Orange County Injury Attorney Blog

As seen in our post of July 7, 2011, Cohn and Swartzon represents Gabriel Nunez, a teenage hero who in saving his mothers life, was hit by an oncoming car while in a crosswalk. Gabriel suffered an acute brain injury and has undergone 9 brain surgeries, nearly passing away several times.

On August 25, 2011, Cohn & Swartzon held a fundraiser for Gabriel at Chapter One, the modern local, a well known gastropub in Santa Ana, to help raise money for Gabriel's recovery. Over 125 people attended the event which was an overwhelming success and an amazing show of support. Cohn & Swartzon, with the assistance of sports artist Mike Sullivan, also secured former Lakers Basketball player and youth philanthropist A.C. Green, to attend and assist with the fund-raising efforts. Several other attendees included Police Chief Corey Sianez and Orange County Sheriff's Department Spokesperson Jim Amormino. In addition, Gabriel was awarded Profiles in Courage Award by the Orange County Board of Supervisors for his heroism.

Numerous donors were kind enough to donate not only money, but also items and services for a silent auction and an opportunity drawing. Thus far, Cohn & Swartzon has helped raiser over $26,000!!!! Some of the donors included Chapter One: the modern local, for the great food and location, ExtendedFamily.org who donated $10,000, Operation Progress for the non-profit assistance and MANY others including (in no order) Connell Chevrolet, Judicate West, A.C. Green, Calderon Settlements Group, State Farm Insurance, Farmers Insurance, Amgraph Printing, Scorpion Design, Chef Lucia Robles, Kiyonna Clothing, Vanessa Preziose Photography, South Coast Med Spa, Eddie Khanbeigi, Office Depot, Mike Sullivan Art, KDOC Television, Denice Douglas, CPA and Michele Potter, Dr. Diane Curtis-Hutchens, Quest Digital Solutions, Mark and Dee Elliot, Travis Guy, Doreen Boxer, Esq., the Anaheim Ducks, Celinder's Glass Design, Back to Balance Chiropractic, K-1 Cart Racing, Burke Williams Spas, Hodes Milman, LLP, Mortensen and Reinheimer, PC, Santa Ana Fire Department, Santa Ana Police Department, Tustin Police Department, DropStop, Tustin Ranch Golf Course, Dove Canyon Golf Course, Melvin Cohen, DDS, Peggy Brislin, Pretend City, Millennium Pension Services, Batson Freestyle, Melissa's Produce, the Balboa Bay Club and Resort, Pravin Chandra, Irvine Lanes, Paul Mitchell, Marianna Meeks and European Travel International, Maria Migliore, Sharon Barragan, Jason Shuman, Alex Litvak, Veritext, Whittier Law School, Union Bank, Shimrit Vavak, Dynamic Firm Management, the Summit House Restaurant, Aquarium of the Pacific, Wine Styles of Irvine, Linda Chapman, Sharise Woods, Renee Bushman and family, Stacey Cohn, and Kristin Brasher, and Reporter Tom Berg of the Orange County Register.

However, the fund-raising continues! Please visit www.nunezfundraiser.com to donate!

For some photographs of the event, please visit:

O.C. Register Story: Gabriel Nunez Fundraiser

Related Web Resources:

Extended Family.org press release

A.C. Green Youth Foundation

Some say that we are slaves to technology. Some times we do really to heavily on technology in our day to day lives. Often, however, technology is a life saver. I don't mean that figuratively, like having the ability to text friends or call home, but literary, like saving our lives. Since their invention, Airbags have saved the lives of hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people. This technology not only saves lives but helps avoid many of the catastrophic injuries associated with car accidents.

Many people have no idea that Airbags were actually invented in the 1950s and patented in 1954. Unfortunately, until mandated by the government, U.S. auto manufacturers were not interested in this life saving device. In the 1970s, the first commercial airbags were introduced. They had limited success, but by the 1980s and 1990s, airbags were available in most cars. Now, cars not only have two front passenger airbags but many have multiple airbags including side airbags.

The following airbag statistics are staggering:

• The National Highway Transportation and Highway Administration ("NHTSA") estimates that thousands of lives are saved annually due to airbags and perhaps as many as ten thousand each year.


• The combination of seatbelts and airbags can reduce serious head injuries by up to 85%.


• Approximately 350 million vehicles are now equipped with airbags. This includes cars and trucks and driver and passenger airbags as well as side airbags. In addition, experts claim that up to a million new cars and trucks are sold each month that are automatically equipped with airbags.

Continue reading "Safety and Innovation: Airbags" »

It's happened again. Insurance companies will be able to take advantage of those of us who have toiled long and hard to pay for insurance premiums to help pay for medical care, including payment for incurred from a car accident or slip and fall. California's Supreme Court has now ruled that accident plaintiff's can only recover economic damages equal to the amount paid by a health insurance company not the billed amount. What does this mean? Simply, trouble. Now two people who have the same injuries will be treated differently in the eyes of the law. This ruling only benefits the wrongdoer and those responsible for causing injuries.

The case entitled Howell v. Hamilton Meats, sets a very bad precedent. The case involved a woman, Rebecca Howell who was injured in a car accident involving a truck owned by Hamilton Meats and Provisions. During trial of the case, Ms. Howell presented $189,978.63 in medical bills. The jury awarded this amount in its verdict for Ms. Howell's catastrophic injuries. After post trial motions, the trial court reduced this amount to $130,286.90, the amount actually paid by Ms. Howell's insurance company not the amount billed Ms. Howell.

The Appellate Court overturned the trial court and said that Ms. Howell should get the benefit of what her insurance company negotiated and is entitled to recover the full amount of all medical bills incurred. The California Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals and held that an injured plaintiff can only recover the economic damages equal to the amount paid by his or her insurer. The court held that the plaintiff did not suffer the economic damage of the billed amount, only the paid amount, regardless of how clear the car accident facts were.

This ruling is ridiculous. Does the responsible party then have to pay the insurance premiums the injured party has been paying for years to get the lowered negotiated bills? The answer is no! This ruling goes contrary to public policy. An example would best illustrate why this ruling is absurd. Suppose two people are involved in identical car accidents and suffer identical injuries. The total amount of medical bills billed to each person is $100,000. Now assume that one injured party has insurance and the other does not. The party with insurance submits the bills through their health insurance and the health insurance pays $50,000 pursuant to negotiated rates with the hospital and medical providers. The uninsured party is responsible to pay the full $100,000. Under the Howell v. Hamilton Meats ruling, the person without insurance is entitled to $100,000 and the person who was diligent and paid for insurance throughout the year is only entitled to $50,000. This despite the fact that they have done the right thing and paid for insurance from their hard earned money.

Why are these two cases treated differently? Because insurance companies and wrongdoers get the benefit from those of us who pay thousands for health insurance each year. The clear signal. Your better off not paying for health insurance because your case could be worth more. All personal injury victims should treat on a lien and not use your health insurance company because you would still be entitled to the full amount of billed medical bills.

The lawyers of Cohn & Swartzon have been practicing law for over 25 years. If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, you need to speak with an experienced personal injury attorney that can review your case and inform you of your best course of action and whether you should treat on a lien. Having the knowledge you need to make the best decision possible is extremely important and having an attorney know how to gather the right information is paramount.

Cohn & Swartzon have many clients deal with personal injuries sustained as a result of car accidents for many years and have helped individuals and families in and around Orange County, California and surrounding areas, including Santa Ana, Irvine, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Yorba Linda, Anaheim, Fullerton, Brea and the surrounding communities.

Related Web Resources:

Howell v. Hamilton Meats

All of us have witnessed or experienced firsthand the miracles of modern medicine. Whether it's your child whose broken leg was fixed up after he was hit by a car or riding his bike, the relative who had her life-threatening cancer successfully treated, or even when you had your impacted wisdom teeth removed, the fact is that at some point, we will all rely on medical professionals, including anesthesiologists, to perform their specialties with great care and expertise in order to maintain our quality of life. Even recently, a woman underwent a complete face transplant after suffering catastrophic injuries at the hands of a chimpanzee.

All of these surgeries require anesthesia. When properly administered, anesthesia allows us to undergo a wide range of procedures that would otherwise be impossible if we had to feel the pain associated with surgery. And the vast majority of the time, there are no major complications associated with the use of anesthesia. However, mistakes can and do happen, and when they do, the results can be deadly.

Recently, the National Institute of Health provided an analysis of a report issued by the American Journal of Anesthesiology published in April 2009, which studied anesthesia deaths from 1995 to 2005. The report cited 2,211 deaths during that time period either directly related to anesthesia, or where anesthesia was a factor.

Several factors contributing to anesthesia mistakes:

• Insufficient or inaccurate medical history completed by the anesthesiologist.
  
• Poor monitoring of the equipment and/or the patients' status during the procedure.
  
• Inadequate training by the anesthesiologist or medical staff.
  
• Equipment malfunction.
  
• Failure to follow procedure.
  
• Lack of communication during the procedure between medical team members.
  
• Inaccurate dosing or dispensing of medication.

Continue reading "Anesthesia - What you don't know can kill you" »

When you are involved in an accident, you may need to look to your own insurance policy if the other driver's policy is not sufficient to cover your damages. As we all know, the state of California requires every driver to carry insurance in case of a car accident. Many people do not comply with this law or if they do comply they have the absolute minimal policy limits that may not even cover all of your damages. This is why I am constantly telling clients that they need to make sure to have enough uninsured/underinsured ("UM/UIM") limits to cover your damages when the responsible party has failed to do so. Unfortunately, the law in California does not allow you to "stack" your insurance policy on top of the responsible party's policy limits. California Insurance Code §11580.2(q) states:

(q) Regardless of the number of vehicles involved whether insured or not, persons covered, claims made, premiums paid or the number of premiums shown on the policy, in no event shall the limit of liability for two or more motor vehicles or two or more policies be added together, combined, or stacked to determine the limit of insurance coverage available to injured persons.

What does this mean? Well in simple English you cannot stack policies of insurance (add them together). Stacking UM/UIM coverage means that you can stack whatever policy you have on top of the insurance policy the other party has.

Continue reading "Don't bet on it: No stacking insurance policies in California" »

As I often say, insurance companies have many tricks up their sleeves. These companies put profits before people. There is just no denying it. Everyday we pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in premiums to health insurance, life insurance and car insurance companies to protect our families in times of greatest need. Unfortunately, insurance companies are profit centers. They make no money when they pay insurance claims only when they collect premiums.

Because of this model, and because insurance companies have shareholders to please, insurance companies, and their employees, do everything within their power to minimize claims. Some of the things they do many be illegal. Even if they are not illegal, they are down right nasty.

The best way to protect yourself is to arm yourself with the right information. To learn your rights and make sure insurance companies do the right thing. Below is the most common insurance company tactics.

• Your insurance company telling you to go through the responsible person's insurance to fix or appraise your car.


• Suggesting that you go through the other driver's insurance company to get your car appraised or fixed. If the accident was the other driver's fault, don't be surprised if your own insurance company tries this approach. The bottom line, though, is that it is often much quicker to have your car fixed through your own coverage.


• Secretly videotaping you. At times, insurance companies will hire private investigators to videotape accident victims during their day-to-day lives. Their hope is that they will catch you doing something that can be used against you during settlement negotiations


• Tracking your activity on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. There's a good chance that insurance companies will be taking a look at your activities and postings on social media sites after you've had an accident. The insurer may even try to befriend you online and get you to admit to certain facts.


• Not settling claims for a fair amount. The insurance company might jeopardize your financial well being by not offering a fair settlement or by delaying your claim.


• Trying to discourage you from talking to a personal injury lawyer. Insurance companies know (and their own studies show) that injury victims on average receive higher settlements if they retain the services of a personal injury lawyer.

Continue reading "Insurance Company Hocus Pocus: They Always have a Trick up Their Sleeves" »

As I have previously blogged about, truck accident cases can be some of the most terrifying accidents on our roads. The injuries are usually catastrophic and many times the victims involved are killed. On Monday, August 8, 2011, a truck driver collided with six cars causing nearly all to burst into flames killing 3 people including a 2-year old girl and injuring several others. A preliminary investigation by the California Highway Patrol has determined that a commercial truck driver driving a bob-tail truck caused the accident by driving to fast and not leaving enough room and time to stop from hitting the vehicles in front of him. Our sympathies are with the families of those killed and injured in this preventable collision.

We all know that trucks are bigger than cars and motorcycles. The sheer size of trucks makes them more apt to cause injuries and possibly death during even small speed collisions. U.S. Federal Highway Administration statistics show that in 2008, nearly 75 percent of the 4,229 fatalities resulting from truck crashes were drivers or passengers in cars that were involved in a collision with a truck. With the average weight of a Honda Accord around 3,300 pounds and a loaded freight carrier or big rig that can weigh in at 70,000 pounds or more, the results of a big truck crash can be catastrophic, as seen in the August 8, 2011 crash on the I-5.

Every day, truck drivers and trucking companies are responsible for making deliveries. Unfortunately, because many truck drivers are pressured to deliver things on time, speed is often a cause of accidents involving trucks. Failure to follow speed laws often leads to fatalities. When truck drivers or trucking companies break the law or act negligently, and an accident occurs, they can be held liable if people sustain injuries or are wrongfully killed.

Continue reading "Truck Driver Faulted in Fatal I-5 Crash Due to Unsafe Speed" »

Often I have people come into my office to discussing hiring me to represent them as a result of a serious car accident they were involved in. Most often, these free consultations take place weeks or months after the accident has taken place. Depending on the severity of the accident, gathering evidence at the scene of the collision may be more important that you can imagine-especially if liability is disputed.

If you are at the scene of an accident, obviously you need to gather information. You will need to gather information related to the people involved in the accident as well as witnesses but if possible, pictures are often the key to help attorneys and experts determine exactly what happened in the accident. Pictures of the way the cars are facing after the accident, the impact locations, pictures of skid marks, etc.

If you are unable to gather this information, there are others ways to try to gather this information. An attorney has the ability to subpoena records and to gather information from unconventional sources including:

• Red-light Cameras - We may hate these but many of these cameras are located in heavy-traffic areas where accidents are more likely to occur. If any tickets were issues during the time of the accident, a deposition of the person in charge can help garner relevant information for the case.


• Tire Marks - Pre-accident tire friction marks are often observed o the roadway before an accident. Pre-accident tire friction marks are tire marks leading up to the accident often occurring when wheels lock. Pre-accident tire friction marks can often be seen months after an accident.


• Intersection Information - If an accident occurs at an intersection, there are several very good pieces of information that can be reviewed to help assess the cause of the accident including intersection 'as-built' plans, lane stripping drawings, signal timing charts and signal maintenance logs.


• Medical Treatment Information - Often a fire department, paramedic or ambulance responds to the scene of an accident to help treat injuries resulting from an accident, including many catastrophic injuries caused by serious accidents. Some paramedic reports include a description of the scene of the collision. Sometimes, they also radio some of this information into the police or hospital. These tapes can sometimes include valuable information about the accident.


• Towing Reports - Sometimes these reports can have valuable information related to the accident scene.


• Pictures - Many times, especially in serious accidents, police departments that respond to the scene of an accident will take photos to help in their investigation and preparation of their report. These can usually be obtained by subpoena

The long and short of all of this blog is its better to get more information than less. An experienced car accident attorney also knows how to obtain valuable information from unconventional sources. The lawyers of Cohn & Swartzon have been practicing law for over 25 years. If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, you need to speak with an experienced personal injury attorney that can review your case and inform you of your best course of action. Having the knowledge you need to make the best decision possible is extremely important and having an attorney know how to gather the right information is paramount.

Cohn & Swartzon have many clients deal with personal injuries sustained as a result of car accidents for many years and have helped individuals and families in and around Orange County, California and surrounding areas, including Santa Ana, Irvine, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Yorba Linda, Anaheim, Fullerton, Brea and the surrounding communities.

Related Blog Posts:

What Information do I need when I get Injured?

Related Web Resources:

Orange County Red Light Camera Locations

Many of us have purchased new and used automobiles from dealers in the past. I am sure many of you have been weary about the history of the car and whether the car was in an accident or a previous flood car. Well, California Assembly Bill 1215 may be the thing to wipe your worries away. As expected, it will cost you for this 'peace of mind.'

Assembly Bill 1215 has won support from two warring factions: the California New Car Dealers Association and Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety ("CARS"). These two groups have agreed that the measure may be a good thing for automotive consumers. It would allow car dealers to increase document-processing fees from $55 to $80. The increase applies to new and used vehicles.

The bill will help consumers. For this increased fees, dealers would be required to obtain a report from the National Vehicle Title Information System, a federal database of information concerning a vehicle's history. The report will alert consumers if a vehicle has been junked, salvaged, flooded, rebuilt or non-repairable. Most experts agree that these cars are usually unsafe for consumers. The goal by CARS was to discourage fraud in selling used vehicles.

Continue reading "Buyer Beware: Now Car Dealers May Have to Tell You Their Dirty Little Secrets" »

Tickets. Unless the tickets are to a concert or a ball game, no body wants to get a ticket from a police officer. Orange County has many police officers stationed to give speeding tickets to those breaking the basic speed law. But what people don't think about is the other most common violations they could be ticket for after being stopped by the police. Some of these violations can be serious and cause personal injuries while others are really administrative failures.

Most of the common violations are not even moving violations. A moving violation is any violation of the law committed by the driver of a vehicle while it is in motion. Most of these violations deal with other non-moving issues such as parking violations, equipment violations, or paperwork violations relating to insurance, registration, inspection, etc.

Though these violations may seem innocent, they can be serious and can cause injury. In theory, moving violations are more likely to cause direct physical harm or death to persons or property. Equipment violations really deal with a theoretical chance for causing injury. Paperwork violations really cause no injury at all- except to your wallet. At the very least, it may costs you a pretty penny if you are cited for them.

Continue reading "The Most Common Traffic Violations: Some are Dangerous some are Dense" »

As Californians we are spoiled. We have amazing weather and months of sunshine. Not surprisingly, many people purchase or rent motorhomes or RVs for use as recreational vehicles. No denying how fun these vehicles can be. Don't let the fun fool you-these vehicles are large potentially fatal machines. When operating these vehicles, you cannot fall into a false sense of security. You must be extra diligent because of the size of these vehicles or the outcome can not only lead to serious injuries but death as well.

According to a recent study by the National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), "motorcoach travel is a very safe mode of highway transportation in the United States." The study encompassed the ten year period between 1999 and 2008 and found the following:

• On average 16 fatalities have occurred annually to occupants of motorhomes in crash and rollover events, with two of these fatalities being drivers and 14 being passengers
  
• Among the 14 motorcoach passenger fatalities, 66 percent occurred in rollover events and 34 percent in roadside and multi-vehicle impacts
  
• Ejection from motorhomes accounts for 81 percent of passenger fatalities in motorcoach rollover events

Continue reading "RV and Motorhomes: Don't Let the Fun Fool You" »

Everyone living in Orange County knows that in most instances, getting around is difficult without transportation. With gas as expensive as it is, and in light of the current economic climate, may people are seeking to use public transportation to get around the city. Many people use buses on a daily basis to commute to work or just to get around town. Unfortunately, many people are injured in bus accidents and they occur more frequently than we would expect.

Bus accidents can result in very serious injuries and even death. Its no surprise. Simply due to the shear size and weight of most buses, thousands of people are injured and killed in tragic bus accidents every year. In fact, the statistics show that bus accidents occur more than expected and often due to human error. A 2009 study by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration showed the following characteristics relating to bus accidents:

• Human errors by bus drivers, other vehicle drivers, and pedestrians or bicyclists were assigned the critical reasons for bus crashes in 90 percent of the cases
  
• Nearly 50 % of all crashes were the result of human error by the bus driver
  
• In the accidents caused by bus drivers, the critical reason was either inadequate surveillance (failed to look, looked but did not see) or inattention (attention wandered from driving task)

  Continue reading "That's No 'Magic Bus': Bus Driver Error Responsible for Half of All Bus Accidents" »

On the early morning of November 2010, Dr. Theresa Wang was driving to her dream job as a doctor at a medical clinic in Hawaii. For years Dr. Wang had treated patients. Little did she know that in a split second her life would change and she herself would become one. On that fateful day, Dr. Wang's vehicle was struck an SUV driven by University of Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan's girlfriend, Shakti Stream. Dr. Wang suffered very serious injures as a result of this catastrophic car accident which was allegedly caused as Ms. Stream crossed over to opposing traffic and struck Dr. Wang's vehicle head on.

Dr. Wang had months of serious treatment in California and Colorado for broken bones and very serious brain injuries she sustained as a result of the collision. Unfortunately, Dr. Wang has resigned herself to the fact that she will probably not be able to many of the things she once did. Dr. Wang said she still suffers sever pain eight and a half months after the crash that changed her life forever. Her neck and shoulders are still sore and she's still mentally foggy after suffering spinal cord and brain injuries in the crash.

Continue reading "Doctor Advocates on Behalf of Brain Injury Victims After She Becomes One" »

Orange County is filled with busy intersections. One of the things that makes intersections problematic are left turns-whether they are controlled or not. Statistically, left turns make up a large portion of accidents at intersections, especially for drivers under 20 and over 65. These left turn lanes cause havoc for cities across the U.S. and especially in Los Angeles where very few controlled left turn lanes exist. Accidents are frequent and occur on a daily basis. What's the solution to left turn accidents? No left turns. That's right. The future design of our streets may mean the end of left turns. Sound crazy? Not so say roadway designers.

In 2007, for example, the Federal Highway Administration reported there were 2.4 million crashes at intersections, representing 40 percent of all crashes, and one-fifth of all fatal crashes. Most intersection crashes fall under the category of "crossing paths," and the most common path-crossing crashes, according to federal statistics, involve left turns. This caused designer to ask, "Do we really need left turns?" As its turns out the answer may be no. Designers have come up with a possible solution to intersection accidents. One designer has come up with what he calls the 'Diverging Diamond Interchange' The "DDI" was created by Gilbert Chlewicki, who first theorized what he called the "cris-cross interchange" as an engineering student at the University of Maryland in 2000. How will this all work? See this video demonstration.

The reason designers think the "DDI" concept will work is that it will reduce the number of conflict points and make driving more efficient. Standard signals require cars to cut across traffic but with the DDI, crossing lanes of traffic is eliminated and thus car accidents are greatly reduced as is traffic congestion. The DDI concept has already been implemented in Springfield, Missouri with great success.

Hopefully, this "DDI" concept catches on. This will help eliminate many traffic collisions, especially with motorcyclists that are involved in a disproportionate number of left turn accidents.

If you or a loved one has suffered injuries as a result of a left-turn accident or any car or motorcycle accident, contact the law firm of Cohn & Swartzon. The attorneys of Cohn & Swartzon have been handling car accident and motorcycle accident lawsuits for many years and have helped individuals and families in and around Orange County, California and surrounding areas, including Santa Ana, Irvine, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Yorba Linda, Anaheim, Fullerton, Brea and the surrounding communities.

Related Blog Posts:

Senior Driving Safety Tips

What Information do I need when I get Injured?

Related Web Resources:

Don't turn left!

New Interchange and Intersection Designs: The Synchronized Split-Phasing Intersection and the Diverging Diamond Interchange

Springfield, Missouri: DDI in Action

With around 750 million users, Facebook is undoubtedly the most popular social media site in the world. According to Facebook, they have more than 750 million active users; 50% of its active users log on to Facebook in any given day; the average user has 130 friends; and people spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook.

Facebook certainly has amazing statistics and serves as a useful communication tool. But if you're in the midst of a personal injury claim, information, posts and photos on sites like Facebook, Twitter and Youtube can actually ruin your case. How? Consider this:

• Photos posted by your friends can be viewed by people outside your network of "friends" despite your privacy settings.


• Courts have ordered injured plaintiffs to produce their Facebook pages to insurance company lawyers.


• Evidence from Facebook has been admitted in courts and has been used by police, investigators, and media.


• Law clerks for insurance defense lawyers check Facebook for their opponents' pages, profiles, and pictures.

  Continue reading "Killed by Facebook: How Social Media Can Destroy your Personal Injury Lawsuit " »