Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

Companies controlled by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones have paid out about $10 million to the two employees seriously injured in the 2009 collapse of the team’s practice facility, according to their attorney.

The payments settle lawsuits the two brought against Cowboys Center Ltd. and Blue Star Development Co.; Cowboys Center owned the steel and fabric facility as well as the land on which it stood.

One victim was paralyzed from the waist down and the second suffered a broken vertebrae when the building collapsed in a wind storm on May 2, 2009. DANNY ROBBINS, AP, Houston Chronicle 08/31/2010
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Continue reading " Two Settle in Personal Injury Accident at Dallas Cowboys Complex " »

Contact an attorney immediately, and please remember these Sabine Pilot claims are subject to a two-year statute of limitations.

"Sabine Pilot" is the name of a case decided by the Texas Supreme Court in 1985, Sabine Pilot Serv. v. Hauck (Tex. 1985). The Court recognized a narrow exception to the general "at will" doctrine of employment in Texas, and found that an at-will employee may sue his/her employer if he/she is fired for refusing to commit an illegal act.

Keep a file regarding everything that is said or done to you surrounding your termination and keep all of your records related to your employment. These notes and records may prove invaluable in a later lawsuit.

Continue reading " What to Do if You Are Terminated For Refusing to do an Illegal Act " »

A Virginia jury has awarded $1.95 million in a lawsuit over the death of a woman less than two days after she received plastic surgery.

Maritess Lopez was sent home an hour after her July 2008 surgery even though she was having respiratory problems, dizziness and fever, the lawsuit claims.

She died the next day of aspiration pneumonia. The suit accused Dr. Matthew Galumbeck and his staff of completely ignoring Lopez and her symptoms, which resulted in her death. Jen McCaffery, Virginian Pilot 08/27/2010
Read Article: Virginian Pilot

Continue reading " Jury Awards $1.95M in Post-Surgery Wrongful Death Death " »

Central DuPage Hospital in Illinois has agreed to a $5.3 million settlement with the husband of a woman who died of a stroke in 2006.

The suit claimed Dr. Mark Kelly and Dr. Henry Echiverri "failed to properly evaluate and treat" Samantha Medina in December 2006, which lead to her death.

Lawyers for the doctors said the doctors did nothing wrong, but that they settled to "avoid even the small risk of a runaway jury verdict." Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune 08/26/2010
Read Article: Chicago Tribune

Continue reading " Illinois Malpractice Suit Settled For $5.3 M " »

The city of Fort Worth, Texas, has agreed to a $120,000 settlement of a police brutality lawsuit.

The suit claimed local officers slammed a man's head into a wall and the floor of the police station while booking him for a DUI in 2008.

Video surveillance confirmed the allegations, but no serious action was taken against the officers because the man waited too long to file a complaint, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Mike Lee, Ft. Worth Star Telegram 08/24/2010
Read Article: Ft. Worth Star Telegram

Continue reading " Settlement Approved In Texas Police Brutality Suit " »

Victims of the deadly 2007 Minneapolis Interstate 35W bridge collapse reached the end of their legal fight after an engineering firm agreed to pay $52.4 million to settle scores of lawsuits.

The settlement by San Francisco-based URS Corp. resolves the last major piece of litigation brought by victims. All told, the state and two of its contractors will have paid out $100 million to the families of the 13 people who died and the 145 people who were injured when the Mississippi River bridge broke apart during rush hour.

BRIAN BAKST, AP, The Washington Post 08/24/2010
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Continue reading " Firm to Pay $52.4M in Minneapolis Bridge Collapse " »

Read new Yaz story which offers caution regarding YAZ side effects.

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Jackson County, Mo., has agreed to a $270,000 settlement in a lawsuit filed by a motorcyclist who crashed his bike in a pot hole last summer.

Derek Jackson was riding his motorcycle in east Jackson County when he pot hole ankle-deep and as wide as his arms, his lawsuit claims, suffering serious injuries. The suit alleges the county was previous aware of the dangerous pot hole but had done nothing to fix it.

Michael Mansur, Kansas City Star 08/23/2010
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Continue reading " Lawsuit Over Pot Hole Accident Settled In Missouri " »

Bayer HealthCare, the leading maker of birth control pills, is coming out with a brand new pill.

Natazia, as it's called, contains a form of estrogen that's never been used in an oral contraceptive. It also has a novel dosing regimen. Women on Natazia will take four different combinations and doses of hormones or sugar pills each month.

The new launch coincides with growing problems for Bayer's last new contraceptive, Yaz.

Read full article here.

Continue reading " Yaz Side Effects and Yaz Replacement Bayer's Natazia " »

A Washington, D.C., salon owner has agreed to a $7 million settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by one of his employees.

The suit, filed by Jennifer Thong against Andre Chreky, alleges "rough-hewn sexual advances and retaliation when those advances were rebuffed." The advances include attempts at forced intercourse and brutal attacks by Chreky, the suit claims.

Neely Tucker, The Washington Post 08/17/2010
Read Article: The Washington Post

Continue reading " Salon Owner Settles $7M Sexual Harassment Suit " »

John Peter Smith Hospital (Ft Worth) officials will review the medical response to a man who collapsed and died in the hospital pharmacy after witnesses complained that help was slow to arrive and that emergency equipment did not appear to work properly.

Jeff Dickerson, who was picking up a prescription at the pharmacy, said it took medical workers nearly 10 minutes to get there. Once there, he said that two defibrillators the workers tried to use did not appear to work.

Alex Branch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram 08/19/2010
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Continue reading " Witnesses Raise Questions About Death at Fort Worth Hospital Pharmacy " »

A jury has awarded $6.8 million to a Pennsylvania woman who was injured in a car crash caused by a drunk driver. The jury found the Famous Mexican Restaurant & Bar in Coatesville, Penn., liable for continuing to serve alcohol to Omar Villalava-Martinez, even after he was visibly intoxicated.

Villalava-Martinez left the restaurant in his car and crashed it into Ryan Fell's vehicle, the suit claimed. Fell broke nearly every bone in her body, and even after three years of recovery, it is painful for her to walk.

Sam Wood , Philadelphia Inquirer 08/20/2010
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Continue reading " Bar Found Liable In DUI Crash Lawsuit " »

A Brownsville, Texas, woman has reached a $3.2 million settlement in a lawsuit she filed over the death of her husband in an explosion in 2006.

Juan Perez was filling up a tanker truck at a RTW Properties L.P. terminal when the truck exploded, killing him. Perez's wife, Live Lara Gutierrez, RTW Properties was negligent in providing proper safety measures at the terminal which could have prevented her husband's death.

Ildefonso Ortiz, Brownsville Herald 08/19/2010
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Continue reading " Settlement Reached In Fatal Texas Tanker Truck Explosion " »

A stun-gun manufacturer has agreed to a $2.85 million settlement with a California man who suffered brain damage after being tased four years ago.

Steven Butler was shocked by a Watsonvile, Calif., police officer in 2006 after refusing to exit a bus. The suit says Bulter went into cardiac arrest and stopped breathing for 18 minutes after being tased.

He suffered severe brain damage, and now requires around-the-clock care, the suit claims. The settlement money will go toward Bulter's past and future medical costs. Jennifer Squires, San Jose Mercury News 08/12/2010
Read Article: San Jose Mercury News

Continue reading " CA Man Receives $2.85M After Being Tased " »

A Chicago strip club has agreed to a $1 million settlement after a patron left the club and got into a car accident, killing two other people.

John Homatas was kicked out of Diamond's Gentlemen's Club for being too drunk in January 2006. According to the lawsuit, he and John Chiariello got into Homatas' car and left the club.

Homatas crashed into an SUV driven by April Simmons. Simmons, who was pregnant, and Chiariello were killed in the accident. Homatas is serving a 12-year sentence for DUI and reckless homicide. Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune 08/12/2010
Read Article: Chicago Tribune

Continue reading " Chicago Strip Club Reaches Settlement " »

Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) is an extremely rare disorder characterized by a severe skin reaction to medication

Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) is a rare but serious and potentially life-threatening condition. SJS is defined as a hypersensitivity disorder affecting the skin and mucous membranes.

The most severe form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome is Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TENS).

It can be caused by adverse effects of drugs (allopurinol, diclofenac, etravirine, Isotretinoin, aka Accutane, fluconazole, valdecoxib, sitagliptin, oseltamivir, penicillins, barbiturates, sulfonamides, phenytoin, azithromycin, oxcarbazepine, zonisamide, modafinil, lamotrigine, nevirapine, pyrimethamine, ibuprofen, ethosuximide, carbamazepine, nystatin, and gout medications).

Medications that have traditionally been known to lead to SJS, erythema multiforme and toxic epidermal necrolysis include sulfonamides (antibiotics), penicillins (antibiotics), barbiturates (sedatives), lamotrigine and phenytoin (e.g. Dilantin) (anticonvulsants). Combining lamotrigine with sodium valproate increases the risk of SJS.

Read more here at Wikipedia

Continue reading " Texas Medical Update: Stevens Johnson Syndrome " »

The AP (8/4) reported, "A BP Texas City refinery that was the site of a massive 2005 explosion that killed 15 workers has a pattern of poor operation and maintenance practices, Texas environmental regulators reported after investigating a 46-day release of toxic and cancer-causing chemicals from the plant this spring.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality handed its findings over to the state's attorney general because BP's violations are 'egregious,' the company has a poor compliance history and the courts have the power to hand down greater monetary fines, said John Sadlier, deputy director of TCEQ's Office of Compliance and Enforcement."

Continue reading " Texas CEQ Report Accuses BP in Texas City Refinery Explosion. " »

A Palm Beach County widow has been awarded over $2 million in a tobacco case over the death of her husband.

The jury on Thursday found R. J. Reynolds and Philip Morris had acted recklessly. The same jurors will now decide how much the companies should pay 60-year-old Liz Piendle in punitive damages. AP, Miami Herald 08/06/2010

Read Article: Miami Herald

Continue reading " Jury Awards Widow $2.2M in Tobacco Case " »

A woman in Florida has filed a lawsuit against Ford Motors over the death of her husband in a fiery car accident. Patrick Ambroise, a Florida Highway Patrol, died in his Ford Crown Victoria cruiser when the rear end burst into flames when it was rear-ended.

The suit claims that Ford poorly designed the vehicle and placed the gas tank in an unsafe position to where it may ignite of the car was hit from behind. The seeks unspecified damages. Staff Report, Miami Herald 08/06/2010

Read Article: Miami Herald

Continue reading " Widow Files Lawsuit Against Ford In Husband's Death " »

In a column in the Washington Post (8/6), Petula Dvorak writes, "Over their fences, at community picnics but mostly at funerals, the people of one Frederick neighborhood near Fort Detrick wondered whether it was just a horrible coincidence that so many of them had cancer."

They "immediately looked to their former next-door neighbor, Fort Detrick, where anthrax and Agent Orange were studied for decades and where about 400 acres known as Area B were used for storage and dumping."

Scientists "determined that vapors rising through the ground from the discarded chemicals had seeped into the" home of Randy White. White "is considering a class-action lawsuit against the Army."

Continue reading " Residents Suspect Cancer Cluster Near Fort Detrick, MD. " »

Bloomberg News (8/9, Feeley, Kelley) reports, "AstraZeneca Plc will pay about $198 million to settle 17,500 lawsuits, or about two-thirds of the total, alleging its antipsychotic drug Seroquel causes diabetes in some users."

AstraZeneca "previously agreed to pay at least $55 million to resolve more than 5,500 cases alleging the company knew Seroquel could cause diabetes and failed to adequately warn patients, people familiar with those settlements said.

The consolidated Seroquel case is In re Seroquel Products Litigation, 06-MD-01769, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida (Orlando).

Continue reading " AstraZeneca Settles 17,500 Seroquel Lawsuits for $198M. " »

Bayer drug companies have produced more than 10 million pages of documents to women suing over oral contraceptives Yasmin and Yaz.

U.S. District Judge David Herndon, is handling about 2,000 Yasmin and Yaz suits from around the nation, and he has posted an order on July 9, reminding plaintiffs of their obligation to provide name, social security number, basic facts of their claims, and authority to release medical records.

Bayer had moved a day earlier to dismiss claims of 11 plaintiffs in six suits, for lack of fact sheets.

Read full story here.

Continue reading " Yaz Texas Update: Bayer’s Yaz Birth Control Lawsuits Now at 2,000 " »

ACCUTANE STEVENS-JOHNSON SYNDROME: In February 2010, Health Canada reported that it had received reports of severe skin reactions, including sometimes fatal reaction known as Stevens-Johnson Syndrome from Accutane.

At least 66 reports of Accutane skin reactions were identified by Health Canada, including adults and children, with two of the cases resulting in death.

Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) is a severe skin reaction that occurs as a side effect of several medications.

When the skin lesions affect more than 30% of the body, the condition is referred to as Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN).

Continue reading " ACCUTANE STEVENS-JOHNSON SYNDROME " »

The number of Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella lawsuits that are part of a mass tort docket in New Jersey has increased significantly since the product liability cases were consolidated in February.

The number of Yaz lawsuits, Yasmin lawsuits and Ocella lawsuits centralized in Bergen County Superior Court has gone from 39 to about 400, according to court documents.

The New Jersey Yaz litigation was consolidated because of concerns about court filings, since New Jersey is the corporate headquarters in the United States for Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which manufacturers the birth control pills.

Continue reading " Yaz Lawsuits Moving Forward in New Jersey State Court " »

A Wyoming jury has awarded $3.7 million to a local man who developed lung cancer after 37 years of working for BNSF Railway.

Edward Roger Jolley claimed in his lawsuit that years of breathing in diesel fumes, silicone dust and asbestos while at work caused his cancer.

His condition is fatal. The jury found BNSF was "negligent and violated federal regulations regarding the maintenance and operations of locomotives." Greg Tuttle , Billings Gazette 08/02/2010

Read Article: Billings Gazette

Continue reading " Railroad Worker Awarded $3.7M In Lawsuit " »

A $750,000 settlement has been reached in a lawsuit against a Jefferson County, Ill., police officer who allegedly used a stun gun unnecessarily on three teenagers and assaulted another.

According to the suit, Deputy David Bowers used the stun gun on the teens at the Southern Thirty Adolescent Center two years ago. Illinois state investigators found no wrongdoing, however, and Bowers is still employed with the department.

Staff Report, United Press International 08/03/2010
Read Article: United Press International

Continue reading " Settlement Reached In Illinois Stun Gun Lawsuit " »

"Roche Holding AG won reversal of a $10.5 million verdict over its Accutane [isotretinoin] acne drug because a judge improperly barred the company from using evidence about the medication's use," according to an appeals court ruling made in Kendall v. Hoffmann LaRoche Inc., ATL- L-8213-05, New Jersey Superior Court, Atlantic County (Atlantic City).

"Roche's lawyers should have been able to use data about how many acne sufferers had used Accutane over the years throughout Kamie Kendall's 2008 trial of her lawsuit over the drug, the New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division ruled," prompting "a judge in Atlantic City, New Jersey, to delay the trial of an actor's suit alleging the medication causes inflammatory bowel disease."

Bloomberg News (8/6, Feeley) reports

Continue reading " Roche Holding AG Wins Reversal of Accutane Verdict. " »

A lawsuit in south Texas has been filed against British Petroleum over pollutants leaking out of the company's Texas City refinery.

The lawsuit claims more than 500,000 pounds of pollutants were released into the air when one of the compressors went offline in April.

The citizens of Texas City experienced "sinus and eye issues, coughing, feeling nauseous, and feeling lethargic," from exposure to benzene, one of the chemicals released, the suit claims. The lawsuit seeks $10 billion in damages.

T.J. Aulds, Galveston County - The Daily News 08/04/2010
Read Article: Galveston County - The Daily News

Continue reading " Lawsuit Filed Over Pollutants From TX City Refinery " »

A Friendswood attorney filed a federal lawsuit over the release of more than 500,000 pounds of pollutants — including high levels of benzene — into the air after a unit failure at BP’s Texas City refinery.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages in the release of pollutants between April 6 and May 16, when the refinery’s ultracracker’s hydrogen compressor went offline.

BP doesn’t argue the fact that more than 250 tons of emissions were sent into the atmosphere during the 40 days. The company does take issue with claims the health of workers and residents was affected. T.J. Aulds, Galveston County - The Daily News 08/05/2010

Read Article: Galveston County - The Daily News

AstraZeneca Plc, which settled almost 4,000 product-liability cases this month involving its antipsychotic drug Seroquel through mediation, said it will keep terms of the agreements confidential.

The company, said it was defending more than 10,000 cases involving 22,500 plaintiff groups. Some of the cases were previously dismissed because plaintiffs lacked sufficient evidence to support allegations that Seroquel causes diabetes.

The company, said in the July 29 filing that by March, it had spent about $688 million defending Seroquel-related cases.

AstraZeneca agreed earlier to pay $2 million to settle more than 200 Seroquel cases, averaging about $10,000 each. Those settlements were part of the same federal-court-ordered mediation.

The consolidated Seroquel case is In re Seroquel Products Litigation, 06-MD-01769, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida (Orlando).

Read the full Bloomberg story here.

The Fulton County Daily Report (7/30, Palmer) reports, "Lawyers watching a sexual harassment case that tested the limits of acceptable workplace behavior won't get to hear what the full 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals thinks of the matter.

The case against Home Depot, heard in a rare en banc session by the full appeals court bench in June, has been settled" following "a joint motion by the parties."

In Corbitt v. Home Depot USA, two male employees "claimed that a male manager made inappropriate sexual overtures to them."

Read Article here.

Continue reading " Home Depot Sexual Harassment Suit Settled " »

Two former female employees of the hedge fund Titan Capital have filed a sexual discrimination suit against the fund's president and other top officials.

Danielle Pecile and Cristina Culicea claim in their suit that they were "repeatedly hit on, cursed at and called names like 'idiot' by the defendants."

Pecile also says in the suit that fund president Russell Abrams asked her on one occasion to have bare-chested pictures of his wife printed from a CD. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages. Leo Standora , New York Daily News 07/30/2010

Read Article: New York Daily News

Continue reading " Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Filed Against Hedge Fund " »

The death of a woman who was hit by a car on a crosswalk at the Salt Lake City International Airport has prompted a lawsuit from the woman's husband.

The lawsuit claims that airport officials were aware of the "dangerous traffic situation" at the crosswalk but had done nothing to make it safer.

The airport had been warned by an employee of the potential for accidents at the crosswalk, the lawsuit states. The suit also names the driver of the car, Evelini Kinikini, as a defendant. Sheena McFarland, The Salt Lake Tribune 07/28/2010

Read Article: The Salt Lake Tribune

Continue reading " Lawsuit Filed Over Fatal Accident at Utah Airport " »

A sports bar in Austell, Ga., has agreed to pay $1 million to the widow of a man killed by a drunk driver who was allegedly over-served by the bar staff.

The lawsuit claims that in October 2008, The Sports Grill served alcohol to William Paul Davis IV when he was already drunk.

Davis then crashed his car into Cuneyt Erturk's vehicle, killing Erturk. The judge also sanctioned the bar after it was discovered that they destroyed video tapes and bar tabs that showed Davis drinking. Andria Simmons , Atlanta Journal-Constitution 07/27/2010

Read Article: Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Continue reading " Bar To Pay Damages In Fatal Drunk Driver Crash " »