who had her right leg amputated and her left leg now suffers a permanent foot drop. The suit alleged that the girl’s legs were elevated for over 10 hours causing increased pressure to build in her leg muscle compartments, leading to muscle and nerve damage.
The hospital is overseen by the Iowa Board of Regents and the State Appeals Board had to approve the settlement.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a form of medical negligence, you may have a medical malpractice claim. […]
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Lawsuit Settles for $650K After Sponge Left in Patient
The Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida paid $650,000 to settle a lawsuit against a man with a “retained foreign object and medication error.” The man also reached a confidential settlement against two radiologists.
The now 68-year-old man was admitted to the hospital in October 2009 to undergo surgery for diverticulitis. His recovery was slow, and after five months he was in more pain than prior to his surgery. He went back to the doctor and had several X-rays and CT scans before the surgeon and gastrointestinal doctor found a surgical sponge in his stomach that had been left behind during surgery.
The man declined further treatment at Good Samaritan and went to another hospital to have the sponge removed and a portion of his intestines, due to perforation. The man also received an incorrect dosage of blood pressure medicine, however, he did not have any lasting issues over that error. […]
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Colorado Medical Malpractice Suit Against Nurses Settled
Undocumented immigrant receives $700,000 in medical malpractice suit settlement
The Colorado Springs, city-owned Memorial Health System settled a lawsuit filed by an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who claimed her baby suffered severe brain injuries during delivery four years ago. The now four-year-old is a spastic quadriplegic who cannot stand, sit or walk, and has the intellectual level of a six-month-old.
The city paid $700,000 to the child because the care provided by the Memorial nurses and the doctor “fell below the standard of care” by failing to properly interpret fetal heart monitoring strips that showed the baby in distress during labor, having the mother hold her breath which further depleted the oxygen going to the baby and delivering the baby vaginally rather than performing a cesarean section.
The lawsuit only covered the negligence by the nurses. The doctor is employed by Peak Vista Community Health Centers which is a Federally Qualified Health Center. […]
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Family Awarded $7 Million in Wrongful Death Claim
Man volunteered to drive church bus, gets hit and killed by tractor trailer
A widow and her two sons were awarded $6.7 million by a jury in Fresno County, California in the death of her husband who was struck by a tractor-trailer while filling the bus he had been driving with fuel. The wrongful death award also included over $500,000 for a nephew who witnessed the accident and has suffered from depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The deceased had volunteered to drive the Sierra Pines Church of Oakhurst bus. When he pulled over on the side of highway State Route 99 in Merced County to put fuel in the bus in April 2009, two approaching semis “became entangled as one attempted to pass the other.” One of the trailers hit the man and the bus.
Lawyers presented testimony, which led to a verdict well beyond the $3 million offered as settlement, […]
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Widow Awarded $6.7 Million in Medical Malpractice Case
The widow of a man who died in 2005 after an ATV accident was awarded $6.7 million by a Maine jury in a medical malpractice case against Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor. The man was flown to the center after the accident, and according to the lawsuit, the doctors failed to follow up on tests indicating internal bleeding, that ultimately led to the man’s death.
The man arrived at the hospital suffering from several broken ribs, among other injuries, and CT scans ordered by the emergency department physician indicated there was also internal bleeding. The doctors caring for the man failed to follow up on the internal bleeding by not issuing an order for X-rays to monitor the bleeding, according to the suit. Three days later, the internal bleeding caused one of the man’s lungs to collapse, and the lack of oxygen precipitated a massive fatal heart attack. […]
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San Diego Pays $1.8 Million in Wrongful Death Case
Family of motorcyclist sues city for not installing a traffic signal in wrongful death case
The family of a motorcyclist who was killed in an April 2009 auto accident sued the city of San Diego for wrongful death for failing to install a traffic signal at the intersection in which the man died. The City Council unanimously approved the settlement earlier this month, although they do not acknowledge any wrongdoing under the deal.
The accident occurred when the motorcycle was traveling northbound on Pacific Highway when a Toyota Corolla heading in the opposite direction turned left on Cedar Street in front of the cyclist. The cyclist was tried to veer out of the way, but struck the rear passenger side of the vehicle dying of traumatic head injuries.
The lawsuit claimed the accident was foreseeable and preventable. The suit claimed, “This turn lane’s position combined with the position of the then existing traffic signals gave drivers the confusing illusion they had the right-of-way on a green signal to turn left onto Cedar Street. […]
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Wrongful Death Suit Filed After Student Killed in Crash
The family of a 19-year-old Kent State student who was killed when her car was struck by a cargo van on March 21, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Delaware against the driver of the van and his employer.
According to the Ohio Highway Patrol, the driver of a Dara Toy Company 2006 Chevrolet Express cargo van became distracted while reaching for his cell phone charger and lost control of his vehicle. The van crossed the highway median, all three southbound lanes and the rest area exit ramp before hitting the 2001 Pontiac Grand Am driven by Carli Woodruff as she was leaving the rest area.
Woodruff, a native of Loveland and an intervention specialist major, died at Grant Medical Center in Columbus.
The Scranton, Pennsylvania attorneys of Munley, Munley & Cartwright have years of experience representing the survivors of wrongful death victims. […]
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$400,000 Awarded In Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Lawsuit
A Northampton woman has been awarded $400,000 in her malpractice suit against a Bethlehem doctor who did not diagnose her breast cancer properly. The jury found Dr. Mark Schadt negligent in his care of the woman.
In April 2004 she found two lumps in her breasts, and in May Dr. Schadt performed a fine-needle aspiration biopsy and the results were negative for breast cancer. In March 2005 the patient had a second fine-needle biopsy and the results were positive. A month later, after having an excisional biopsy, she was told she had invasive carcinoma stage III cancer. She had a radical mastectomy on the cancerous right breast and a simple mastectomy on her left breast.
The lawsuit alleged Dr. Shadt should have followed the first biopsy with a complete biopsy that would have removed a larger tissue sample to test.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a form of medical negligence, […]
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