THE INJURY LAWYER DIRECTORY BLOG

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. has recently settled 63 wage- and hour-abuse class action lawsuits across the country. This settlement ends a long legal battle that has extended for several years.

Each settlement will still need to be approved by the courts. The total amount to be paid in each settlement will be determined by the number of claims filed by class members. Wal-Mart will pay at least $352 million to their current and former employees, and the total can potentially reach as much $640 million.

These lawsuits have been filed due to widespread abuse of employees at the hands of the Wal-Mart Corporation. The company repeatedly forced many of their employees to work through rest breaks and meal breaks, failed to properly compensate workers for overtime, and failed to pay them for all hours worked.

The plaintiffs accused Wal-Mart of an unethical practice called “time-shaving,” where they would chop off minutes of time from employees’ paychecks. By doing so, the company reduced their payroll by millions of dollars.

As part of the settlement agreement, Wal-Mart will have to implement electronic monitoring systems to document their compliance with wage laws.

Unfortunately, Wal-Mart is not the only major corporation to try and cheat their employees in order to pad their bank accounts. Many companies are guilty of similar wage- and hour-abuse practices. Wal-Mart is simply the most recent to be held accountable for their deplorable actions.

If you have been victim of wage- and hour-abuse in the Denver, Colorado area, please contact the law office of Burg, Simpson, Eldredge, Hersh, & Jardine, P.C. today to schedule an initial consultation.

A co-pilot aboard an Air Canada flight was removed from the cockpit, restrained, and sedated after suffering a mental breakdown mid-flight. There were no injuries to the 146 passengers or nine crew members on the plane. Fortunately, an airplane accident was avoided despite the co-pilot’s actions.

The co-pilot had over 6,500 hours of flight time, and had recently been examined and deemed fit to fly a plane. None of the crew members suspected that he was on the verge of a breakdown.

After landing, the pilot told investigators that his co-pilot seemed out of sorts from the moment he arrived at work that morning. He had shown up late, missing the preflight inspection. During the flight, the co-pilot’s behavior continuously deteriorated. He began rambling on nonsensically, and took an extended nap during the flight. When he returned from his nap, he refused to follow airline safety protocol.

The co-pilot eventually became so belligerent that the pilot ordered several of the flight attendants to come and remove him from the cockpit. The co-pilot put up a violent struggle and had to be restrained and sedated.

One of the flight attendants on board had previous flying experience and sat in as co-pilot for the remainder of the flight. The pilot praised her for her excellent job in a difficult situation.

Airplane accidents are responsible for large-scale damage and catastrophic injuries. If you have been injured in an airplane accident, you should consult an experienced personal injury lawyer immediately. You may be eligible to receive compensation for your damages.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an airplane accident in the West Palm Beach, Florida area, please contact the law office of Ellis, Ged & Bodden, P.A. today to schedule a free consultation.

Catastrophe was narrowly averted in an airplane accident at Denver Airport this past Saturday. An aborted take-off of a Continental Airlines Boeing 737 jet injured 38 people, but fortunately all passengers survived the crash. Two people are still in critical condition. The majority of injured passengers suffered broken bones.

The plane veered off the runway towards the left, crashing into a ravine. The plane burst into flames, the wheels were sheared off, and parts of the plane were strewn across the runway. Plastic from the overhead bins melted onto the seats from the heat of the fire. Fortunately, no passengers suffered severe burns in the incident.

An investigation into the cause of the plane crash is currently underway, although it will most likely be some time before inspectors determine exactly what happened. It does not appear that weather was a factor.

The flight never reached the air before the crash. This fortunate event most likely saved the lives of many passengers. One person reported that before boarding the plane, the airline informed passengers that the plane was experiencing engine troubles. However, they made another announcement shortly thereafter claiming that the problem had been fixed.

Injuries sustained in airplane accidents are frequently very serious, and often these crashes result in the death of many victims. An experienced airplane accident attorney can help you receive proper compensation for your injuries after such a traumatic event.

If you have been the victim of an airplane accident in the Denver, Colorado area, please contact the law offices of Burg, Simpson, Eldredge, Hersh, & Jardine, P.C. today to schedule a consultation.

It is quite common for women to suffer from two vaginal conditions called pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI). These conditions result from a weakening of the muscles in the pelvic region, generally following childbirth or surgery. Women suffering from POP and SUI experience pain and impaired bowel and bladder function.

In recent years, many pharmaceutical companies have created transvaginal mesh products to alleviate the symptoms associated with POP and SUI. While many manufacturers are producing these devices, the most commonly used is the Bard Avaulta Mesh product.

After more than 1,000 incidents of serious complications have been reported by medical professionals and transvaginal mesh product manufacturers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has decided to issue a warning about these products. While the Bard Avaulta Mesh product and other similar devices have not yet been recalled, it is important to be aware that the risks associated with these products may not be worth the benefits.

The following problems have been associated with the use of transvaginal mesh products:

• Erosion through vaginal epithelium
• Infection
• Pain
• Urinary problems
• Recurrence of prolapse and/or incontinence
• Bowel, bladder, and blood vessel perforation during insertion

The corrective measures for these harmful side effects are all very serious, and often involve additional surgery. If you are suffering from POP or SUI, you should ask your doctor if there are any other safer treatment options before having a transvaginal mesh product surgically installed in your body.

If you have suffered from one or more of these painful side effects associated with the Bard Avaulta Mesh product, you should consult with an experienced defective product attorney immediately to see if you have a valid product liability claim. You may be entitled to receive compensation for your damages.

If you live in the Chicago, Illinois area and have a defective product claim from using the Bard Avaulta Mesh product, please contact the law office of Barry G. Doyle, P.C. today to schedule a consultation.

A pedestrian bridge collapsed this morning at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. One person died and 18 others were injured in the accident. There were at least 30 people on the bridge when it collapsed at 9 a.m. this morning.

All of the people injured in the accident were construction workers who were building a new 600 foot, 45-foot long canopy walk. They were pouring concrete for the canopy walk at the time of the collapse. Four of the construction workers are in intensive care units, and two of these are still in critical condition.

The construction workers suffered brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and limb injuries. One worker damaged his liver in the construction accident. Investigators have not yet determined whether or not safety regulations were violated at the time of the accident. The bridge crashed into a ravine.

Many construction workers risk their lives on a daily basis. Due to the use of heavy machinery and working in precarious locations, construction accidents often lead to very serious injuries. Unfortunately, insurance companies do not always provide injured workers with fair workers’ compensation benefits for their injuries. It is important to consult an experienced construction accident attorney to make sure that insurance companies don’t take advantage of you in the event of a serious injury.

If you have been injured in a work-related accident in the Atlanta, Georgia area, please contact the law office of Robbins & Associates, P.C. today to schedule an initial consultation.

EvenFlo has recalled 95,000 Majestic High Chairs today due to a defect that has caused children to fall out. The company has received over 1,000 reports of parts falling off, leading to many injuries in young children.

Plastic caps and metal screws on the side of the high chair have been coming loose, causing several parts, including the seat back, to fall off. There have already been over 100 injuries reported due to the defective high chairs. Most of these have been head injuries and broken bones.

The high chairs were sold nationally at Toys R Us, Babies R Us, Burlington Coat Factory, and Walmart.com between January 2006 and May 2007.

If you have a Majestic High Chair from EvenFlow, you should stop using it immediately and contact the company at 1-800-233-5921 to find out about recall procedures for the product. If your child has been injured by a defective Majestic High Chair, you should consult an experienced defective product lawyer in your area to see if you are eligible to receive compensation for your damages.

If you live in the Chicago, Illinois area and have a product liability claim from an EvenFlow Majestic High Chair, please contact the law offices of Barry G. Doyle, P.C. today to schedule a consultation.

Macaulay Culkin’s older sister, Dakota, was hit by a car last week in Los Angeles. She stepped in front of a moving vehicle in West L.A. The driver followed all expected protocol for auto accidents: he stopped the vehicle, tried to offer assistance to the injured victim, and provided police with all of his identification and insurance information.

Police declared that the driver was not intoxicated at the time of the accident. He was not charged with a crime in relation to the incident.

Dakota Culkin was rushed to the hospital at UCLA. She had sustained serious brain injuries from the collision, and died the next morning. She was 29 years old.

Although he was cleared of criminal wrong-doing, the driver will most likely face a wrongful death lawsuit in relation to the accident.

It is important to consult an experienced auto accident attorney if you or a loved one was injured or killed in a car accident. You may be eligible to receive compensation for your damages.

If you have been the victim of an auto accident in the Denver, Colorado area, please contact Burg, Simpson, Eldredge, Hersh & Jardine, P.C. today to schedule a consultation.

Many pharmaceutical injury lawsuits are currently underway against Medtronic for their defective Sprint Fidelis leads. In 2007, the company voluntarily recalled their Sprint Fidelis lead after it was discovered that the product was prone to lead fractures.

The Sprint Fidelis leads are used in conjunction with Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs) and Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy-Defibrillators (CRT-Ds). The leads are supposed to deliver shocks to the defibrillators when needed for cardiac treatment. However, fractures in the leads cause them to either transmit unnecessary shocks to their patients or to fail to transmit shocks when appropriate.

Currently, five deaths have been linked to lead fractures in the Medtronic product. Many patients have suffered violent shocks and extreme pain from the defective leads misfiring inappropriately, while others live with the anxiety of knowing that their defibrillators have not worked when needed.

Plaintiffs in these lawsuits claim that Medtronic is guilty of negligence in manufacturing a subpar product that is prone to fracture, and that they misrepresented the product by marketing it as safe. There have been more than 225 lawsuits filed against Medtronic to date. Many of them are class action cases.

Medtronic does not recommend replacing a defective lead with a new one, since the risks associated with replacement are greater than the risks of a lead fracture. However, if a Medtronic Sprint Fidelis lead was installed with your defibrillator, you should contact your doctor immediately to make sure it has not fractured.

If you live in the Columbus, Ohio area and have suffered an injury as a result of a defective Sprint Fidelis lead, please contact the law offices of Robert W. Kerpsack Co., L.P.A. today to schedule a consultation.

Acanthamoeba Keratitis (AK) is a rare eye infection resulting in permanent vision loss or in extreme cases, blindness. The disease typically affects healthy people who wear contact lenses.

Symptoms of AK include eye pain and redness, blurred vision, light sensitivity, sensation of something in the eye, and excessive tearing. An ophthalmologist can diagnose the infection by evaluating your symptoms, scraping your eye to detect the growth of the amoeba causing the disease, or using a process called confocal microscopy to detect the amoeba. Early diagnosis is imperative if you are to receive effective treatment.

Defective drug lawyers have been investigating a link between AK and several multi-purpose contact lens solutions. The solutions under investigation include:

• Complete MoisturePlus (Bausch & Lomb)
• ReNu with MoistureLoc (Bausch & Lomb)
• ReNu MultiPlus (Bausch & Lomb)
• Opti-Free (Alcon)
• SOLO-care (Ciba Vision)
• Complete MoisturePlus Multi-Purpose Solution (Advanced Medical Optics)

Advanced Medical Optics has recently recalled their Complete MoisturePlus Multi-Purpose Solution for its connection with the development of AK. While the other solutions have not yet been recalled, it would be a good idea to discontinue using them. Contact your ophthalmologist immediately if you start experiencing any of the above-mentioned symptoms or if you develop an eye infection.

If you live in the Denver, Colorado area and have developed AK from the use of one of these contact lens solutions, please contact the law offices of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine, P.C. today to schedule a consultation with one of their experienced defective drug attorneys.

Many personal injury lawyers across the country are receiving calls to evaluate potential defective product lawsuits over the Zimmer Durom Cup hip implant. Clinics have been reporting failure rates as high as 5.7% in association with the product.

The Zimmer Durom Cup hip implant has been used with over 12,000 patients since being approved for use in 2006. The implant was marketed to younger, more active patients who will most likely need something more durable and long-lasting than a conventional prosthetic hip.

However, many patients have suffered from debilitating pain shortly after the implant surgery. Frequently, this pain has been more severe than what patients were experiencing prior to their operation. Many of these patients will require additional surgery to correct the problem.

Zimmer was made aware of the defects associated with their Durom Cup hip implant in April 2008, when Dr. Lawrence Dorr, a hip surgeon working as a consultant to the company while they developed the device, informed them of the many problems arising from the use of their product.

Dr. Dorr made his findings public to a group of hip surgeons who also used the Durom Cup hip implant, and found that many of them had observed the same conditions developing in their patients. Despite the wealth of corroborated evidence from Dorr’s colleagues, Zimmer refused to acknowledge that their hip implant was defective. Instead, they insisted that the problems associated with their product were due to surgical errors during installation.

It took Zimmer an additional three months before they would acknowledge that adjustments were needed on the Durom Cup hip implant. In July 2008, Zimmer finally recalled the product for further trials, although they still insist that the product is completely safe.

If you live in the Jacksonville, Florida area and have experienced debilitating pain after receiving the Zimmer Durom Cup hip implant, please contact the law offices of Hardesty, Tyde, Green, & Ashton, P.A. today to schedule an initial consultation.