Posted on August 29,2024 in Car Accident

Car crashes can cause a wide variety of injuries. While some injuries are relatively minor and should improve over time, others leave victims facing life-altering conditions. Catastrophic injuries like spinal cord damage that leads to paralysis may require extensive changes in your daily life. If someone else’s negligence caused your paralysis, you deserve compensation.

How do you know if you qualify? What kinds of compensation can you receive? The skilled lawyers at Newland & Newland, LLP can discuss these questions and provide answers during your free consultation.

Are There Different Levels of Spinal Cord Injuries?

Vertebrae and cartilage enclose the human spinal cord for protection, but it is still incredibly vulnerable. As the brain’s messenger, the spinal cord controls our sense of touch, ability to move, posture, and support. Blunt impacts, cuts, and punctures can temporarily or permanently damage the spinal cord. The effects are usually focused below the injured location. Paraplegics are paralyzed in their legs and lower bodies, with quadriplegics unable to move any of their limbs.

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 Posted on August 25,2024 in Medical Malpractice

Americans go to physicians and healthcare facilities for various reasons, but they all have one thing in common: an expectation of competent care. Unfortunately, medical treatments sometimes lead to injuries, worsen existing conditions, or even cause fatalities, potentially resulting in medical malpractice or wrongful death claims.

How do you know if your situation qualifies? What compensation may be available? The experienced Illinois medical malpractice lawyers at Newland & Newland, LLP will discuss these and other relevant topics during your free consultation.

What Is Medical Malpractice?

When healthcare professionals or facilities accept you as a patient, they obligate themselves to comply with required state and federal care standards, which the Illinois Department of Public Health regulates. When providers do not meet their obligations, you may be eligible to file a compensation claim.

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 Posted on August 15,2024 in Car Accident

Americans depend on semi-trucks to transport goods throughout the country. The Chicago area sees a lot of truck traffic due to its status as a major freight hub. The traffic congestion often found in Chicagoland, combined with the large number of trucks in the region daily, makes truck accidents a clear risk.

Car accident claims are often complicated, but truck crash claims have additional layers of complexity. It may be difficult to obtain the compensation you deserve without the assistance of a competent lawyer from Newland & Newland, LLP.

Truck Accident Facts

A fully loaded tractor-trailer weighs up to 80,000 pounds. Especially at higher speeds, the impact force when a truck collides with another vehicle is tremendous. Truck crashes often cause catastrophic injuries, devastating property damage, and fatalities. Some of these truck collision facts may shock you:

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 Posted on August 07,2024 in Car Accidents

It is illegal to drive a car when under the influence of alcohol because its effects can cause multiple impairments that make safe driving impossible. When a drunk driver causes a car accident, injured victims may qualify to obtain compensation from the drunk driver. The Illinois Dram Shop Act is a liquor liability law that may allow you to seek compensation from others who may also be responsible.

You must prove liability to receive payment from the driver or other responsible parties. When you work with a personal injury lawyer from Newland & Newland, LLP, we will investigate your accident to determine all guilty parties and help you fight for maximum compensation.

What Are Liquor Liability Laws?

Before states enacted dram shop and social host liability laws, injured accident victims could hold only an intoxicated person accountable for any injuries that person caused. The introduction of liquor liability laws expanded the pool of potentially at-fault parties to include the people or establishments that sell or serve alcoholic beverages.

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 Posted on July 30,2024 in Workers' Compensation

Most employees in most fields are entitled to workers’ compensation if they get injured while doing their job. Some conditions can be seen on the outside, but issues that affect your mental health can go undetected. However, PTSD can impair job productivity, emotional and physical health, and quality of life just as much as a physical injury. Illinois workers’ comp laws recognize PTSD as a condition entitled to compensation under certain circumstances. If you are experiencing symptoms of PTSD due to something that happened at work, speak with a compassionate Schaumburg, IL workers’ comp attorney who can help you understand your rights and navigate the claims process.

What Does PTSD Feel Like?

PTSD is a mental health disorder associated with going through a traumatic incident. It can present itself through various symptoms in varying degrees, but there are four main categories of how people experience it:

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 Posted on July 24,2024 in Pedestrian Accidents

Car accidents can result in serious damage and physician harm. When a car crashes into a person rather than another car, the potential harm can be even more severe. You can be out for a walk enjoying the fresh air and suddenly, everything goes wrong. It can be terrifying and traumatizing, and pedestrians who are hit by cars often have a long recovery ahead, requiring physical and emotional therapy. If you were hurt in a pedestrian accident, speak with a skilled Arlington Heights, IL personal injury attorney who can explain your options.

What Happens When a Pedestrian Is Injured in an Accident?

According to the Highway Loss Data Institute, deaths from accidents involving pedestrians make up 18% of all crash-related fatalities. This type of accident poses an enormous danger to the people involved. If a pedestrian survives the crash, they still face the potential for serious injury that can impact them well into the future. Some of the most common pedestrian accident injuries requiring serious recovery include:

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 Posted on July 14,2024 in Car Accident

Speed limits are in place for a good reason; when drivers follow the speed limit, there is a safe and efficient flow of traffic with less chance of auto accidents. Speeding, along with failure to maintain a safe distance between other vehicles, can cause drivers to lose control of their vehicle and cause car accidents. It is estimated that between 40 and 50 percent of all drivers routinely exceed the speed limit.  In 2022, more than 12,000 auto collision fatalities were directly related to excess speed.

Drivers who exceed the speed limit have less time to react to an unexpected situation and require a longer distance to stop or slow down. Even modest increases in speed can cause major increases in crash energy. The aftermath of a car accident can feel overwhelming, and virtually always benefits from having a Rolling Meadows personal injury attorney who will handle all the legal issues.  

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 Posted on July 05,2024 in Slip and Fall

When a Chicago condominium association was held liable in a slip and fall case that left a woman with significant injuries, the association's board appealed the nearly $75,000 damage award. The plaintiff in the case was visiting her sister, who lived in the condos. When the woman left, she went down the back stairs, which were poorly lit and had ice on them.

After her fall, several condo residents—some of whom also happened to be condo board members—commented that the lights should have been on. The condominium association claimed those statements were hearsay, but the Appellate Court held that the Circuit Judge properly admitted the statements into evidence.  

This case was uncommon in that it involved the association, the plaintiff, residents who were also on the board, and the plaintiff’s relatives, many of whom made statements at the time of the accident. Even in simpler cases, it is not uncommon for a property owner to dispute the cause of a slip-and-fall accident.

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 Posted on June 27,2024 in Workers' Compensation

Workplace injuries can be life-altering events, often leaving employees in a vulnerable position. When you file for workers’ compensation in Illinois, you expect support and fair treatment. However, some employers may attempt to decrease your earnings after you file for benefits. An Illinois lawyer can help you understand the legality of such actions and your rights.

What You Should Know About Your Rights

In Illinois, it is illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee for filing a workers’ compensation claim. This protection is enshrined in the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act (820 ILCS 305/4). Retaliation can take many forms, including:

• Termination
• Demotion
• Reduction in pay or hours
• Hostile work environment

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 Posted on June 24,2024 in Personal Injury

Experiencing an injury at the hands of a bar security guard can be both physically and emotionally traumatic. If you find yourself in this situation, it is important to understand your rights and the potential legal actions available to you. An Illinois lawyer can walk you through the steps you can take to protect yourself and seek justice.

When to Consider Pressing Charges

The decision to press charges against a bar security guard should not be taken lightly. Several factors come into play when determining whether legal action is appropriate. The severity of your injury is a primary consideration; pressing charges may be warranted if you have sustained significant physical harm requiring medical attention. Unprovoked aggression or excessive force without justification could also be grounds for legal action.

You should consider whether the security guard violated established protocols. Security personnel must adhere to specific guidelines, and clear breaches of these standards strengthen your case. As is any available video evidence, the presence of witnesses who can back up your version of events is crucial. Many establishments have surveillance cameras, and this footage can be invaluable in supporting your claim.

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