Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog

Central And Syracuse NY Gas Explosion Attorney Discusses Recent Natural Gas Explosions

January 28, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

I have been blogging lately about gas explosions. That’s because gas explosions keep happening! As I said in my last few blogs about this topic, our natural gas supply system, owned and maintained by private utility companies, is aging and not being properly maintained and replaced by those companies. As a result, we are seeing an increase, nationwide, in natural gas explosions. Just a few weeks ago a main gas line explosion rocked Philadelphia, killing at least one person and severely injuring others. And last fall, a main gas pipeline explosion in California destroyed 38 homes, injured 50 and killed eight people.

But gas explosions strike closer to home, too. This week a house exploded in Horseheads, NY. According to Elmira New York personal injury lawyer Jim Read, preliminary indications indicate the cause was a natural gas leak. Also according to Jim, the house is less than 1/2 mile from another house that exploded because of a natural gas leak in a NYSEG service pipe a few years ago.

Also, just this week, the parents of one of the victims (a 20-year old college student) of the Fall 2010 natural gas pipeline explosion in California filed a wrongful death lawsuit against an (ir)responsible utility company, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. Their daughter died from the horrific burns she received while trying to escape the blaze in her home caused by the explosion. In the lawsuit, her parents are claiming the defendant PG&E failed to properly inspect and maintain the pipeline.

What?! A Rochester Tort-Reformer Filing A Frivolous NY Personal Injury Lawsuit?!

January 27, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

As a Central and Syracuse New York personal injury lawyer who takes on only legitimate accident claims, I resent, despise, disown, and spit-in-the-general-direction of all frivolous personal injury lawyers and their frivolous lawsuits. They give my bonafide injury lawsuits a bad name. And they give all legitimate personal injury lawyers a bad name.

Yes, I hate frivolous claims, but I also dislike so-called “tort-reformers”. Most of them have self-interest at heart; they work for or represent big insurance companies or businesses who stand to gain by taking away the little guys’ right to hold big business liable in court for their careless safety shortcuts that injury innocent people. To dupe the public into believing our time-tested tort law is a problem, they blow out of proportion the very few “frivolous lawsuits” that are filed, and try to convince the public that all or nearly all, personal injury lawsuits are frivolous.

So, since I despise frivolous lawsuits, and I also dislike tort-reformers, I should doubly despise and dislike frivolous personal injury lawsuits filed by tort reformers, right? What? A tort reformer filing a frivolous accident lawsuit? Yes, you heard me. An editorial in the New York Daily News the other day criticized conservative Republican New York State Senator James Alesi, a self-proclaimed “tort-reformer” (he represents the Monroe County towns of Chili, East Rochester, Henrietta, Irondequoit, Mendon, Penfield, Perinton, Pittsford, Riga, Rush and Wheatland, and portions of the City of Rochester) for filing a frivolous lawsuit.

How Does A NY Personal Injury Lawyer Calculate The Settlement Value Of A Case?

January 23, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

Mystified by how a New York personal injury lawyer knows how much a case should settle for? Let’s demystify the process. I’ll walk you right through it!

The first step for determining the settlement value of a case is to wait. We have to wait until either the client is either done treating or has reached “maximum medical improvement”. When that happens, we can look back at all the client have been through and decide what the pain and suffering is “worth”. Also, at that time we will know whether the client has any “permanency”, meaning whether she is going to continue to suffer for the rest of her life. If her doctor says the condition, pain, or disability is “permanent”, then we can claim pain and suffering compensation for the client’s natural lifetime.

The next step is to look at what other juries have awarded people with similar injuries. We can figure this out both by looking at past verdicts we have gotten in court for our clients, and also by cases we have read about. All lawyers in our office read religiously a weekly publication called the “New York Jury Reporter” which describes in detail plaintiffs’ injuries and what juries have awarded for them.

Savannah NY School Bus Snowplow Collision — Lawyer Update

January 20, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

I blogged earlier today about the Savannah NY school bus collision with a snowplow. From the news reports I had at that time, I did not know any facts about the case, other than that there had been a collision. More recent news reports indicate that the school slammed into the rear of Town of Savannah snowplow. The school children with the most seriously injuries were all sitting in the front seat on the right side of the bus. Two students were trapped in the bus for about half an hour. The bus driver was also trapped. Sixteen children were taken to nearby hospitals. All the students were in 5th or 6th grade.

Apparently, the bus had just dropped off some students at Clyde Elementary School and then proceeded down Route 31 to drop off the rest at Savannah Elementary School. At some point, the bus slammed into the rear of the snowplow, which was, in fact, engaged in plowing activities. News reports say the crash happened near the top of a hill, with snowy fields nearby. Investigators speculate glare from the sun on the snow may have affected the bus driver’s ability to see the plow.

Under New York motor vehicle liability law, however, a driver who rear-ends another vehicle is almost always held legally liable for the collision. Drivers have a duty to see what is there to be seen, and if they have difficulty seeing because of glare or other factors, they should stop, pull over, or proceed slowly with extreme caution. Rare is the case where a rear-ending vehicle’s driver escapes liability in court. Therefore, it seems likely here that the bus driver was at fault, which makes the school district employer liable to all the injured children. The school district’s insurance should cover this unfortunate accident. But, as I mentioned in my previous blog, the children are required, under New York law, to serve upon the school district a “notice of claim” within 90 days of the accident.

Central New York Car and Bus Accident Lawyer On Savannah School Bus / Snowplow Collision

January 20, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

News sources say several people were injured when a Clyde-Savannah school bus, packed with 22 elementary school children, and a snowplow collided on Route 31 near Hogsback Road in the Town of Savannah, New York at about 7:50 this morning. A woman, apparently the bus driver, and an 11-year-old boy, were airlifted from the scene to Upstate (SUNY) Hospital in Syracuse. The woman is apparently in critical condition. Eight ambulances and two helicopters reported to the scene.

Our hopes to a speedy recovery to all victims. As the father of 5 children, I can feel the worry, pain and anguish of the parents! And as a lawyer, I have already started to think about this unfortunate accident from a legal perspective. Here are some complications that I see, from my perspective as a Central New York and Syracuse car and bus accident lawyer, in this school bus accident case:

In New York, if the snowplow driver was on the job removing snow or salting for a municipal employer, such as the County, and was “actually engaged in work on a highway”, under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1103(b) the injured victims can only prevail in court if the snowplow driver was driving in such a careless manner that it amounts to “reckless disregard” to the public. But as to any claim against the school bus driver, a mere “negligence” standard applies. Therefore, for the injured children to get liability compensation for their injuries, they are going to have to show that either the bus driver was “negligent” and/or that the plow driver was “reckless”, unless the snowplow driver was not working for a municipality, or was not actually engaged in plow work at the time, in which case the injured victims will have to show only that both or either the plow driver or the school bus driver were “negligent”. Complicated? You bet.

Central New York Gas Explosion Lawyer Comments on Phili Gas Explosion

January 19, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

Gas explosions have caused some of the worst injuries I have ever seen in my career as a Central New York personal injury lawyer. They are what I call a “double whammy” – they cause terrible crush injuries (because buildings collapse on the victims) and just as terrible burn injuries (because of the explosion and fire). As a Central New York gas explosion lawyer, I have been representing 9 clients whose home exploded when a propane gas leak filled it with gas. Human cost? One dead, one paralyzed from the waist down, one whose legs are crushed beyond belief, and left 7 others with serious burn and crush injuries.

So today when I read about the huge gas main explosion in Philadelphia that killed a utility worker and left three co-workers in critical condition, I felt connected to those poor workers. They will have the same kinds of injuries my clients have. And I also feel proud of them. The workers had responded to a report of gas odor, found the leak, and were attempting to repair it. They probably knew the danger, but stepped up and did their duty.

A TV news channel caught the explosion on film.

Syracuse Personal Injury Lawyer Warns: Beware Of Lawsuit Lenders!

January 17, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

When you are injured and can’t work and don’t have any income, life gets ugly fast. You can’t pay bills, so bill collectors hound you. You have to say “no” to all those little extras for the kids. You might even end up losing your home to the bank in a foreclosure action.

And when you have a pending lawsuit against the negligent person or company that injured you and caused all these losses, and your New York personal injury lawyer says you should eventually get a nice settlement or money judgment, you want to reach out into the future and grab some of that money now, to pull yourself back up above water.

So when a lawsuit lending company offers you a loan that you only have to pay back when and if your New York personal injury lawsuit settles or you get a monetary judgment, it seems like a life-line.

Falling Ice Liability — A New Solution By A North Syracusan!

January 16, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

This Central New York personal injury lawyer blogged a few weeks ago about building owners’ liability for falling icicles and ice. Those big pointy slabs of ice can kill people, and the building’s owner can be held liable for negligence in failing to remove them or prevent them from forming.

Now you godda love this guy from North Syracuse, who invented and patented his own do-it-yourself icicle remover. The story, as reported in the Syracuse Post Standard, is that he came across the idea of his “deicicler” while having a hard time knocking icicles off his roof. Hit the link and take a look at it. It is basically a lightweight flat shovel, but with holes in it to encircle the icicles and pull them down.

I am hoping this will be a safe way for do-it-yourselfers to remove icicles from their homes and stores. This is not only great protection against liability, but also will prevent the ice from damning up, getting under your shingles, and ruining your roof.

Who Can Sue For a Family Member’s Injuries in a New York personal injury case?

January 14, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

A guy I’ll call Joe, a construction worker, rolls into my Auburn, New York office in a wheel chair with his three kids, wife and mother in tow. He has come to consult with one of the Central and Syracuse New York personal injury lawyers of Michaels Bersani Kalabanka. Let’s say Joe fell from 100 feet up when a scaffold collapsed, and landed on his feet. Let’s say an xray view of his knees and ankles show bones that look like granulated sugar. Let’s say he will never be able to walk, much less work, again. Let’s further assume he is only 43 and was supporting not only his wife and 3 kids, but his mother, who lived with them. Who can sue the negligent contractor responsible for the scaffold collapse? Of course Joe can sue, but can any of his family members, too?

When you think about it, all these family members were “injured” when Joe was injured. Joe’s wife now has to care for him. And she’s got to take out the trash herself, mow the lawn, and shovel the snow. Also, her husband is in so much pain he hardly even thinks about sex, so she is deprived of his conjugal love. Can she sue for these losses?

And what about Joe’s three kids? Their dad used to play with them, hold them, and bounce them on his knee. He used to bring home a nice wage and would buy them nice things, and was saving up for college for them. All that is gone. Can they sue?

Central And Syracuse NY Auto Accident Lawyer On Road-Rage Homicide Guilty Plea

January 13, 2011 | by Michael Bersani

I guess some folks are just born mean, grow meaner, and keep on being mean right through old age. A little over a year ago, an 80-year-old mean-to-the-bone guy from Fulton, William L. LeVea, got drunk, jumped in his car, found a reason to get enraged at another motorist, and then hunted that motorist down, repeatedly ramming him from behind until the poor guy lost control and swerved into the lane of an oncoming motorist. The bullied motorist died from the collision, and the oncoming motorist got seriously injury. I blogged about the case last year (click here to see). The Central and Syracuse New York auto accident lawyers of Michaels Bersani Kalabanka, led by attorney David Kalabanka, represented the oncoming motorist in the motor vehicle accident case.

LeVea’s victims, and their families, can breathe a sigh of relief today — LeVea finally pleaded guilty to the road-rage related charges, including aggravated vehicular homicide, and will get six to eighteen years in jail. He will be sentenced on March 2.

Goodbye and good riddens Mr. LeVeal. I hope you (don’t) enjoy your last years rotting in a State prison. By the way, your victims and their families will oppose any request you ever make for early release, so unless you have the longevity of a sea turtle, you might as well order your casket special delivery to the prison.