In light of today’s story on the debate over the Virginia damage caps on tort lawsuits against the state, this prior column may be of some interest. Continue reading “Tort Reform and Legal Mythologies: Re-Examining Limits on Tort Actions and Damage Awards”
Category: Torts
As discussed on this blog, Virginia’s $100,000 limit on tort claims against the state was one of the central reasons why families agreed to a settlement with Virginia at a relatively low figure. Now, finally, someone is seeking to change the cap which has not be raised in over a decade. Continue reading “Virginia Considers Raising the Caps on Lawsuits After Virginia Tech Settlement”
It is a sad day when one cannot even buy fake “Hillbilly” teeth without finding that they are not in the best condition. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a recall of over 20,000 fake “Hillbilly” teeth due to the presence of lead. What is even more disturbing is that our Hillbilly teeth are now being made in China. Is nothing sacred? Continue reading “Legal Redundancies: Fake “Hillbilly Teeth” Recalled as Defective”
Great America has been criticized in a state agency for violating the “10/20 Rule”: after allowing 4-year-old Carlos Flores to float on the surface of the Great Barrier Reef Wave Pool for 39 seconds. With the approaching summer, such negligent rescue cases arise with disturbing regularity. Continue reading “Great America Faces Possible Lawsuit Over Drowning under the “10/20” Rule”
The North Franklin Township of Pennsylvania is under challenge for denying 7-year-old Bradley Dallatore’s use of his service dog, Jiffy. It is a case that pits the needs of the child against the school’s claim of the need to protect other children. Continue reading “School Challenged for Barring Service Dog for Autistic Child”
The seven Florida teens who filmed a brutal attack on Victoria Lindsay, 16, for the YouTube video shown below will be charged as adults and could see some serious jail time. Mercades Nichols, 17, Brittini Hardcastle, 17, and Britney Mayes, 17, will face charges of felonious battery, false imprisonment and kidnapping in connection with the attack. Cara Murphy, 16, Kayla Hassell, 15, April Cooper, 14, Zachary Ashley, 17, and Stephen Schumaker, 18, will face charges of felonious battery and false imprisonment. Now, an innocent couple (thought to be the parents of Zachary Ashley) have been hounded when their telephone number was posted on YouTube. Continue reading “Teenagers In YouTube Attack to be Charged as Adults”
Massachusetts widow, Nancy Magee, is suing PetSmart in an extremely novel tort case, claiming that the original owner contracted lymphocytic choriomeningitis (LCMV) from the hamster and then passed it along when her organs were transplanted in Thomas J. Magee. It is a proximate cause case that makes Palsgraf look positively simple in comparison. It is, however, only the latest in a series of interesting transplant cases recently. Continue reading “The Hamster Did It: PetSmart Sued Over Diseased Hamster in Wrongful Death Action”
Actor Rob Lowe and his wife Sheryl have gone to Los Angeles Superior Court to seek damages against their former nanny, Laura Boyce on claims of defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract and other claims. They are seeking both compensatory and punitive damages. The complaint is linked below. Continue reading “Rob Lowe and Wife Sues Former Nanny for Defamation”
Litigation is expected in a terrible tragedy developing over the use of cancerous organs mistakenly given to organ transplant patients who later died or developed cancer. The organs were harvested from 15-year-old Alex Koehne, who was erroneously diagnosed with bacterial meningitis when he really died from a rare form of lymphoma. The has occurred as another family is suing the University of Pennsylvania for giving Tony Grier a cancerous lung in a transplant. Continue reading “Two Organ Recipients Die and Two Others Develop Cancer After Being Given Cancer Victim’s Organs”
Kynesha Dhanoolal, the widow of a soldier killed in Iraq this week, has had to go to court to secure a restraining order against her mother-in-law to prevent the embalming of her husband’s body before she can harvest her husband sperm. This posthumous insemination is becoming more common with the advancement of science and the law. Continue reading “Wife and Mother Go to Court Over Dead Soldier’s Sperm”
Another disturbing case has arisen over bullying. Mathew Mumbauer, 11, is paralyzed int Massachusetts General Hospital after allegedly being pushed down the stairs by a bully, according to his mother, Alyssa Cormier. This is only the latest such case of an injury or suicide tied to reported bullying. Continue reading “Eleven-Year-Old Boy Paralyzed in Alleged Bully Attack”
In what could well prove the basis for a lawsuit, a Sheriff’s sergeant in Sacramento shot and killed a driver believed to be drunk.
Continue reading “California Police Officer Shoots and Kills DUI Suspect”
A North Dakota town is facing a health crisis over its playground and other states are concerned over their roads. The city elders used a common gravel in the area for base material, only to learn that it is composed of erionite that can cause lung cancer. Continue reading “Toxic Roads and Turkish Cancer”
This is simply amazing video of the crash of NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Michael McDowell Friday during qualifying races for Sunday’s Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Continue reading “Crashworthiness: Amazing Video of Texas Motor Speedway Crash”
The Italian mob appears to be getting into the burgeoning wine market with its own off-label vino. The problem is they mafia vintners is that they not only rejected oak-aging, but apparently wine itself. The Italian government has seized over 70 million litres of cheap wine containing acid, manure and fertilizer. It appears that the wine could kill you. This brings a new meaning to the traditional toast to live “one hundred years” or “Per cent’anni.” Continue reading “Good Body But Over Manured: Italian Wine Found to Be Heavily Laden with Many Things But Little Actual Wine”