What is Liability?
Liability is the legal responsibility for one’s acts or omissions; an obligation one is bound to by law to perform, typically involving the payment of monetary damages. It is one of the most significant words in the field of law.
According to Black’s Law Dictionary, liability is defined as “the state of being legally responsible for something, such as a debt or obligation.” As such, it assumes that a person is responsible for the harm they cause another. There are several different types of liability including contractual liability, when one party breaks a contract, tort liability from civil wrongs, or strict liability where a party is held responsible for damages, regardless of fault.
Liability is important in law because it ensures individuals are held responsible for their actions, and that injured parties receive compensation. An example of a liability is a driver who causes an accident by driving recklessly. The driver will be held liable for any resulting injuries to people and property. Understanding liability is essential for individuals, businesses, and legal professionals to navigate legal responsibilities they owe to others.
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Trucking app promises progress, but raises safety questions
Technology has the capacity to transform the trucking industry and improve truck drivers’ way of life. Of course, that technology comes with questions about highway safety and to what extent tech companies can be held liable as their products become increasingly central to our lives.
The trucking industry is a fast-paced, competitive environment worth hundreds of billions of dollars. This market, combined with the overall unavailability of a direct and easy way for truckers to arrange the loads they haul, leaves a gap for the ever-growing technological advancement of our modern age to creep in. In 2013, Drew McElroy and Jonathan Salama took advantage of this gap to create the app “Transfix.” This app aims to make it easier for independent truckers to schedule loads, thereby decreasing the amount of time a truck may sit empty, losing money. Typically, independent truck drivers rely on freight brokers to schedule the loads they haul. […]
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What Happens if You Get in an Accident in the Company Vehicle?
Driving a company car can be both a benefit and a burden. The perks include not paying for gas out of your own pocket and not worrying about putting miles or wear and tear on your own car. But what happens when you are involved in an accident in a company car? Understanding who is at fault and must pay can be confusing.
If you are involved in an accident in a company car
and your employer purchased commercial auto insurance, the commercial auto
insurance provider will usually pay any valid claims related to the accident,
as long as the employee was using the vehicle properly at the time of the
accident. Most of the time, your employer will deal with the insurance company
directly, though you may have to answer questions or provide other evidence
upon request of the insurance company. […]
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Pennsylvania Personal Injury Lawyers From Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Named Best Lawyers 2018
The Pennsylvania personal injury lawyers at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys are pleased to announce that all six of our partners have been recognized in the 2018 edition of Best Lawyers in America.
Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation. For the 2018 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, 7.4 million votes were analyzed, which resulted in more than 58,000 leading lawyers being included in the new edition. Lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed; inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.” […]
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Some Valuable Information about Nail Gun Accidents
Nail guns are extremely valuable tools to both the construction industry and regular consumers. Unfortunately, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that nail gun accidents account for approximately 37,000 emergency room visits each year. Of those injured, nearly seventy percent were injured in the course of their employment. The balance of the people were consumers using the nail guns for non-business related tasks.
It’s not difficult to imagine how a nail gun accident might occur. For those who are injured while at work, it is important to file a workers’ compensation claim. You can find answers to many of your questions concerning workers’ compensation procedures here.
What if there was a problem with the nail gun? Whether you were injured in the course of your employment or not, you may have another type of claim. This is known as a products liability action and may be pursued if there is evidence that the nail gun caused the dangerous condition resulting in injuries. […]
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Truck Accident Lawyer Dan Munley Speaks at Annual Symposium
Last week, Dan Munley visited Nashville, TN, to speak about one of the most important aspects of a truck accident case: evidence.
Wednesday, September 28 kicked off the 2016 Academy of Truck Accident Attorneys Annual Symposium. The top truck accident lawyers in the country assembled to share their expertise and help their peers to best serve their clients.
Evidence in a Truck Accident Case
Drawing on more than 19 years of experience, Dan spoke about the preservation and spoliation of evidence. In any injury case, the evidence is important. In a truck accident case, however, prompt investigation and preservation of evidence are crucial to proving liability. Unlike typical auto accidents, evidence in a truck case will often include not only the vehicles involved but also the truck driver’s electronic log books, motor carrier records, and other vital information. […]
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Defective Consumer Products Lawyer
If you have sustained an injury from an appliance, a toy, a piece of furniture, or a medication, contact a defective consumer products lawyer at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys. Since 1959, our product liability attorneys have worked to establish a reputation as industry experts in personal injury law. We have earned the highest client and peer ratings and have been named among the Best Lawyers in America. Our own Marion Munley was named Product Liability Lawyer of the Year, 2017, for her work on behalf of injured plaintiffs. Call or fill out our email form today. The consultation is FREE, and we do not charge a fee unless we win your case.
If you were injured by a defective consumer product, it’s wise to speak with an attorney who is knowledgeable in product liability cases. For nearly 70 years, the defective consumer product lawyers at Munley Law have fought for their clients’ […]
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E-Cigarette Explosion Lawyer
Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys is reviewing cases involving potential product liability lawsuits against the makers of electronic cigarettes that have caused serious injuries and burns after an explosion. If you or someone you know have been hurt by an e-cigarette explosion, contact our office to learn about your legal options. Our product liability lawyers have decades of experience obtaining justice for people who have been injured by an unsafe or defective product. We will review the details of your situation, answer your questions, and help you to determine the next steps to take – at no charge. Call 844-263-8849 or fill out our email form.
E-Cigarettes, E-Cigs, and Vaporizers Causing Serious Burn Injuries
The use of e-cigarettes (or “vaping”) has become an increasingly popular alternative to smoking tobacco, especially among young people. Unfortunately, these devices are currently not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), […]
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Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America; Lawyer of the Year
We are very pleased to announce that four of our partners have been named to the 2016 list of Best Lawyers in America, and our own Chris Munley was named workers’ comp lawyer of the year!
Attorney J. Christopher Munley, partner at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys, has been named the 2016 Lawyer of the Year in the field of workers’ compensation law in the Allentown metro area by Best Lawyers. Munley has been representing individuals and families who have suffered due to injury for 21 years. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers, and named among the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in Pennsylvania by the National Trial Lawyers Association. He currently resides in Clarks Summit with his wife Dr. Maria Yager Munley and their two children.
In addition, four more members of the Munley firm were listed in the 2016 edition of Best Lawyers in America. […]
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Takata Recall hits 33.8 Million: Is your car safe to drive?
Takata Corp. expanded its recall to 33.8 million vehicles on Tuesday, May 19, finally acknowledging that its airbags are defective after months of resisting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This is the largest auto recall in U.S. history.
The defective airbags leave millions of American drivers in danger, especially because drivers don’t yet know which makes and models are affected. The list of recalled vehicles has been growing since last year, and the number of vehicles affected doubled as of the announcement on May 19th. The NHTSA and automakers are still working to sort out the “definitive list” of unsafe makes and models. Meanwhile, drivers are in the dark, and may be in danger and not yet know it. All they can do is check safercar.gov frequently for updates.
The defective airbags manufactured by Takata have been linked to six deaths and over 100 injuries caused by metal shrapnel that is released into the cabin when the airbags deploy. […]
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Attention, coffee lovers: Keurig recall
Popular coffee machine reportedly causes burns, Keurig recalls 7 million units
Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., a popular manufacturer of single-cup coffee brewing systems, issued a recall this morning on approximately 7 million of its coffee brewing machines in the United States following about 90 reports of burn injuries and 200 reports of product defects. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the defect allows hot liquid to escape during the brewing process, and in some cases this has caused burns.
Specifically, it is the Keurig MINI Plus Brewing System that is affected. The company is offering a free repair kit to customers whose Keurig brewers have been recalled.
In the meantime, Keurig states that it is safe for consumers to continue to use the coffee maker. According to their representatives, the machines are more likely to overheat and spit hot liquid when brewing multiple cups in quick succession. […]
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Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Attorneys Named to 2015 Best Lawyers® in America List
Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys is pleased to announce that five partners have been named to the 2015 Edition of Best Lawyers. Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys has also been listed among the 2015 “Best Law Firms” by U.S. News & World Report.
- Robert W. Munley, Sr., Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs and Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Marion Munley, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs and Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Daniel W. Munley, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- Robert W. Munley III, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
- James Christopher Munley, Workers’ Compensation Law – Claimants
Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys was ranked in the top tier of Personal Injury Litigation law firms in the annual ranking by U.S. News & World Report, based on peer and client reviews. […]
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Auto Accidents Caused by Defective Roads
Sometimes it is the road that is at fault in an auto accident. Defective road conditions can cause a driver to lose control of his/her car, leading to an auto accident that can result in serious personal injury or death. But when the road is at fault, who is responsible for your injuries?
Roads in Pennsylvania are the responsibility of either the state or local municipalities. Although Pennsylvania’s Sovereign Immunity Act generally bars suits against the Commonwealth and other government entities, dangerous conditions on highways created by potholes, sinkholes or similar conditions are exempt from sovereign immunity.
The Pennsylvania defective road condition car accident attorneys of Munley Law believe that when hazardous road conditions lead to accidents, injury, or death, the responsible government agency and/or a private contractor that worked on the road should be held accountable. The victims of accidents caused by unsafe roads deserve full and fair compensation for their injuries and losses. […]
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As families begin to settle with GM over crashes, is it too little too late?
Last week, more than a dozen families were given a choice to accept a settlement or fight GM in a potentially lengthy court battle over deaths in crashes tied to faulty ignition switches. The families of two Wisconsin girls killed in the 2006 crash of Chevrolet Cobalt accepted offers from GM, dropping a lawsuit in favor the settlement.
The crash that killed 18-year-old Natasha Weigel and 15-year-old Amy Rademaker was one of the first blamed on the faulty switches. According to ABC News, a Wisconsin state trooper investigating the crash made the connection between the position of the ignition switch and the air bags not deploying. An investigation into GMs delay in handling the recall found that both GM and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) were aware of the trooper’s report, but largely ignored it.
Despite evidence from this crash and others that faulty ignition switches were causing engines to stall and air bags to be disabled, […]
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Community Health Systems hacked, affecting many in NEPA
Hackers broke into Community Health Systems, stole data on 4.5 million patients
Community Health Systems, the owner of Moses Taylor and Regional Hospitals in Scranton, Wilkes-Barre General, Tyler Memorial near Tunkhannock and First Hospital in Kingston, announced Monday that it was the target of a cyber attack.
Community Health Systems operates 206 hospitals across the country, including those mentioned locally. The company said that hackers broke into its computers and stole data on 4.5 million patients. According to reports on Fox News, they believe the attack originated in China.
CNN reported that the hackers gained access to names, social security numbers, addresses, birth dates and phone numbers, which is considered a breach under HIPPA. Anyone who received treatment from a physician’s office tied to a network-owned hospital in the last five years, or was merely referred by an outside doctor may be affected. […]
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Kids and pets left in hot cars can have tragic ending
Leaving a child unattended in a vehicle on a hot summer day can lead to heatstroke and can kill in minutes. The Department of Earth & Climate Sciences at San Francisco State University reported that there have already been 21 child deaths this year due to heatstroke from being left in a hot vehicle.
Tragedy can strike when parents or caregivers forget or knowingly leave children or pets in hot vehicles. It can also occur when unattended children play in parked vehicles. A car can heat 20 degrees in just ten minutes. Even with temps in the 60s, the interior of a car can eventually heat up above 110 degrees. A child will die of heatstroke when their body temperature reaches 107 degrees, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The issue of child heatstroke deaths reached national attention in June when a father in Atlanta said he forgot his son in the car seat while he was at work all day. […]
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Attorney Marion Munley’s Article on the Vanishing Jury Trial in The Scranton Times
As seen in The Scranton Times. America’s long and proud history has been shaped by lawyers and judges who made lasting contributions to the preservation of individual liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. To the Founders, the right to jury trial, secured by the Seventh Amendment, was on par with the right to vote and the right to free speech. In the initial draft of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson’s litany of abuses by the king included, prominently, “depriving us of the benefits of trial by jury.”
Jefferson considered “trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man that holds the government to the principles of its Constitution.” Jurors are true public servants who commit their time, critical thinking and impartiality to their fellow Americans. Jurors serve as checks and balances on our judicial system, and a jury trial is a fundamental right critical to our democracy. […]
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Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Attorneys Selected for 2014 Best Lawyers in America
Five attorneys from the Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys firm have been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014. Best Lawyers is the oldest and most highly-respected peer review guide to the legal profession worldwide. Robert W. Munley, Sr. and Marion Munley were selected in the fields of Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs, and Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs. Robert W. Munley, III and Daniel W. Munley were selected in the field of Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs. James Christopher Munley was selected in the field of Workers’ Compensation Law – Claimants.
History Speaks For It’s Self
For more than 55 years, the family of lawyers at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys have been helping clients all over the country with their claims. Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys has proven time and again to be leaders in truck accident litigation, […]
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Allstate’s $950,000 Blunder
Allstate required to pay out nearly a million dollars after delaying insurance coverage of fatal car crash
Attorney Daniel W. Munley, a partner in the law firm of Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys, negotiated a $950,000.00 settlement on behalf of the family of a teenager killed in an automobile crash in 2001.
The defendant, who received his driver’s license just weeks before, was driving his mother’s Camaro at an excessive speed when he crossed double yellow lines to pass another vehicle and lost control of his automobile. The plaintiff’s son was thrown from the vehicle and suffered a fatal wound.
The defendant’s insurance company, Allstate, failed to pay its obvious driver’s liability and delayed the case for a number of years. Attorney Munley offered Allstate numerous opportunities to act in good faith, essentially requiring them to pay out the policy limit of $25,000.00. After a time extension and several attempts to contact Allstate, […]
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More Than 260,000 Children Injured in Toy-Related Accidents
Toy-related injuries land hundreds of thousands of children in the ER in 2011
A serious accident involving your child is one of life’s most wrenching experiences. A family’s ordeal is compounded if the child’s death or serious injury occurred in a preventable accident caused by an unsafe toy or dangerous product. If you believe your child was injured by a dangerous toy, talk to attorneys who know the law regarding unsafe toys.
A recent report on toy-related injuries by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says there were 262,300 children treated for toy-related injuries in U.S. hospital emergency rooms in 2011. While most children were treated and released, some suffered serious injuries or even fatal injuries. Thirteen children younger than age 15 died of toy-related accidents in 2011, the consumer product safety commission reported.
Most toy-related deaths were caused by asphyxiation or drowning. […]
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Injury Rate From Bounce Houses Soaring
Pennsylvania parents thinking of renting a portable bounce house or moonwalk for their child’s next party might want to think again.
Every 46 minutes a child is injured in an inflatable bouncer, according to a recent study in the journal Pediatrics.
Thirty children are taken to emergency rooms each day for broken bones, sprains, cuts and concussions from bounce house accidents. Their average age is seven years old.
Most are hurt when they collide with another bouncer or fall inside or outside of the inflatable device.
Following is from a CBS News report:
- Falls accounted for 43 percent of injuries, followed by stunts and collisions. Forty-four percent of the injuries occurred at a recreational setting and 38 percent occurring at home.
- More than 27 percents of injuries were fractures, with another 27 percent reported as strains or sprains; […]
