Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Published on: November 20, 2010

Underriding involves one vehicle driving under a semi

Don’t confuse underriding with underwriting. These are two different things, and one will kill you.

Just when you think you may have heard everything, you hear about a fairly graphic term that happens in certain accident cases called underriding. Underriding refers to a wreck where a vehicle or a motorcycle drives under the trailer of a big rig. These accidents are not pretty, are mostly fatal and if they aren’t, the survivors sustain catastrophic injuries such as brain injury, spinal cord injury, shattered bones and severe crush injuries.

In underriding cases, there is no question you will need a highly experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyer to help you get the proper compensation to care for you for the rest of your life. If you do not survive your injuries, then that same lawyer may help the family file a wrongful death lawsuit.

Published on: November 14, 2010

Wrongful death lawsuits are about economic security for the future

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

Wrongful death lawsuits are not about revenge. These suits deal with obtaining future financial security.

While some people may think that filing a wrongful death lawsuit is all about getting even with the person or company who killed your loved one, it isn’t. Primarily, it is about getting financial compensation for the family for their future. When a loved one suddenly dies, the economic and emotional shock is truly devastating.

If you lost a loved one whose income supported the family, would you wonder where the next dollar to pay the bills would come from? You sure would. It’s for this reason that those left behind seek legal counsel and want to find out what their rights are by asking a lawyer what will happen next and what can the family do to obtain compensation.

Published on: October 21, 2010

The dangers of riding and enjoying a motorcycle

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

Motorcycles are unique vehicles. Nothing else can approximate the thrill of riding in the open air. Unfortunately, they are high-risk rides.

There is no question that riding a motorcycle is one of the greatest thrills on planet Earth. It is a super-charged rush to get on the open road and boot it. While you might be a very safe rider, it’s the people in other vehicles that you have to watch out for, because they often just don’t see you, no matter how big your bike happens to be.

In fact, not seeing you is the most commonly cited cause of motorcycle accidents. Unfortunately, it also means that bikers get hit more often than other vehicles and sustain severe injuries and may ultimately lose their lives. Education is a good start to reduce the number of motorcycle crashes on the road. Improving others’ driving skills and alertness would help. The problem is, some drivers just don’t seem to understand that bikers are smaller vehicles of which they need to be aware. Sadly, just about 70 percent of the wrecks involving bikers are due to the negligence of a motorist.

Published on: October 21, 2010

Identifying defendants in premises liability cases

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

Premises liability cases are not always clean-cut cases, as there is sometimes confusion regarding who is the named defendant. Check this with an experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyer.

If the world were as simple as it once was, things might be straightforward and easy when it comes to lawsuits. However, in this complex day and age with multiple property owners, international property owners, lessees, holding companies and other entities who own land, who to sue in a premises liability case is not always clear. It isn’t always the person who caused an accident due to negligence that is directly responsible for a victim’s injuries in a premises liability/slip and fall case.

Some lawsuits in this area may directly involve the person who caused the accident or anyone who refused to render aid, or the property owner and not the manager. The ownership of the land where the accident took place is another issue that comes with its own set of liabilities. Ultimately, that means if a landowner wasn’t around when the accident happened, it doesn’t matter. The person still owns the property and has certain standards he or she needs to adhere to that keep it safe for those who use/visit the location.

Published on: October 15, 2010

Professional malpractice also refers to accountants

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

Professional malpractice refers to more than lawyers or doctors. It also includes accountants.

“Most people, when they hear the words ‘professional malpractice,’ think it refers to lawyers or doctors. While it may well refer to them, it is also a term used when talking about accounting malpractice. Simply put, accounting malpractice happens if any accounting professional is negligent in the performance of their duties,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

To further explain professional standards for various individuals who are certified to practice, it’s vital to know that the institutes that certify these professionals have a list that outlines what the standard of care is for their members to provide to their customers. The list says what standards of care need to be met to protect the public from harm, deceit, malfeasance, etc.

Published on: October 15, 2010

Ozcomert suggests civil litigation in wrongful death cases to recover economic compensation

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

Civil litigation is not the same thing as criminal litigation. Civil litigation involves things like wrongful death lawsuits.

In a criminal case, the person charged goes to a criminal court and is dealt with accordingly. They may be found guilty or not guilty. Either way, once that process is concluded, the person can also be sued again, but civilly. For the best example of a situation like that, think the O. J. Simpson case.

“Let’s say we’re dealing with the wrongful death of a loved one as a result of vehicular homicide. The criminal case has been dealt with, but the family wishes to recover compensation for the loss of their loved one. A wrongful death lawsuit is filed under a wrongful death statute and is the civil recourse for families whose loved one was killed because of the negligence/intentional acts of another. It is their route to justice outside of the criminal courts,” said Stephen M. Ozcomert, who handles personal injury cases, accidents, and malpractice law in Atlanta, Georgia.

Published on: August 28, 2010

Big rigs are involved in at least 21 percent of all fatal accidents

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

At over 80,000 pounds each, it’s no wonder that 18-wheelers are involved in ugly, and often fatal, crashes.

Not many people realize that a fully loaded big rig can weigh that much. Comparatively, most cars weigh only about 4,000 pounds. It’s not hard to see why smaller vehicles tend to get completely demolished when hit by an 18-wheeler. In most truck-versus-car collisions, there isn’t much left of the car, while the truck may come out of it with just a few dents and scratches.

Picking up the pieces from this type of wreck is tough, but evidence needs to be preserved, the integrity of the scene needs to be maintained, and the accident itself needs to be reconstructed to determine fault, if that is not clear from the scene. Despite the fact that big rigs only represent about 3 percent of all the vehicles on the road, they figure into the crash statistics as being involved in at least 21 percent of all fatal collisions.

Published on: August 18, 2010

Beware of snow in Georgia

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

It’s never too early to mention that you need to beware of ice and snow in the winter. Slips and falls can do a lot of damage.

You may have never experienced snow or ice in Georgia, but it happens, and when it does, you still have to cope with trying to get through the mess. Since it’s not something that a lot of people are used to – after all, our temperatures are usually pretty balmy – they often don’t know how to walk on slick surfaces. To make matters worse, who really has salt, sand or anything else on hand to handle the snow? When it falls, snow is an accident waiting to happen.

What do you need to know if you do slip and fall on snow? Whether you slipped on snow or in a puddle in the middle of a mall, the first thing you need to know is that in virtually all but a few situations, the people who own a business are responsible for your safety when you are on their property – that includes their parking lot, front sidewalk, the aisles, etc. There is actually case law on this point – Dumas v. Tripps – case law your Atlanta personal injury lawyer would use if you file a slip and fall personal injury lawsuit.

Published on: June 30, 2010

Marine Dead in Head-On Collision in Georgia

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

When servicemen are killed in the U.S. in car crashes, it’s hard to accept. They survived Iraq only to come home and wind up dead.

“This case was really hard for the family,” said Stephen Ozcomert an Atlanta personal injury attorney. “The 21-year-old Marine hadn’t been home all that long when he and his wife were hit head-on by a wrong way driver,” he explained.

The wrong way driver was a 71-year-old man who was heading east in the westbound lane where the Marine and his family were driving. They met head-on. When EMS crews responded to this accident call, they immediately transported the young Marine, his wife and the other driver to the nearest hospital for treatment. Unfortunately, the Marine died at the hospital and his wife was flown to another hospital to be stabilized. The driver of the other car was also stabilized at the hospital.

Published on: June 30, 2010

Falls May Cause More Harm Than Just Bruises

By Stephen M. Ozcomert

A slip and fall may cause far more than just bruises and embarrassment. Falling may cause traumatic brain injury.

We’ve likely all done this: slipped on something and taken what we laughingly refer to as a “prat fall.” We may have gotten up off the floor and been just fine, aside from bruised ego and some cuts and scrapes. Not everyone is that lucky though. Some slip and fall accidents end up with serious consequences, such as traumatic brain injury.

Consider the case of the woman shopping at her local grocery store where they had a garden section just outside the main doors. She wanted some flowers for her garden and as she was walking along one of the outside aisles, covered with linoleum, she slipped in an unseen puddle, fell and struck her head on the floor. The floor under the linoleum is concrete. She was knocked unconscious and by the time she came to in the hospital, she was told she had a serious concussion.