Court proceedings

May 7, 2020

Pandemic Forces Supreme Court to Change. What’s Next for the Legal Community?

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In another sign of the epochal impact of the coronavirus, the Supreme Court is conducting its hearings via teleconference for the first time in its history.

But sadly, with all the high-tech wizardry that is available and expected in 2020, the nine justices and attorneys were still not able to be seen by the public.

The Texas Supreme Court and several Texas and federal courts of appeal have already conducted and livestreamed hearings on You Tube. And many other appellate courts have videotaped and audiotaped their hearings for years.

So it is hard to believe that the U.S. Supreme Court is the only branch of government that has always restricted Americans’ right to see it in action. It seems to be operating in a technological Stone Age.

In this video-drenched world, we take it for granted that we can watch everything. For example, try to imagine only listening to the impeachment hearings or a presidential news conference.

Still, allowing the public to finally get to hear the guarded justices ask questions was a quantum leap forward for the tradition-bound court.

It reminded me how my world opened up when I won a newfangled transistor radio when I was 10 years old in 1964!

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March 16, 2020

Will Coronavirus Affect Texas Car Accidents?

by William K. Berenson

I have been asked by several clients if the coronavirus will affect their car wreck cases. No one knows as we are in uncharted territory. On top of the anxiety we are all living through, as a Fort Worth personal lawyer, I am very concerned how the virus could affect injured people’s medical treatment and personal and financial outcomes.

Here are some specific questions I have.

1. Will fewer police respond to crashes?

It is essential that the police come to the scene of a crash and determine which driver was at fault. Without a favorable police report and officers who can testify in court, a car accident can become a “he said/she said” dispute. These are often denied by the other driver’s insurance representatives so a lawsuit must be filed. Juries may not know which driver to side with.

Furthermore, the police report contains important information that the car accident lawyer can use to help his client win the case. This includes the names and identifying information about all drivers, insurance policies, date, time, location, speed limit, weather, vehicle damage, witness’s observations, admissions of fault made, injuries reported, alcohol use, etc.

My office obtains the police report for our clients at no charge. The sooner we get the report, the sooner we can get to work.

October 14, 2019

Supreme Court Hears Controversial Sanctions Case

by William K. Berenson

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When has a trial lawyer represented his client too zealously?

The Texas Supreme Court heard arguments Friday here in Fort Worth in the nationally-watched sanctions case of Brewer v. Lennox Hearth Products. There was a packed courtroom and an overflow crowd at Texas A&M Law School.

The Court’s decision will set boundaries on just how far a lawyer can go to win a trial. And making the hearing even more sensational, the attorney in question, William Brewer III of Dallas and New York City, has often been in the headlines, most recently while representing the National Rifle Association.

June 21, 2019

How Texas Personal Injury Cases Are Affected By New Laws

by William K. Berenson

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The governor’s final day to sign or veto bills passed by the state legislature was Sunday. Fortunately, the right of Texans to access the courts and recover damages was not adversely affected. Of the 7,500 bills introduced and 1,400 passed, here are several that affect the car and truck crash cases we have specialized in for almost 40 years at Berenson Injury Law.

HB 1693 AFFIDAVITS TO PROVE MEDICAL RECORDS AND BILLS

The plaintiff must file his medical records and bills with affidavits proving that the service was reasonably priced and necessary and itemize how much of the bill was paid and how much is due. The new law accelerates the filing deadlines by requiring that affidavits be filed 90 or 120 days after the defendant’s answer is filed/experts deadline.

May 6, 2019

Red Light Cameras Legal: Texas Supreme Court

by William K. Berenson

In an unanimous decision in Garcia v. City of Willis #17-0713, the high court dismissed a lawsuit Friday that would have eliminated the widely despised red light cameras in Texas. The plaintiff had filed a class action lawsuit to declare they were unconstitutional and sought to obtain a refund of the millions of dollars of fines Texas motorists have paid.

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On procedural grounds, the Supreme Court found the plaintiff lacked standing, chose to pay his fine and avoid the required administrative hearing, and governmental immunity barred the reimbursement claim.

The decision follows other attempts to outlaw the cameras. For example, in February the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago called a similar argument “a dud” and noted that the advantages of the cameras outweighed other concerns.

March 7, 2019

Decision Rips Largest Health Insurance Carrier

by William K. Berenson

UnitedHealthcare slammed for violations of federal and Texas law

A federal judge in Northern California released a 106 page decision Tuesday which held that UnitedHealthcare fraudulently created guidelines that denied benefits to its members solely to save money. The court found that United’s mental health subsidiary had used self-serving guidelines to justify the denials of badly needed mental health treatment for over six years. The guidelines conflicted with generally accepted medical standards as well as federal and state law, including our statutes in Texas. The story sounds like it came from a John Grisham novel like The Rainmaker.

Judge Joseph Spero wrote that the primary factor in the development of internal company guidelines was the maximization of profit, not adopting generally accepted medical practices. The provider had focused on its ‘bottom line as much or more” than the health of its policyholders and had illegally denied badly needed treatment to thousands of them.

January 17, 2019

When Child Is Injured in Texas, What Happens?

by William K. Berenson

DIFFERENT LEGAL PROCEDURES APPLY WHEN CHILD IS INJURED

Being injured in a car or truck accident when you are an adult can be a traumatic, life-changing experience, but it can be even worse when your child is injured due to the negligence of another driver. In addition to caring for your child, you can be saddled with huge medical expenses and lose wages from your job. Texas has procedures that can make recovering money for a child’s injury easier, but they can be complicated if you don’t know what to expect. This post will explain how a child’s injury case is handled in Texas and explain terms you will need to know including

minor prove up hearing;
structured annuity;
registry of the court; and
guardian ad litem

I thought to write this post because I was in court yesterday representing a 16-year-old woman who had broken her finger at a church retreat. The judge had appointed me to represent her interests since she was a minor, i.e. under the age of 18. The mother, who did not have an attorney, had many questions.

And this morning, I told a client that I was filing a lawsuit so we could conclude his son’s $30,000 settlement (the maximum available) and he wanted to know more about this process.

Whether it is a baby or a 17-year-old who is injured, a child is not allowed under the law to represent himself since they have not achieved the age of majority. Until someone is 18, he or she is not allowed to make legal decisions, enter into contracts, or hire attorneys, which makes sense. So all states have special procedures to protect the best interests of the minor child.

August 8, 2018

Should You Settle Or Sue After Car Crash?

by William K. Berenson

If you have been injured in a car or truck accident, you will have a lot of questions especially these:

Will I have to go to court?
How much money can I receive?
How long will it take?

This post answers the first question and the other two are addressed in these posts:

How much money is my car accident case worth?

The litigation process

Will my case settle out of court or go to a trial?

There are two ways that someone can collect his or her damages: an insurance company can pay them an agreed amount of money or a jury can award them monetary damages.

Statistics show that about 99% of all injury cases settle outside of the courtroom, usually before a lawsuit is filed.

So the chances of your case settling are excellent. But that answer as well as the amount of money you might receive and the length of time the process may take depend on many factors including the following:

Key information that is needed

Your case’s strengths and weaknesses;
Your liability facts and vehicle damage;
Your chance of winning a trial totally or partially, as negligence is attributed between all drivers and companies involved;
Your injuries – are they permanent or temporary, hard tissue or soft tissue, did you have surgery, etc.
Your medical expenses – how many are outstanding, were paid, and were written off;
Your lost wages, lost job benefits, and lost capacity to earn a living;
Your disability, disfigurement, loss of consortium, and other damages;
Your financial condition – your need for a quick recovery of money or your ability to wait for a trial;
Your desire to go through the usually frustrating and slow court process;
Your injury lawyer – his experience, ability, and reputation;
Your negotiating ability (if you are trying to represent yourself) and knowledge of legal, insurance, and medical issues;
Your goals; and
The other driver’s/company’s insurance company insurance policy limits and his/its assets

We at Berenson Injury Law evaluate these and other variables when we first meet with our new clients. We ask if our clients would prefer us to try to get the maximum amount of money from the insurance company or sue. After practicing personal injury law for almost 40 years, Mr. Berenson has never had a client who wanted to go to court if he could avoid it.

Later, we analyze these variables and recommend that our clients take their case to court or accept a settlement offer. We then try to reduce outstanding medical bills and perform other services to make our clients more money.

If you are undecided between entering into settlement negotiations, accepting a settlement offer, and going to a jury trial, we are happy to analyze your car or truck accident in a free no-obligation meeting or phone call. Continue reading

August 3, 2018

Dallas Cowboys Star Sued For $1M After Car Accident

by William K. Berenson

Everything you wanted to know about Ezekiel Elliott

The Cowboys’ young sensation was sued yesterday in Collin County district court after he caused a wreck in January 2017, according to the Dallas Morning News.

Zeke Elliott was driving to the Cowboys headquarters at 7:00 o’clock a.m. when he ran a light on the Dallas North Tollway in Frisco and apparently severely injured Ronnie Hill.

We here at Berenson Injury Law are obsessed with car wrecks and sports and we blogged about the crash here.

Zeke, who is 23, ran for 983 yards last season and scored seven touchdowns despite being suspended for six games for legal reasons. He was the #1 rusher in the NFL his rookie season.

Hill’s attorney said that his client was left with “serious, life-altering injuries,” so apparently his neck and back discs have been damaged.

Hill’s expensive BMW was totalled with over $33,000 in property damage. Media accounts initially downplayed the wreck, calling it a fender-bender. Both vehicles were driven away from the scene and no ambulance was called for Hill.

Of course injuries can be delayed and in the state of shock — and maybe here a little celebrity worship — the injured person may not rush to an ER or begin feeling pain until hours or even days afterwards.

Zeke was driving a huge GMC Yukon when he “accidentally” ran a red light, according to the police report which was apparently written by a big Cowboys fan.

The Yukon hit the BMW on the front driver’ side panel and, according to the lawsuit, caused it spin more than 90 degrees. A tow truck was required to pull the two vehicles apart, as they were wedged together. The air bags deployed in the Yukon but not in the BMW.

July 6, 2018

Lawsuit Filed For Seriously Injured Truck Driver

by William K. Berenson

Berenson Injury Law has filed suit in Cameron County (Brownsville) on behalf of a Fort Worth man whose vehicle was crashed into by this 18-wheeler.

Our client, who was also driving a tractor-trailer, sustained serious injuries and had to undergo a lumbar surgery. He has huge medical bills and lost wages and may have to have a second operation.

Injured victims of car and truck crashes can face years of physical pain and emotional injuries caused by negligent drivers.