January, 2017 - WNW Legal

Texting May Be Blocked While Driving

January 31, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

Mississippi residents may be interested in a lawsuit filed in January 2017 against Apple. If the lawsuit is successful, Apple would be required to install software on its phones that would prevent the user from texting while driving. The plaintiffs argue that this would help to prevent accidents caused by distracted drivers.

According to the lawsuit, Apple will not need to develop any new technology in order to make the change. It has had the technology since 2008, and it was patented in 2014. Apple has refrained from installing the feature on any of its phones. The lawsuit would require both that new phones come installed with the features and that old phones would require a mandated update.

There is no doubt that distracted driving, often caused by cellphone usage, is a serious problem on the road. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that texting while driving is six times more dangerous than drunk driving and that as many as 1.5 million drivers are texting while driving at any given moment. The National Safety Council has further reported that approximately one-quarter of all accidents in the U.S. are the result of texting while driving. Numerous states have outlawed texting while driving and required hands-free only phone use, but these laws have proven notoriously difficult to enforce.

While the laws regarding cell phone usage in cars may change and improve, drivers still need to realize that this kind of behavior resulting in a car collision can be devastating to occupants of other vehicles. A personal injury attorney representing an injured victim will often have the opportunity to review cellphone records and other evidence in order to demonstrate that the driver was distracted at the time of the crash and should thus be held financially responsible.

Revised Nursing Home Rules Give Residents More Control

January 26, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

Mississippi residents who have family members living in nursing homes may be interested in learning that following a revision of federal rules, their loved ones may be able to be more involved with their own healthcare. According to a director at the advocacy group Consumer Voice, the rule revisions could transform the care that nursing home residents receive.

The secretary of Health and Human Services proposed the regulation changes, which will happen in three phases. The first phase began in November and addressed making the nursing facility feel more like a home, including allowing snacks and alternative meals outside of normal, scheduled meals. Additionally, residents can now also choose their roommates, meaning siblings or same-sex couples can share a room. Family members can also visit whenever the nursing home resident wishes as long as the rights of the other residents are not violated.

The revisions also cover potential abuse. The definition of nursing home abuse was expanded to include financial exploitation. Licensed professionals who have received disciplinary action in the past due to physical, mental or financial abuse cannot be hired by nursing homes. Finally, the facility must hire enough properly licensed staff members to meet the residents’ needs, and they must have the training to deal with dementia.

When family members put loved ones into nursing homes, they expect that their loved ones will be provided with the medical care they need. If family members notice signs of abuse or neglect that cause serious harm to their loved ones, a personal injury attorney may assist them with filing a lawsuit against the staff members who caused the abuse and the nursing home facility that hired them. Compensation may be sought by families for their loved ones’ medical bills and other damages depending on the severity of the abuse.

Enforcement of Arbitration Ban Is Halted

January 17, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

Mississippi residents who have filed suits or plan to file suits against a nursing home for negligent care or abuse should know about a regulation update recently issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The agency has postponed the enforcement of a rule that prohibits nursing home centers from requiring patients to enter into obligatory arbitration agreements in advance of a dispute.

A memo issued to Medicare contractors and states in late 2016 said that the ban would not be implemented until an injunction against the ban gets reversed. The memo also stated that Medicare surveyors will not be auditing the nursing facilities.

In November of 2016, a request submitted in part by the American Health Care Association was approved by a judge in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi. In addition to the industry trade group, the request also included four other local and state health care groups.

The ban had been scheduled to become effective on Nov. 28, 2016. It is uncertain how the incoming presidential administration will address the prohibition of mandatory arbitration provisions in nursing home contracts. However, there have been promises to reduce the regulatory requirements for businesses, and the nursing home industry has objected to the new rule.

The arbitration agreements forbid individuals from filing lawsuits against the nursing homes that provide negligent care to their loved ones. Some families state that there is pressure to sign the contracts.

Residents of assisted living or nursing home facilities are entitled to reasonable standards of care. A personal injury attorney may assist clients seeking fair financial compensation for nursing home neglect. This may entail investigating occurrences of bedsores, head injuries, bone fractures, medication errors and more.

Liability for Borrowed Vehicle Accidents

January 12, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

If an individual borrows a vehicle and subsequently causes an accident, there may be a question of who can be held liable for the damage that results. Mississippi motorists should be aware that if their vehicle is lent to someone who later gets into an accident, they may be held financially, and in some cases criminally, responsible.

In most states and situations, if the owner of a vehicle has insurance, the insurance will follow the car. This means that the insurance of the owner will be applied as primary coverage up to the limit of the policy if a vehicle accident occurs. If necessary, the driver’s insurance would be applied as secondary insurance.

The owner of a borrowed vehicle may not be held liable for damage caused by the vehicle in certain cases. They include if the owner did not give the driver permission to operate the vehicle or if the driver is explicitly excluded on the insurance policy.

The owner of a vehicle may be held liable if he or she allows someone to borrow the vehicle with the knowledge that the individual was impaired, such as with alcohol or drug consumption, or both. He or she could be held both civilly and criminally responsible. The same applies if the owner allows an unlicensed driver to operate the vehicle and that person subsequently gets into an accident.

A personal injury attorney may assist clients who are injured in car crashes by working to identify the parties that should be held financially responsible. This may entail a lawsuit against a negligent driver or owner, or a manufacturer of a defective auto part. Compensation could be sought for pain and suffering, lost wages and medical expenses.

What Can I Do to Protect My Loved One from Nursing Home Abuse?

January 6, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

Nursing home safety is a major concern for many people in Mississippi. Nursing home abuse and negligence claims are on the rise. There is a lack of resources to properly train and hire properly qualified personnel, leaving your relatives at risk of neglect, abuse, injury and even death. To keep them from becoming a statistic, you should learn how to protect your loved one from abuse.

Visit often

Visit your senior relative frequently. If you are not able to visit as often as you like because of distance issues, enlist the help of other family members and family friends who live close by. Arrange those visits so that they appear to be random. By visiting often, you can keep track of what is going on with your loved one. This can help to deter negligent and abusive nursing home workers from targeting your loved one.

Watch for signs of abuse

Even if you have regular phone call conversations with your loved one, do not assume that everything is okay, especially if they insist it is. You need to see for yourself. Monitor their appearance and actions for signs of abuse. Common indicators include:

Poorly kept appearance

Sudden weight loss

Sudden cognitive changes

Bruises, broken bones and scrapes

If you notice any of the above signs, ask your elderly relative and their caregivers about them. Carefully listen to their explanations. Keep in mind that not all seniors show physical and emotional signs of abuse. However, that does not mean it is not going on. Every time you visit, take pictures. Pay attention to every word that is said just in case they are trying to tell you something without being obvious. You should also listen to what is not being said. If your loved one or the staff deflects your questions, or if anything does not seem to add up or sounds and looks suspicious, report your concerns to the head of the facility and the local Adult Protective Service agency.

Keep track of their belongings

Another form of abuse that you need to be aware of is financial. Many nursing home residents have valuables that they keep with them. Some residents still maintain control over their finances and assets. If you notice missing money or valuables they cannot account for, you should file a report with the facility and the local authorities.

Protecting your loved ones from abuse is not always easy, but it can be done. If you have questions or concerns about actions you can take to ensure seniors’ safety and well-being while they live in a nursing home, you should speak with an attorney about the situation.

NHTSA Asks Phone Makers to Help Stop Distracted Driving

January 4, 2017/in Personal Injury /by damg

In December 2016, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration published a new proposal as Phase 2 of its Driver Distraction Guidelines. The guidelines, which were aimed at cellphone manufacturers, suggested that phones be equipped with a driver mode to stop car and truck drivers from using them while they are traveling on roads in Mississippi and around the country.

The guidelines include a recommendation that phones gain the ability to be paired with vehicles. A paired device could then automatically have its screen turned off. Although emergency services would still be accessible, the screen lockdown might discourage drivers from looking at their devices and putting everyone around them at risk. In cases where circumstances might prevent phones from being paired with vehicles, drivers would need to turn on driver mode manually until technology progresses to the point where phones could determine when to activate driver mode automatically.

Driver mode would block motorists from doing things like reading text messages, scrolling through content and going online to view websites. It would also stop them from entering text by hand. Although they could still use map functions, image and video display would be barred in all other circumstances.

Many different factors can contribute to truck accidents. In addition to having to contend with truckers who might be fatigued or unqualified, motorists are placed at risk by operators who get distracted by devices like phones. Victims of accidents may sustain serious personal injuries that come with high medical costs or render them unable to work and provide for themselves. Those who suspect that phone use might have contributed to their personal injuries might want to talk to attorneys about the types of evidence they can use to support their allegations.