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Sometimes, being injured by a driver who experienced a medical emergency can be an extremely harmful thing to your injury case. Sudden and unforeseeable medical traumas that impair a driver’s ability to operate his vehicle safely are often chalked up alongside “acts of God” as things where no one is negligent, and no one is liable.

Other times, though, this medical evidence may be something that actually strengthens your case or gives you more opportunities for seeking the compensation you need. To make sure you are getting all the relevant information for your case, and putting it your maximum advantage, be sure you have an experienced San Mateo wrongful death attorney on your side. When a driver experiences a medical emergency or trauma that was unexpected and that the impaired driver couldn’t have anticipated, that is one thing, and it may hurt your case. When, however, the driver has a history of experiencing impairment-causing symptoms due to an existing (and known) medical disorder, then that is a very different circumstance entirely.

The case arising from a fatal East Bay crash that claimed the lives of 51-year-old E.P. and her 72-year-old mother was an example of the latter. The women were killed in Contra Costa County when another driver broadsided the women’s SUV at an intersection. The other driver, J.H., ran a red light and was going 62 mph in a 45-mph zone at the time of the crash. J.H. wasn’t drunk, wasn’t street racing and wasn’t texting. What he was, according to his lawyers in his criminal case, was experiencing a seizure that caused him to lose control and speed through the red light.

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When a family loses a child due to the negligence of others, there are many feelings they will feel. One of the feelings they may encounter is a desire for some good to come out of the tragedy. That may be a central motivation for pursuing a civil lawsuit. No amount of money will ever replace their lost child, but a successful jury verdict and award of damages may be just the thing to motivate those responsible to make needed changes, with those changes averting similar tragedies in the future.

Whatever needs inspire you to pursue your wrongful death or personal injury action, be sure you have legal representation from an experienced San Mateo personal injury attorney, who can help guide you to the specific goals you have.

A tragic real-life example of these concepts played out recently in Southern California. A.D. was a 14-year-old student at a San Bernardino County high school in March 2016 he was involved in his fatal accident. According to a Daily Press report, the student was crossing an intersection adjacent to his school when a Ford SUV crashed into him, killing him.

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As you may know if you’ve attended certain events, property owners and event organizers sometimes may seek to use forms with titles like “release and waiver of liability” to limit their possibility of having pay damages for injury accidents that occur on their properties. If you are someone entering a property whose owner is requiring such a form, it is extremely important to make sure you understand exactly what you’re signing before you sign it.

However, even if you did sign, even if it is enforceable and even if it is broad in its coverage, that doesn’t mean that you are completely without options if you’re hurt while on that property. A recent ruling in a Northern California accident case is a good reminder that possibilities for success in a premises liability case can still exist, even in the face of a signed waiver. To discover what options you have for recovering the compensation you need, talk to an experienced San Mateo personal injury attorney right away.

The injured person in that recent accident case was G.V., an attendee at a two-day motorcycle race held in a remote part of San Benito County. He was there to watch his grandson participate in the race. When the grandfather and grandson entered, race organizers had each man sign a “Release and Waiver of Liability” form.

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Sometimes, in your auto accident injury case, the question isn’t if you have a case for holding the defendant liable, because the defense has already admitted liability. The question isn’t even whether or not you’ve incurred a substantial amount of damages, because the defense has admitted that, too. The question, then, for some injured people, is “exactly how extensive are my damages and how much compensation should I reasonably expect for them?” Being able to assess these things accurately matters a great deal if you’re in an injury lawsuit in California.

In California, there’s a law that says that, if you reject a statutory settlement offer and the jury awards you less 75% of what was offered, then you lose the ability to recover certain costs and fees and may be on the hook for paying some of the defense’s costs and fees. In other words, it is very, very important, when you receive a statutory settlement offer from the defense, that you have the ability to differentiate a fair offer from a low one. This is a key area where the right San Mateo car accident attorney can help. Your knowledgeable attorney can use his/her wealth of experiences in past cases to help you spot a fair offer… or an unfair one.

T.B. was a woman facing those kinds of questions in her case (Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2016-00861733-CU-PA-CJC.) She was a passenger in vehicle that was involved in a major accident. T.B.’s driver reportedly improperly turned left against a red arrow. The accident totaled both vehicles.

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Did you know that, based on one study, auto accident injury plaintiffs have some of the highest rates of success with juries, winning roughly 2/3 of the time? Of course, simply obtaining a “judgment for plaintiff” may not be enough if the jury awards you only a tiny amount of damages. Sometimes, you’re injured in an auto accident but (thankfully) escape without any catastrophic injuries. You may have had no broken bones and no torn ligaments, and may have needed only a few months of medical treatment. You might, therefore, have assumed that, even if you won, your case was not “worth” all that much in terms of compensation.

Occasionally, a jury verdict comes along that serves as a good reminder about the peril of assuming. Recently, there was a San Diego woman who, despite injuries like those listed above, recovered a six-figure award of damages. The lesson of this outcome? Don’t assume. Instead, be sure you talk to an experienced San Mateo injury attorney and get a seasoned pro’s analysis of what your case is really worth.

In that recent Southern California case (San Diego Superior Court Case No. 37-2017-00001440-CU-PA-CTL), 27-year-old P.N. was stopped at an intersection in La Jolla waiting for her light to turn green. As she remained stopped, another driver who was turning left at the same intersection lost control and crashed into P.N.’s vehicle.

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According to NHTSA statistics, distracted driving remains a major problem on U.S. roads, resulting in 3,166 deaths in 2017 alone. Distracted driving may lead to driving behaviors that can be particularly injurious, such as slamming into a stopped vehicle at full speed, veering into an oncoming lane of travel or barreling through a clearly red traffic light.

When you’re seriously hurt as a result of a distracted driver, you need to know where to turn find out how to go about getting back on your feet and getting fully compensated for the losses you’ve suffered (and will suffer.) Start by reaching out to an experienced San Mateo car accident attorney.

Anyone can file a personal injury lawsuit and potentially work out a settlement. One of the keys to a genuine success in a personal injury accident is not just “getting paid,” but knowing what your case is really worth and being sure that the payment you get is a fair one. That’s especially true in California, where there is an “offer of settlement” statute (Section 998). Make the mistake of rejecting a fair 998 settlement offer and you may find yourself paying some of the fees and costs of the defense. Make the mistake of accepting a lowball 998 offer and you may find yourself receiving too little money for your needs.

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Operating a motorcycle, especially here among the beautiful scenery of Northern California can provide many benefits, allowing the rider to relax, unwind and enjoy the open air. Unfortunately, being a motorcyclist also carries some serious risks. Negligent or reckless drivers pose a threat to everyone on the roads, but motorcyclists and their passengers face a special danger. A motorcyclist’s accident can often inflict extensive, catastrophic or even fatal injuries.

Your motorcycle accident can harm you in many ways, including a mountain of past and future medical expenses, a long period of time out of work (and missing that income) and a lot of long-lasting pain and suffering. You need to know where to turn to begin the process of obtaining the compensation you deserve, and that process should start with contacting an experienced San Mateo motorcycle accident attorney.

Sacramento’s FOX 40 reported on one accident that highlights this truth in terrible and graphic clarity. D.S., a former cameraman for the cable TV show “Deadliest Catch,” was driving his motorcycle in Placer County with his 10-year-old son on board. A suspected drunk driver reportedly crossed the center line of the road, entered D.S.’s lane and slammed into the motorcycle head-on.

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When you are injured due to an auto accident in which road conditions were a factor, your situation can seem complicated and stressful. You were just driving down the road and then you crash, suffering substantial injuries through little or no fault of your own. Would you know what to do and whom to sue?

Identifying the right people and/or entities to sue is an extremely essential part of your case. Choosing the right defendants is just as important as choosing the right causes of action when it comes to giving yourself the best chance of success and a full and fair recovery. This is just one of the many areas where it pays to have the skill and knowledge of an experienced San Mateo injury attorney on your side.

As an example of this kind of accident, there’s the case of M.D., a driver in San Bernardino County. According to Redlands Daily Facts, M.D. was a traveling along an east-west road that had a set of orange cones stretched across part of the road. M.D. drove to the left of the cones and, when he passed the last cone, he shifted right, only to feel his vehicle “drop off” into a two-foot deep ditch. The drop caused the vehicle to overturn and allegedly caused the driver to suffer very serious damage to his neck and back.

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Driving in California can be exhilarating, refreshing, relaxing or awe-inspiring. It can also be downright terrifying at times, with a wide array of circumstances that can lead to an injury accident. Many accidents will be common scenarios like rear-end crashes or left-turn collisions. Others, though, will be the result of very odd facts. Being injured in an unusual accident may pose some unique challenges but, other times, it may open up some unique opportunities. Either way, it pays to have an experienced San Mateo personal injury attorney representing you, who will know how to take your specific situation and guide you to the best opportunity available for success.

M. B.-S. was one of those unlucky drivers injured in a freak way. She was reportedly traveling along a freeway in Los Angeles County when she encountered a most unlikely road hazard – a flying mattress. The driver swerved to avoid the mattress but lost control and crashed into a barrier as a result. Eventually, with the help of information from witnesses, police located the truck whose trailer had allegedly pitched the item.

The injured woman sued both the driver and his employer for negligence. In her case, the woman’s legal team was able to advance a specific kind of negligence argument: negligence per se.

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Whenever you sue for injuries suffered in a vehicle accident, it is important to give the jury all the medical evidence they need to rule in your favor. This may often include testimony from your treating physician, as well as other physicians offering opinions as expert witnesses. These doctors can help the jury understand exactly what happened to you, why that injury is so harmful to you and why you needed the treatment you received and will need more treatment going forward. To help you determine what type of medical expert evidence, and how much, you need to best strengthen your case, be sure you have retained an experienced San Mateo injury attorney to guide you through making this and other vital decisions.

As an example of just how important these medical experts can be, look at the case of V.P., an inmate at a Los Angeles County jail. V.P. who was reportedly injured while being transported by the county when the bus in which he was riding struck a pillar. That impact allegedly caused him to suffer substantial injuries, including one that a doctor concluded surgery was needed to address.

Testimony by medical professionals played a pivotal role in V.P.’s case. He presented testimony from both an orthopedic surgeon and a chiropractor. This testimony from doctors can be particularly helpful if you’ve been involved in more than one injury accident over the years, as V.P. had been. If you’re in that situation, the defense will likely try to argue that the injuries you’ve suffered actually were the result of a different accident. Testimony from your doctors can help defeat that.

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