Handling Accident

Few things affect your Las Vegas Car Accident Attorney more than the automated cars. As you may recall from prior blogs, automated cars are now being tested on our Nevada roadways. Aside from minor accidents, there have been no real catastrophes involving automated cars. That all changed on May 7, 2016 for a driver in Florida. On May 7, 2016, Joshua Brown, a former Navy Seal, was driving his Tesla Model S in Florida, in the “semi-autonomous Autopilot system”, when he was killed in a fatal car crash. In piecing together the events leading up to the crash, investigators determined Mr. Brown wasn’t actually driving his car.  Moments before the crash, a big rig, made a left hand turn in front of Mr. Brown’s Tesla. The driver of the semi-truck, said when the accident happened, he could hear a movie playing. In an erie turn of events, even after Mr. Brown had died in the collision, the truck driver saw the Telsa drive down a quarter of mile before stopping due to hitting a light pole. I...

Serving a foreign corporation with lawsuit documents would seem pretty straightforward according to the Hauge Convention. However, a recent case from the Nevada Supreme Court has shattered that picture. See Grupo Famsa v. Eighth Jud. Dist. Ct., 132 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 29 (2016).   In Grupo , the Nevada Supreme Court looked at whether service of process on a foreign company was done properly. On the facts of the case, the plaintiff filed a lawsuit against a Mexican company. The plaintiff’s Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyer then served the Mexican company with the lawsuit paperwork in Mexico, via the Hague Convention.   The Hague Convention requires all countries who are part of it, to "designate a “Central Authority” to carry out service of lawsuit documents on its own companies and people. It is up to the country’s “Central Authority” to serve the defendant according to local law. The local government then provides the official paperwork outlining who was served, how they we...

Today’s blog deals with the issue of whether a “physical” injury is needed to make a personal injury claim. While at first blush, this may seem like a silly question, the answer may surprise you. Your Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyer will tell you that a “physical” injury is not always necessary in asserting a Las Vegas personal injury claim. A recent decision from our state’s high court explores this issue.  You may remember the outbreak of hepatitis C that struck the Las Vegas Valley a few years ago, when a medical facility was accused of re-using syringes and vials. This was the Sadler v. Pacificare of Nev., Inc. ,130 Nev. Ad. Op. 98 (2014). To make things easier, we’ll just call it the “Hepatitis C” case. In the Hepatitis C case, patients who had been treated at the medical facility were scared that they may have been exposed to hepatitis C. Through their Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyer, they wanted the at fault medical facility to pay for their diagnostic testing and monit...

A single social media post can ruin your personal injury case. Your credibility matters more than anything else when making a claim for personal injuries. In order to show your ongoing pain and suffering, there is usually not a continuing broken bone or bloody limb to which we can point. Instead, most of the time, people silently suffer with an aching back or chronic pain. So, your credibility is paramount in a personal injury case. It is the job of the insurance company’s attorney to attack your credibility. If you are claiming that as a result of the accident, you have daily back pain, yet you post a picture of yourself bowling with your friends and family, the defense attorney will argue that you are not in fact injured as you claim to be. Any social media post, taken out of context, can and will be used against you in your personal injury case. What the online bowling post doesn’t say, is that you paid dearly for the night of bowling and pizza with your family, with increased pain...

With the passage of the Affordable Health Care Act, almost everyone can get health insurance now. However, if you have been in a car accident and have health insurance, there are some things to keep in mind. First, you should know that if you are taken to the hospital after an accident, there may three separate bills related to your accident treatment:     •    Ambulance bill;     •    Hospital Bill; and     •    Doctor at the Hospital (Doctors are usually not employees of hospitals. As a result, they send out a separate bill, over and above what the hospital charged you. This usually comes as a shock to most people.) In most cases, your health insurance company will pay for your emergency, car accident related, medical bills. However, your health insurance company may ask that you pay the health insurance company back. They will ask you to pay them back out of the settlement proceeds from your pe...

Las Vegas is an exciting and wonderful city. We live in city that also attracts a lot of visitors. These visitors often rent cars. Given the amount of visitors we regularly have in our city, we have perhaps more rental cars on the road than other average cities. But, what happens when one of these car rental drivers causes an accident to one of our residents?  What is the car rental company’s liability in this scenario? There are two main statutes and three cases that have come out of the Nevada Supreme Court, that tell us what the rights and responsibilities are for rental car companies in these situations.   The first statute is NRS §482.295 . This statute requires car rental companies to have insurance before their rental cars hit the road. In these cases, car rental companies are called “lessors”, while the driver’s who rent these cars (via a short term lease), are called the “lessees”: NRS §482.295. Registration by short-term lessor: Proof of financial ability to respon...

Which costs are allowed in a court case is determined by law.  Costs have been determined to mean a wide range of items, from copy charges, witness fees and legal research. NRS 18.005 defines costs in Nevada:   NRS 18.005  “Costs” defined.   For the purposes of NRS 18.010 to 18.150 , inclusive, the term “costs” means:       1.  Clerks’ fees.       2.  Reporters’ fees for depositions, including a reporter’s fee for one copy of each deposition.       3.  Jurors’ fees and expenses, together with reasonable compensation of an officer appointed to act in accordance with NRS 16.120.       4.  Fees for witnesses at trial, pretrial hearings and deposing witnesses, unless the court finds that the witness was called at the instance of the prevailing party without reason or necessity.       5.  Reasonable fees of not more than five expert witnesses in an amount o...

You are in a car accident. Your car is damaged, needing extensive repairs. You need your car to get to work, take care of your family and do every other errand to manage your life.  But the at-fault driver’s insurance company is dragging their feet on getting you a rental car. So, you rent a car yourself. After weeks of rental car, you decide you can no longer afford it.  You rely on friends and family for another week, while your car is being repaired.   It turns out the insurance company never gets their act together and you have three property damage losses:1. Car Repair costs; 2. Rental Car Costs; 3. Vehicle Value and 4. Loss of Use for your own car while you didn’t have your car or a rental car. The seminal case on car issues after a car accident is Dugan v. Gotsopoulos, 117 Nev. 285 (2001)   Car Repair Costs. This is the easiest property damage to prove. Evidence of the car repair costs from the car repair shop can be used to document your out-of-pocket car re...

Mediations and settlement conferences are one of the most useful tools in your injury attorney’s tool belt to settle Las Vegas litigation cases. Both are ways to settle your case and avoid trial. In Las Vegas personal injury cases, a mediation is meeting, with an experienced personal injury attorney and/or former judge, to possibly settle your case.  All of the parties and their attorneys will be present during the mediation.   Prior to the mediation, each parties’ attorney will submit confidential mediation briefs, discussing the case and providing all necessary supporting documentation. The mediator will have received and reviewed these briefs prior to the date and time set for the mediation. This way, the mediator will have a thorough understanding of your case, before you even walk into the door to meet the mediator. During the mediation, the mediator will meet with each side privately in an attempt to bring the parties together for a successful resolution of the cas...

When your personal injury attorney files a lawsuit in Las Vegas, she has to file what is called a “Complaint”. A Complaint is the actual document that starts a lawsuit. If the insurance company will not settle your case for a reasonable amount, then your personal injury lawyer will file a Complaint on your behalf. It is important to note that Nevada is what is called a “Notice Pleading Jurisdiction”. A ‘pleading’ is any written court document. ‘Jurisdiction’ is what gives the court authority to hear the case. In personal injury cases, jurisdiction is generally determined by physical location (city, county, etc.) and what is in controversy (monetary amount). Although Las Vegas has many courts (please see previous postings for a discussion), most injury cases will be filed in District Court. Our District Court hears injury cases that are valued at over $10,000.00.  Las Vegas is located within Clark County, Nevada. As such, if you case is valued over $10,000.00, then your Complaint ...

When a Las Vegas personal injury case is settled with the insurance company, the insurance company will require you to sign a document, called a “Release of All Claims”. This document is often referred to as a “Release”. A Release is a document which completely ends your personal injury case against the other party. The Release spells out all of the settlement terms, in writing. As such, the Release sets forth the date of the accident and the amount of settlement for the injuries you sustained in the accident. The Release will also state that the settlement being offered, is the full and final amount you will receive from the at-fault person and their insurance company.  A Release is usually a short document discussing the above. However, before you sign it, your accident attorney will review and go over the Release with you. The insurance company will usually require that you sign the Release in front of a Notary Public, which your personal injury attorney will have available. O...

Defense Medical Examinations happen in Las Vegas, Nevada personal injury court cases. It is important to note that Defense Medical Examinations only take place when the insurance company refuses to settle and you are forced to go to court to enforce your rights. When a Defense Medical Examination does take place, clients have questions concerning what they can expect in the process. Today’s discussion will hopefully answer some of your questions concerning the process.    When you are injured an accident and now are having long term health effects, the insurance company for the at-fault party will sometimes want their doctor to examine you.   This is called a Defense Medical Examination. The rule governing Defense Medical Examinations is set forth in the Nevada Rules of Civil Procedure (“NRCP”), Rule 35:   RULE 35.  PHYSICAL AND MENTAL EXAMINATION OF PERSONS        (a) Order for Examination.   When the mental or physical condition (inclu...

When you are injured a car accident and seek medical treatment, at some point, you will be released from active care. After clients have completed their active medical treatment, clients wonder what is the next step in their case. The first thing you should do is call or email your car accident attorney and let them know that you are done treating. Your attorney will then be able to contact your treatment providers and request your completed and updated medical records.  Once your final medical records are requested from your treatment providers, it usually takes 2 to 4 four weeks for your personal injury attorney to actually receive them. Upon receiving your final medical records, your accident attorney will thoroughly review them.  After they have been reviewed, your attorney will prepare what is called a ‘Settlement Demand Package’ and send it to the at fault party’s insurance company.    The Settlement Demand Package outlines the accident, your injuries, your me...

Whether someone is deemed an expert in court in Las Vegas, Nevada, is based upon a variety of factors. These factors are laid out in Nevada’s statutes, which are created by the state legislature and case law, which is written by our Nevada Supreme Court. There are three main Nevada statutes which govern experts. We will take a look at each one, including their case law counterparts. The first we will take a look at is NRS 50.275 entitled “Testimony by experts”. It provides in full:       If scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of the fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by special knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify to matters within the scope of such knowledge. The Nevada Supreme Court has held that an expert witness need not be licensed to testify as a expert. Freeman v. Davidson , 105 Nev. 13, 768 P.2d 885 (1989). The witness must simpl...

You bought car insurance thinking you would be covered in case something happened to you while driving.  Since you are forward thinking, you bought UIM (underinsured motorist) coverage , which protects you in case you are hit by an uninsured or underinsured driver.  Yet, your insurance company is not living up to their end of the bargain, by paying you your UIM car insurance benefits. If you are in this situation and need to hire an attorney to fight the insurance company, you may be wondering, how does the insurance company actually get notice of the lawsuit? As part of doing business in the state of Nevada, all insurance companies have to go through the Nevada insurance commissioner before they set up shop here in Las Vegas, Nevada. As part of the that process, each insurance company agrees that if a lawsuit is filed against it, the Nevada Insurance commissioner can accept notice of the lawsuit on their behalf. The laws that apply in this situation are NRS §680A.250 and NRS ...

Communication with your Las Vegas Car Accident Lawyer is at the heart of your case. To make sure you are receiving the care you need and that you doing are everything possible for your case, you must call, email or set up appointments with your Las Vegas Car Accident Lawyer , to discuss how your treatment is going or if you may need a different type of treatment. In addition, your Las Vegas Car Accident Lawyer be receiving updates from your doctors to make sure you are getting the care you need and that you are improving with treatment. Another important point to keep in mind, is that your Las Vegas Car Accident Lawyer must always be able to get a hold of you. So, if you are planning to move, change your email or change your phone number, you need to tell your Las Vegas Injury Attorney , before you do so. That way, your Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorney can reach you at all times. In our next discussion, we will talk about how your medical bills get paid in your Las Vegas Perso...

Many people do not personally know a lawyer let alone a personal injury lawyer . Even if you do know a great lawyer, if they are not a personal injury lawyer , do not hire them for your Las Vegas personal injury case. The example I give to people, is that while you may know a wonderful brain surgeon, you would not want that doctor delivering your baby! I know what you are thinking: How do I go about choosing a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer ? The answer: Ask your prospective Las Vegas personal injury lawyer how many years have they been practicing in the field of personal injury . They may have a decade of experience, but if it is not in the personal injury and car accidents realm, do not hire them for your personal injury case. Another very important question to ask is the number of Las Vegas personal injury cases they have handled. It may be great that they have been “doing” personal injury for 10 years, but if they have only handled 5 accident cases , you may not want ...

If the insurance company will not give a reasonable settlement offer to your Las Vegas personal injury lawyer , then your lawyer will file a lawsuit against the person you caused your injury. In Las Vegas, Nevada, there are two paths that your lawsuit can take. The first potential path is for larger cases, where if the insurance company is being unreasonable with your Las Vegas car accident lawyer , your lawyer will take your case to the jury. The other potential path is reserved for small to medium sized cases. In the second potential path, your case will be put into Nevada’s non-binding Arbitration program. In the Arbitration program, an Arbitrator, essentially a private judge, will oversee your case. Once an Arbitrator is appointed, your Las Vegas accident lawyer will meet with the attorney hired by the insurance company and devise a discovery plan (i.e. let the other side discover what your case is about, the treatment you received and your injuries). An Arbitration Hearing d...

Surgery is one of the most invasive types of treatment you may undergo after being in a car accident. You may not want to have surgery, but after exhausting all of the alternatives and fully discussing the matter with your Las Vegas car accident attorney and doctor, it may be the best option for you. It is important to note that your Las Vegas auto accident attorney will make sure that you get all of the treatment you need, including surgery, without any out of pocket expense on your part. So, all you have to think about is getting better. The first procedure which may be discussed is a Diskectomy. This involves removal of the herniated portion of a disk to relieve irritation and inflammation of a nerve. It's done as an open surgery and typically involves full or partial removal of the back portion of a vertebra (lamina) to access the ruptured disc. The second type of procedure you may hear about is a Laminectomy. This procedure involves the removal of the bone overlying the s...

In connection with chiropractic care, your primary care doctor may refer you to physical therapy. Physical therapy is important to retrain muscles or strengthen muscles after you have been in a Las Vegas car accident or have had surgery as a result of your injuries. Going to physical therapy has a lot in common with going to the gym. However, at the physical therapist’s office, it is like you have your own personal trainer, with a medical background. Your Las Vegas Attorney highly recommends physical therapy as part of an overall wellness program to get you back on your feet and feeling well. Commonly, after surgery, the muscles may have atrophied (shrunk) from not being used and need a help in getting their full strength back. Physical therapy will help you recover from your Las Vegas auto accident . Similar to all of your other treatment, your Las Vegas personal injury lawyer will communicate with your physical therapist to make sure you are progressing at good pace. I...