Recent Blog Posts in March 2010

Overall, there has been a constant decrease in the number of vehicular fatalities in the United States. As per the US Census Bureau, 2007 saw the lowest number of road accidents since 2003. However, the state of California still continues to witness the highest number of injuries and accidents. On one hand, the decrease in the number of fatalities among motorists is good news, but on the other hand, the increase in the number of motorcycle accidents is depressing. In fact, the number of motorcycle collisions throughout the US increased from 4,837 in 2006 to 5,154 in 2007.

There are several factors that contribute to rise in the number of motorcycle collisions. The foremost factor is that their small size makes it harder for motorists to see motorcyclists in their blind spot especially at night. When motorists change lanes without looking carefully enough in the blind spot, collisions happen. The other reasons are the absence of safety features in a motorcycle that makes motorcyclists more susceptible to accidents and injuries. Whereas cars are equipped with seat belts, air bags and solid bodies that provide protection, motorcycles are not. In addition, the fact that motorcycles are two-wheel vehicles, they offer less security and balance to riders making them more vulnerable to dangerous roads and poor weather conditions such as slippery, wet roads and heavy rains and strong winds. Speeding, reckless driving and inattention are other reasons that make motorcyclists prone to accidents. Also, head trauma is one of the most common injuries for motorcyclists and although these are often serious or even fatal, there are many other injuries that occur:

• Serious skin abrasions that often leave scars
• Broken or crushed limbs
• Brain injuries including cognitive dysfunction
• Facial injuries  scarring
• Injuries to the torso

If you or your loved one has been involved in a motorcycle accident, contact aggressive and competent San Francisco Personal Injury Attorney, Nelson C. Barry III. His 31 years of success and experience will be used to get the maximum compensation. Do not wait because the law limits the time period within which an injured person must file a claim. Call Lawyer Nelson Barry right away for a free initial consultation.

Wrongful death occurs when an individual is killed due to reckless, negligent or intentional act of another person. In a wrongful death lawsuit, the victim’s family is entitled to financial damages as a consequence of loosing their family member. The d eceased’s immediate family members such as parents, spouse, children and brothers and sisters can file the wrongful death lawsuit, which may include claims for compensation for medical and funeral costs, lost wages including future earnings of the deceased and benefits such as medical coverage, retirement income and loss of support. Claims for non-financial items can include loss of love, care, companionship and punitive damages (which is applicable if person responsible for the death acted with oppression, fraud and/or maliciously).

If you feel you have a wrongful death claim, you should talk to an experienced wrongful death attorney in your area. It is important that you consult a knowledgeable lawyer immediately because the law allows only a limited time period within which the deceased’s family can file a claim. Failure to do so may prevent the family from ever collecting money from the responsible person. Generally speaking, if the claim is against a non-governmental person, the deadline is two years from the date of death. If the person died as the result of medical malpractice, the deadline is one year from the time that a reasonable person suspected that the death was due to doctor’s/ nurse’s/ hospital’s/ pharmacy’s negligence. If the claim is against a governmental entity, the deadline to make a claim is generally 6 months from the date of death. Often, if the person making the claim is under age 18, the deadline is not until the person’s 20 ^th birthday. These are just general guidelines so to be safe, contact an experienced attorney to be sure that your rights are fully protected. Also getting a good attorney working for you early will help make sure that any evidence that might get lost, isn’t. Don’t delay the opportunity to start building a case against the person(s) responsible for the loss of a loved one.

At Law Office of Nelson C. Barry III, we understand that if you have lost a loved one, this loss can never be repaired. However, with the help of a competent lawyer, you can very possibly make sure that no one else suffers the same type of loss. In addition, Mr. Barry can help you obtain the compensation to replace the financial loss caused by the responsible person.  Mr. Nelson Barry provides undivided attention to his clients and aggressively pursues all cases in order to maximize the benefits owed to his clients. Mr. Barry has helped thousands of people obtain top settlements and with his 31 years of experience as a competent San Francisco Personal Injury Lawyer he continues to do so.

There are many factors that need to be considered before an attorney can predict when your case will settle. Some cases are simple and might be resolved within a few weeks whereas others might take several months or as much as three years to resolve. One key factor is how long it takes for the injured person to heal. Lawyers usually want to wait until their client is completely healed (or at least as good as they are going to get) because settling earlier almost always means settling for less than full value. Another factor is whether the other party admits the accident was their fault.

Cases that take the longest are often those that involve dispute as to who is to blame for the accident and those with injuries that take a long time to heal. Typically, an auto accident claim takes 6 to 12 months; medical malpractice might take one or two years; workplace injury claims may take a year or so and wrongful death claims may settle right away or they might also take the longest, over three years.

Filing a legal claim for the personal injury is a serious matter and involves many complexities – the foremost of which is the tenacity with which the opposing lawyer fights the case. Other complexities concern obtaining evidence and testimony to support your case and dealing with people such as insurance adjustors and medical professionals.

Consulting an experienced  personal injury attorney who has no fear of going the distance for his client is important because getting a lawyer who is a fighter will almost always result in a better settlement. You want a lawyer who will be diligent and aggressive when handling your case; someone who will guide through the strategies of the case and protect your interest. In the end, the injury victim should be fully compensated and this means being paid for their medical bills, their income loss, their property damage and their pain and suffering.

At Law Office of Nelson C. Barry III, the philosophy is that they and their clients are a “team” so Mr. Barry and his staff understand and listen to their clients and work hard for them. Mr. Barry’s goal is get his client the best possible result, whether it is by settlement or by going to trial. Mr. Barry is an experienced and aggressive San Francisco Personal Injury Attorney who has been obtaining compensation for his clients for more than 30 years. He also conducts free case evaluations and only gets paid when his clients win!

Prescription error is one of the most common medical malpractices that occur in pharmacies, hospitals and doctor’s clinics. When doctors and pharmacists fail to make sure that the patient is receiving the right medication in the right dose, they can be held liable for the consequences caused by their medical negligence. Sometimes these consequences can be very serious or even fatal.

Recently Safeway’s pharmacy filled one of Mr. Barry’s client’s prescription with the right medication but at 4 times the dose that was indicated on the prescription written by her doctor.  She overdosed and became very disoriented and fell down the stairs at her home causing her serious neck, back and knee problems. She did not suspect that the medication was the source of her problems (because she had been taking this medication for over a year without complication) so she continued to take it (at 4 times the prescribed dose) for a month. During that time she fell again in her kitchen and was knocked unconscious. Mr. Barry was able to obtain a very good result for his client by preparing the case, filing the lawsuit and eventually resolving it at a mediation. Since Mr. Barry fronts all the expenses for these kinds of cases, the whole process was very low pressure for his client who basically put the whole matter in Mr. Barry’s hands.

Mistakes in administering drugs are so highly prevalent in hospitals and pharmacies that at least 1 million people die each year due to prescription errors!

The errors include administering drugs that could adversely react with the drugs that patient is already taking; prescribing drugs to a patient who has known allergies to that specific drug; prescribing wrong medication or the wrong dose, failure to provide the right treatment and failure to provide the information about the risks associated with the drugs.

As noted above, Mr. Barry is experienced in pharmaceutical malpractice claims that result in injury or death. If you or someone you know has suffered injuries due to prescription errors, contact Nelson C. Barry III, a San Francisco personal injury attorney and let him put his 30 years of experience to work for you.