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Slip and fall in a store? Chances are good you are on (very high-definition) camera  

A case I’m now handling serves as an interesting reminder about how business owners — especially retailers and grocers — equip themselves to fight customers who claim to have been injured on their premises. It also serves as an important reminder that people injured because of a slip or fall should seek the help of a skilled personal injury lawyer.

My client visited a store and slipped because of something on the floor. She was helped up. An employee took an incident report. She was helped to her car, and she drove away. She was sore but thought rest would help her. It didn’t. When she woke the next morning, she was in more pain and sought medical attention immediately. Doctors said she had a neck injury and would incur medical and other costs to address it. My client did not delay. She did not try to tackle the nearly impossible feat of negotiating her own case with insurance companies and everyone representing the store where she fell.

She contacted Fuller Law.

Colorado already is not one of the best states in which to have a slip-and-fall because it has relatively weak legal protections for people who fall on other people’s property, making it tough for injured people to recover damages. To add to the stacking of the deck against those injured because of a slip and fall, businesses such as the one where my client fell are outfitted with high-definition cameras trained on a customer’s every move.

In this case, the store used the same powerful lenses it relies on to spot the shoplifting of a candy bar to examine everything about my client — all with the intent of fighting her personal injury claim. Was she aware of, and paying attention to, her surroundings? What were her facial expressions? Were her shoelaces untied? Could anything else about her shoes — or anything about her clothing, posture or personal behavior have caused her fall? The store also produced intensely focused footage of her being helped up, walking to her car and driving down the street until she was out of range.

Guess what the store did not produce: Footage of my client’s fall. A personal injury lawyer can take steps to prevent a property owner from getting rid of such evidence — but this happens only if a lawyer is retained very early in the process. Because I was retained early in this case, I was able to use what I believe was the deliberate destruction of evidence to help my client not be taken advantage of.

The store’s failure to present the footage of my client’s fall when it could present footage of everything else about her — right down to the brand of shoes she was wearing —was critical in our negotiations and helped us successfully resolve her case prior to trial. The takeaway is that property owners often go to great lengths to deny responsibility for personal injury on their premises.

The store’s close-up video of my client also firmly underscored these things:

To have a slip-and-fall claim, you must have been injured — and you must have documented your injury and the circumstances leading up to it. Take photos in the moment if you can — or insist that someone else at the scene do so. When you are on a business’ premises — especially those of a large commercial retailer or grocer — expect your every move to be recorded while you’re inside and outside, and for as long as you’re within the range of the owner’s video cameras. Slip-and-fall cases are more difficult to pursue in Colorado — so it is very important to find a highly skilled personal injury lawyer to help you navigate the legal complexities and recover the damages to which you are entitled. This deck already is stacked against you — and you likely will not like the outcome if you wait 2-3 weeks after the injury happened before speaking to a lawyer about it.

Originally Posted right here: Slip and fall in a store? Chances are good you are on (very high-definition) camera  

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Top lawyers to watch on social media 

Count me among the first to acknowledge that there are good reasons to believe lawyers, judges and social media don't mix -- but let's face it: Some lawyers are a lot of fun to track online.

They offer insight, expertise -- and often good humor. Though I specialize in personal injury law in Denver, Colorado, I enjoy checking in with lawyers and judges whose expertise falls in other areas to stay informed about significant rulings and trends in the legal profession and law schools. Here’s a short list of jurists and lawyers to watch:

Texas State Supreme Court Justice Don Willett, who is also known as the "Tweeter Laureate of Texas." He tweets a lot about the United States Constitution and also posts a lot of funny jokes and family photos. You can find him on Twitter, his main social media hangout, @justicewillett.

Ed Whelan, president of the Ethics & Public Policy Center. Looking for insight into the current confirmation hearings and political wrangling related to Colorado native and U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit Judge Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court? Mr. Whelan directs the center’s program on The Constitution, the Courts, and the Culture, which focuses on one of the most controversial issues in American society today: the proper role of the courts in construing the Constitution. Mr. Whelan is also a regular contributor to National Review Online’s Bench Memos blog, and he has a robust Facebook following.

Margaret Hagan of Stanford Law Ms. Hagan is the rare person who so beautifully shows where law and art meet. A fellow at Stanford Law School’s Center on the Legal Profession, she is a lawyer and designer committed to helping increase access to justice through technology and design. She regularly posts about interesting topics in the legal industry and uses her graphic design skills to illustrate bright ideas. While in law school, she created the Open Law Lab, which “explores how law can be more engaging, more usable, and more useful” and aims to “… document how students, lawyers, researchers, and professionals can build products and services to redesign law.” For quick-hit updates, follow her on Twitter @MargaretHagan, or visit the Open Law Lab’s website.

Joshua Kubicki, chief strategy officer of Seyfarth Shaw, LLC. Mr. Kubicki focuses on how to build, launch and sustain new business models for legal markets. If you’re a lawyer looking for ways to build more effective teams and/or more efficient work processes, Mr. Kubicki regularly offers great ideas and guidance — such as this so-called manifesto he created for a small, internal team he formed. He’s on Twitter @jkubicki and blogs regularly at Medium.

Jayne Reardon, directory of 2Civility. This Chicago-based nonprofit focused on legal professionals in Illinois offers great ideas for legal professionals in every state. 2Civility’s mission is to promote “a culture of civility and inclusion in which Illinois lawyers and judges embody the ideals of the legal profession in service to the administration of justice in our democratic society." The organization’s core programs include mentoring for young lawyers and coordination with law schools to ensure workforce preparedness. Ms. Reardon tweets a lot about the core principles of the legal profession at @2civility.

Who knew lawyers could be so funny? For a good laugh, head to Twitter to see Lawyer Thoughts and haiku about the U.S. Supreme Court.  https://twitter.com/lawyerthoughts and https://twitter.com/SupremeHaiku.

Originally Posted right here: Top lawyers to watch on social media 

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Consider Supporting Craig Hospital and Denver Health Fundraisers

Colorado personal injury lawyers like me know well how much our injured clients and their families and have been helped by Craig Hospital and Denver Health hospital.

Charitable foundations funding the work both of these Denver hospitals will host their biggest fundraisers of the year this spring. Among the important details:

Craig Hospital Foundation’s 2017 PUSH dinner

When: 5:30 p.m., April 29 Where: Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center, 650 15th St., Denver, CO 80202

Organizers of this year’s PUSH dinner would love to top the $1.8 million raised during last year’s event. Craig Hospital is respected nationally for its expertise in the treatment of people with spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries. Its facilities are uniquely dedicated to programs supporting these patients and their families.

Proceeds from the PUSH dinner pay for Craig’s unique — and very important — programs, which are typically not covered by insurance, such as Therapeutic Recreation, Adaptive Technology, Music Therapy and a wide array of education and tutoring programs. The PUSH dinner’s proceeds also support medical research, including clinical trials aimed at improving patient outcomes, lessening long-term-complications and improving quality of life for those with spinal cord and traumatic brain injury. The dinner also supports the foundation’s Patient Assistance Fund, which helps patients with inadequate insurance travel to and from Craig hospital, purchase equipment, remodel homes for accessibility and meet other urgent needs.

  Denver Health Foundation’s 2017 NightShine Gala

When: 6 p.m., May 13, 2017 Where: Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center, 650 15th St., Denver, CO 80202

Denver Health’s black-tie soiree benefits the Denver metro region’s only Level 1 Trauma Center, which cares for one in three adults in Denver and roughly 35 percent of Denver’s children. Denver Health provides training to future doctors in 31 medical specialties and readily accepts the insured, under-insured and uninsured.

This year, gala attendees — hoping to best last year’s $1.3 million fundraising — will help honor legendary music and events promoter Chuck Morris and get to cut footloose to the sounds of musician Kenny Loggins, whose smash hits helped rocket several Hollywood films to permanent places of honor in American pop culture.

First Seen over here: Consider Supporting Craig Hospital and Denver Health Fundraisers

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Fuller Law Uses Expertise To Uncover Critical Information

Sometimes creative thinking reveals viable legal claims that were not obvious at first. Take, for example, Fuller Law’s representation of the family of a man who was working on a large fryer in a food production warehouse. A hose blew off of a fitting, covering the man in near boiling cleaning chemicals. He died days later because of his injuries.

Workplace injuries typically are covered under an insurance program called Workers’ Compensation. In Colorado, these claims are the exclusive remedy against an employer — which means that in all but cases of the most egregious employer conduct, an employer in this state is immune from lawsuit by an employee. However, this does not mean Workers’ Comp is the only possible way for an injured worker to go after damages. If a third party not connected to the employer is responsible for losses and damages, an injured worker can sue that third party.

In this case, Fuller Law discovered that the industrial fryer’s manufacturer continued to maintain the machine annually — and had missed the fact that an improper fitting was being used on the hose that failed. As a result of our findings, our firm pursued a Wrongful Death claim in federal court under Colorado’s Premises Liability Act. We argued that the improper hose fitting was a dangerous condition — and that the manufacturer knew, or should have known, about the potential danger of that fitting.

After much litigation, the case was resolved for a confidential amount. The lesson here is that highly skilled and proper diligence can reveal a novel theory. Fuller Law’s expertise and care uncovered critical information that would have been missed by most other law firms. Our work in this case made a huge difference for a grieving family.

Because many areas of law overlap, you need to have really good attorneys on your side. The Team at Fuller Law is ready to analyze your case today.

Contact John R Fuller for more information on how a Denver personal injury attorney can help in your situation.

Original Post here: Fuller Law Uses Expertise To Uncover Critical Information