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Workers’ Compensation: Changing the System
As part of an effort to spur job growth and decrease
persistently high unemployment in Illinois, Governor Bruce
Rauner wants to reform the state’s
workers’ compensation
system.
Gov. Rauner recently unveiled “The Illinois Turnaround,” a 44-point plan addressing maladies he sees in the economy, public schools and governmental structure. That proposal includes three workers’ compensations reforms. First, the plan would apportion occupational disease claims; for example, if a worker develops back pain, the Workers’ Compensation Commission may divide responsibility between the worker’s job and the worker’s weekend skydiving lessons. Governor Rauner also wants to make it harder for out-of-state workers to file a claim inside Illinois and tighten up the standards for determining a disability.
Governor Sets His Sights on Tort Reform
As a new governor settles into office, tort reform is
returning to the agenda in Springfield. Tort reform is
essentially an almost never-ending tug of war between
serious personal injury victims
on one side, and insurance companies, who sometimes stand
with their business group allies, on the other side. To
continue the metaphor of an athletic contest, tort reform
groups often try to throw up procedural hurdles on the
legal race track, making it more difficult for victims to
file suit. If the plaintiff is still able to start the
race, tort reformers often try to decrease the prize.
If Gov. Rauner’s campaign and early gubernatorial acts are any indication, business and insurance groups may try to change the rules in both these areas.
Venue
Some business and insurance groups have an extreme distaste for four words in the Illinois venue statute. This is the law that determines where a victim may bring a lawsuit. Generally, a plaintiff may file suit in the county of the defendant’s residence, “or in the county in which the transaction or some part thereof occurred out of which the cause of action arose.”
EDR: High-Tech Evidence in Motor Vehicle Crashes
For years, aviation crash investigators have relied on
the so-called “black box” to provide critical data
information which may provide clues as to how the accident
occurred. As of last September, all new cars sold in the
United States also have an Event Data Recorder (EDR) that
may provide critical evidence in a
motor vehicle crash
case.
EDRs first began appearing in passenger cars in the 1970s. By 2005, more than half these vehicles had some kind of EDR. Most of these first-generation devices only collected limited information, such as airbag deployment. But the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration recently enacted a rule that, beginning in September 2014, all new passenger cars must have an advanced EDR.
What it Records
Types of Pedestrian Accidents and Safety Organizations in Chicago
There is more to a
pedestrian accident
than simple negligence on either the part of the
pedestrian or the driver. Some types of pedestrian
accidents are often overlooked and considered a driving
problem; it can be easy for a pedestrian to forget that he
or she is just as responsible for street safety as other
types road users. This is particularly true in large
cities such as Chicago where a great number of people use
pedestrian throughways. The City of Chicago counts
pedestrian accidents as any that involve a motor vehicle
in which a pedestrian was the first point of contact with
the vehicle.
The number of pedestrian accidents has decreased dramatically in recent years in Chicago, according to the City of Chicago. In 2009, there were only 3,130 pedestrian crashes, representing a nine-year low. One major type of pedestrian crash is one that involves alcohol. According to National Traffic and Safety Administration statistics, though it is not technically illegal, alcohol impairment could be as serious as a problem for walkers as it is for drivers. Like the overall number of pedestrian accidents, these have declined in recent years. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of pedestrian accidents occur in urban areas much more frequently than rural, but only in number. A staggering 25 percent of all pedestrian fatalities occur in rural areas where vehicle speeds are higher than on city streets. This is something to pay special attention to on the suburban outskirts of major cities like Chicago.
Cell Phone Use among Common Causes of Truck Accidents
Truck accidents
are some of the most dangerous accidents facing motor
vehicle users. According to National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration statistics, in 2012 there were
nearly 4,000 people killed and an additional 104,000
people injured in accidents that involved large trucks.
This was an increase of 18 percent from the previous year.
The vast majority — 73 percent — of those injured in such incidents were occupants of the other vehicle involved in the crash, while only 24 percent of injuries sustained were by occupants of the trucks themselves. The disparity is probably because cars are much more likely to be totaled in an accident than the truck, because of the size difference. An additional 3,000 people injured were not occupants of either the truck or another vehicle, but pedestrians or cyclists on the road who collided with a large truck.
Drunk Driving Accidents: Why Drunk Drivers Often Survive Fatal Crashes
Earlier this year, a popular Chicago DJ was driving
drunk and speeding at more than 90 MPH when his car slid
off Lake Shore Drive into a frozen lagoon. A woman, a
37-year-old mother, was killed in the accident, and while
the DJ suffered a fractured vertebrae and hand injuries,
he survived the wreck. Police who arrived on the scene
said that the man smelled like alcohol, and when they
tested the man for a blood alcohol content, it registered
at .17, more than twice the legal limit. He was ordered
to be held in lieu of $1 million bond.
The grisly Humboldt Park crash illustrates a sad and somewhat staggering statistic about drunk driving—the drivers responsible for the crash are often more likely to survive than their passengers. This idea is often expressed by loved ones of those lost in drunk driving accidents, but there are statistics to back up the hunch. A recent study put out by California researchers found among drunk driving accidents, when not taking into consideration the severity of the injury, 1 percent of drunk drivers were killed in an accident, while 7 percent of sober patients died.
Why Tractor Trailer Accidents Happen
While many traditional American professions seem to be
morphing or facing the challenges of adaptation to the
21st century, moving goods on land from one side of the
country to the other doesn’t seem to be among these
industries. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
the number of truck driving jobs is expected to grow by
almost 200,000 between 2012 and 2022, a growth rate of 11
percent. As the economy continues to grow, the need for
truck drivers grows as well. Most tractor trailer drivers
drive for long hauls over thousands of miles and several
days and are carrying a gross vehicle weight of over
26,000 pounds. The combination of driver fatigue and
vehicle weight can make large tractor trailer trucks some
of the most dangerous vehicles on the road. The increase
in these numbers also signifies the potential increase in
tractor trailer accidents, as well.
Despite Overall Decline, Pedestrian Fatalities Remain High
In all major metropolises, like Chicago, where pedestrians share the road with cars, motorcycles, emergency vehicles, and bicycles, there are bound to be more pedestrian accidents than in areas in which the vast majority of people are in vehicles. Chicago, in fact, has several organizations and safety groups meant to aid pedestrians who have been injured, and to help raise awareness about pedestrian safety and driver responsibility. These kinds of initiatives seem to be working, not just in Chicago, but across the nation. According to a recent National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) report, the number of pedestrian fatalities declined last year by nearly 2 percent. The year on record with the least number of pedestrian fatalities remains 2009, but every year that the number continues to decline, even slightly, is a success.
Mild and Traumatic Brain Injuries
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has
begun to take extra precautionary measures to protect its
athletes from concussions, which are a form of brain
injury. For those of us that are not college athletes,
though, there is no one looking out for us to protect our
brains and we are in danger of
concussions and brain injury
too.
The Brain injury Association of America, defines “mild brain injury” as a brain injury that was caused by a mild initial physical trauma. “The term ‘mild’…does not indicate the severity of the consequences of the injury.”
Mild brain injuries can lead to symptoms that are as severe as those from a severe brain injury. The Report to Congress on Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in the United States from the Centers for Disease Control defined mild brain injury as those which are caused “from blunt trauma or acceleration or deceleration forces,” along with any of the below symptoms:
Moving Forward after a Spinal Cord Injury
If you have been severely
injured in a car accident, one of the most important first steps is to speak with
an attorney. Starting the claim system early and
efficiently is key to recovering the damages you need to
get your life back on track. Attempting to go through the
complicated steps on your own can result in less
compensation and less care than you may need or deserve.
One of the most traumatizing injuries that can result from a car accident is one that involves the spinal cord. According to the MayoClinic, motor vehicle accidents account for 35 percent of all new spinal cord injuries sustained in the United States very year, making car crashes one of the most leading causes of spinal cord injury. There are two main types of spinal cord injuries: traumatic or non-traumatic. These delineations have to do with the way that the injury affects the nerve fibers that pass through the injured area. When nerves are damaged, they affect the way that a person is able to send signals between the brain and body extremities. The location of where the injury is sustained on the spinal cord affects the types of movement that will later be hindered: a chest injury can affect one’s legs, bowel and bladder control, sexual function, and torso. A neck or cervical injury can affect a person’s ability to breath as well as his function of his arms.
Contact a Lake County Vehicle Accident Attorney Who is Ready to Help You
If you or a member of your family has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, contact our office. Call 847-662-3303 to set up a free initial consultation at one of our four convenient locations. There is no risk because we only collect fees if you collect compensation. With offices in Libertyville, Waukegan, Richmond, and Chicago, we represent clients in Lake County, Cook County, DuPage County, and McHenry County.
Results listed are not a guarantee or indication of future case results.
