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Personal Injury

Recent Posts in Personal Injury Category

  • Workers’ Compensation Denied Because Accident Happened While Walking

    In our last workers’ compensation post, we covered a disturbing case where a decision by the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission was overturned on appeal for a rare credibility problem . The Commission’s denial of workers’ coverage was disturbing because of how blatantly it disregarded testimony by the injured worker. But that was not the only disturbing part of the Commission’s decision. ...
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  • Why Wrongful Death Claim After Car Accident Will Not Benefit from Murder Charge

    A man from St. Joseph is being charged with murder for causing a car accident earlier this month. While manslaughter charges are more common, murder charges like these can follow from fatal car crashes that happen during another crime. However, the effect they have on a personal injury case is less than you might expect. Car Accident Leads to Criminal Charges The incident happened back on August ...
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  • Workers’ Compensation Case Overturned on Appeal for Rare Credibility Problem

    An appeals court in Missouri overturned a workers’ compensation decision that denied coverage for a high school teacher’s injuries. The reasons why the workers’ compensation was originally denied, though, raises some serious questions about how these cases are being decided in Missouri. High School Teacher Falls, Gets Hurt, and Is Denied Workers’ Compensation On January 8, 2013, an ESL teacher ...
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  • Repair Costs After a Truck Accident Can Be Staggering

    A truck accident south of St. Joseph left no one hurt, but seriously damaged a tractor trailer. Because truckers rely on their vehicles for their livelihood, a truck damaged in a car accident can be a huge blow. Truck Accident Damages Tractor Trailer The crash happened on Saturday morning, July 27. A tractor trailer was going southbound on Interstate 29 when it overturned just outside of Buchanan ...
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  • Do Employers Have to Pay for Second Injury Fund Injuries, Now?

    The dust is beginning to settle from the fallout of the Missouri Supreme Court’s decision in the workers’ compensation case, Cosby v. Treasurer of Missouri . Perhaps the most interesting possibility is that the Supreme Court has made employers liable for injuries that would have been covered by Missouri’s Second Injury Fund . Missouri Supreme Court Strictly Construes Workers’ Compensation Laws ...
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  • Motorcycle Accident with Deer Proves Fatal

    A motorcyclist was killed in a crash after hitting a deer in western Missouri. While motorcycles are easier to maneuver around a deer in the road, if a crash does happen the biker is far more likely to get seriously hurt than if they were driving a car. Motorcycle Hits Deer: Biker Killed The crash happened eight miles south of the town of Bethany, an hour northeast of St. Joseph. A 65-year-old ...
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  • Workers’ Compensation and Separation of Powers

    A workers’ compensation case from Florida is being appealed to the state’s supreme court. While the case comes from Florida, its claims could impact the process of Missouri’s workers’ compensation laws because of similarities in our workers’ compensation systems. Failed Shoulder Surgery Leads to Numerous Medical Opinions The victim was an elementary school worker who partially tore her rotator ...
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  • Children Hurt in Car Crashes Have Longer to Sue than Adults in Missouri

    A car accident in St. Joseph has sent several people to the hospital after someone ran a red light. Some of the passengers in one of the vehicles involved were children. While it is unclear how badly they were hurt, or even if the children were injured in the crash, the statute of limitations in Missouri can help them recover the compensation they need. St. Joseph Car Accident Sends Several to the ...
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  • St. Joseph Car Accident an Example of Proximate Cause in Action

    A single-vehicle car accident in St. Joseph provides an excellent illustration of one of the most difficult concepts in personal injury law: Proximate cause. Car Hits Power Pole, Causes Power Outage On Monday, June 17, a driver in the south side of St. Joseph lost control of their vehicle and hit a power pole . She then overcorrected and hit two other poles, knocking one down. The crash knocked ...
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  • Shifts in Politics and Workers’ Compensation Law

    Each state has its own laws and regulations that deal with workers’ compensation . Some states tilt the law more towards hurt workers, while others favor business interests, like in Missouri. As the political atmosphere changes, workers’ compensation laws tend to follow. The state of Maine is going through just such a change, now. Amendments to the state’s workers’ compensation structure are ...
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  • No Sidewalks Around Elementary School: What If a Child Gets Hit?

    A recent newspaper report shone the limelight on an overlooked problem in St. Joseph: The lack of sidewalks near a local elementary school. Without sidewalks, the odds of a car accident involving a walking child skyrockets. Newspaper Report Shines Light on Lack of Sidewalks Near St. Joseph School The report, published in News-Press Now , focused on the pedestrian problems surrounding Pershing ...
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  • Workers’ Compensation Trial After Bulldozing Death

    A trial in California is going to settle some important questions about workers’ compensation in the state. Workers’ Compensation Trial Over Death of Firefighter On trial is Ian Czirban , the owner of Czirban Concrete Construction. His company contracted with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to provide firefighting services during the Big Sur Fire back in 2016. ...
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  • Motorcycle Helmets and Car Inspections in Missouri Bill

    A new bill can change numerous parts of the traffic code if signed by the Missouri governor. One of the most important changes would allow most motorcyclists to ride without a helmet. Another important change would reduce the number of times that vehicles in Missouri have to be inspected. Senate Bill 147 Changes Traffic Code Senate Bill 147 , which was passed on the last day of the session in the ...
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  • What is the Workers’ Compensation Trade-Off?

    We frequently refer to workers’ compensation in Missouri as a “trade-off” involving employers and employees. But what gets traded, and why? What Employees Give Up for Workers’ Compensation The biggest thing that employees give up is their ability to sue their employers in court with a personal injury lawsuit . In many workplace injury situations, the employer contributed to the injury at least in ...
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  • Car Accidents and Missouri’s Joint and Several Liability Law

    An often overlooked question that can come up after a car accident is who will pay to cover the costs of what happened. While it is not a pressing concern in some cases, it can be a crippling one in others, especially when the crash was caused by someone who was uninsured. Practical Problems at the End of a Car Accident Lawsuit Contrary to what many people think, people who have been found ...
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  • Workers Hurt in Rural Areas More Likely to Be Prescribed Opioids

    A study investigating workers’ compensation in Missouri found that injured workers in rural areas were more likely to be prescribed opioids than urban workers. The discrepancy is not insignificant, though there are numerous factors that could be in play. Study Investigates Opioid Prescriptions After Workplace Injuries The study was conducted by the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute . It ...
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  • Defective Airbags May Not Inflate in Car Accident

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating reports that millions of airbags were defectively made, and may not inflate in a car accident . The investigation comes on the heels of the infamous and widespread Takata airbag recalls, which implicated more than 40 million vehicles. Airbags Failing to Deploy in Car Accidents The company ZF-TRW makes airbags and sells ...
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  • 2 Filing Deadlines for Workers’ Compensation Claims

    In many ways, workers’ compensation claims are even more complex than typical personal injury claims. While the workers’ compensation scheme is designed to streamline the process of recovering compensation, it often involves more paperwork. Worse, that paperwork comes from both you and your employer, and goes to both your employer and the Missouri Department of Labor . Even the deadlines can be ...
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  • Car Accident Cases Can Be Influenced by Highway Mowing Teams

    Now that the weather is finally warming up, the Missouri Department of Transportation (DOT) is set to begin its roadside mowing routines. Drivers in St. Joseph should be on the lookout for mowing crews, as their presence can alter the proper precautions that drivers need to take on the roadways, and can impact car accident cases. Missouri Department of Transportation Set to Begin Mowing The state ...
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  • Can Flooding Volunteers Get Workers’ Compensation?

    As record flooding continues in and around St. Joseph, Missouri, volunteers have scrambled to help those affected. One way volunteers have helped is by filling sandbags in the worst-hit areas of Missouri. Unfortunately, filling sandbags is not light work, and volunteers – especially those unfamiliar with the work – frequently get hurt doing it. This raises the question: Are volunteers covered by ...
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  • With Springtime Come Motorcycle Accidents

    Now that the weather is warming up in St. Joseph, motorcycles are coming back out of garages and onto the roads. Unfortunately, that also means that we are bound to see more motorcycle accidents, as well. Motorcycle Crash Injures One in St. Joseph Last night saw one of the first motorcycle accidents of 2019 in St. Joseph. According to the initial reports of the incident, it happened just after ...
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  • Workers’ Compensation Insurance to Decrease 3.5%

    The costs of workers’ compensation insurance premiums continue to drop. The steady decline is just another sign of the difficulties that injured workers face after they get hurt on the job. How Workers’ Compensation Insurance Works When workers get hurt while on the job, they can often file a workers’ compensation claim with their employer. If approved, this claim will lead to payments that cover ...
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  • Truck Accident Shows Danger of Judgment-Proof Drivers

    A car accident involving a tractor-trailer north of St. Joseph raises an important practical question: What happens when the person who causes the crash has no insurance? The answer is one of the harsh realities of personal injury law. Car Goes Wrong Way: Collides With Semi The crash happened in the evening of March 12, 2019 near Maryville, about 40 miles north of St. Joseph. The driver of a 1999 ...
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  • Workers’ Compensation May Get Firefighter’s Presumption

    A new bill is making its way through the Missouri Legislature that would change workers’ compensation law to better cover firefighters, who have a heightened risk of job-related cancer. House Bill 1641 Would Extend Firefighter Presumption to Workers’ Compensation Law We covered the presumptive disability law for firefighters earlier in our blog. This law, Missouri Statute 87.006 , presumes that ...
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  • St. Joseph Student Hit By Car, Suffers Concussion

    A student at St. Joseph’s Lafayette High School was hit by a car while walking to school. Initial reports indicate that his injuries from the car accident were non-life-threatening, but that he suffered a concussion. The slick roads in western Missouri are being blamed for the incident. Lafayette Student Hit By Car Sliding on Ice The incident happened this morning before classes at Lafayette High ...
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