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Michael Helfand

US Healthcare Sucks

I stumbled across this old tweet and article that basically lays out the problem with health care in the United States.

Basically, many of the worst doctors are leaving medicine and making sometimes life-altering decisions as to whether or not you can get the treatment that your reputable doctor thinks you need. These decision makers include doctors who were sued many times for botching treatment and have essentially been forced out of the profession.

The bigger question of course is why should an insurance company get to question this at all? They really shouldn’t. And while opposition to universal health care has included scare tactics of socialism, higher taxes, etc. the reality is that study after study shows that your individual yearly cost for healthcare would be much, much less if you weren’t paying insurance premiums, co-pays, out of pocket costs, etc.

Legally this leads to so many troubles. Most individual bankruptcies have medical bills as a part of them. I’ve seen people lose their life savings in order to pay for an operation. Even in cases where medical coverage shouldn’t be an issue, like workers’ compensation, we see doctors doing “record reviews” to try and help an insurance company avoid care. This happens often with doctors who are actually either very old, out of state or both. It’s a joke.

Of course if there was universal health care, we’d remove so much costly red tape. Many insurance executives would be out of a job and wouldn’t have income to buy their 4th home. Boo hoo. I as a lawyer would be affected as I’d lose out on many great cases and nothing would make me happier. We don’t want people to suffer and our current system does that.

If you are “pro-living” this should be your stance. Sadly, it doesn’t appear we will ever have enough politicians courageous enough to make this change.

Someone Finally Arrested For Trespass At Comiskey

Yeah, I know it’s not really called Comiskey any more, but if you grew up in the 80’s like I did, you are going to still call it Comiskey. I’m a Cubs fan, but my most memorable White Sox moment is when a father and son were arrested for storming the field and assaulting a Kansas City Royals coach. It was disgusting and they fortunately were criminally charged. It does make for good fun when I tease my White Sox fan friends.

Since that happened, it seems not a major sporting event goes by where a fan doesn’t try to run on the field. Some do it as a goof. Some do it because they want to meet a player. I can’t even count how many have run to Messi and Ronaldo over the years. Some are drunk idiots. And some, of course, have bad intentions.

Since that wonderful White Sox event, a law was passed that makes running onto the field at a sporting event in Illinois a felony. These events mostly take place in Chicago, of course. I can’t recall one time that anyone has been charged with a felony since. That all changed Saturday night.

During the Cubs-White Sox game, two “fans” stormed the field in the 9th inning. One appears to have hurt himself and both of them got arrested. It seems to be separate events and who knows if one inspired the other.

The reason these events are felonies is to discourage anyone else from doing the same thing. But much like our gun laws, if prosecutors don’t enforce the laws, people won’t be deterred because they think nothing will happen.

We are a long ways from the funny days of Morgana The Kissing Bandit. People shouldn’t run on the field at sporting events. Until the general public is aware of what the consequences are it will keep happening. This is the best way to stop it.

Implied Contracts In Illinois

Imagine this happens to you. And it won’t be hard to imagine as it happens to thousands of people every year.

You live out of state and are looking for a new job. You interview with an Illinois based company (could be anywhere though) and eventually they offer you the job. The job requires relocation so you and your spouse sell your home, pack up your stuff and move to Illinois. You spent thousands on movers and just signed a lease for an apartment in a city where you don’t know anyone. But you are optimistic the job is going to work out and things will be great.

A week into the new job, your boss pulls you aside and lets you know that there has been a change of plans and they have to let you go. Maybe it’s because they realized you aren’t qualified. Maybe they don’t think you fit in or you did something that was a red flag. Perhaps the company had a financial downturn or found a better candidate. Now you have a lease, no friends or family around and no job.

A caller who had this exact scenario wanted us to sue because he felt that there was an implied contract that he’d have a job. Unfortunately for him there wasn’t a written contract that actually would have shown a meeting of the minds. Illinois is an “at will” employment state which means you can be let go at any time for any reason. And this is true even when you’ve up rooted your life to move here.

While an argument can be made that the employer should reimburse some moving expenses as he relied on their promises, even that is a stretch. But beyond that, it’s really hard to prove an implied contract exists. That’s because those types of situations don’t lay out an actual agreement, actual terms, how to resolve disputes or anything else that an actual written agreement does.

This situation sucks for this worker and it’s why we recommend that before you make this type of move, you ask for some guarantee as to compensation and/or employment length. Your new employer may not give it, but it’s worth at least asking the question.

Now this isn’t to say that implied contracts could never exist. They do. For example if someone tells you they want you to mow their yard every Monday and will pay you $100 a week to do it, if you mow the lawn four times and they won’t pay, they probably owe you $400. Or if a boss tells you that you’ll always have a job if the company exists. But generally speaking, if it’s not in writing you are looking at a battle to win your case.

You Aren’t Really Suing Grandma and Grandpa

A guy contacted us recently. His daughter was at Grandma and Grandpa’s house (his parents) when she was very badly injured in an accident. She needed and received significant medical care. She should make a recovery, but has needed multiple surgeries and a lot of physical therapy.

The accident occurred because the grandparents let their grandchild do an activity that wasn’t safe for such a young girl. They feel terrible about it, and of course, didn’t want it to happen. The father wanted advice. Is there any way to get his daughter’s medical bills and future physical therapy sessions paid for without suing the grandparents?

He was surprised that the answer is yes, but also no. Does that sound like weird lawyer talk? Let me explain.

He would not actually be suing his parents. He would be filing a claim against his parents’ homeowners insurance. No lawsuit would happen right now, but instead an attorney would try to resolve the situation with the insurance company. Not a penny will come out of Grandma and Grandpa’s pockets.

If a lawsuit did have to be filed, it technically would name the grandparents as defendants. In reality it would be the insurance company policy they were going after. The insurance company would hire the lawyers to defend them and the attorney for the granddaughter would not seek any money out of pocket from the grandparents. The worst thing that could happen to them is that their insurance rates go up a bit. In a case like this where the medical bills are in the six figures and the policy is a million dollars, it makes sense to pursue it.

This situation is similar to what happens in a car accident. If someone in their vehicle hits you in your vehicle, you’re not actually suing them personally for the repairs and medical care (if you were injured). Your lawyer negotiates with their insurance company to reach a fair settlement. If a lawsuit is needed you are suing the other driver, not the insurance company, but the insurance company steps in.

We also got a call from a mother whose son was injured on the trampoline at their close friends’ home. She was worried that their friendship would be ruined if she sued them. This is one of the reasons why people have homeowners’ insurance and sometimes even an umbrella policy. It’s not just in case of a fire or property damage. We explained that she would not be suing them, she would be making a claim with State Farm, the company that her friends had their policy with.

Now, dealing with insurance companies and filing a claim is not a breeze. Insurance companies make money by not paying out every claim. That’s where an attorney can step in and be incredibly helpful. Lawyers who focus on injury cases know the law backwards and forwards. They know the right steps in the process and are much more likely to get you the maximum settlement. You don’t have to pay them anything upfront. They get a portion of what they recover for you.

If you have questions or would like our help in finding the best attorney for your case, please call us for free any time at 312-346-5320.

Illinois Law – What Is A Civil Attorney?

We have spoken with more than 500,000 people in the last 23 plus years. We hear a lot of unique situations for people who are looking for Illinois lawyers. We also hear a lot of similar cases. In that regard, many people say similar things to each other. One of them is this:

I don’t know what type of lawyer I need, but I think I need a civil attorney.

Where people are often misinformed is in knowing what a civil attorney is. It’s a very generic term for the most part as pretty much any case that ends up in court is considered civil litigation.

In other words, if you are bringing a medical malpractice lawsuit against a doctor for a failure to diagnose cancer, that is a civil lawsuit. If you are filing a lawsuit against your neighbor who hit your car, that is a civil lawsuit. If you are suing a life insurance company for not paying out the death benefit on a policy of a loved one who passed, that is also a civil lawsuit.

Each of these cases would require a different type of attorney. So when looking for a lawyer, it’s best to find out what type of lawyer typically handles your type of case. For example, if suing a doctor, you are looking for a medical malpractice lawyer.

Someone who says they are a civil attorney implies they can handle most cases that they are presented with. That’s not the type of lawyer we advise you to get. We recommend that when possible that you look for a law firm that focuses on the type of case you want to bring and has a track record of success to point to.

Now of course there are some cases that are unique. There isn’t a lawyer who makes a living by filing lawsuits over a general dispute between siblings over rent paid on a property they jointly own. But there are attorneys whose practice focus is general civil litigation. There are others who may focus on items relatively close to that such as real estate litigation.

And in other scenarios, if you are trying to recover a dog that your ex is keeping from you, you might not think there are attorneys experienced with that. But what that case involves is recovering property. The legal term for that is replevin and many lawyers do that type of work.

Now you can’t be expected to know what to call your unique legal situation. That’s what we are for. You can call us any time at 312-346-5320 to learn what type of lawyer you need. And if we know someone we think can help, we’ll refer you to them.

Illinois Tip Theft Attorney Advice

As a former waiter, bartender and yogurt store employee, I’m all about tips. I’ve made my living that way and certainly try to pay forward the generosity I received in my service industry days.

There are more opportunities and requests to tip than ever before. Under Illinois law, tips are the property of employees. Your manager, supervisor or the owner can’t take them. The Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act makes this crystal clear. Gratuities belong to the workers who earn them.

Despite this law, and despite owners and managers knowing this law, tip theft happens all of the time in Illinois. And it’s not just them taking money from the tip jar and pocketing it, or doing things like using it for staff appreciation parties.

In one case we’ve been involved with, a restaurant owner was taking 10% of all credit card tips and using that money to pay for house staff such as the cooks. This is highly illegal.

This type of nonsense is happening hundreds of times every year in Illinois. Many workers simply do not know their rights so they go along with whatever the boss says. That’s not how the law works. And even if you agree to it doesn’t mean that you can’t go back and get the money that was stolen from you. In one study, 57% of workers said that they had to tip out their managers. That’s nuts.

And to be clear, when they take your tips, they are in fact stealing. The money doesn’t belong to them or anyone else who hasn’t earned it. One attorney we know who brings these wage theft lawsuits says that in almost every restaurant around some sort of violation exists. And that includes the big chains as well as the mom and pop type places.

The law also doesn’t change if you are an undocumented worker, a relative of the owner, a minor or anyone else. Plainly stated, tips belong to the people who earned them.

The other way employers steal is by having tipped workers do work that they aren’t compensated for and don’t involve their duties in which tips are earned.

The good news is that these problems are solvable and it doesn’t cost anything to get a great attorney to represent you and go after the money you are owed. If you’d like our help with that please call us any time to speak with a lawyer at 312-346-5320. We cover all of Illinois.

Why Doesn’t The ARDC Punish Ambulance Chasers?

If you get into a car accident in Chicago or a nearby area that is not your fault and you have an injury, there is some advice to know. Call the police so there’s an official report of what happened. Go to the doctor ASAP so your injuries can be documented. Oh, and get ready to be flooded with calls, texts and even in person visits from personal injury attorneys or their representatives. Especially if it involves ambulance chasers.

That’s right, if you get hurt in a car accident and there’s a police report or any other injury that makes the news, scumbag PI lawyers, especially in the Chicago area, will be seeking you out.

When I became a lawyer I was certainly naive and didn’t think this type of stereotypical ambulance chasing actually happened. But it does all of the time.

Some attorneys have cops that they pay to either hand out their business cards or give them information on accidents. Others buy traffic crash reports which contains your personal information. Some will merely send you a letter or post card. If it says “lawyer advertisement” on it, that’s considered permissible free speech.

What they aren’t supposed to do under Illinois ethic laws is solicit you verbally if they don’t have a prior relationship with you. The way they get around that is to have “runners”, who are non-attorneys, approach you and try to get you to sign. And it won’t be 1-2 people contacting you, but 10-20 firms or more trying this slimy tactic. I can’t imagine running a business in that way.

The ARDC or Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission is in charge of licensing and disciplining attorneys in Illinois. They surely must be aware of this not so hidden secret as it’s routinely discussed on various listservs and it’s being done in such a blatant way. Just recently within 24 hours I had two calls from potential clients. One was talking to a non-lawyer who had shown up at her home to try and sign her family member up. The other was injured while in town on vacation and had received numerous calls and texts.

There are hundreds of great, ethical attorneys who would never take this approach. There are also hundreds who are doing it because they don’t think they can compete any other way or they just don’t care about ethics. Many of those are from nation wide firms who are setting up shop in Chicago and other major cities and aren’t really here, at least not in terms of having their main lawyers in Chicago.

And this is just a symptom of a huge ethical problem in the legal industry. Some claims I’ve heard repeated beyond all of this include:

  • Allegedly the major accidents division of the Chicago Police Department routing cases to certain lawyers for referral fees (which is illegal).
  • Church leaders receiving compensation for directing members to certain lawyers.
  • Injury firms throwing golf outings and other parties for union leaders, cops and other referral sources where they have a “raffle” in which everyone wins a prize that includes lavish trips, big screen TV’s, cash, etc.
  • Law firms buying gifts and groceries for injury victims to entice them to sign (also illegal).

Any time I hear from someone who says they’ve been solicited in unethical ways, I strenuously encourage them to report the lawyer/law firm to the ARDC. I’ve probably made that recommendation over 100 times. I know other lawyers have done the same. Yet I can’t recall one disciplinary investigation over this in the last decade. It’s certain that nothing has been done to dissuade this predatory behavior. And I have no idea why.

I usually hear from people who have been approached in one of two ways. The first is that they are being flooded with calls and contacts and don’t know what to do. They usually find this approach as gross as I do. The second is a couple of years after the case is going on when they get a settlement offer. I usually hear something like, “I signed with this lawyer because he promised me my case was worth at least a million dollars, but now he’s telling me to settle for $75,000.”

In almost every instance when that happens and I ask how they got the lawyer in the first place, they tell me the attorney reached out to them.

On behalf of every Illinois attorney who believes in ethics and that attorneys whose actions bring shame on the legal system as a whole should be disciplined, I’m begging the ARDC to show leadership in a way that appears to have been lacking.

Illinois Personal Injury – What Is My Case Worth On Day One

A woman called me and said she was in a car accident and hired an attorney right away because she saw a commercial where the attorney told her on the TV that they could tell her on day one with the case was worth. That is complete and utter nonsense. Of course, this is a firm that is known for doing questionable things and we get a lot of calls from their unhappy clients.

The reason it’s nonsense is there is no way to tell after an accident or even a week or two later what your ultimate injury will be. It’s not uncommon to feel fine after an accident because of adrenaline, but then notice terrible neck or back pain a couple of days later. Nobody knows what medical care you will have, what financial loss you will suffer, how this will impact you in the future, etc.

The only possible exception to this would be if someone was killed, but even then, you’d not likely know the extent of any insurance that was available and there’s no guarantee that an insurance policy is going to be offered. You also likely don’t know much about the at fault party and what assets they have beyond insurance. You might think they were driving their personal vehicle, but later discover that they were driving for work. That could dramatically change how much money a case ultimately is worth.

I get why people want to know what their case is worth. But only slimy attorneys tell you that right away because they know that they are lying just to get you to sign up. There are so many variables that could determine the ultimate outcome.

An honest attorney who will truly look out for you will tell you they can’t answer the “what is my case worth?” question, but will show you how their track record of success can help you get the most money in the end. They will also discuss ways that they can protect you along the way as well as all of the do’s and don’ts to be aware of such as not posting on social media about your case.

In general it’s a good idea to avoid the types of lawyers who tell you what you want to hear. They are comparable to slick used car salesmen. We don’t ever do that, but instead talk to you directly and honestly. We treat our callers like they are family members or friends and leave all the BS out. If you’d like a FREE consultation with an attorney, contact us any time at 312-346-5320.

Never, Ever Talk To The Police

I get calls all of the time from people who have done nothing wrong looking for an Illinois criminal defense attorney. It’s usually some version of the police called me or came looking for me.

When they are innocent, they will often tell me that they want to go talk to the police. “I didn’t do anything wrong, so what should I be afraid of.” Or, “They’ve got nothing on me, and I can explain what really happened.”

I’m here to tell you to never ever talk to the police. You might like/love cops and it doesn’t matter, don’t do it. You might have a simple explanation as to what happened. Don’t do it. You have a constitutional right to remain silent and should at all times.

But don’t take my word for it. Listen to this criminal defense attorney who articulates why you should never talk way better than I can.

So even if you are innocent or just want it to go away, keep your mouth shut. Call a criminal defense attorney and let them do the talking for you. It will save you time, money, embarrassment, and so much more. If you have questions or want an attorney referral, call us any time at 312-346-5320.

See also: Chicago Criminal Lawyer Advice – Talk To The Police?

Illinois Failure To Diagnose Prostate Cancer Lawsuits

Prostate cancer is cancer that occurs in the prostate, found only in the male body. The prostate is a small walnut-shaped gland that produces seminal fluid that nourishes and transports sperm.

Most of us know someone who has had or currently has prostate cancer. It is one of the most common types of cancer. Prostate cancers can grow slowly, stay in the prostate gland, and not cause much harm. However, other types of prostate cancer are much more aggressive and can quickly spread. Early detection is critical because the best chance for successful treatment is when the cancer has not spread beyond the prostate gland. It’s when it’s not caught early, but should be that you may have a medical malpractice lawsuit in Illinois.

Urologists and primary care doctors should offer prostate cancer screenings to their male patients starting at age 50. For those men who are at a higher risk (for example, they have a family history of prostate cancer), screenings should be offered before age 50. For most men, screenings every 2-3 years is appropriate, but that can vary based on the results of your first screening.

There are two tests doctors use to detect prostate cancer. Both are simple and can be performed during a doctor’s office visit.

One is the PSA test. That is a prostate-specific antigen blood test. It measures a protein in the blood that is usually high if there is a prostate problem. However, this protein isn’t always elevated when cancer is present. So a second test, a DRE, or digital rectal exam, is also needed. The doctor manually examines the patient’s prostate for irregularities such as unusual size, texture, and shape.

Usually the process of prostate cancer detection and treatment goes smoothly. Unfortunately though, we have seen our share of medical malpractice cases due to doctor error. Those medical mistakes that delay the diagnosis of prostate cancer include the failure to:

• Offer (or at least recommend) routine prostate cancer screening

• Offer (or at least recommend) early prostate cancer screening for men at an increase risk
• Order a PSA test
• Perform a digital rectal exam
• Follow up thoroughly on PSA test results
• Investigate any suspicious findings from the tests

Because early detection and treatment is so important, a medical mistake (i.e. preventable delay) can cause a severe negative impact on the patient. Injuries from the failure to diagnose prostate cancer can include:

• Death
• Inoperable cancer
• Much more aggressive, invasive, and/or expensive treatment than would have been necessary (surgery, radiation, chemotherapy)
• Extreme pain
• Loss of sexual function
• Much longer recovery time
• Lost wages from being unable to work
• Long-term disability or permanent disability

We’ve been involved in a lot of lawsuits for failure to diagnose prostate cancer. The most common reason seems to be a failure to follow up on a high PSA test result. An experienced attorney who has successfully handled these failure-to-diagnose cases can help you or a loved one get the justice and compensation you deserve.

There is no cost to start an investigation into a case and we only get paid if we are successful. If you’d like to discuss a case, please call us any time at 312-346-5320 to speak with a lawyer for free.

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