Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

As an Atlanta DUI accident lawyer, I know first hand that Georgia law does not tolerate drunk (DUI) Drivers. My many years of experience representing clients in Georgia DUI accidents cases has taught me that unlike dog bite cases, there is no "first bite" rule when it comes to drunk driving and auto accidents. DUI drivers are subject to serious criminal penalties and punitive civil damages even for their first drug or alcohol induced accident. However, the number of prior drug or alcohol offenses can be a significant factor in determining both the value of the injured party's claim and the number of other potentially responsible defendants.

Obviously, a driver with multiple drunken driving offenses will be subject to a higher punitive damage award than a person with no such prior offenses. Circumstances are important as well. A very drunk driver who causes a collision while on the way from one bar to another will be a far more inviting punitive damage target than an older woman who had one too many cocktails at a Sunday school party. It is imperative to learn the story behind the drinking in order to determine its real value to the case.

If the impaired driver is acting within the course and scope of his/her employment at the time of the accident, the employer will be responsible for the injured party's actual damages to the same extent as its employee. However, any punitive damages awarded against the drunk driver will not be the responsibility of the driver's employer because punitive damages are awarded to deter or punish specific behavior. This distinction can be hugely significant because insurance coverage may not exist (or may be inadequate) for punitive damages awarded only against the drunk driver.

Continue reading "Georgia Law does not Tolerate Drunk (DUI) Drivers Causing Accidents (and Your Injury Case may Have Significantly more Value if the At-Fault Driver was DUI)" »

While all auto accident cases that cause serious personal injury or death are tragic, the most senseless and avoidable of these are those involving drunk drivers. As an Atlanta car accident lawyer, and more importantly as a long time Georgia resident with two school age children, I was saddened to read in the AJC on line about the untimely death of Jordan Griner who was apparently killed by a drunk driver with a blood alcohol level of .229 (nearly three times the legally allowed limit in Georgia). This death was tragic, senseless, and entirely avoidable.

From a legal perspective, claims involving drunk drivers are far more complex than they may seem. In addition to money damages for medical bills, pain and suffering and (as in this case) wrongful death, persons injured by drunk drivers are often entitled to an award of punitive damages. Punitive damages are awarded in addition to all other damages, and are designed to punish and deter these dangerous drivers so that they will not engage in such reckless behavior in the future.

Continue reading "Georgia Drunk Driving Accidents are Far Too Common, Serious, and Entirely Avoidable" »

As an Atlanta automobile accident lawyer I have had numerous clients injured in wrecks resulting from road rage. The latest involved in an accident on an Atlanta highway caused when an irate driver quickly changed lanes into the lane of travel of my client and slammed on his brakes. Trying to avoid running into the rear of the other vehicle, my client lost control of his SUV and careened into the median wall and the SUV flipped on its side.

The interesting thing about this incident was that my client was not in any way involved in the road rage behavior between the two other drivers. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time and was the innocent victim of intentional bad behavior. He was injured, but fortunately he has completely recovered. He is very fortunate that his injuries were not more serious. We have represented others injured in accidents that are the results of road rage who have been seriously injured and the family of one person killed.

Like all Georgia automobile accident cases, those injured and the families of those killed in an accident resulting from road rage may seek monetary damages for the negligent and intentional acts of those responsible for causing the accidents. The damages include compensation for medical bills, lost wages, the diminished capacity to earn, and emotional and physical pain and suffering. If someone is killed, the survivors of the deceased can also recover wrongful death damages for the full value of the life of the deceased.

What is different in cases involving road rage is that in addition to the damages available talked about above, punitive damages are also often recoverable. Punitive damages are awarded in Georgia not to compensate the injured, but solely to punish, penalize and deter the wrongdoer. They are only available in cases where the wrongdoer's actions show a willful misconduct or a conscious indifference to the consequences. In Georgia, typical road rage behavior rises to this level, and a jury may award punitive damages at the trial of the case. This is important, because punitive damages can be considerable, increasing the value of the case significantly.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an automobile or trucking accident resulting from road rage, please feel free to call me to discuss you situation. If you don't call me, please speak to another competent lawyer who knows how to pursue these cases. Having the right lawyer in these types of cases can have a dramatic impact on the value of your claims.

As an Atlanta car accident lawyer, I try to read as much as I can about the types of accidents that occur in Atlanta and north Georgia. I read a very interesting article in the AJC online this week. According to the article, 5 people have died in wrong way crashes since November 2009, and the department of transportation says 22 have died on Atlanta roads since 2004. According to a study conducted by the DOT several years ago, most wrong way collisions are caused by drivers under the influence of alcohol or drugs or failing to take prescription medication.

The consequences of wrong way collisions are almost always catastrophic. Life changing injuries and death are the expected outcomes. Accordingly, victims of collisions with wrong way drivers need experienced personal injury lawyers to handle both the complex legal and complex damages issues that arise in these types of cases. Legally, because most drivers are DUI, the lawyer needs to know the ins and outs of pursuing punitive damages as well as the general damages of medical expenses, lost wages, etc.

Because the damages are catastrophic, the lawyer needs to know the complex medicine involved with life changing injuries and Georgia wrongful death law. The lawyer must also know the how to assist the catastrophically injured client to recover damages to take care of the long term needs of the client, which can include future income, future medical care, and future in home care, as well as other such issues.

Because the cost of such long term needs can be astronomical, the lawyer must also be an expert in finding available insurance to fund these damages. This is often one of the most difficult parts of handling a catastrophic injury case. It is heart breaking when the health care plan for a catastrophically injured client is in the millions and there is little or no insurance available to fund the plan.

The lawyers in our office have the experience to handle these types of cases. If you would like to discuss your claims with us, please do not hesitate to contact our office. We would welcome the opportunity to assist you.

As a personal injury lawyer who practices in Atanta and north Georgia, I have handled numerous cases where my clients are injured while riding in golf carts. Atlanta and north Georgia have scores of golf courses and injuries occur when golf cart drivers act carelessly causing accidents. Like any motorized vehicle, golf carts can be extremely dangerous, even deadly. Depending on the make and model, golf carts generally weigh between 500 and 750 pounds empty. Add the weight of two grown men and two sets of clubs, and the combined weight can easily exceed 1000 pounds.

There are typically two types of golf cart accidents that cause injuries. The first is where one cart rear ends another cart. Like similar car accidents, these types of incidents can cause spinal whip lash type injuries requiring both conservative treatment and spinal surgery. The second type of accident is where the driver loses control of the cart, typically while turning on an uneven surface, and the vehicle flips over. This type of incident almost always causes very serious crush injuries, including death.

The drivers of the carts causing these accidents can be liable to those injured if they acted carelessly or recklessly in causing the accidents. All things being equal, rear end collisions and carts flipping over are almost always caused by careless or reckless behavior. This becomes a certainty when you consider that alcohol is involved in most golf cart accidents.

When alcohol is involved, not only are the drivers liable for general damages, including, medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering, but they may also be subject to punitive damages, meant to punish and deter this type of behavior. It is important to thoroughly investigate whether the driver may have been drinking because punitive damages can have a significant impact on the value of the claims made.

Because the police rarely investigate golf cart collisions, it is important that an injured individual or the family of someone killed hire competent attorneys as quickly as possible after the incident to thoroughly investigate these issues. The chance of identifying and interviewing helpful witnesses and discovering helpful physical evidence diminishes greatly as time passes after the incident.

If you have been injured or have lost a family member killed in a golf cart accident, please contact our offices to discuss your rights and possible claims. The attorneys and staff in our offices welcome the opportunity to talk with you about these issues, and we have the knowledge and resources to quickly and thoroughly investigate the incident to secure all the needed evidence to properly pursue your claims if you decide to retain us.

As an Atlanta personal injury lawyer practicing in north Georgia, I have written on this blog more than once about the dangers of texting while driving both cars and trucks. It seems that such behavior is condemned by many, and on Monday of this week, Oprah Winfrey discussed the dangers of texting and driving and the catastrophic consequences of such behavior.

It now appears that the Georgia General Assembly is seeking to pass a bill banning testing while driving and imposing stiff fines as punishment for such behavior. According to a recent article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on line, two members of the Georgia House of Representatives have introduced bills that would ban the practice. Under what will most likely be a bill merged out of the two original bills, "anyone found guilty of writing, sending or reading a text message while driving" would be subject to a fine most likely between $100 and $300 and have points added to their license.

The authors of the bills believe the legislation will save lives. The article gives the example of the grandson of a constituent of one of the bill's authors who recently died in a head-on collision. After the tragedy, the police investigation revealed that the young driver had sent six texts from the time he got in the car and the accident. It is likely that the last of those texts distracted the driver causing the vehicle to drift into the head-on collision. Texting and driving is becoming a very big problem with not only young people, but also adults. It distracts drivers and is a leading cause of accidents causing serous injury and deaths.

According to the newspaper article, a ban on testing and driving is the AAA's top legislative priority. If a bill passes in Georgia, our state will join 19 other states in banning the practice. If the bill passes in Georgia, it may also raise the stakes of civil penalties when suits are brought for damages for causing serious injuries and death while texting and driving. Punitive damages will now most certainly be available to punish and deter this behavior. It will be difficult for an offender to argue that they did not know how dangerous texting and driving is once it is banned.

As a personal injury lawyer in Atlanta and north Georgia, I am always interested in articles written in magazines and newspapers that are related to my practice. Today, I read two such articles in the New York Times on line. Both articles dealt with texting and driving and the catastrophic consequences of doing so.

The first article was entitled "Driven to Distraction: When Texting Kills, Britain Offers Path to Prison." This article discussed at length the tragic death of a 24 for year old university trained fashion designer caused by a 22 year old woman that plowed her car into the rear of the deceased's vehicle while texting. She had exchanged nearly two dozen texts with five different friends the hour before the fatal collision, and a last incoming message that was never opened came in seconds before the accident.

A jury convicted the 22 year old and a judge sentenced her to 21 months in a high security prison. The article discussed the case at length but also discussed British attitudes toward texting and driving and the criminal laws against the practice. The case has driven home to Britains the serious consequences of texting and driving, and a prison sentence from 4 to 7 years is now recommended if I person is killed when a driver is texting and causes an accident.

In a related article, "Many in the U.S. Want Texting at the Wheel to be Illegal," the author discusses the findings of a recent New York Times/CBS News poll finding that nearly all Americans say texting while driving should be punished as harshly as drunken driving. The article discusses other poll findings including that 80 percent of those polled felt using a hand-held cell phone while driving should be also illegal.

Several Blogs ago I wrote about the perils of texting and driving. As the articles discussed above indicate, the consequences of texting and driving can be catastrophic injuries including death, and we can expect more States to make doing so illegal. If you have been injured in an accident by a distracted motorist texting while driving, please call me to discuss your claims and damages and the possibility of pursuing punitive damages to help deter this behavior.

It seems new Atlanta clients are calling the Atlanta DUI accident lawyers weekly regarding claims for personal injuries caused in car accidents and trucking accidents where the drivers of the other vehicles were driving under the influence (DUI). There were 2 more this week. The first case involved a client who suffered internal injuries and two broken bones in her leg after the drunk driver ran a red light and t-boned my client's vehicle totaling both vehicles. The other driver had been drinking beer all day while watching college football and had a blood alcohol level that was beyond twice the legal limit.

The second case involved a client who also suffered serious injuries when the other driver slammed into the back of his vehicle while stopped at a red light. The other driver in this case had been taking prescription drugs and drinking beer. Although this driver's blood alcohol level was just beyond the legal limit, the police report narrative indicated that the driver could barely walk upright and had severely slurred speech.

In these types of cases, injured clients are entitled to claim the typical damages for medical bills, lost wages, and physical and emotional pain and suffering. But cases involving DUI drivers, whether involving alcohol or drugs, allow for additional punitive damages. Punitive damages are meant to punish and deter the behavior of the drunk driver. Because punitive damages can significantly increase the value of a claim, it is very important to hire an attorney who knows how to properly pursue these damages.

In addition to the facts of the accident at issue with the client, the drinking and driving history of the at-fault party is critical to the value of the case. If the drunk driver has prior or post DUI arrests and convictions, the case becomes much more valuable. Most juries understand the need to send a clear message to the habitual drunk driver that such behavior is not acceptable. Clearly criminal penalties are not causing a change of behavior. The jury can easily understand, therefore, that a significant financial penalty is needed to get the driver's attention that drinking and driving will not be tolerated.

The attorneys in our firm know how to obtain the complete drinking and driving histories of DUI drivers and to most effectively use this information. Please call to talk to one of our attorneys if you have been in an accident and you know or suspect the other driver was drinking or under the influence of drugs. We can help you.

As a personal injury trial lawyer who regularly travels the roads of Atlanta and north Georgia, I am shocked to see other motorists texting as they operate their cars and trucks. With one or both hands off the steering wheel and their eyes focused down on their cell phones, blackberries and I-phones, these reckless individuals seem to have no idea that their vehicles are more deadly and more likely to kill than a loaded gun.

If the driver of a motor vehicle is texting while traveling on a roadway, the likelihood of a very serious accident resulting in catastrophic injuries and death becomes a real possibility. Causing a deadly head-on collision, traveling into an intersection on a red light or through a stop sign, or striking the rear of a vehicle stopped in traffic at a high rate of speed are the likely consequences of a texting driver. Injuries from these types of accidents are often very serious, including, but not limited to, severely broken bones, serious internal injuries, brain damage, disfigurement, paralysis, and death.

Oftentimes it is an innocent victim of the texting driver that is severely injured or killed. It is surprising to me that the Georgia General Assembly has not made it a criminal offense to text while operating any type of motor vehicle on the roads of Georgia. I expect that such legislation will be passed in the future. Indeed, other states already have passed such legislation and the fines and penalties are stiff.

In civil suits arising out of injuries suffered by innocent victims of a texting driver, strong arguments can be made by competent personal injury attorneys that not only compensatory damages should be awarded by the jury (for example, medical bills, lost wages, physical and mental pain and suffering, etc.), but punitive damages are also warranted because of the texting driver's reckless indifference to the consequences. It is my opinion that driving while texting is as reckless as driving while intoxicated or while under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI). Juries and our society should have zero tolerance for such behavior.

If you have been injured or a loved on has been killed by a driver texting while operating a motor vehicle, please do not hesitate to call me or my partner to discuss your situation.

As an Atlanta car accident lawyer who practices all over north Georgia, I was saddened to see another family injured by a drunk driver. According to the online publication of the Athens-Banner Herald, a 25 year old woman ran a red light while driving drunk causing a serious accident and injuries on May 11, 2009, in Athens, Georgia. The innocent victims of the drunken woman's actions were a married couple and their 6 year old daughter, who were all life-flighted to Atlanta for treatment for their very serious injuries. The drunken driver and her 20 year old passenger were treated and released from Athens Regional Hospital. As a Georgia DUI injury lawyer who regularly represents victims of these types of accidents caused by DUI drivers, I was interested in the article itself, but what really interested me were the comments made by readers to the article.

Before I discuss the comments, I ask that you click on the link above and go to the article to see the photograph of the Nissan Sentra occupied by the innocent family and how it was destroyed by the SUV being driven by the drunken woman. It is an absolute miracle that no one was killed in the collision. This could have easily resulted in loss of life, as accidents like these often do.

Several comments to the article focused on whether the DUI driver would be adequately punished, and whether adequate insurance would be available to compensate the innocent family for their medical bills and other damages. Some of the comments evidenced skepticism about whether the criminal justice system would sufficiently punish the drunken driver for her actions. I can only hope that the individual who caused this accident, and ones similar to it where innocent family members are maimed or killed, would be severely punished by the Athens-Clark county courts, as well as courts of any Georgia county.

The civil justice system can also punish drunken drivers, and in DUI cases, the law allows juries to award punitive damages to punish drunken drivers for their past behavior, and to deter drivers from behaving the same way in the future. The amount of a punitive damage award can be affected by many variables, including:

1. The amount of alcohol consumed by the driver;
2. The behavior of the driver in causing the collision;
3. The behavior of the driver at the scene of the accident:
4. Whether the driver flees the accident scene;
5. The relative wealth of the driver; and
6. Whether the driver has had more than one DUI.

The accident injury attorneys of our firm specialize in maximizing punitive damage awards, and take very seriously our opportunity to protect the public from drunken drivers.

Finally, I want to discuss the issue of insurance. One comment to the article stated: "And you just know [the drunk driver] has plenty of insurance to pay for everyone's medical bills." Another comment read: "If our law makers don't do something about the minimum amount of insurance that keeps someone legal to drive, after an auto accident, you are screwed!!!A trip to the E.R. and it's all used up (Insurance)." Despite the first writer's sarcasm, both are addressing the same issue. It is extremely unlikely that the DUI driver will have enough insurance to cover even the medical bills incurred by the innocent victims of her reprehensible behavior. Not only in DUI cases, but in many automobile accident cases, the at-fault party has insufficient insurance to cover even the out of pocket damages caused by the accident, such as medical bills and lost income. When a wrongful death occurs, the lost income for the life of the deceased can be substantial. Worse, a catastrophic injury can cause an innocent victim to be unable to work for the remainder of their lives, and also require 24 hour professional care. The costs of this type of loss can be staggering.

I also agree with the portion of the second comment about increasing the minimum liability insurance required to operate a motor vehicle on the Georgia roads. Unfortunately, even raising the minimum will not adequately compensate the public from for the carnage caused in many DUI wrecks. The injury lawyers in our office know how to find and best utilize all the available insurance in any injury claim. Please feel free to contact us if you would like to discuss your situation.