Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog

A lawyer's godda geddaway sometimes. But can you ever REALLY get away from your work?

Last week was spring break for my boys, so I took one of them, shown here with me, to Boston. (Actually, we were there to take my mother to see some specialists, but that's another story . . .). While there, we jumped on the Boston Duck Tour. That's an amphibious tour bus --- the same bus that wheels you through the streets of Boston eventually plunges into, and then puts around in, the Boston harbor. See picture below.

As a Central New York personal injury lawyer, I see a lot of accidents, and it seems like a lot of them happen on holidays. Where others see fun I see disaster. And getting on a tour bus destined to drive into the Boston harbor was not exactly a tonic to my accident-phobia.

The driver's instructions just before we took the plunge only made matters worse:

Driver: "If the vessel should begin to sink, the life jackets can be found . . ."
Me: "What?! That's actually possible?!"

My law firm represented the families of several retirees killed on a tour boat that capsized on Lake George only a few years ago. With that background, it is not surprising that, as the duck bus bounced around harmlessly in a slightly choppy harbor, the imaginary headline in my head read: "Boston Duck Tour sinks killing 23!"

Needless to say, we made it back to shore safe and sound. But not content to leave well enough alone, I later googled (from a safe and dry place) "duck tour accidents". I learned that in 1999 a Duck tour bus sank in Hot Springs, Arkansas, killing 13 of the 20 people on board, that on June 23, 2002, a duck bus on the Ottawa River in Canada, sank, causing four passengers trapped under the vehicle's canopy to drown, and that on July 7, 2010, a duck bus was disabled by an engine fire and later run over by a barge on the Delaware River in Philadelphia, killing two passengers.

Glad I didn't perform this Google search BEFORE the tour.

While I wouldn't say that my line of work actually makes me more afraid to die or of getting injured, it makes me think about it more often, and in more situations, than most people.

So yes, I got away from my work last week. But my work did not get away from me . . .

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Sometimes when I read newspaper accounts of other personal injury lawyers' cases I wonder why those lawyers bothered to take them. While I wouldn't call them frivolous, they just don't make economic sense. How can you make a living taking those kinds of cases?

Case on point. Disney World's "It's a Small World" ride gets stuck. While most riders are evacuated right away, a paraplegic (from a prior injury), who is difficult to remove, is left on the ride for 30 minutes while "It's a Small World" blares over and over again.

He sues Disney in Federal Court, claiming they should have called firefighters to evacuate him along with the others. He claims his high blood pressure and tendency toward panic attacks were aggravated as he sat in the boat listening over and over again to "It's a Small World". How much money would you give him? What's his case worth?

He got $4,000 for pain and suffering and $4,000 in statutory compensation under disabled protection laws. That's far more than most upstate New York personal injury case juries would have awarded him for enduring ½ hour of annoying music.

To be honest, hearing "It's a Small World" over and over again would make my blood boil too! But this guy's lawyer took the case all the way to trial, which must have represented at least $20,000 worth of legal work, and ended up with only a $2,000 or $3,000 contingency fee. Hard to make a living that way.

There's nothing wrong with taking on a small case on a big principle. There's nothing wrong with fighting hard for a noble cause for little or no fee. I've done all of that. But I am having a hard time finding the big principle worth fighting for here. I don't know whether to admire that lawyer or pity him.

I wonder what the theme of his case at trial was. "It's a small case after all". How about "I'm making a small fee after all". You get the point . . .

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

First, some background: The wheels of justice would come to a screeching halt without the Court's power to subpoena non-party witnesses to testify in court. Subpoenaed witnesses, like it or not, must appear in court, take the oath, and testify about what they saw, heard, or know. In civil cases (such as personal injury trials) the judge doesn't issue the subpoena, rather, the lawyers for the parties do under their authority as "officers of the court". Each side subpoenas the witnesses it needs.

And it's dirt cheap. In New York the party subpoenaing the witness must pay him only $15 a day (CPLR 8001[a]) no matter who he is or what he does for a living. The $500-an-hour business consultant is entitled only to the same $15 an hour as the street sweeper. Each has the same civic duty to appear. And if either refuses, he can be held in "contempt of court", a punishable offense.

But can a party pay a subpoenaed witness more, even a lot more, if both agree to it? That's the issue that came up in the recent Court of Appeals (highest Court in New York) case of Caldwell v. Cablevision Systems Corporation.

In Caldwell, a defendant in a New York trip-and-fall personal injury suit subpoenaed the E.R. doctor who had treated the plaintiff. The doc balked at the $15-a-day subpoena fee, and demanded instead $10,000, clearly a lot more than even an E.R. doc's daily wage.

The defendant's lawyer could have sent the E.R. doc to hell, and told him to appear for the $15 or else face contempt-of-court sanctions. But instead the two struck a deal, for the $10,000 fee!

In his hour-long testimony --- for which he pocketed ten grand --- the doctor authenticated a note he made after examining the plaintiff in the emergency room. The note said the patient had "tripped over her dog" while walking in the rain, not that she had fallen into a hole on defendant's property, as she was claiming in court.

Did the exorbitant fee taint the doc's "memory" of what the plaintiff told him? Should the testimony have been stricken as bought-and-paid-for?

The Court of Appeals, though "troubled" by the payment, held that the witness should be allowed to testify, as long as the plaintiff's lawyer had an opportunity to cross-examine him regarding the payment. The Court also said that judges must instruct the jury that such payments might -- duh! -- make the witness biased.

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Are you against frivolous lawsuits? Good, me too. Not to worry. I've got the solution. Hold on. First a story.

Several years ago, a fellow Central New York personal injury lawyer secured a famously large settlement on a personal injury case. At a party a few days later, someone took issue with his fee. "Your 1/3 fee on that big settlement is not fair". My quick-witted friend replied, "you're right --- it's not fair. I did ALL the work, I took ALL the risks, but my client gets 2/3 of the money - NOT FAIR!".

He was just kidding, of course. But in Spanish there is a saying: "From every joke, some truth does poke" (de broma en broma la verdad se asoma). The point of the joke is that, yes, the contingency fee IS fair! Actually, not only is it fair, it is the only system that makes "justice for all" possible. That's because most people could never afford charge-by-the-hour legal fees. But even if you are poor, if you have a legitimate claim, you can find a lawyer to take the case on a contingency fee basis.

Notice how I said a legitimate claim. No lawyer in his right mind would willingly take on a frivolous case, one that is likely to be tossed out of court by a judge or jury, on a contingency fee. If he does, he will work long and hard for nothing. How often can a lawyer shoot himself in the head like that? Once is quite enough for most. It's sure not habit forming. If an obstinate lawyer makes a habit of it, he will soon run out of money, have to close shop, and start serving up fries and burgers instead of justice.

So the contingency fee system screens out frivolous lawsuits and fosters "justice for all". Any other benefits? Yes! The contingency fee system aligns the client's and the lawyer's interests. It puts them in the same boat. The lawyer wins 1/3 of whatever he wins for the client, so he is uniquely inspired to maximize his client's recovery, and thus his own fee.

Not so on an hourly-fee billing system. For example, say I am representing an injured guy on an hourly fee basis. He has to pay me $300 per hour. I can charge him this same amount win or lose. Let's say the defendant offers a settlement that seems fair. But if I settle, I won't be able to continue billing the client for the case. Sure, my ethical responsibility is to do what's best for the client, but what's best for the client is not best for me. Who knows whether this self-interest is coloring my judgment of whether the settlement is fair. The problem is that the client's and my interests are not aligned.

In sum, the contingency fee system in a personal injury case has three main benefits: (1) it makes "justice for all" possible; (2) it weeds out frivolous claims; and (3) it aligns the client's and the attorney's interests.

The contingency fee system is uniquely American. And it's the greatest invention our American legal justice system has devised. Now salute the flag . . . and keep safe! And if your efforts to keep safe fail, don't hesitate to pick up the phone and call me about -- you guessed it --- my representing you on a contingency fee basis!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central and Syracuse NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

One great thing about being a personal injury trial lawyer, whether in New York or elsewhere, is that you can keep improving, keep getting better, keep honing your skills, forever.

Recently I have been listening to lectures by some of the best New York trial lawyers, as well as great trial lawyers from other States, about how they try personal injury cases. The most recent one I listened to is Jim Perdue's "The Art of Story Telling". Jim is a well-respected Texas trial lawyer. I had read some of his stuff years ago, so this was kind of a refresher course. Jim's basic premise is that a jury trial is all about story-telling, and the side that tells the best, most credible story, wins. Here are some notes I talked into my smart phone as I listened:

(1) Tell the jury the safety rule the defendant violated, then tell them why the rule is important, then show how defendant broke the rule, then show them the harm defendant's breaking the rule did to plaintiff.

(2) Use a visual aid board, with two columns, one for "the right way" and one for "the wrong way" of doing whatever it is that defendant did wrong. For example, if a manufacturer improperly tested the product before putting it on the market, put in the "wrong way" column the way he did it, and in the "right way" column the way he should have done it (you can use an expert to explain to the jury the right way).

(3) Defendants don't have "defenses", they have excuses. Call them that, excuses. Make an excuse chart to show the jury. In summation, as you go through each excuse, explain why it is not valid, and cross off the excuse with a big red "x".

(4) Jim likes this metaphor: "This defendant has so many excuses it's like the crabgrass growing on my backyard. But we have a weed killer called "truth" . . .". Nice. I'll try using that one (in the summer!).

(5) Trials are about character. Juries like characters who are rescuers, or who suffer misfortune through no fault of their own, and who struggle back, and they like dependable people. They don't like greedy or traitorous characters. Try to bring out the positive characteristics of your client and the negative ones of the defendant, where appropriate.

(6) Remember, the defendant is on trial, not plaintiff. So start with what the defendant did wrong. That's the story you want to tell first.

(7) Make eye contact with each juror - do not talk to the jury, but to jurors.

See ya in court (hopefully at my table, not at defense counsel's!)

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central and Syracuse NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Fellow New York personal injury lawyers (and would-be ones) let me tell you about a free online subscription I just love. Eliot Wilcox, a Florida trial lawyer, runs a great blog with an email subscription to a weekly trial skills review. It is a three minute read each Friday, and reminds us personal injury lawyers of important trial skills.

No matter how good you are at trial, these quick reminders can help you be even better. Even great golfers need to be reminded once in a while to keep their head down on the swing. Same with trial lawyers. We may have learned all the good techniques, but being reminded to use them from time to time is great for our "swing".

Elliot's philosophy is like mine: Never stop learning. No matter how good you are, you can always get better. Life is short, and trial skills are long.

For example, recently, on my car rides, I have been listening to some personal injury trial books on my smartphone. I started with the "holy trinity" of personal injury trial books: (1) Rules of the Road: A Plaintiff Lawyer's Guide to Proving Liability; (2) Reptile, by David Ball and Don Keenan, and (3) David Ball on Damages. These books are a "must read" for all personal injury lawyers.

You can't listen to or read them enough times. More stuff keeps "sticking". In fact, when I'm preparing for trial, I always skim through them, looking for little nuggets I can use in my trial.

One of the joys of being human is that, no matter how good you get, you can always improve. That's true whether you are trying to improve as a doctor, plumber, president, dogcatcher, father, husband, or personal injury lawyer. The difference between a good personal injury lawyer and one who only pretends to be is this; the truly good trial lawyer knows he or she has got more to learn, and never stops trying to improve. The mediocre trial lawyer is a self-satisfied know-it-all who can't, and won't, suffer anyone's advice. I count myself in the former group, and I hope all my trial-lawyer readers do, too.

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central and Syracuse NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

What are the most important weapons a personal injury lawyer brings to court? Give up? OK, I'll tell you: words.

Words are the arrows in the personal injury lawyer's quiver. The "mot juste" (the right word), as the French say, can make all the difference. That's why the best New York personal injury lawyers spend lots of time before a trial deciding what words to use in describing what happened to their client, and how they are suffering as a result.

Don't think words matter that much? Watch this short video and you might change your mind:

So there you have it. A personal injury lawyer representing a blind client, let's call him Bill, can stand up at summation and say, "ladies and gentlemen, Bill is blind". Or he can say, "ladies and gentlemen, I just took Bill out for lunch during recess. As you know, it's a beautiful day out there. [pause]. But Bill couldn't see it. (note: much of the power of the words is unleashed by skillful use of the voice, intonation, emphasis, and pauses. This obviously cannot be transcribed).

Yes, words are powerful weapons. The late Moe Levine, one of the best New York personal injury lawyers who ever lived, delivered one of the most famous summations in a personal injury trial in New York. The words he chose mattered. He was representing a man who had lost both arms. In his summation, he could have rattled on and on about what it was like for his client to live without any arms. But he chose to make it simple and to the point, and very, very graphic. He told the jury that he had just taken his client to lunch at a restaurant across the street. Then, after a long pause, he said, "he eats like a DOG"! Then he sat down. The jury gave his armless client the biggest New York personal injury verdict ever recorded until that day.

The best lawyers find, and use, the best words.

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central and Syracuse NY Personal Injury Lawyers
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

In February 1967, a young lady showed up for her first day of work at the Auburn, New York law offices of attorney George M. Michaels, our own Lee Michaels' father. (George is famous in New York - you can look him up on wikipedia). Lee, a young whipper-snapper fresh out of law school, joined the firm about two years later, and Carol has worked with Lee ever since.

But the story goes back further; Lee and Carol went to East Auburn high school together. Carol was two years ahead of Lee. Carol tells the story of how, back then, one of her teachers told the girls, "treat the under classmen well because remember, you could be working for them one day".

Times have sure changed. Today, any teacher who made a statement like that would be accused of rank sexism. But guess what --- that teacher was right! Carol ended up working for Lee for 43 years. And she worked with the rest of us ever since we joined the firm, too. She has been our head secretary and office manager for decades.

On her last day of work recently at the Auburn personal injury law firm of Michaels & Smolak, we decided to take Carol, and the entire office, out to the Sherwood Inn in Skaneateles, to celebrate her outstanding 45 years of loyal service and to surprise her, with a gift. (Carol roundly rejected our desire to give her a retirement party --- way too humble for that). But what do you give someone who clocked in 45 years of dedicated work, who hardly ever missed a day, who usually got to work BEFORE starting time, and who was, to boot, fun to work with? A gold watch? That didn't seem a good fit.

Well, we remembered that Carol had a great time a few years ago when she went on her first cruise with her husband, Jim. So at the Sherwood, we handed her some tickets. Not just any tickets, but for a cruise-for-two through the breath-taking Alaskan seas.

I shot this picture of Carol and Lee at the Sherwood. Does she look 73? I think not. If you see this young, sparky gal, congratulate her and wish her a happy trip, and retirement. She deserves both, and so much more!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

I have a Syracuse New York wrongful death trial coming up in about six weeks. Six weeks may seem like a long time to you, but for preparing a complex trial, it is not. I started gearing up a few weeks ago.

The first thing I do is create a "to do" list for the trial preparation. As I get things done on my list, it feels good to cross them off. My list gets shorter and shorter.

In this case, my "to do" list is still quite long. There will be, I believe, more than 30 witnesses. I have to prepare "direct examinations" of the witnesses I am going to call, and "cross-examinations" of the ones I expect my opponents to call. And you don't just "wing it" up there. No, that's a recipe for disaster. You have to plan out carefully every line of questioning, and have exhibits and deposition transcripts ready to confront any witness who strays from the truth!

Another thing I do before a trial is look at how other experienced lawyers have handled similar trials. This is a wrongful death claim, so will watch some DVD's of opening statements and summations given by other lawyers in wrongful death trials. This gives me fresh ideas of how to structure, organize and present this kind of case.

You also have to figure out how to get all the exhibits into evidence, what witnesses to use to talk about them, and anticipate objections you might receive from opposing counsel.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

If you watch "Law and Order" or other TV law programs, you might think being a trial lawyer is just about going to court and trying cases. But that's only about 5% of it. The other 95% is preparation at your desk, on your computer, and on the phone or in conference with witnesses. I can't say it's exciting, and sometimes it's downright boring, but it's absolutely essential.

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Although I am a New York personal injury lawyer 95% of the time, every once in a while I let myself get talked into representing a plaintiff in a non-injury case. Usually it is to sue for breach of contract or something like that. Recently, I had a three-day bench trial (that means it was tried before a judge rather than a jury) on such a case.

My opponent was an ass. He made lots of useless objections, shouted and screamed a lot, and had a very sarcastic tone during his cross-examinations. He never smiled and he had a permanent scowl on his face. He looked mean. This particular lawyer has a reputation for being needlessly aggressive, unlikeable, and unkind. Other lawyers I have talked to about him do not think he is good or effective --- he is all smoke and no fire.

He has a steady stream of clients, though. Most of them men are of a certain type. They are the kind of men who have big aggressive dogs. This lawyer is, apparently, some kind of bulldog for them.

When we finished the trial, I thought I had probably won, but the judge wanted to "reserve", meaning he would write a Decision later.

Three weeks later the Decision arrived. I had won. My client got all the money he had sued for, plus interest. I called him and told him the good news. His response? "I can't believe we won ---- that other lawyer was so aggressive! I thought he had beaten us!"

Moral of the story: Being needlessly mean and "tough" in the courtroom may impress some clients, and even the other lawyer's clients. But that's because non-lawyers' impressions of what good lawyering is comes from TV shows. In the real courtroom, good lawyering means being smart, skillful and persistent -- and being likeable can't hurt, either.

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

I ran across a fellow personal injury attorney's blog post pointing out that only one state, Oregon, requires attorneys to be covered by malpractice insurance. When you think about it, it's amazing the other 49 states, including New York, do not require attorneys to carry malpractice insurance, especially personal injury lawyers who handle multi-million dollar claims for their severely injured clients. Can you imagine a surgeon not carrying malpractice insurance? Unheard of. Lawyers make mistakes, too, and their clients should be protected from that, just as doctors' patients are.

I am not sure whether we need a law requiring all New York lawyers to carry malpractice insurance. But I do think we need, at the very least, a law requiring full disclosure. I think all uninsured New York lawyers should be required to disclose, on their letterhead or in some other prominent place, "we do not carry legal malpractice insurance". Why? Because most clients see lawyers as "rich" professionals, and assume they have adequate insurance coverage, just like doctors do. If they knew the lawyer they were about to hire was "bare", they might decide to choose another lawyer who is covered.

Here at Michaels & Smolak we sue lawyers for legal malpractice in New York. From our experience, we know that it is tough to collect on a judgment against an uninsured lawyer. These lawyers have no insurance for a reason; they can't afford it because they are already in financial straits. Usually, they have multiple debts or judgments against them, little or nothing in the way of assets, and they may file for bankruptcy to protect themselves from their malpracticed clients' lawsuits. We have seen this happen many times.

This is just not fair to the client, who never suspected she had hired an uninsured lawyer. That's why I'm for full disclosure. My two cents!

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Legal Malpractice Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Aw shucks, folks, it was nothin', really . . .

No, wait a minute. We are going to leave all modesty aside for a moment: Here's the news: Michaels & Smolak has been bestowed once again (for 2011) with a "first tier ranking" in U.S. News "Best Lawyers in America" for personal injury litigation firms in the Syracuse, New York metropolitan area.

Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review (they ask other lawyers and judges about us). Other lawyers are asked this question; "If you could not handle a case yourself, to whom would you refer it?" Lawyers are asked to give nominees 5-1 numerical grades - 5 for a lawyer the voter would certainly refer a case to, 4 for a lawyer the voter would probably refer a case to, etc. Those with only the very highest "grades" make it to the list of "Best Lawyers in America".

Michaels & Smolak is one of only a handful of Central New York personal injury law firms who made the "first tier" ranking.

So if other lawyers - including insurance defense lawyers we take on every day of the week --- think we are so great ---- hey, maybe we are!

Wait. I just remembered. Bragging is not cool. Sorry about that.

Aw shucks folks, it was nothin', really . . .

Keep safe (and hire a GOOD law firm)!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

With internet search engine optimization techniques, many New York personal injury lawyers from as far away as New York City pretend to be "Seneca County personal injury lawyers" or "Seneca Falls Accident Lawyers". Just do a google search with those words and you will see what I mean. You can even do a search like "Waterloo personal injury lawyer" and those far away firms show up on page one.

Those far flung law firms are just fishing for cases all over the State. But they are not familiar with the Seneca County judges and juries. And that's critical when trying a Seneca County personal injury or medical malpractice case. You have to know your audience. That's why I would never post myself on the net as being a "New York City personal injury lawyer". First, it wouldn't be true. And second, personal injury and medical malpractice victims down there are best represented by lawyers from down there who "know the ropes" in New York City courts, and who understand jury mindsets in the City.

My law office is in Auburn, New York, and I live in Geneva New York, many of my personal injury and medical malpractice clients hail from Seneca Falls and Seneca County. Our law office handles many personal injury and medical malpractice cases in the Seneca County Courthouse. We know the judges, and they know and respect us. And we know the jury pool. And we are the only law firm near Seneca County who handles almost exclusively personal injury and medical malpractice cases. We don't do real estate closings or transactional work or criminal defense. We do only one thing, personal injury and medical malpractice, because by doing only that one thing day in and day out every day, we get really, really good at it. And we do it on a regular basis in Seneca County, and that is why I can say without misleading anyone that we are Seneca County personal injury lawyers and "Seneca Falls personal injury lawyers."

And if you check out our website, or better yet, if you ask other lawyers and local judges, you'll see that we are among the best of the best "Seneca County personal injury lawyers" and"Seneca Falls personal injury lawyers".

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

A web article I stumbled upon jumped off my computer screen at me today. It was titled "Plaintiffs lawyers eyeing Marcellus Shale Work." My first thought: "Gee, I am a New York personal injury lawyer located right in the Marcellus Shale zone, so how come I am not 'eyeing' the future Marcellus Shall Work". Next thought: "Hey, that hydrofracking work will be dangerous, workers will get hurt, they will need New York personal injury lawyers to represent them, so gosh, maybe I should be 'eyeing' the Marcellus shale work". Next thought: "Don't want people getting hurt, and besides, it's going to be messy for our environment up here, so thanks but no thanks".

All those thoughts streamed through my brain in about 3 seconds, before I even got to the first word of the article. Then I read it. A personal injury lawyer out of Pennsylvania somewhere was quoted as saying that the Marcellus Shale drilling would cause "horrendous injuries" because of all the gas and liquid under high pressure carried through pipelines, stored in big tanks, and ejected underground at high pressure. Drill rigs are notoriously dangerous. Toxic gas leaks burn workers and gas rigs explode. Big tanker trucks cause motor vehicle accidents on narrow local roadways.

OMG! Parade of horribles. Well, he convinced me: the Shale gas drilling, or "hydrofracking" as it's called, if it ever happens up here, will be good for the personal injury law business. Unfortunately, it probably will, if it goes forward, produce a fair number of serious injuries and deaths. And I am sure that many of the injured and the families of the dead will find their way to our law office since we are well regarded in the personal injury field and, I believe, the only law firm located in our area of the Finger Lakes that limits its practices almost exclusively to New York personal injury cases.

Still, I can't get myself to start "eyeing" future shale drilling, as if it were some kind of delicious dessert. We have enough injuries and wrongful deaths up here already to keep us busy and make a living. And we love the beauty of the area. Hydrofracking will foul our water, and mess up our pristine land and lake-scape. Some things just aren't worth the money . . .

Keep safe!

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169

Syracuse area lawyers received two black eyes this weekend. The Syracuse Post Standard reports that a Syracuse bankruptcy lawyer, Christopher Chadick, was convicted of defrauding many of his clients. He was found guilty of one of the oldest switch-and-bate tricks in the book --- taking a customer's money up front and then failing to deliver the product. In his case, he took retainer fees to file bankruptcy petitions and then didn't do the work and didn't return the money, either.

In a separate case, a Baldwinsville lawyer, David Pelland, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for conspiring to commit mail fraud. The facts are someone complicated, so I won't go into them here. What struck me about this case, though, was that this is Pellard's second felony conviction --- he was convicted in 1994 for concealment of bankruptcy assets. I guess some folks never learn.

As a fellow lawyer, I take these stories to heart. Lawyers -- especially personal injury lawyers like myself -- already suffer from a negative public image rivaled only by used car salesmen and politicians. (A letter directed to the editor of a local newspaper from an insurance industry professional not long ago referred to us as "bottom feeders".) More bad publicity for lawyers is not needed.

Yet some of the "bad" image is part and parcel of the job. We are bound to make enemies, especially among insurers and corporations, if we zealously pursue our injured clients' rights to compensation from those who carelessly caused their losses. As a Central New York and Syracuse personal injury lawyer, I fight with insurance companies and big businesses every day for my clients' rights. And those folks have big bucks to fight back. So I don't just make enemies; I make powerful enemies. And they spend millions of dollars every year lobbying Albany to get rid of me, and of my clients' claims, by so-called "tort reform legislation" (Which I call "tort deform legislation").

Hey, I don't mind making enemies. If I did, I wouldn't have chosen to become a Central and Syracuse New York personal injury lawyer. I would have gone into house closings or mediation work. But these stories about lawyers-gone-bad just pile more trash on the garbage heap of the legal profession's public image.

So fellow lawyers, do me a favor: Do your job zealously, thoroughly, but honestly and ethically. Thank you.

Mike Bersani

Email me at: bersani@michaels-smolak.com I'd love to hear from you!

Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
michaels-smolak.com
Central NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Michaels & Smolak, P.C.

1-315-253-3293 Toll Free 1-866-698-8169