Injury Cases

The most common question that gets asked when someone calls a law firm is “Do I have a case?” To answer that question, the attorney you speak with will ask you a series of questions about the facts of your case.  They don’t want or need every detail, but want you to give them a general idea of what the case is about. In doing so they will have you paint them a picture so they can determine if it’s a case they want to investigate.  Unfortunately, many attorneys aren’t direct in giving potential clients an answer.

Some lawyers will lie and say something like, “You have a great case, but I’m too busy to take it.”  They do this because they are either cowards or wishy washy and worried about getting sued for giving bad advice.

Others will tell you that it’s not a case they handle.  Sometimes that’s true and other times they are afraid to say you don’t have a case.

Fortunately many attorneys will offer their opinion even if it means explaining why your case isn’t a winner.  This is why you came to us, for answers. That doesn’t mean will give you the answer you want, but it means we will tell you what we think. We aren’t the only lawyers out there. We’re not the Judge. All we can do is offer a opinion based on our experience and what we hear from you.

The reality is that while we get it right 99% of the time, no attorney is right all the time. Sometimes the law changes. Sometimes we don’t know what we are talking about. And sometimes someone else looks at a case differently and achieves something incredible.

This happened this year on a medical malpractice lawsuit in Chicago. In the case, a 98 year old woman who lived independently was prescribed Warafin at allegedly triple the appropriate dosage and without proper instructions.  This led to a severe uncontrolled bleeding event that resulted in acute hypoxic respiratory failure and other complications.  She required significant medical treatment and home healthcare.  She ended up dying two years later.

Now that sounds like a sad case, but the reality is that even though she went from mostly independent to needing daily assistance, the life expectancy of a 98 year old is usually weeks and anyone that age could go from independence to needing assistance at a moment’s notice.  In 25 years I’ve never gotten involved with a case for someone this old. Every medical malpractice lawyer I know would have turned this case down. It’s not to excuse the negligence, but the reality is that it appears based on the initial hearing of the facts that you’d likely spend more money than you can recover. That’s based on her age limiting what the case is worth.

The Chicago medical malpractice lawyers I recommend are the best in the business. They are the ones that get most of the leading case results every year.  They would have turned this case and is it turns out it would have been a mistake. The case went to trial and a jury awarded her family $1.3 million in damages. This was a record setting verdict for someone over 90 years old.

The lawyers who handled it were very smart. They didn’t file a wrongful death suit saying her life was cut short because she had already way outlived her life expectancy and survived another two years.  Instead they focused on how her quality of life had diminished.

I asked one of the prestigious attorneys I work with on cases if he would have taken. This is a guy who regularly sets records on these types of cases.  He’s a lawyer insurance companies fear. He said he would have turned it down too. But he also made a great point.  A lot of lawyers are settlement lawyers and not trial lawyers. A trial attorney knows that once you get in to a trial, it’s a daily grind. If the facts are shocking and every witness is against the defendant and the plaintiff is crushing them, it can lead to a great verdict.

I don’t think we’ll all of the sudden see a rush of similar cases, but it does create a data point for other attorneys to use if they get similar facts.  I tip my hat to the very good firm that got this result. For you as a potential plaintiff it’s a valuable lesson to remember that if one attorney doesn’t want your case, there might be another one who does.  We do get it right most of the time, but nobody gets it right every time.

We talk to an average of 10 people a day about Illinois workers’ compensation claims. We hear a lot of the same stories and see a lot of the same insurance companies. By far the one that workers seem to have the most trouble with is Sedgwick.

They are a big company that acts as a third party administrator for big corporate clients. Places like Walmart, Delta, Xerox, Amazon and others use them to process work comp claims. They get these big corporate clients, in my opinion, in part because they do such a good job of not paying people what they are properly owed. And in my experience they lie a lot, and a recent caller to my office proves it.

He was working for one of Sedgwick’s big clients and had to unload product and stock shelves. Doing that caused a repetitive arm injury and a recommendation for surgery from his doctor. Here’s what he said which proved their dishonesty.

Workers comp sent out forms to get me to sign allowing access to my medical records, and I sent it back immediately. As I uploaded the signed forms to Sedgwick site, I saw that my claim was denied before they even got the doctor notes and records.

In other words, the plan was to deny his case no matter what. That happens a lot in workers compensation when there isn’t a specific accident, but instead a problem from working over a period of time. Often there is no sincere interest to learn the truth, but a financial strategy to tell you no regardless of what the facts show or what your doctor thinks.

To them it’s not immoral or gross, it’s just a business strategy. They make money by saving money and from their viewpoint, if you disagree with it, you can hire an attorney. Never mind the fact that they know that many people are trusting or naive about how the law works and will take their word for it. So their business decision can cause you significant financial and/or medical harm.

They of course aren’t the only insurance company that does this, but in my opinion they are the worst one.  The best thing you can do is level the playing field and get an attorney in your corner who is experienced, honest and will be an advocate for you. The good news is that it doesn’t cost anything to hire an Illinois work comp lawyer. If you want to have a free consultation to learn about your rights and options, contact us any time at 312-346-5320. We help everywhere in Illinois.

We are experienced Illinois attorneys who since 2001 have helped thousands of people who are the victims of medical malpractice in Illinois. We thought it would be helpful to provide a basic explanation of what these cases are about and some answers to common questions we have received about Illinois medical negligence lawsuits. If you have any questions or would like to talk with an attorney for free, please call us any time at 312-346-5320.

1. What is a simple explanation of medical malpractice?

Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor or health care provider does not perform their job duties as they should have and a patient is harmed as a result. To bring a lawsuit, a lawyer will want to see negligence that leads to a major injury.

2. How does medical malpractice occur?

When people think of medical malpractice, many envision a doctor making an error during surgery. However, medical malpractice can take many forms:

Failure to diagnose a problem like cancer

Improper treatment or a delay in treatment that causes a harm

Failure to order tests or evaluate the results in a way that causes an injury

Prescription errors

Birth injuries

3. At what stage in life does medical malpractice occur?

Medical malpractice can happen at any point in a person’s life. A baby can have a birth injury due to the negligence of an OB/GYN. A young adult can have a misdiagnosis which leads to a terrible result. An elderly person can have a surgical error. Any of these things can happen to anyone at any time.

4. Why do medical malpractice victims file a lawsuit? What are they hoping to get?

They are filing a lawsuit to get their medical bills paid, to recover lost wages, and to get compensation for the pain and suffering they have endured. These lawsuits are also a way to help prevent similar errors from happening to other people.

5. What is a medical malpractice lawsuit typically worth?

There are too many variables in medical malpractice lawsuits, so there is no “typical” figure. It can be thousands or millions depending on the severity of the injury, the patient’s age (and therefore, lost wages and life expectancy), and the location of the case.

6. Why is it so important to choose the right attorney for a medical malpractice case?

Medical malpractice cases are very complex, and the stakes are high. It is critical to hire a law firm that has the financial resources to bring a complex case to trial. The attorney should also have experience and a track record of success with the type of injury involved.

7. How much of the judgment or settlement does an Illinois medical malpractice law firm keep?
   

By law, the attorney representing you is entitled to receive 33% of what he/she recovers for the client. This contingency fee is their payment for doing all the work required throughout the course of the case. If they don’t win or get a settlement you owe them nothing.

8. How do I know which attorney is the best one for me and my specific case?

That is where we come in. For over 20 years, we have connected people with medical malpractice cases to the best attorney for their specific situation. We know the reputable firms, the ones that get great results for their clients and that are respected in the legal community. Call us at 312-346-5320 to explain your situation and get pointed in the right direction.

See also: Failure To Diagnose Lawsuits In Illinois

It’s not uncommon for me to get a call from someone asking something like, “Who’s the best Chicago personal injury lawyer near me?” The answer to that question really depends on the unique facts of your case and in most cases there are at least a handful of attorneys who could do a great job for you.

I’ve kind of evolved my thinking on who those “best” people are. I’m in my 26th year of practicing law and I’ve seen a lot of great lawyers come and go. Covid has had a big impact on that as well with many attorneys choosing to slow down their practice.  While Cook County has put in rules to speed up cases and force lawsuits to trial sooner, the reality is that for big cases, it’s still common for the lawsuit to drag on.

Recently a very prestigious Chicago personal injury lawyer settled a case for a truck driver who was killed in an accident for $25 million. That’s a tremendous result. The lawsuit itself was started in 2011 when the attorney was 59 years old. Now he’s 70. The case was tried in 2017, overturned on appeal and had it not been settled, probably wouldn’t have been over until next year.

This lawyer is great, but in my opinion the client got very lucky. Eleven years is a really long time and it wouldn’t have been shocking if the attorney had gotten sick, retired or just slowed down his practice and handed this case off to someone else.  He’s extremely capable, but if someone called me today and asked what lawyer has had a lot of success in trucking death cases, I couldn’t recommend him.  That’s because it’s very reasonable to expect that a new lawsuit will take at least five years to resolve and as shown by this other case, it could take much longer.

So when hiring the “best” Illinois attorney for your case, you have to not just think about who’s great now, but who’s likely to be great five years from now. With that in mind, most of the attorneys I recommend are in their 40’s or 50’s. They have incredible track records of success, but realistically speaking there is a much higher chance they will be a part of a thriving law practice five years from now.  That may sound unfair or ageist, but it’s an honest reality of life.

I salute the attorney who got the incredible result for the family he represented in the trucking death case and I hope he can keep it going. But I strongly recommend that when hiring an attorney you think about what they will be like five or 10 years from now and what their firm will be like. If you do that analysis, it will change your idea of who the best one is for your case.

We are experienced Chicago attorneys who help people find the right lawyer for their case anywhere in Illinois. Call us for a free, confidential consultation any time at 312-346-5320.

A caller to our office was looking for a medical malpractice attorney in Chicago.  They had a routine surgery that itself went well.  For whatever reason, the doctor kept the patient sedated for a couple of days after the surgery. During that time his hand and fingers swelled up.  It’s to be determined what went wrong, we suspect it was an IV error, but the bottom line is he spent days in that condition. Sadly he had to have multiple fingers amputated.

This occurred during peak Covid time when visitors were limited to the hospital. Things are changing at most places, but even if we were to go back to limiting visitors, there’s one pay to prevent a post surgical error like this that shouldn’t happen. Your family and/or friends must advocate for you.

By that I mean if they are in the hospital, they need to talk to the doctors and nurses and ask a lot of questions. If they have concerns they need to raise them. If they see something that appears off, they have to ask about it. You might see bruising and be worried. It could be normal or it could be the sign of a huge problem. I’m sure had his wife or kids seen his hand swollen up so badly, they would have asked a doctor to check on it. Had that been able to happen perhaps his fingers could be saved.

You may feel like doctors always know what they are doing. They don’t or aren’t always monitoring things. They don’t know what “normal” is like for your loved one. You may worry about bothering them. Don’t. You are the customer. You have a right to ask questions.  And you need to do this every day until your loved one is in the clear.

You also need to advocate for yourself when you can.  Of course my caller couldn’t do anything while sedated, but he sure raised an alarm when he came out of it.  Unfortunately it was too late, but at least he tried.  You can do this in pre-operative meetings by asking questions. I had a colonoscopy and raised concerns about my colon being nicked and asked how they check for that. My doctor is great and I’m sure he’d be careful anyway, but I felt good knowing that I had raised that issue in his mind. After the procedure he let me know that they were sure nothing bad happened. Not every doctor is this considerate, but it’s worth raising your fears ahead of time. That doesn’t guarantee a result, but does at least put it out there.

Your advocacy for yourself should continue as long as it’s needed. If your doctor says it’s going to take six months to a year for something to heal and you don’t feel right, get a second opinion. You have to look out for you.

And of course if you suspect a medical error occurred and want to discuss it for free with an attorney, you can contact us any time at 312-346-5320. Time is usually of the essence in these cases and we will try to help you figure out if there is a case at all.

When a person lives in an apartment building, what can they reasonably expect in return for the rent they pay? There are obvious answers to this question. A space in which to live and sleep. Working appliances. A dumpster or cans for their trash. A mail receptacle. Maybe a parking space is included in the rent. If you are lucky it’s not too loud and you can enjoy life. Having great neighbors or making friends is just a bonus for some people.

One thing that may not come to mind right away centers on the safety of the renters in the building. Tenants can expect a basic level of security provided by the building owner and/or property management company. Now that doesn’t mean every building should have a live security guard on duty 24/7, but it does mean that at a minimum, doors to the building should lock properly. If there is a security guard there, they should screen the people who want to come in and out. If the security guards notice something they should act on it. If locks are broken and the owner/management company becomes aware of it, they should fix it in a timely manner

There was a recent case brought by a woman who was sleeping in her Chicago Gold Coast apartment when a man entered and sexually assaulted her. How did the man get into the building in the first place? The victim stated that the man walked into the building through a security door with a malfunctioning lock.

The woman sued the owners of her building, the property management company, and a company that employs maintenance workers at the building. She alleged that tenants had notified the building staff that the deadlock latch on the security door was not working prior to the attack and that their negligence allowed the man to enter the building and then assault her.

The jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff, and she received an award for her pain and suffering, loss of a normal life, and emotional distress. The jury, siding with the woman, made it clear that landlords should have basic, working safety measures in place in their buildings. They awarded her $5.4 million in damages. That is one of the largest verdicts ever for an apartment building attack in Chicago.

Their knowledge of the broken door and failure to act is what made this a case. It likely would have been a different result if the plaintiff couldn’t prove they were aware of it.  It also would have been different if it was a fellow tenant who attacked her, an invited guest of a tenant or someone who broke through a locked door or window to get in. Building owners don’t have to guarantee your safety and aren’t usually responsible when someone beats good faith efforts to keep a building secure.  When they fail to deliver on what they promise you or don’t take reasonable actions to fix problems, that’s when they may be liable.

We have helped a lot of people in the last 21 years who have been attacked in buildings in Chicago and elsewhere in Illinois. Not every case is a winner, but if you have any injury, it’s worth discussing. If you would like to speak with an experienced attorney for free about what happened to you, please call us any time at 312-346-5320.  We can’t promise a result, but do guarantee to treat you like a family member or friend and offer honest advice about what you can do and if you have a case or not.

Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor or other healthcare professional is negligent, deviating from the standards of care in their profession, and causes injury to a patient. The negligence could occur during the diagnosis, treatment/surgery, aftercare, or health management of a patient.  Illinois lawyers who take these cases are typically looking for for negligence that leads to serious injuries.

If you or a relative have suffered from medical malpractice, you will want to file a lawsuit against the doctor, healthcare professional, and/or hospital to get the compensation you deserve for your injuries and to help prevent something similar from happening to another family. Under Illinois law, you have to meet certain conditions first before filing that medical malpractice lawsuit. If those conditions are not met, the court could dismiss your case.

The two perquisites are: 1) the plaintiff’s 622 affidavit of merit, and 2) the report of the reviewing healthcare provider.

622 Affidavit of Merit  

The Illinois Code of Civil Procedure, 735 ILCS 5/2-622, states that a person (plaintiff) alleging medical malpractice and seeking “damages for injuries or death by reason of medical, hospital, or other healing arts malpractice” must file an affidavit stating that they have consulted with a healthcare professional who:

1. Is knowledgeable in the relevant issues involved in the particular action;
2. Practices or has practiced within the last 6 years or teaches or has taught within the last 6 years in the same area of health care or medicine that is at issue in the particular action; and
3. Meets the expert witness standards set forth in 735 ILCS 5/8-2501.

In plain English, what happens is the attorney you hire will complete this form. It’s kind of odd because it’s basically just a piece of paper that says they consulted with a doctor who says malpractice occurred.  Then they attach that report.

Written Report from a Healthcare Professional 

Along with the 622 Affidavit, the plaintiff must include a written report from the healthcare professional with whom they consulted. The report includes the healthcare professional’s opinion that there is merit and reasonable cause for filing a lawsuit.

A single written report must be filed for each defendant. If both a doctor and the hospital are believed to be negligent, two reports must be written and submitted.

Oddly although the report is provided, it’s not actually signed by the doctor and doesn’t have their letterhead.  So the doctor/hospital you are suing doesn’t actually know what expert is testifying against them. I’ve certainly heard stories of lawyers who have doctor friends that will provide these reports just to get the cases filed, but won’t serve as expert witnesses if the case proceeds. In other words, they don’t fully believe what they are writing and the lawyer will have to find a different and better expert if they want to get any compensation for their clients.

Your lawyer will find the expert to create this report.  This will happen after months of record review by your attorney, their in house nurse/medical consultants and talking to doctors who are experienced in medical malpractice lawsuits. It’s important to identify the right type of doctor to testify because the goal isn’t to file a lawsuit, the goal is to win the lawsuit.

Why do Illinois courts require the 622 Affidavit and written reports? In theory it’s designed to prevent frivolous lawsuits. If you can’t find a doctor who says the health care provider screwed up, then a lawsuit can’t be filed. In that regard it’s a really good rule. While I’m only interested in the rights of potential plaintiffs, there certainly is an argument that can be made that the expert witnesses should be disclosed right away. Without it, a slimy attorney could theoretically fake an affidavit to get a case filed.  That said, the reality is that these cases are so expensive and so hard to win that most law firms won’t take them on if they don’t think they have merit.

One important thing to know is that the “best” firms in these cases don’t ask their clients to find an expert and they don’t ask their clients to pay for the expert.  If the attorney you hired is asking you to find a doctor to testify, then you either don’t have a case or went to the wrong firm.

We realize that this information is a bit technical and may seem like a lot of legal mumbo jumbo. Feel free to contact us if you’d like to talk through your medical malpractice case. We can discuss the next steps and how an attorney can help at no cost to you. You can speak with a lawyer for free any time at 312-346-5320.

See also: The biggest reason Illinois lawyers get sued for legal malpractice

We are experienced Illinois attorneys who since 2001 have helped hundreds of thousands of people with their legal situations. Call us any time at 312-346-5320 for a free consultation. We help everywhere in Illinois.

Any time there is a police report involving a car accident in Illinois, it will list the vehicles involved.  Most crashes involve two cars and they list one car as vehicle one and the other as vehicle two. That might not seem relevant, but it’s quite often the most important part of any car accident lawsuit in Illinois.

On these reports, vehicle one is typically listing the person who the police officer on the scene believes is at fault.  That usually involves them getting a ticket, but doesn’t have to. There will also be a written statement as to what happened and what citations were given, but generally speaking, if you are listed as vehicle two, you’ll have a right to sue the other person. And if you are listed as vehicle one, the officer is saying it was your fault.

Of course in most cases the police officers don’t directly witness these accidents and make their reports based on the statements of the parties. And for many of them, they don’t really care if they get it right or not. It’s paperwork and cops don’t love paperwork.  So if you get hit by someone and end up getting taken away by ambulance, it’s not unusual for the crash scene officer to just take the word of the person that ran in to you. If that person lies, you’ll be listed at fault if you didn’t get a chance to tell your side of the story.

I’m noticing these types of errors more and more recently. In one case, a young kid ran a stop sign and slammed in to a woman’s vehicle who had the right away. She was taken away from the scene in an ambulance with severe injuries. The young kid lied about where he was coming from and she ended up with the ticket. Fortunately video proved that she wasn’t at fault.

The most important thing to remember is that while being listed at fault on the police report is a hurdle, it’s not one that you can’t overcome.  An experienced car accident attorney will investigate the damage on your car, seek out witness statements, search for video recordings, etc. If the damage to your vehicle is at your back bumper, that doesn’t make your case a slam dunk, but can go a long way toward showing that what you are saying happened is the truth. In some cases we can get police officers to amend their reports.

This of course can be very frustrating when you know you weren’t at fault.  The opposing insurance company not only will use it as a reason to deny you payment, but will also go after you. My advice is to not panic. Just get an attorney in your corner who knows what they are doing and has a track record of success to prove it. If you would like a referral to lawyer who handles car accident injury cases, please contact us any time.

If you are in a car accident or looking to sue a doctor and do an internet search for “personal injury lawyers,” you will come up with thousands of law firms and attorneys who say they can help you. If you don’t know who is who, it can be really confusing to figure out who to hire.

One thing you should know if you’ve been in a serious accident is that there are certain types of injury lawyers that are better than others for every case.  If you’ve been in a car accident and have $15,000.00 in medical bills, hiring a lawyer who regularly handles major trucking crash injuries would not be a good idea.  And if you have a very serious injury case such as a death, something that required surgeries, etc., hiring a law firm that usually handles smaller cases would not be a great idea.

The bigger firm cases will usually turn down your case if it’s too small or refer you elsewhere. Most firms that don’t regularly handle seven-figure cases though will act like they do if your case is catastrophic and could be worth a lot. They want to make money and some will sadly do what’s best for them and not best for you.  So how do you avoid hiring the wrong firm if you have a potential seven-figure case?

One great question you can ask is, “How many seven-figure cases have you tried or settled in the last five years?” It’s a really direct and relevant question.  There’s no magic number answer, but if you ask it to a few different firms and one says zero, another says two, and the third says 15, it’s a really strong indicator as to who is used to dealing with high-value cases and who isn’t.

Some of these less accomplished attorneys who don’t have the track record you should want will try to tell you that they are great trial attorneys. That may be true for the cases that they usually handle, but you don’t want them getting their first experience with a major case while representing you.  You also don’t want a firm to feel pressure to settle a case for $3 million when it may be worth $15 million.

In many ways, figuring out who to hire is like realizing that just because someone can run a five-person business doesn’t mean that they could be CEO of United Airlines or some major corporation like that.  There is a huge difference between running a five-person company and a 100 person company and a 10,000 employee company.  The skillset for each is way different which is why you see these companies bring in new people with experience as they grow.

The same idea is true when it comes to hiring a lawyer. The small case attorney might fantasize that they could do well with a big case and they might be right. But more likely than not your best chance of success comes from a law firm that can really show a track record of winning these cases and getting the best results possible.

If you have any questions or want our lawyers to refer you to the best personal injury law firm for your case, please call for free at any time at 312-346-5320.

We are lawyers who will talk to you for free and give you a referral to the best attorney for your situation. Call us any time at 312-346-5320 to discuss your case. 

When you are hurt on the job in Illinois, and your doctor takes you off work (or gives you restrictions that your job can’t accommodate), you are entitled to temporary total disability benefits or TTD.  This is 2/3 of your average weekly wage, tax-free.  This is of course very important because this money allows you to survive while you focus on getting healthy.

Sadly, many injured workers in Illinois have to deal with shady insurance companies. They are looking for a way to not pay you your owed benefits and sometimes do it in an illegal manner.  So what do you do when your check is constantly late or stops showing up without any reason?

The first thing to know is that you are not alone. This is a common insurance company tactic when it comes to IL work comp benefits. They want to frustrate you so you’ll go against your doctor’s advice and return to work before it’s safe to do so. They know that many people live paycheck to paycheck and if they squeeze you just enough that you’ll do things against your best interests. It’s a real scummy thing for them to do, but to them, it’s just business.

The way to solve this problem is for a lawyer to file what is called a 19(b) petition for an immediate hearing.  It’s essentially a trial motion that says benefits are being improperly denied and allows you to jump ahead of other cases that want a trial and get before an arbitrator. While not every case needs a lawyer, when your benefits are delayed, you certainly do.  And having an attorney on the case before a problem happens not only acts as a deterrent to bad behavior by the insurance company but also gets you into court faster.

When the insurance company is really acting in bad faith, we can also file what is called a petition for penalties and fees. You’ve probably heard the term “punitive damages.” This isn’t that, but it’s similar in that the insurance company can be forced to pay you extra money and your lawyer fees for acting so inappropriately.

The point is that when an insurance company is being aggressive to you, you need a lawyer in your corner who will be aggressive back. A good Illinois work injury law firm uses the law to make sure their clients don’t get taken advantage of. In fact, even just the filing of these motions is often enough to get the insurance company to back down. If they don’t, they know they’ll lose and also waste a lot of money on a defense attorney to fight a case they have no defense against.

Beyond that, when your checks are late, experienced attorneys who deal with the same insurance companies and insurance adjusters all of the time, often have relationships where an email or phone call can get results.

In sum, if your TTD checks are late, don’t panic, but also look out for yourself. There are solutions to these problems that can work for you.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions or want to speak to a lawyer, get in touch with us any time.  We cover all of Illinois.

We are experienced Illinois attorneys who since 2001 have helped tens of thousands of people with their cases. If you would like to speak to a lawyer for free to see if you have a case, call us any time at 312-346-5320.

There is nothing more exciting in life than seeing your child be born. It comes with hopes, fears, a bit of nervousness, and a lot of joy.  Most births go smoothly, but occasionally there are problems. Some are unavoidable due to genetics. Others happen from hospital errors and at times this leads to a birth injury lawsuit.

One rare, but very serious birth injury involves something called kernicterus.  To understand that though, you must know about jaundice first.

What is Jaundice?

Most people have heard the term “jaundice” in relation to newborn babies. Jaundice occurs when a chemical called bilirubin builds up in the baby’s blood. Bilirubin is a yellow substance your body creates when red blood cells break down.

When the mother is pregnant, her liver gets rid of the bilirubin for the baby; however, once the baby is born, his/her own liver has to remove the bilirubin. In some babies, particularly premature ones, the liver might not be developed enough to effectively get rid of the bilirubin. In these cases, the baby’s skin and whites of their eyes may appear yellow. Jaundice refers to this yellow discoloration.

Signs and Symptoms of Jaundice

Jaundice is common. About 60% of all babies have it. The main sign of infant jaundice, the yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes, usually appears between the third and fifth day after birth. Jaundice typically appears on the face of the infant first, then it moves to the chest, belly, arms, and legs as the bilirubin levels increase. Jaundice can be harder to see in babies with darker skin color.

Symptoms of jaundice, aside from the change in coloring, include the baby:

• being hard to wake up, or conversely, not sleeping at all
• not breastfeeding or sucking from a bottle well
• being very fussy, having high-pitched cries
• not having enough wet or dirty diapers.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Jaundice

The baby’s doctor or nurse can check how much bilirubin is in the baby’s blood by using a light meter that is put on the baby’s head. If the level is high, the doctor or nurse will likely order a blood test. Typically, a small blood sample from the baby’s heel is taken to obtain a total serum bilirubin level.

Jaundice is easily treated. The baby will be undressed and put under special lights that do not hurt the baby. This can be done in a hospital or even at home. The baby’s milk intake may also need to be increased. In cases of very high bilirubin levels, a blood transfusion may be needed.

What is Kernicterus?

No baby should develop brain damage from untreated jaundice. However, this is sadly not always the case. When severe jaundice goes untreated for too long, it can cause a type of brain damage called kernicterus.  Affected infants may experience respiratory distress, muscle spasms (including those in which the head and heels are bent backward and the body bows forward), and diminished muscle tone.

As infants with kernicterus get older (about the age of 3 or 4), other symptoms may develop, including:

• delayed motor development or abnormal motions
• convulsions or seizures
• muscle rigidity resulting in muscle spasms
• slow, involuntary, writhing movements of the limbs or entire body
• hearing loss
• problems with vision
• difficulty speaking

What Should I Do If I Suspect My Baby Has Kernicterus?

If your child has been diagnosed with kernicterus, or if you suspect that they might have kernicterus, you need to get with a top pediatrician right away. They will test for bilirubin levels and try to reduce them before brain damage becomes permanent in your child.  This is also done with light therapy.  It’s really important that the baby be treated quickly.  You can’t reverse the damage that has been done, but you can stop it from getting worse.

Finally, if your child does have kernicterus, you should speak to an experienced birth injury attorney. It’s possible the doctors or their staff dropped the ball and failed to prevent this often treatable problem from getting worse. Depending on whether or not any Federally funded doctors were involved, you may have as little as two years from the birth to file a lawsuit (up to eight years in other cases) so time is of the essence.

If you would like to speak to a lawyer for free to see if you might have a case, please contact us any time. All calls are confidential and require no commitment on your part.

We are experienced attorneys who will speak with you for free. Call our office at 800-517-1614 or fill out our contact form and we will call you.

At first glance, workers’ compensation seems like a straightforward concept. If an employee gets hurt at work, they should get money to pay for their medical care and time off of work. But in reality, it is quite often not that clear cut. Workers’ compensation claims in Illinois can be very complex. The specifics regarding the accident, injury, and resulting medical care are critical. Details matter.

We get calls, chats and emails every day from people asking, “Do I have a workers’ compensation case?” Here are some of the questions we ask to determine if they do or don’t have a case.

Where were you injured? We need to know the exact location. In what city and state did the injury occur? We are Illinois lawyers, so we need to verify that the injury occurred in the state of Illinois. However, if you were traveling for work in a location outside of Illinois, but your employer is based in Illinois, you might still have a case. Another reason why we need to know the city/county is because the best attorney for a workers’ compensation case in the city of Chicago might not be the best attorney for a workers’ compensation case in Decatur or Belleville.  Things have changed a bit with online hearings due to Covid, but we still take in to account how many cases a lawyer has in your area before recommending them.

How were you hurt at work? What is your injury?We always ask for the details of the injury. Tell us exactly what happened. Was it a repetitive motion injury (e.g., carpal tunnel syndrome)? Or was it a singular accident (e.g., strained back while lifting a box, slip and fall, incident involving machinery or a vehicle)? Falls at work have to usually be the result of some risk such as a wet floor, running to a meeting, etc.  A pre-existing condition doesn’t bar you from bringing a case, but could be a possible defense. Facts matter.

When did the accident occur?There are statutes of limitations for workers’ compensation claims in Illinois:  three years from the accident date or two years from the last payment of compensation, whichever is longer. If you don’t formally file a case in time, it will be barred.

Have you reported the injury to your boss/employer?This is critical and seems like a no-brainer. But some people say, “I like my boss and company. I didn’t report it because I don’t want to sue them.” A workers’ compensation case is a claim against your employer’s insurance, you wouldn’t be suing them. You have to report your injury on a timely basis. If not done within 45 days of when you knew or should have known you sustained a work injury, you can lose your rights.

Have you gotten medical care?A big piece of a workers’ compensation claim is proving that you are, indeed, injured. The way to do that is to see a doctor, explain what happened and proceed with the care/treatment plan that they recommend.

The bottom line is, day in and day out, we communicate with people who have work injuries. Since 2001, we have helped tens of thousands of people with workers comp questions. We can tell you rather quickly whether or not you have a case worth pursuing and recommend the best lawyer for your case.. If you would like to talk to an attorney for free about a possible case, please call us any time at 312-346-5320 or fill out our contact form and we will call you.

See also: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Illinois workers’ compensation claims

We are Illinois attorneys who since 2001 have been providing free guidance and attorney referrals to anyone who reaches out to us, including for workers compensation claims, where we have helped tens of thousands of people. Call us for FREE at 312-346-5320 or fill out our contact form and we will call you.

Usually the most straight forward Illinois work comp cases are ones that happen in a single instance. For example, you are walking down the hallway at work and slip on a wet floor.  You put your arm out to catch yourself and break your wrist when you hit the ground. That is a hard case for the insurance company to fight (not that they won’t look for reasons to deny your case. They will).

Not every case is like that of course. Quite often the bodies of injured workers break down due to repetitive work over time.  You can lift something once and throw out your back, but more often it’s the act of lifting heavy stuff day after day that causes an injury.  In general, when an employer has you doing the same thing over and over, especially if it can put stress on a body part, this puts you at risk.

This is really common for factory workers in Illinois. When you are an assembler, unless you have a smart and caring employer, you are often doing the same activity thousands of times.  Over a period of months or years, it’s not uncommon at all to have a serious injury from those job duties.

In a recent case decided at the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, an assembler had to regularly lift, carry, push and pull up to 50 pounds as well as handle and grip tools to assemble products. He developed elbow and wrist pain that he thought was due to repetitive lifting, twisting and turning at work. He sought medical care and was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome and elbow arthritis.

The insurance company fought this case because there wasn’t a specific injury.  It’s typical insurance company BS.  The Arbitrator found in his favor because he had consistently done the same work of large valve assembly for seven years.

The lesson to learn from this and other cases is that your case will likely be fought, but it’s winnable. The way this worker one was through medical evidence and credible, detailed testimony. He didn’t just say that he was an assembler at a factory. He gave a very detailed description of what his job duties were both to the Arbitrator and his doctors.  This knowledge made the opinion of the treating doctor that the injuries were work related much more credible.  He then backed it up by having a senior supervisor testify as to what the job duties were. Essentially he created irrefutable evidence.

The bottom line is that you need a trial attorney who is experienced and has a track record to win these cases. They will prepare you and put you in a position to win. In this case, getting the right attorney was literally worth tens of thousands of dollars.

If you have questions about Illinois workers’ compensation law or want an attorney recommendation, please contact us at any time.

If you would like to speak to an experienced injury attorney for free, please call us at 312-346-5320 or fill out our contact form and we will call you.

Here’s something that most people who hire personal injury attorneys in Illinois don’t know. You can fire them if they aren’t doing a good job.  Now you probably shouldn’t do this without having a new firm in place, but if your lawyer has created the impression that once they are hired you can’t get rid of them, they are lying.

So when should you fire your attorney?

For me, if in the first six or so months on a case, there are clear customer service issues, it’s a huge red flag that you hired the wrong firm.  If they aren’t calling you back or not doing what they said they would do, that’s a huge problem.  It’s often predictive that you won’t be happy with them when the case is done and will realize you would have ended up with more money elsewhere.

The biggest worry callers have is that they will owe this bad firm money. In almost every case, if they haven’t filed a lawsuit or obtained a settlement offer, they will get nothing. And even when they’ve done some work, typically the new attorney will end up splitting their fee with the first firm. In other words, it almost never costs you anything to switch although you should of course discuss this with the new firm before you hire them.

I’ve been told that some law firms add clauses to their client contracts that state you can’t get rid of them. Those contracts are illegal and not enforceable even if you’ve signed them.

The reality is that most personal injury law firms in Chicago do a good job and don’t lose clients. We get calls from clients of many of the bad ones. There is one notorious firm that advertises a ton, but then their clients discover that not only are the lawyers in the ads not in Illinois, but they also aren’t even licensed here! They hire local attorneys to handle their cases, but the consumer isn’t getting what they really thought they were. To top it off, I’ve been told that they try to take 40% of what they recover which is insane to me.

Another infamous Chicago injury lawyer has relocated to Florida and has their staff allegedly fax down all information about their cases. Nothing reportedly can happen without their say-so. This of course slows down the case speed and is a prime example of not great service. Needless to say, many of their clients aren’t happy because they can’t get answers.

The other type of call we get a lot is from someone who got into a car accident or had some other injury and they hired a lawyer they used for a divorce, real estate closing, or something not related to injuries at all. That lawyer assures them that they can handle the case. In many instances, the attorney is just thinking of themselves and thinks they can make an easy buck by taking on a case they aren’t qualified to handle.  These cases are much harder than they seem and can involve unique issues like medical liens, hidden insurance, bogus denials, etc.  Before you hire an attorney for an accident, you should ask them how many personal injury lawsuits they’ve filed in the last five years. If the answer isn’t in the hundreds or thousands, you are at the wrong place. And if you realize they are in over their head, you can and should get rid of them.

Bottom line is that it’s your case and your life. You have to do what is best for you and that means getting the best representation possible.  And if that requires you to fire one firm to get another then so be it.

See also: A Secret About Chicago Personal Injury Lawyers

I won’t forget the first day of law school. Honestly not much has stuck with me from most of my classes, but on my first day, a professor pointed out everything that is, or could be, a tort. Walking across the street? That can be a tort.  Driving a car? Tort. Entering a store, working a construction site, eating food?  All of these case be torts. Taking that class in law school made me paranoid and changed the way I looked at the world.

The reason for that paranoia is because a tort can be defined (very informally) as all the crazy/bad stuff that you can possibly imagine happening to someone.

The formal definition of a tort is a civil wrong for which a remedy may be obtained, usually in the form of damages. A civil wrong is a wrong committed against an individual, whereas a crime is a wrong committed against the state.  In plain English this typically means bringing a personal injury lawsuit.

There are four elements to every tort case: duty, breach of duty, causation and injury. In order to have a strong tort lawsuit, there must have been a breach of duty made by the defendant against the plaintiff, which resulted in an injury.

The law of tort protects the rights and freedoms of individuals, as well as their property and reputations. The basic principles of tort law are similar across all states. However, the exact law/rules are determined in each state.

If a plaintiff wins a tort case, the remedies should place him/her (the injured party) in the position he/she was in prior to the tort. Punitive damages are also a possibility to punish extremely reckless or malicious behavior. Basically this means that you should expect to be compensated for your loss. If it’s a car accident that would mean payment for medical bills as well as pain and suffering.

It is very important to hire an experienced attorney who knows the ins and outs of tort law and has demonstrated success in making a great recovery for clients who have similar cases to you. In other words, you don’t just want to hire “the best tort lawyer in Illinois” but instead the best one for what you are dealing with.

Cost wise, a tort lawyer should work on a contingency basis, meaning you don’t pay them a dime out of pocket. They only get compensated if they help you win your case. Some attorneys will seek a fee as high as 40% of the damages they recover. We generally tell people to avoid those lawyers and work with ones who have a fee of 33% which is more typical. Of course since attorneys only get paid if they win, they will want to get involved in a case where you are likely to make a recovery that is worth their while.

If you have any questions about Illinois tort law or would like to speak with an experienced lawyer for free, you can call us any time at 312-346-5320.

One thing that is true about dealing with insurance companies is that they are not looking out for you. Whether it’s your health insurance, car insurance or something else, the main goal of the company is to limit how much they pay on your behalf.  Sometimes they will tell fantastic lies to further their ends.  I heard a real doozy recently from an injured Illinois worker.

This very nice woman had broken her arm.  She regularly worked 60 hours a week, but was only getting work comp benefits based on a 40 hour work week. When she asked about the extra pay, she was told (wrongly) that overtime isn’t included in work comp payments.  She responded by saying that she wanted to ask a lawyer if this was true and the adjuster went off on her. “If you get a lawyer that will make the case drag on for two more years and they’ll take your money!”

Both of those things aren’t true. First off, the length of a case depends on your medical recovery. The only time getting a lawyer makes it last longer is if you are getting screwed over and we go to arbitration to get you tens of thousands that you are missing out on.  In most cases having a lawyer makes things go faster because we stop the insurance company from playing games and allow you to focus on your health.

As for the second lie, attorney fees in Illinois work comp cases are capped at 20% of what is recovered for your settlement or trial verdict.  In almost every case, you end up with more money by getting a lawyer than if you didn’t have one, even after the 20% fee.  This is a common insurance company lie to try and screw you out of money that they owe you.

This isn’t a one off situation. It happens all of the time.  Later the same day I got a call from an Amazon worker who was dealing with their insurance company, Sedgwick. Whoever she talked to told her that there had been a “global settlement” of their work comp cases and that she had been allotted a certain amount to resolve her case. It was basically implied that all of the cases were getting settled together and that this worker had to take what was a low ball offer.

This was a lie I’d never heard before, but it’s absurd. Work comp cases aren’t class actions. Everyone’s case is their own and you don’t have to take less because all of the cases are resolving at once. They aren’t doing that. Your case settles whenever it’s ready and you get paid whatever it’s worth. Or at least that’s how it’s supposed to work. Their lies might try to avoid that, but if you know your rights you won’t fall for their tricks.

The bottom line is that generally speaking insurance companies don’t look out for you and shouldn’t be trusted. Even when they are nice, they have an agenda, so be careful.

If you would like to speak to an experienced Illinois lawyer for free, call us any time at 800-517-1614.  We help with cases everywhere in Illinois.

The most common question that gets asked in any Illinois personal injury lawsuit is, “What is my case worth?” I get it. People want to know how they will be compensated for the pain and agony they’ve gone through.

Most cases just aren’t worth that much. There are two reasons for that.  The first is that your injuries are small. If you get hit by a car and need a month of physical therapy, that case has value, but not much.  In other cases you might have significant damages, but if there is only $50,000.00 worth of insurance out there, that’s likely all you will get.

In some cases though there is a really significant injury or death and there is large or unlimited insurance because the defendant is a corporation or some other entity that is heavily insured. Think of a situation like an airplane crash or if a CTA bus driver ran a red light. A major airline or the City of Chicago can pay out any award made by a jury.

So how do you get a multi-million dollar settlement or trial verdict.  There are a bunch of factors, some obvious and others not so obvious.

1. Big damages. As discussed, you can get hit by a drunk driving bus driver, but if your injuries are small, the value of the case is small.
2. Strong liability. You might become paralyzed during a surgery, but if you can’t prove it was due to medical negligence, the chances of recovery aren’t great.
3. Who your lawyer is. This ultimately becomes the biggest factor. There’s a reason why a handful of law firms in Illinois get the biggest results year in and year out.  And there are so many reasons why a case is worth more in the hands of certain lawyers than it is in others.

• These lawyers have a track record of success, so the insurance company assumes a bigger potential loss which increases room to negotiate.
• These firms know how to properly investigate cases.  If you are in a truck crash or industrial accident, it’s important to have the scene examined ASAP.  They’ve done this many times before and have experts on call to get the job done. This initial work can ultimately be the difference of millions of dollars in the end.
• They know how to find hidden insurance. Many trucking companies operate shell companies in order to make it appear as if their trucks are small companies when really they are a subsidiary of a much larger company. Inexperienced lawyers might tell you that there is only a $1 million insurance policy when in fact there is ten times that out there.
• They have trial skills for bigger cases.  If there is a catastrophic injury it often is a complex case which could mean a two week or more trial as lots of experts will need to testify.  That is way different than handling a car accident trial that lasts a day.
• They have money to finance these cases. Getting experts costs money.  Creating videos that show what a victim’s life is like now cost money. Those things are investments in your case in order to greatly increase the value of your case. But they aren’t cheap. It’s not unusual for a lawyer to spend $300,000.00 of their own money with no guarantee of a payback if you don’t win. Firms that haven’t won these cases many times before can’t afford to do that.  The ones that can make your case worth more money.
• They know the best experts.  The best experts want to work with the best firms.  All of this increases your case value.
• They are able to turn down a large offer when they know your case is worth more. $5 million is a huge case result. But if the case is really worth $10 million, settling for five would be a bad idea. Some lawyers can’t risk losing the fee they’d get from a $5 million case and won’t have the guts to tell you to not take it. An experienced, successful lawyer will only act in your best interests even if settling would still get them a great fee.

The point to take away is that if your case could be worth millions, there are about ten firms in Illinois where having them makes the case worth significantly more than if you get a less reputable law firm. If you would like our recommendation as to the best Illinois personal injury law firm for you, please contact us for free at 312-346-5320. We help with legal advice and attorney referrals everywhere in Illinois.