On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Premises Liability on Thursday, May 17, 2012
Last year, a pit bull attacked two children, leaving them still fearful of being attacked again. They both suffered scars from the dog bites during the attack at their Georgia duplex. The owner of the dogs was the tenant in the other unit of the duplex. Now, the family has filed a lawsuit against the dog owners and the landlords.
The lawsuit says that the landlords are also liable because they have a duty to ensure the safety of the common area that is shared by both tenants. This case could set a precedent in Georgia as it heads to trial and may determine whether landlords can be held liable in similar cases.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Medical Malpractice on Monday, May 14, 2012
Doctors are notorious for their bad handwriting. The poor legibility of their handwriting is no laughing matter. A recent study found that 88 percent of prescriptions had legibility issues. Many times, these issues require a pharmacist to call the doctor's office to verify the prescription. This can cause various issues for the patient, and potentially delay receiving very important medication.
The study discovered that even when there weren't legibility issues, there was still a 37 percent error rate when doctors wrote out prescriptions. When using electronic prescriptions that number drops drastically to 7 percent. It is important that doctors and pharmacists avoid medication errors by verifying information when something doesn't seem right. While many times these errors don't cause drastic medical problems there is the potential for some to cause death or severe health problems.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Premises Liability on Saturday, May 12, 2012
A 24-year-old University of West Georgia graduate student is fighting for her life 10 days after taking a spill from a zip-line behind a friend's home on the Little Tallapoosa River and falling onto some rocks below. Friends and family indicate that her outlook of surviving is not good.
At this time it isn't clear how the accident happened. Questions about possible negligence in the maintenance and upkeep of the zip-line at the home appear to remain in question. Depending on what is determined in further investigation, there may be legitimate basis for seeking damages under a premises liability claim.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Products Liability on Thursday, May 10, 2012
Many people buy hundreds of products every year. It would be nearly impossible for consumers to investigate every product they buy to make sure it isn't a dangerous product. That's why companies are trusted to make sure their products are designed and manufactured safely. When a company manufactures a poorly designed product it is up to them to recall the product and the company should be held accountable for injuries.
On Wednesday, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a recall of nets that are meant to prevent people from falling out of trampolines. The product is the Sportspower BouncePro Trampoline, and nearly 92,000 of them were manufactured and sold at Wal-Mart. The net around the trampoline broke in multiple cases, causing some severe injuries, including neck and back injuries.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Nursing Home Neglect on Monday, May 7, 2012
Some of the most difficult decisions of our adult lives will be about how to care for our aging parents. Eventually they may need extensive ongoing medical care, or just help doing some simple daily tasks. Helping them decide how to receive that care is a very important decision. Many people find that nursing homes can provide the care their elderly relatives need, and they can continue to live their own lives knowing that their parents or grandparents are being properly cared for.
Sadly, there are many nursing home facilities across the country and here in Atlanta that commit nursing home abuse. While there are good care facilities out there, neglect and abuse of our elderly has become a systemic problem among the approximately 16,000 nursing homes in our country.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Medical Malpractice on Friday, May 4, 2012
A healthcare system in another state is hoping a new program will help patients receive the compensation they need and an apology if a doctor makes a mistake in their procedure. The program touts its desire to put patients before saving money. However, when researchers surveyed the program designers, the objective seemed to be all about saving the healthcare system money, not fully compensating victims of medical malpractice. While this isn't something that has been announced in Georgia, the effort to reform medical malpractice laws is widely debated across the country.
The plan called for doctors to admit mistakes, and offer compensation that was determined as adequate by the healthcare system they worked for. Studies show that people who receive an apology are also less likely to seek compensation if they feel the apology was sincere.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Truck Accidents on Monday, April 30, 2012
Truck accidents can often cause very traumatic injuries. The size of trucks compared to other vehicles usually makes truck accidents worse than an accident involving two cars. If a person is severely injured, a decision might be made by medical responders to transport the person by a helicopter depending on the person's injuries and distance from a trauma center.
A new study suggests that people who are transported by a helicopter after a traumatic traffic accident have a better chance of survival. While many patients who are traumatically injured in a truck accident will be able to make the decision of how they are transported to a hospital, this decision could be lifesaving.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Premises Liability on Thursday, April 26, 2012
Imagine going on a walk, enjoying a nice day, when out of nowhere, vicious dogs appear and attack. That's exactly what happened to a Georgia woman two years ago, who still suffers from pain from the dog bites. The woman described the horrific incident, not knowing if she would make it through the attack.
She still has scars that may never heal and pain in her legs, where the dogs bit her. Not only could she have physical pain for the rest of her life, she might also suffer from emotional stress around animals because of the attack.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Products Liability on Monday, April 23, 2012
With the arrival of spring, many people will be taking to the parks and getting outside to enjoy the weather. Those in Atlanta who love to get out on their bikes to explore the city should beware of a dangerous product recall that may affect their enjoyment of recreational biking. Three major bike brands are recalling some of their bikes because of a breaking suspension system that may cause injuries.
So far, 12 incidents have been reported to the company and two people have been injured because of the defective bikes. While the injuries involved so far have been limited to a chipped tooth and a cut, they could be far worse if the bike breaks at the wrong time.
On behalf of Chambers, Aholt & Rickard, LLP posted in Premises Liability on Thursday, April 19, 2012
Families of a deadly shooting last that happened last summer have filed a lawsuit against the company that employed the shooter. The man, who killed one woman, paralyzed another and shot one more in the leg, is now facing murder charges. The victims are suing the security company that employed the man for negligent security in the Atlanta parking ramp were the shooting took place. They say the security company endangered the woman instead of providing security.
The man allegedly took one of the victim's cars and then continued shooting at the others. This violent crime that resulted in one death could have been prevented had the company that hired the man properly screened him and routinely followed up to ensure the safety of those at the facility.
