Can I Sue the Bus or Taxi Company for Personal Injury?
The law imposes stricter requirements for those organizations in the business of transporting people- called “common carriers”. There are additional duties imposed on these common carriers: As Attorney Eric T. Kirk will tell you. The utmost degree of care, skill and diligence in everything that concerns its passenger’s safety.1 A common carrier is one who engages... Read more »
What Happens If An Insurance Company Does Not Offer Its Policy Limits?
The possibility of obtaining a financial recovery beyond the limits of any possible insurance coverage clearly has an enormous impact on the value of the case. Maryland has relatively modest minimum motor vehicle liability coverage minimum requirements of just 30,000. A rather surprising number of drivers carry only the minimum. The best Baltimore personal injury... Read more »
What is The “Last Clear Chance” Doctrine?
Under Maryland law, those that contribute to the happening that causes them injury do not have a claim against anyone else that contributes to that same event. This is called contributory negligence, and it is a bar to recovery. This age-old principle can operate to preclude and prohibit a financial recovery, even where the other... Read more »
Can The At Fault Party’s Insurance Company Deny My Claim, Delay My Settlement or Disclaim Coverage?
A crucial fact for any injured person to recognize, and be prepared to deal with, is that an involved insurance company does not want to compensate you. Perhaps it is counter-intuitive. Insurance is designed to provide compensation for a loss. That’s what the insured person pays for- coverage for a loss. So, when a loss... Read more »
Contributory Negligence: Can I Recover for an Accident if I’m Negligent, Even in the Smallest Way?
The law of five jurisdictions, Alabama, District of Columbia*, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, contains the doctrine of “contributory negligence”. An experienced Baltimore car and automobile accident lawyer Attorney Eric T. Kirk will advise clients that this principle, a leftover vestige from the common law of England, hundreds of years old, operates to deny any financial recovery... Read more »
How Much Is My Case Worth? Will You Make a Good Witness at Trial?
Is there a subjective component to how much compensation you recover? You bet there is, which highlights some of the inherent complexities in assigning value to a case. Seasoned Baltimore personal injury and accident lawyers that try their cases have no doubt heard a defense lawyer say after a deposition: “Your client will make a good witness”, or,... Read more »
Do I have to Have A Permanent Injury to Get A Settlement?
I’ve talked in other chapters of these guides about the effect, good or bad- of the testimony of the injured person on the outcome of the trial. Even seasoned Baltimore personal injury and accident lawyers that try their cases have likely had a case come off the wheels at one time or another. One potential problem... Read more »
If I Don’t Go To Physical Therapy Does It Affect the Value of My Case?
Everyone has day-to-day responsibilities and obligations. Jobs, kids and the like. Being involved in an automobile accident can make getting those obligations met all the more difficult. It’s not just a question of being injured, sore and a little less mobile. Many Baltimore car accident victims need a course of physical or chiropractic therapy, with sessions... Read more »
Can I Recover My Car Rental Expenses After My Car Was Damaged or Totaled?
Of course, many things, other than personal injury, come up in the aftermath of a car accident. If there are injuries, of course, attendance to those issues is paramount. Property damage issues and transportation replacement insurance issues may all be secondary, but vitally important concerns. Most people are familiar with the idea of renting a car while theirs is... Read more »
Is a Clear Liability Case Worth More Than Disputed Liability Case?
Multiple chapters in these guides have addressed the various rules and doctrines that determine if you can recover for your personal injuries, and from whom. Implicit in these discussions is the notion that the more likely there will be a recovery, the more the case is worth –at least in terms of settlement value. I... Read more »
Should I Document All of My Expenses After A Car Accident?
I Attorney Eric T. Kirk discussed in another guide a concept familiar to all experienced Baltimore personal injury and accident lawyers that try their cases- the pain diary. [i.e. a day-to-day chronology of the ways that a car or automobile accident effects the life of the injury victim]. Some of us are natural organizers and record keepers-others are not. I... Read more »
If I Get Hit From Behind, Is The Other Driver Automatically At Fault?
Is the driver that strikes from behind responsible? Seasoned Maryland car and automobile accident lawyers will tell you the answer, generally, is yes, but it is not an automatic result. All drivers must use reasonable care for the safety of others. The following driver must use due care for the safety of others, including the duty... Read more »
