Justia Lawyer Rating for Robert D. Kreisman

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This past Sunday, Illinois attorney Bob Kreisman participated in the 10th Annual Race Against Hate held in Evanston. The Chicago race couldn’t have asked for a better backdrop than the beautiful, sunny day. Over 3,500 persons gathered for the 5k walk, 5k run, 10k run and youth mile race. This is Bob Kreisman’s third year participating in the Race Against Hate and each year he is struck by the positive attitude and community spirit that surrounds the race.

It was a celebration of diversity to promote racial harmony in Evanston, Illinois. The annual race is held in memorial to Ricky Byrdsong, a former Northwestern University basketball coach who was murdered by a white supremacist in 1999. To mark the 10 year anniversary of the Chicago coach’s death, three Northwestern seniors created the documentary “Fly Like The Byrd” in his honor.

The event is underwritten by the YWCA Evanston/Northshore, an organization that actively works at eliminating racism. For more information on the race, contact the YWCA Evanston/Northshore by email or at 847-864-8445. Online donationsto the cause can also be made to the YWCA Evanston/Northshore.

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A recent Illinois Appellate Court granted a surgeon’s motion for summary judgment in a medical malpractice lawsuit when it found that the surgeon was not responsible for a sponge that was left in a patient after performing a surgery. Two months after the procedure was performed the patient underwent an additional procedure, at which time the surgical sponge was discovered. Forsberg v. Edward Hospital and Health Services, No. 2-08-0243 (April 8).

The patient sued both the surgeon individually and the hospital where the procedure was performed. However, after the hospital settled out of court the surgeon requested summary judgment based on his opinion that he had satisfied the standard of care by relying on information he received from the nurses. After a surgical procedure the circulating nurse and scrub nurse are responsible for accounting for all surgical materials. In this case they had told the surgeon that the sponges were all accounted for, at which point the surgeon proceeded to stitch the patient up.

Typically the plaintiff in an Illinois medical malpractice case has the burden to prove that the defendant doctor breached the standard of care, which is usually done by providing expert testimony. However, in Illinois expert testimony is not required to establish the relevant standard of care “where the common knowledge of laymen is sufficient to recognize or infer negligence.” Walski v. Tiesenga, 72 Ill.2d 249 (1978). In the present case the court held that medical expert testimony was not necessary because it is common knowledge that sponges should not be left behind in a patient after a surgery.

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Recently a settlement was reached in an Chicago construction injury case that resulted in a man’s death. The $2.6 million settlement was awarded to the family of a man who’d been struck and killed by a steel pylon that had fallen from a crane. At the time the man was working at an Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) project located on the Kingery/Borman Expressway.

While the man was working for the IDOT the incident actually occurred in Indiana, just over the Illinois-Indian border. Because the injury took place in Indiana the defendant attorneys asked the Circuit Court of Cook County to apply Indiana law instead of Illinois law, specifically where it relates to a $300,000 cap on recoveries. However, the Cook County judge denied the defendants’ motion and Illinois law was applied.

The decedent’s family claimed that the subcontractor, Edward E. Gillen Co., was negligent for its failure to warn and remove workers from the area where the occurrence took place. They further claimed that the crane operator who was employed by Gillen was negligent in failing to warn and handle the crane’s load he was operating.

The case was resolved in a mediation setting by a former Cook County associate judge.

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In September 2003, Lisa Strong reported a sharp shooting pain in her back. She thought it was yet another kidney stone and expected the discomfort to pass, but this time it was different and became worse. Because of a series of mistakes, misdiagnosis and miscommunication, Lisa Strong lost both of her legs and both of her arms to amputation because of medical negligence.

Ms. Strong filed a Florida medical malpractice lawsuit against various physicians whom she alleged caused her injuries and resulting amputations. The physicians all seemed to agree that there were profound medical errors that caused Ms. Strong’s injuries, but apportioned blame on each other.

However, the jury did not seem to agree that there was medical malpractice and returned a verdict of not guilty against all of the defendant doctors. There were numerous mistakes made by the various hospital doctors, which combined with the finger pointing by all the physicians during the trial made for a very confusing case. Lawyers involved in the case believe the not guilty verdict was a result of the jury being confused by the case facts and unable to correctly determine who was at fault.

In a rare move the trial judge threw out the jury’s verdict, concluding that the verdict was “contrary to the law and manifest weight of the evidence.” It is very rare for a trial judge to reverse a jury’s verdict with only 1/2 to 1% of verdicts being set aside in this manner. Most jury verdicts are left undisturbed by trial judges who prefer to let any issue of law be decided by the appeals process. A new trial has been ordered, which will give Ms. Strong another chance at pleading her case against the negligent physicians.

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This month Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed into law Senate Bill 84 (CTA §41 Notice Repeal), overturning a six-month requirement previously aligned with any Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) case. The rules under the new law are effective for any causes of action that accrue on or after June 1, 2009, such as Illinois bus accidents or Chicago train accidents.

Under the old requirement, any cause of action against the CTA had to submit a written notice to the CTA within six months of the relevant incident that advised the CTA of a potential cause of action. Failure to provide this notice barred the case from being brought. The formal notice required very specific facts regarding the action and essentially preserved the case for a later filing.

Under the newly passed law there is now no longer any required notice. However, a one year statute of limitations still stands for any and all CTA cases. This means that even though the required six-month notice has been repealed that an individual or party must still bring a cause of action against the CTA within one year after the incident occurred.

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When perusing Chicago and Illinois lawyer websites it is common to encounter pages listing the firm’s successes, particularly if it involves large verdicts and big settlements. The purpose of this seems to be to motivate those browsing the web page to contact the lawyer or law firm and become future clients with success stories.

Yet these success stories often fail to recognize the families who suffered so much and rose to new heights in their devotion to correct the wrongdoing. For example, in the medical malpractice case of Mary Smith I represented the family members who were aggrieved to have lost a loved one in a tragic and unnecessary manner.

Mary Smith was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor in September 2003. However, soon thereafter her condition worsened resulting in the unexpected death of the 50 year-old mother of four, a recent grandmother, and a wife for over 30 years.

From the very first contact I had with the Smith family they were focused on setting up a foundation to educate people about brain tumors. They have fulfilled this dream in the form of the Mary E. Smith Foundation, a not-for-profit organization set up to alert the public about brain tumors, advances in medicine, and health tips for those in need. In addition to providing information the foundation also provides financial assistance for medical screening, grants for research in the field of brain tumors, and scholarships for students excelling in math and science.

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Chicago has long been known as the transportation hub of the country and has historically led the nation in air, trucking and rail transportation. However, changes in the economy and space limitations are limiting further expansion of Chicago’s transportation.

Since 2007 Chicago trucking companies have been going out of business or consolidating since 2007. However, Chicago commuters and drivers might not be able to tell given the high levels of road traffic and congestion that remain. Because of the high demand in the Chicago area, transportation assets have been stripped down and led to congestion, delays and calls for major public and private investments in the region’s capacity to move people and goods effectively.

Because U.S. exports are down by 24.3% since July 2008 and imports are off by 1/3, traffic volume in Chicago’s transportation industry is also down. The transportation industry was already heading down last year when oil prices spiked coupled with the Wall Street meltdown which dried up credit and further hampered freight traffic going into 2009.

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Now that the road construction season is upon us in Chicago and Illinois it is important to remember to drive safely and cautiously when in a construction zone. According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics study, between 1995 and 2002, almost 900 road construction workers died from on the job injuries, with over half of those fatalities resulting from being struck by a vehicle.

However, a recent settlement in a Chicago construction injury case highlights that not only drivers and commuters need to be more careful, but that co-workers also need to practice on the job safety. The case in question involved a 21 year-old construction employee who had been assigned to dig trenches. After completing one trench and preparing to dig a second one, the worker was crushed when a truck driven by a fellow construction worker backed into him.

The decedent’s surviving family members claimed that the driver of the construction truck was negligent and had received inadequate training for the specialized truck he was driving, which was a combination back hoe and end-loader. Furthermore, the family claimed that the construction company was also negligent for the work-related injury because they had not carefully supervised this driver to ensure that he operated the truck in a safe and proper manner.

The defendant, employer of the construction truck operator, claimed that the decedent was negligent in failing to keep a proper lookout for his safety. The decedent was survived by his wife and a two-month old son. The case was settled for $4.5 million after a mediation with a former Cook County Circuit judge.

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The Commercial Motor Vehicles Safety Act of 1986 (CMVSA) was passed by Congress to regulate interstate trucking. The CMVSA aimed to improve highway safety by making sure that all truck and bus drivers on the road are qualified to operate those vehicles. Prior to the passing of the CMVSA there was not any uniform testing or licensing standards for bus or truck drivers.

In order to increase the safety of its highways Illinois adopted portions of the CMVSA. However, despite these measures trucking accidents continue to occur. After a trucking crash takes place it is imperative to investigate the accident to determine its cause. A key part of this investigation involves preserving information and evidence that could provide helpful clues in evaluating the occurrence.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR) § 395.8 requires the driver to keep a complete record of his or her on/off-duty status at all times. And when a trucking accident has occurred, FMCSR § 395.8(k)(2) requires that truck drivers retain a copy of the on/off-duty status for the seven consecutive days prior to the accident.

In addition, the trucking companies are required by federal regulations to maintain all records and supporting documents regarding the status of each of its drivers for at least a six month period. In the case of an Illinois trucking accident these records can be obtained by making a written request.

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A settlement of a class-action lawsuit that took more than seven years was recently settled in Madison County, Illinois after Tyson Foods agreed to donate chickens to various food banks around Illinois. The poultry donation will equal a retail value of up to $2.3 million. In addition to the donations to Illinois food banks, Tyson will donate over $1 million worth of products.

The lawsuit against Tyson alleged that the company had inflated the weight of its poultry products between 1997 and 2003. The claimants alleged that Tyson participated in a process of chilling the chickens which resulted in the absorption and retention of water under the poultry’s skin and muscle tissues and thereby increased the bird’s weight.

When questioned about the settlement Tyson spokespersons stated that while Tyson denies the allegations, its aim was to avoid additional costly litigation. That they were able to help feed thousands of Illinois residents in need was an added bonus.

And according to spokespeople at Feeding Illinois, a coalition of food banks that distributes food throughout all of Illinois’s counties, the Tyson donations could not have come at a better time. The need for food at U.S. and Illinois food banks has increased almost 20%.

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