A Cook County jury awarded $110,000 in a Chicago car accident lawsuit where the elderly plaintiff required surgery after the accident aggravated her preexisting back problems in Janice Thomson v. Kenneth W. Mueller, 08 L 11010. Despite medical records that clearly showed that Ms. Thomson had a prior history of…
Common sense tells us that it is much easier to avoid hitting a stopped car than a moving vehicle. For this reason, when reviewing car accident lawsuits, juries tend to find in favor of the non-moving party more often than for the moving driver. Such was the case in the…
As a personal injury attorney, you begin to see patterns in the types of injuries sustained as a result of certain accidents. For example, slip and fall injuries generally result in back, wrist, or ankle injuries. Likewise, rear-end collisions typically cause lower back and spinal injuries, as seen in the…
Biking in Chicago is a great way to get around town, avoid rush hour traffic jams, and get some exercise while reducing emissions. However, Chicago bikers are also at risk from the heavy traffic and congested roads. There has been a push by Chicago’s new mayor to create safer bike…
An Illinois plaintiff’s request for a new trial was recently affirmed by the Illinois Appellate Court. The appellate court held that a new trial was necessary because the defense attorney had made too many statements in closing argument thought to be prejudicial to the jury. The court ruled that the…
At the end of a personal injury trial, juries must not only decide who is responsible for the injury, but also assign a specific degree of fault to that party. For example, if a jury finds a general contractor is responsible for a construction worker’s injuries on a job site,…
There is the old adage that practice makes perfect, a concept that is easily applied to driving ability. In general, the longer a driver has been driving, the better he or she is at it. This is why teenage drivers are required to log practice hours before being eligible for…
In Illinois and Chicago, there are laws against talking on your cell phone while driving. The purpose of these laws is to eliminate a potential distraction to driving in an effort to increase driving safety and avoid preventable auto accidents. However, as is the case with any law, there are…
When we get into a train, plane, or cab, we expect that the person operating the vehicle will keep us safe, that it is their duty to us as passengers. Yet at what point do we actually become passengers? Is it when we begin to board the vehicle, or when…
Chicago is home to two baseball teams, the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox. The Cubs’ Wrigleyfield ballpark is located deep in the heart of Wrigleyville and is most easily accessed by public transportation. While the White Sox’s U.S. Cellular Field can also be reached via public transportation, it…