What is a Loss?
A loss is the monetary value assigned to an injury or damage in a personal injury claim, including pain and suffering, past and future income, future medical care, at-home assistance, current medical bills, etc.
According to Black’s Law Dictionary, “loss” is defined as “the harm or damage resulting from an injury; the deprivation or detriment to an owner or possessor as a result of a judgment or voluntary transfer of property.” As such, loss is often a broad term in law, encompassing both tangible and intangible impacts as loss can come from a variety of forms of damages.
Legal principles governing loss aim to provide remedies, compensation, or restitution to individuals or entities adversely affected by wrongful acts, accidents, or adverse events. Loss can include economic loss, personal loss or property loss. The assessment of loss often involves evaluating evidence, calculating damages, and applying legal standards to determine liability and appropriate remedies in civil litigation or legal disputes. As a legal term, loss underscores the importance of addressing and mitigating the impacts of losses through legal recourse and equitable remedies in accordance with applicable laws and judicial principles.
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Major news agencies reporting that GM ignition switch failure may have caused 74 fatalities
Reports from many news agencies, including the Chicago Tribune, were based on information from Reuters after a search of the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), a national database of information submitted by local law-enforcement agencies, for single-car frontal collisions where no front airbags deployed and the driver or front-seat passenger were killed. Reuters reviewed crashed reported to U.S. safety regulators between 2003 and 2012, and found that such accidents occurred at a higher rate in GM cars than in competitor models.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Reuters compared the incidence of this type of deadly accident and the Chevrolet Cobalt and the Saturn Ion against the records of three small car competitors: Ford Focus, Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. The study found the frequency of accidents in the Ion nearly six times that of the Corolla and twice that of the Focus. […]
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GM Fined $35 Million for Recall Delay
GM will pay the maximum $35 million fine to the United States Department of Transportation for delays in the recall of cars with defective ignition switches. The defect has been linked to 13 deaths and 32 crashes.
The fine is the highest civil penalty ever paid as a result of an investigation into recall problems by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). In a released statement, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said that the GM has also agreed to make “significant and wide-ranging internal changes” in how it monitors safety issues.
The DOT reported that GM will need to take part in unprecedented oversight requirements as a result of the findings form the NHTSA’s timeliness investigation regarding the Chevy Cobalt and the automakers’ failure to report a safety defect in a more timely manner.
Federal law requires that all auto manufacturers must notify the NHTSA within five business days of determining that a safety-related defect exists. […]
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Robert Munley notes the increase in youth sports concussions
A new study published this month in the American Journal of Sports Medicine found that there was a continuous increase in concussions among high school athletes between 2005 and 2012. The rate of concussions nearly doubled from .23 concussions per 1,000 athletes in 2006 to .52 per 1,000 in 2012.
A concussion is an injury to the brain that produces a transient loss of brain function with symptoms of dizziness, lightheadedness, confusion, headache and vision changes.
The study was authored by Joseph Rosenthal, a clinical assistant of physical medicine and rehabilitation at The Ohio State University and a group of his colleagues utilizing data from the High School Reporting Information Online sports injury surveillance system. The system contains data from a representative sample of 100 U.S. high schools that have at least one certified trainer on staff.
The report studied boys’ […]
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Workers’ Compensation Questions & Answers
Frequently Asked Workers’ Compensation Questions
Q: I’ve Been in an Accident at Work. What’s the First Thing I Should Do?
A: Right after a job-related accident, no matter how minor it may seem, you should immediately report your injury to your supervisor and make sure that a written record is made. Once you report the injury, seek medical assistance as soon as possible to learn how severe the injury is and get treatment. Both these two steps are crucial for your claim. If you fail to report the accident to your supervisor as soon as possible, your claim may be denied.
Q: Is There a Statute of Limitations for Workers’ Compensation Cases?
A: Under Pennsylvania law, a notice of any injury suffered while on the job must be provided to a supervisor at your place of employment within 120 days of the date of injury. […]
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NC Woman Dies in Car Accident While Posting to Facebook
The National Safety Council Cell Phone Crash Estimate Model reports that there have been an estimated 333,300 crashes so far this year in the U.S. involving drivers using cell phones and texting, or about one every 30 seconds. A North Carolina woman died behind the wheel of her car last week just moments after posting a Facebook message and hitting a truck head on.
According to police, the woman posted to Facebook and one minute later, a call came in about the crash. The 32-year old woman died after drifting across a grass median and slamming into a truck. An investigation of her online activity also found that she had been posting selfies as she drove. This is a tragedy we see all too often.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), stated that mobile communications are linked to a significant increase in distracted driving, […]
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