Articles Posted in Negligence

During the discovery phase of litigation, it is inevitable that discovery disputes arise between the plaintiff and defendants in Georgia personal injury, premises liability and malpractice litigation. One area of dispute that comes up often is when the plaintiff seeks the file that the insurance adjuster has compiled on the case. While the insurance companies try to avoid turning the file over, it is often discoverable unless the defendants can show a compelling reason to the court that it not be discoverable.

WORK PRODUCT IS NOT A BLANKET PROTECTION

The Defendants often claim that the adjuster’s investigative file is protected from disclosure by the so called “work product” privilege under O.C.G.A. §9-11-26(B)(3). This code section of the Georgia Civil Code deals with trial preparation materials and states in relevant part “a party may obtain discovery of documents … otherwise discoverable … and prepared in anticipation of litigation or for trial by or for another party or by or for that other party’s representative … only upon a showing that the party seeking discovery has substantial need of the materials in the preparation of his case and that he is unable without undue hardship to obtain the substantial equivalent of the materials by other means. In ordering discovery of such materials when the required showing has been made, the court shall protect against disclosure of the mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, or legal theories of an attorney or other representative of a party concerning the litigation.”

When one’s spouse is injured and is involved in a lawsuit, damages for loss of companionship and loss of services for the other spouse are known as loss of consortium claims. Damages for loss of consortium run from the date the spouse was injured and continue until the injury no longer interferes with society, companionship, affection and all other matters arising from marriage, or the termination of the marriage.

The standard jury charge for loss of consortium in cases that involve non-permanent injury to the spouse is:

Consortium; Definition; Determination of Value; Generally

Georgia trial lawyers on both sides of the fence have been pushing to modernize the Georgia code of evidence. The current version was enacted during the Civil War era and the changes would bring the laws of evidence in Georgia state courts in line with those used in federal court. Many states have done this over time, and it is generally viewed as a positive development.

Proposed legislation could be passed this year that would bring Georgia’s code of evidence more in line with the federal rules of evidence, eliminate Georgia’s arcane hearsay rules (and some questionable exceptions to hearsay) and modernize trial procedure that would make more sense in introducing medical records into evidence at trial.

As an Atlanta Injury Lawyer, I support the proposed changes and hope they become law.

Attorney Robert J. Fleming has been handling wrongful death cases, automobile accident cases, personal injury cases, dental malpractice and medical malpractice lawsuits for individuals and families who have been harmed, injured or died as a result of the carelessness or negligence of another for more than 20 years in and around Atlanta, Georgia and its surrounding areas, including Alpharetta, Austell, Avondale Estates, Chamblee, College Park, Conyers, Duluth, Decatur, Doraville, Hapeville, Johns Creek, Jonesboro, Lawrenceville, Norcross, Peachtree City, Riverdale, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Stone Mountain, and Smyrna. If you have been seriously injured and would like quality legal representation, contact Robert J. Fleming directly on (404) 525-5150 or contact us online.

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To My Democrat Friends:

Please accept with no obligation, implied or explicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2011 but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere . Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

To My Republican Friends:

According to a recent article in the Fulton County Daily Report, growing dissatisfaction with the billable hour dominated a recent discussion between in-house counsel and lawyers from boutique firms.

As an experienced Atlanta injury lawyer and business litigator who has been an associate, partner and managing partner during my legal career, this comes as no surprise to me. Simply put, the size of a firm does not equate with the quality of legal work it performs and anyone who implies the opposite is misguided. While this is garnering headlines now as Corporate America attempts to tighten its belt, this is something that most legal insiders have come to realize some time ago. You see, the “big firm” business model is arcane and simply does not work in today’s competitive environment.

Most large Atlanta defense firms bill strictly on an hourly basis. While there is a lot of talk about changing, change comes slowly, if at all. Conversely, most smaller law firms who tend to represent injured Plaintiffs take most new cases on a contingency fee basis. In other words, the law firm’s fee is a percentage of the amount that is recovered for the client and if there is no recovery, there is no fee.

I’m sure most people caught the outrageous story of the 200-pound pet chimp who went berserk and attacked his owner’s house guest. Sure to draw attention due to the bizarre circumstances, the story appeared in most newspapers across the country including the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Charla Nash, 55, was visiting her good friend, Sandra Herold, when Herold’s beloved 14-year-old chimpanzee, Travis, savagely attacked Nash, leaving her in critical condition at Stamford Hospital. The chimp could be heard in the background grunting while attacking Nash as Herold sobbed to the 911 dispatcher, “He’s killing my friend…My Chimpanzee…He ripped her apart…Shoot him…Shoot him.”

Herold admitted during an interview aired on NBC’s “Today” show that she had given Travis the anti-anxiety drug, Xanax, which had not been prescribed to him. As authorities considered criminal charges, Herold recanted this account and now denies that she gave the chimp the drug.