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The most common injury caused by a car accident is a neck pain.  Since rear-end car accidents top the list of vehicular impact types, the neck and spine are usually what is injured.  However a close second to spine trauma is injury to the knees.  Even when you are wearing a seatbelt, your knees can impact other parts of the interior of the car, causing deep bruising, or what physicians like to call "hematoma."  In addition to deep bruising and laceration, the soft-tissues of the knee can be strained and even torn.  Ligaments and meniscus of the knee can be damaged, requiring surgery.  Along with any other type of surgery, this can present certain dangers to the victim of the car crash.

The anatomy of the knee is fairly basic.  There is a lateral and medial meniscus that acts as a cushion between the bones of the knee.  The lateral and medial ligaments work like rubber bands on each side of the knee that connect the upper and lower leg bones and permit us to bend and stoop.  The patella, or knee cap, is front and center and can be broken if it hits the dashboard of an automobile during a collision.  The articular cartilage is just behind the knee cap and consists of the soft tissues that wrap around the front of the knee.  Our knees are not designed to take on the blunt force trauma caused in a car crash. 

Often times victims of a knee injury will report that the knee feels "weird" in the days following the collision.  Our lawyers have heard clients say that the knee felt bruised at the scene, but that they didn't think a whole lot about it.  Certainly it wasn't fractured, but something was definitely "off."  Clients often report the knee "giving out" after long walks or after standing for an extended period of time.  People who have injured their knee in a car accident need to have two types of diagnostic imaging done to determine what, if any, real damage was caused to the knee in the crash.  First, get an x-ray to determine if there are any fractures in the knee.  Second, get an MRI of the knee to find out where the soft-tissues (ligaments, meniscus, cartilage) of the knee has been damaged.  The structure itself may still be intact, but that doesn't mean you haven't sustained a serious knee injury.

If you believe you have injured your knees in a car accident or motorcycle accident, seek medical attention immediately and demand the diagnostic imaging we discussed earlier in this article.  Then contact a car accident knee lawyer to discuss how to handle your case against the at-fault party and their car insurance company.  Demanding a fair settlement for a knee injury is complex, especially when the claim is for a soft-tissue knee injury.  Those types of claims are aggressively defended by car insurance companies. 

Schultz Legal Group was founded by Stephen Schultz, and well-respected injury attorney with law offices in Missouri, Illinois, and Arkansas.  Schultz is an AV-Preeminent Rated attorney and member of several exclusive organizations that are reserved for the top 1% of trial lawyers in the country.  His law firm exclusively handles injury claims for persons injury in auto accidents are who are looking to obtain fair compensation and justice for their injuries.

 

Car accidents cause damage both to people and property.  The property can be repaired or replaced fairly simply.  However, damage to people, even if minor, can take a lifetime to heal.  Unfortunately many injuries caused in an automobile collision cause permanent, irreparable harm.  Certain types of impacts cause certain forms of injuries to the human body.  Even minor, slow impact collisions can cause serious damage to the soft-tissues of the body.  These cases, often referred to as MIST (minor impact soft tissue) cases, are fought hard by the nation's largest car insurance companies. 

Spine injury from a car accident is the most common form of damage caused to the body in a collision.  The soft tissues (discs) in the spine are not equipped to handle the jarring of a collision, even at low speeds.  Automotive safety technology has come a long way with absorbant crunch zones and bumpers, but spine injuries still occur in most accidents.  Trauma to the spine can result in herniated discs (a.k.a. "blown discs" or "slipped discs") that can require physical therapy, epidural steroid injection, and even surgery to repair.  In the event of a spine injury, it is best to get the right diagnostic imaging to determine the extent of the damage.  X-rays are commonly performed at the hospital, but without MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) the nature of a disc problem cannot be fully understood.

Car accident brain injury commonly results from head-on and broadside auto accidents.  A brain injury can occur without loss of consciousness.  Sometimes people refer to a "closed head injury" as one where the head is not visibly damaged, but there is brain damage of some sort.  A closed head injury can cause all kinds of cognitive issues, including problems with balance, memory, everyday functioning.  Brain damage needs to be diagnosed early and treated carefully by a specialist, usually a team of neurologists and neurosurgeons.

Other forms of catastrophic injury can result from almost any type of impact from a wreck.  Aside from traumatic brain injury (TBI), other serious injuries can cause degloving of the skin, loss of limbs, or shattering of bone.  Catastrophic injuries can require a lifetime of expensive medical care, including modifications to your home and nursing care.  Economic recovery for future medical care is tricky, since most courts will not permit compensation for speculative future damages.  It will take experienced legal representation to assist in obtaining this type of monetary compensation.

Obtaining compensation for all forms of injury caused by a car accident will be the job of your legal team.  Believe it or not, it will also be part of the job of your treating doctors, who will have to back you up when it comes time to filing an insurance claim or injury lawsuit.  Doctors must make a medical opinion as to whether the injuries you are claiming were caused, or contributed to be caused, by the auto accident.  This is a determination that some doctors are not comfortable making.  Make sure your treating physician is not scared of courtroom testimony.    

 

Illinois troopers were called to a major semi-truck crash that took place in Johnson County Illinois just before rush hour this morning.  Responders report that the collision occurred on Interstate 57 just south of the town of Goreville.   22 year-old Christopher Tracy was operating his light blue brand new Freightliner tractor-trailer southbound on I-57.  Tracy's truck collided with another semi-truck that was parked on the shoulder of the road.  Tracy, of the state of Missouri, did not report any personal injuries at the scene. 

64 year-old Patrick McDaniel was in his parked 2006 tractor-trailer on the shoulder when it was struck from behind.  The left rear corner of his truck sustained the majority of the impact, as Tracy's truck slammed into it, and then slid down a hill on the side of southbound I-57.  Tracy was issued a traffic ticket by Illinois State Police for improper lane usage.  Coincidentally, a conviction for improper lane usage is a "serious safety violation" according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.  Tracy will be required to disclose this conviction to his employer.  If he is an independent contractor or "owner operator", he is still required to disclose this violation in the annual driving record review as required by federal safety regulations.

Trucking accidents often involve two or three tractor-trailers and no passenger vehicles.  Drivers can still sustain serious injuries, although statistically, truck drivers are less likely to sustain the severity of injury often incurred by drivers/passengers of smaller vehicles.  Take for example this crash on I-57 which involved a high rate of speed and violent impact.  Both truck drivers refused medical attention at the scene.  That does not mean they are not seriously hurt however.  Most soft-tissue injuries, which can end up requiring surgery, do not manifest themselves for hours or days after a collision.

A tractor-trailer accident lawyer can provide victims of a commercial motor vehicle crash with helpful advice on how to file claims with an insurance company for property damage, personal injury, lost wages, and other harms caused by a collision.  Truck crash litigation can be complex, expensive, and time-consuming.  Because federal and state law both apply to these case types, many lawyers are not fully capable of providing the experienced legal representation necessary to ensure a favorable result.  As such, it is recommended that victims research the credentials of their lawyer or law firm to determine whether they have the specific knowledge necessary to win your case.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has reviewed the data and heard the arguments on both sides of the fence.  On one hand, truckers claim that they live in their cabs and they must be permitted to use a cellphone to stay in contact with friends, family, and their employer during those 10+ hours of driving each day.  Safety experts, on the other hand, claim that truck drivers who use a cellphone present a clear and present danger to everyone else on the road.  Judging by the numbers, there is truth to their position.  Just in the past couple of years in Missouri, Illinois, and Arkansas, there have been reports of several fatal semi-truck accidents where law enforcement determined that a truck driver was using a cellphone just moments before the collision.  In Missouri alone, there were 21 fatal and 558 serious car accidents where cell phone use was a contributing factor to the crash.

So as early 2012, Federal Safety Regulations will ban cellphone use by truck drivers while they are on-duty, behind the wheel of a tractor-trailer.  And while there is no specific enforcement plan, the government has recommended that local police pull over semi-trucks and passenger buses where a driver is witnessed using his/her cellphone.  The Missouri Highway Patrol commented on the measure and indicated that it would pull commercial motor vehicle operators over if they are using a cellphone.  The fine for a truck driver or bus driver convicted of using a cellphone while driving include up to a $2,750 penalty for the driver and $11,000 penalty for the employer. 

The American Trucking Association actually supports the new trucking safety law.  However, a coalition representing independent operators does not.  All in all, this new regulation should be welcomed by anyone concerned with the safety of truck drivers, other motorists, and delivery of undamaged freight.  Many states have already introduced, or are considering, laws that ban cellphone for motorists.  Some states have made it illegal to use the text messaging feature on a cellphone.  Others have ban hand-held cellular devices all together unless the driver is using bluetooth, a headset, or some other form of wireless connectivity that permits the driver to keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the road.

As a truck accident injury lawyer, one of the first things we do in complex semi-truck injury litigation is subpoena the cellphone carrier records of our client and the driver of the tractor-trailer to determine if cell phone use could have played a contributing factor in the collision.  Juries get upset with distracted drivers, largely because the resulting accident could have been preventable.  As an experienced truck accident attorney, it is not uncommon for us to claim punitive damages in a case involving distracted truck driving.  These collisions cause bad injuries and our attorneys represent each of these victims with special care.  It is important for all drivers, both truck and passenger care, to realize the danger posed by cell phone distraction.     

Our Eureka Missouri Semi-Truck Accident Lawyers are following a story unfolding in St. Louis this afternoon.  Authorities closed the westbound lanes of I-44 in Eureka as three semi-trucks and numerous passenger cars were involved in the pileup.  We do not have reports of any serious injuries as of yet, but that does not mean folks were not injured in the accident.  Electronic safety signs on the westbound lanes of I-44 before Antire Road were urging motorists to find alternate routes of travel and avoid the crash scene as evidence was being collected.

Tractor-trailer accidents are unbelievably complex and involve aspects of personal injury law that most Missouri lawyers are just not qualified to handle.  From the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to Missouri laws involving commercial motor carriers, the laws and regulations that govern the trucking industry are so detailed and voluminous that most attorneys just avoid them entirely, even when the fate of a client's truck accident injury lawsuit is in the balance. 

The first thing that a trucking company will do when it is notified that one of its drivers has been involved in a semi-truck accident is notify its liability insurance carrier.  The insurance carrier will then immediately dispatch a insurance defense crash investigation team to the scene.  The job of the immediate response team is to secure evidence interview witnesses, and immediately begin the process of 'circling the wagons' in defense of any injury claim or lawsuit that is filed by a innocent victim of the crash.  Our Missouri truck accident injury lawyers have seen this happen on many, many occasions.

The worst thing a truck accident injury victim can do is wait to contact an attorney.  Why?  Because if a lawyer does not work immediately to keep evidence from being tampered with or destroyed by the defense insurance company, then the potential for a successful resolution to a personal injury claim is compromised.  Evidence like truck driver log books, which can prove evidence of a tired and fatigued truck driver, will be lost, altered, or destroyed by an insurance company unless your lawyer files for a temporary restraining order (TRO) to preserve these vital bits of forensic evidence.

If you are involved in an accident with an 18-wheeler (commercial motor vehicle), contact an experienced Missouri semi-truck injury lawyer immediately by calling (866) 840-3636. 

 

Folks injured in automobile accidents, by defective products, or at work have a right to fair compensation if someone else is legally responsible for causing those injuries.  That is where the role of a Missouri injury lawyer comes into play.  A lawyer can help maximize your compensation from a claim by providing a variety of services, which include 1) help obtaining the best medical treatment possible, even if you do not have health insurance 2) investigating and discovering all forms of compensation and insurance applicable to your injury 3) maintaining your right of privacy from probing insurance questions, and 4) negotiating an injury settlement that is satisfactory to your case.

Medical treatment is one of the most important aspects of any injury claim.  And breaking that down further into two components, 1) quality and 2) timeframe.  If you don't obtain the right type of treatment it can be just as damaging to your case as not getting treatment at all.  So if you have a spine injury, go see an orthopedist or neurologist that specializes in spine trauma.  Just like the law, medicine is broken into many, many specialties.  Second, getting the right treatment in the right timeframe is critical.  If you wait too long to get medical care, or have long "gaps in treatment" the insurance adjuster will likely lowball your case or deny it all together.  A personal injury lawyer can offer more advice on this important aspect of your case.

Investigating and discovering all insurance policies that apply your case is vital to maximizing settlement value.  Claims adjusters do their best to conceal available coverage, or mislead as to the 'policy limits' available to compensate an injury victim.  An injury attorney ends these games and ascertains all available insurance coverage, and determines what applies and what doesn't.  Sometimes insurance can be "stacked" to provide even additional compensation.  This aspect of the law is evolving in Missouri and predominantly determined by caselaw and policy language. 

Insurance companies love to uncover all your prior medical history, even if it bears no relevance to the case at hand.  They do this through the use of unrestricted medical record release authorizations that they will demand that you sign in order to present a claim for injury.  An accident injury lawyer would never permit this type of invasion of privacy to take place.   Prior health history can devalue your claim and ultimately lead to poor compensation when it comes time to negotiation of a settlement.  Rely on your lawyer to present only the evidence necessary to prevail in your accident injury claim, nothing more.  For more information, contact Missouri injury lawyer Stephen Schultz.  Mr. Schultz is AV-Rated and a Top 100 Trial Lawyer in Missouri for the 4th consecutive year.  He can be reached at (866) 840-3636 or locally at (314) 448-0934


  

Many people are hesitant to involve a personal injury attorney in their claim due to the fear of the unknown.  Though no two injury claims are exactly the same, most follow the same timeline of events.  After being involved in a situation that causes injury, it is in your best interest to seek immediate medical attention.  Documentation of your injuries through medical records and reports provides uncontested proof that you were injured as a result of an accident and were in enough pain to seek medical attention.  Once we have a better understanding of your exact injuries, we are able to refer you to a specialist who can use their expertise to further treat you. 

Most Missouri injury lawyers have close working relationships with many of Missouri's best doctors - all of which have the same goal: to help YOU. During the first phase of your claim, you are given a main focus and we (as your attorney) are given a main focus.  Yours is to obtain all recommended medical treatment.  The duration of your Missouri injury claim is the only time you will be able to receive medical treatment at the at-fault party's expense.  All charges for treatment incurred during this time is treated as addition to your final compensation amount. 

The focus of any experienced accident lawyer is concentrated on investigative work, gathering all details we can revolving around your case.  During this time, we are also able to assist you in finding, scheduling, and getting to your crucial medical appointments. Once your medical treatment is complete, we are able to move forward with establishing your claim's worth.  Together, we consider every aspect in which this injury has affected you and your lifestyle.  Some clients are able to fully recover physically and return to their lifestyle as it was prior to an accident.  Unfortunately, this is not always the case and clients are faced with a future of uncertainty.  Combining your physical, emotional, economical, and social losses, we fight hard to obtain a fair monetary amount to compensate you for this.  Our fight for this does not end until we (including YOU) are satisfied with a settlement. 

If a reasonable settlement offer is not agreed upon in a fair amount of time, a lawsuit is filed on your behalf in which we continue your legal battle for fair settlement.  Again, nothing is accepted without the knowledge and approval of a client. Upon settlement of your claim, we handle all remaining medical bills and account balances to ensure that nothing is lingering after a final settlement.  After reaching a settlement both the attorney and client are pleased with, all parties are able to continue with their lives as an injury claim being part of their past. A good lawyer prides himself on the ability to maintain open communication.  Clients always have access to attorney and staff office phones, email addresses, attorney cell phones, and office visits.  

Your injury claim is just that - yours.  You should never be left out of any communications regarding your case and should never be wondering the status of your case.  A compassionate St. Louis personal injury lawyer is available to discuss your case 24/7 and will come to you to address your concerns about the case.

Investigations continue after a bad accident in Springfield, MO, involving a dump truck and an ambulance.  Initial theories of what took place centered around the dump truck running almost directly into the ambulance as other motorists attempted to yield to the emergency vehicle.  Witnesses did confirm that the ambulance had its emergency flashing lights illuminated and sirens (whaler) on.  67 year-old James Pettibone of Greenfield was being transported to the hospital when the collision took place.  Mr. Pettibone did not survive the impact.  Also injured were ambulance personnel and the dump truck driver.  All in all, this was a severe truck vs. vehicle accident. 

Missouri law requires motorists and other vehicles to yield for emergency vehicles such as ambulances and firetrucks.  The penalty for failure to yield to these vehicles ranges from a traffic ticket to a civil lawsuit.  Failing to obey the Missouri Rules of the Road, and causing an accident resulting in personal injury or wrongful death, is actionable under the doctrine of negligence per se.  The legal theory is that if you disregard a statute that is intended to protect people from injury, that the defendant is "presumed" to be "negligent."  There are exceptions to this general rule, as well as applicable defenses.

Both vehicles involved in this crash were commercial motor vehicles.  They both have an electronic control module which can be retrieved and studied to discover what both vehicles were doing just prior to impact.  Forensic evidence such as this can assist a Missouri car accident lawyer in piecing together what happened. 

When you are involved in an accident with a tractor-trailer, the damage to your vehicle and injuries to your body can be overwhelming.  As an 18-wheeler truck accident lawyer, I can tell you that the road to recovery, both physically and economically, can take a long, long time.  Insurance companies that insure large commercial trucking companies now that time is on their side, not the injury victim or surviving family members.  The longer they make someone hold out for compensation, the more likely the victim is to accept a grossly unfair amount of money.  Its extremely unfair and people in this situation are definitely taken advantage of. 

A Missouri truck accident lawyer can even the playing field.  Lawyers are familiar with the complexity of the laws that govern the commercial trucking industry.  They know what to look for when investigating a case and prosecuting it to a successful outcome.  Insurance companies have high-paid legal defense teams on retainer that work behind the scenes from the start to undermine the credibility of any tractor-trailer accident claim.  Its only fair that the victim have an attorney on their side to balance the scales.

Stephen Schultz has been representing trucking accident victims for years.  He is a member of APITLA, a highly respected organization dedicated to protecting the rights of persons injured in truck accidents.  Mr. Schultz only represents plaintiffs, and does so with the same conviction he wish he had when he was seriously injured in an automobile collision prior to enrolling in law school.  He knows, from personal experience, what it feels like to be badly injured in a crash and not knowing who to turn to for compassionate legal representation and what to expect from a lawsuit or settlement.

For more information, truck accident lawyer Stephen Schultz can be reached by visiting his website, SchultzLegalGroup.com, or by calling toll-free (866) 840-3636.

This is a common question that many people ask after they are involved in a car accident or other incident in Missouri.  Its hard to say with certainly whether you need an accident injury lawyer unless you weigh your chances of obtaining a fair settlement from an insurance company.  There are studies and statistical data indicating that having legal representation on your side increases your chances of a fair shake at compensation by over 300%.  You have to look at it this way:  the insurance company is a well-funded, well-represented giant that does not have a personal interest or duty to treat you with respect or fairness.  Insurance companies are in business to generate huge profits.  They keep profits up and shareholders happy by minimizing payouts on PI claims, plain and simple.  Anyone who tells you otherwise is just not being truthful or realistic.

There are instances in which you can settle a case on your own without hiring a lawyer.  Those situations include cases where there is little to no property damage and your injuries are minimal.  By minimal I mean that you saw your primary care doctor, got checked out, and everything is clear and you are feeling fine.  One important piece of advice though:  Never, ever settle your case, even if your injuries are very minor, until you give your body at least 60 days to show any signs of lingering symptoms.  This most commonly comes up in whiplash cases or soft tissue car accidents.  Soft tissue injuries can be sneaky.  You can appear sore for a few days, then fine for a few days, and then things can deteriorate quickly.  In some events, victims experience "radicular" symptoms, which are radiating pains down the arms and legs.  This is a sign of a very serious disc problem.

As an experienced Missouri lawyer with an AV-Preeminent peer review rating from Martindale Hubbell, I can tell you that there will be times that we will turn down potential clients.  We feel that unless we can add value to a client's case by aggressive legal representation, that we would rather explain the process to the caller and advise them to handle the case without a lawyer.  This is something that not all lawyers will do.  There are some personal injury attorneys that will accept every case that walks in the door, even if the injured client could have settled the case without legal representation and therefore avoid paying attorneys' fees.

If you ever need to discuss your case and whether hiring a lawyer is in your best interests, contact a St. Louis personal injury lawyer at Schultz Legal Group law firm by calling toll-free (866) 840-3636.  Schultz Legal Group has offices in Missouri, Illinois, and Arkansas and will come to clients locations whenever necessary to consult on a one-on-one basis.