Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

June 23, 2009

Rogue Cancer Unit at Philadelphia V.A. Hospital

For patients with prostate cancer, it is a common surgical procedure: a doctor implants dozens of radioactive seeds to attack the disease. But when Dr. Gary D. Kao treated one patient at the veterans’ hospital in Philadelphia, his aim was more than a little off.

Most of the seeds, 40 in all, landed in the patient’s healthy bladder, not the prostate.

It was a serious mistake, and under federal rules, regulators investigated. But Dr. Kao, with their consent, made his mistake all but disappear.

He simply rewrote his surgical plan to match the number of seeds in the prostate, investigators said.

June 22, 2009

Jury Awards $3 M to United Airlines Employee who Complained of Discrimination

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A federal court jury in Denver awarded $3 million to a former United Airlines employee after finding the company retaliated against her for complaining about discrimination.

The jury deliberated about seven hours before reaching a verdict.

Jennifer McInerney, 37, of Centennial lost her job as a United ramp-services supervisor in March 2006 after 12 years with the company. She has a disabled 3-year-old son.

McInerney asked for alternative jobs in May 2005 because she anticipated complications with her pregnancy. She said the request was denied and her son was born 11 weeks premature.

June 21, 2009

Hydroxycut Weight-loss Products Sued

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A class action lawsuit filed in Los Angeles accuses recalled Hydroxycut weight-loss products of causing deadly liver damage and other severe complications.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court on behalf of anyone who consumed the now-banned supplements, claims the company failed to warn users of the risks of injury.

The Hydroxycut products were recalled May 1 after being linked to dozens of cases of liver damage, jaundice, and other related injuries. In one case, a 19-year-old Hydroxycut user died in 2007 after developing liver failure, but the death was not reported to the Food and Drug Administration until last March, according to the complaint.

June 20, 2009

Suit Filed Over Death of Woman Struck by Utility Pole

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A lawsuit was filed in Allegheny County Court by the mother of a 28-year-old woman who died after a utility pole struck by a tractor-trailer fell on her head.

Filed by Gloria Grate on behalf of her daughter, Marquetta Grate, the lawsuit names as defendants the city of Pittsburgh, Levin Furniture, Christopher Caudill and Penske Trucking.

According to attorney Michael Rosenzweig, who filed the complaint, Marquetta Grate was waiting for a bus on May 15 after dropping off her 3-year-old daughter at an East Liberty pre-school.

June 19, 2009

$1M Settles Lawsuit by Laborer Hurt at Staten Island Ferry

by Dr. Shezad Malik

An electrician from Grant City, injured when he fell through a hole in a fueling pier at the St. George Ferry Terminal almost six years ago, has settled his civil lawsuit for $1 million.

Russell Menicucci suffered back and neck injuries in the Dec. 2, 2003, accident, said his lawyer, Andrew John Calcagno. Those injuries have prevented him from returning to work, the attorney said.

June 18, 2009

Jury Awards Woman $5M Over Wrong Diagnosis

by Dr. Shezad Malik

An Indiana jury has awarded $5 million to a Mooresville woman still experiencing ill effects from a misdiagnosis nearly a decade ago at Methodist Hospital.

Roxxanna Smith, then 18, arrived at the emergency room in July 2000 with a ruptured diaphragm after playing softball. But through a series of miscommunications about what was shown by X-rays, her lawyers said, doctors instead diagnosed a urinary tract infection and muscle strain — and sent Smith home.

June 17, 2009

EPA to Pay Medical Bills for People Sickened by Asbestos From Montana Mine

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The Environmental Protection Agency declared its first-ever “public health emergency,” saying the federal government will funnel $6 million to provide medical care for people sickened by asbestos from a mine in northwest Montana.

The declaration applies to the towns of Libby and Troy, where for decades workers dug for vermiculite, a mineral used in insulation. They were unknowingly poisoning themselves: The vermiculite was contaminated with a toxic form of asbestos, which workers carried home on their clothes.

June 16, 2009

Judge Dismisses Jury in Wrongful Death Lawsuit From McDonald’s Brawl

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The wrongful death civil trial over a 2005 fatal brawl in a McDonald’s parking lot hit a stumbling block when the judge dismissed the jury picked to hear the case.

Attorneys agreed on a six-member jury, but since then lawyers on the plaintiff’s side uncovered facts about three of the jurors, including old arrests the jurors did not list on their questionnaires.

June 15, 2009

Air France Crash Spurs Debate Over Lawsuit Locations

by Dr. Shezad Malik

While investigators scour the Atlantic for clues to the cause of the crash of Air France Flight 447, lawyers in Brazil, France and the U.S. are taking steps to determine the proper forum for any lawsuits.

Sophie Bottai, whose client was the first granted victim status in a French criminal probe, said the nation’s courts should review any claims as many passengers were French as were the airline and the airplane, an Airbus SAS A330-200.

“The plane is French, the carrier is French,” said Bottai, representing a 38-year-old Frenchman’s family, who she said wishes to remain anonymous. “The jurisdiction is French.”
Debate over jurisdiction issues may get even more heated with families making the ultimate decision based on where they can receive the most compensation. In addition to where the claims are filed, the amount of any award depends on the victim’s age, family status and work situation, according to lawyers specializing in aviation disasters.

June 15, 2009

Accutane Lawsuits and Litigation

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The acne remedy Accutane, a synthetic form of vitamin A used to treat serious forms of acne that can cause scarring, has been the subject of extensive litigation because of a long list of side effects including inflammatory bowel disease, suicide, and birth defects.

The U.S. manufacturer of Accutane, Hoffman La Roche, is part of the international conglomerate known as “The La Roche Group,” with affiliates in 150 countries. “The La Roche Group” is estimated to be the seventh largest pharmaceutical company in the world. Accutane is one of Hoffman La Roche’s top sellers with estimated annual sales of $1.2 billion. Accutane is also one of the 3 drugs on the market with the most reports of adverse side effects, and this has led to extensive litigation. Lawsuits have been brought against Hoffman La Roche for alleged adverse reactions caused by Accutane including gastrointestinal disorders, suicides, and birth defects.