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Can a Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer Represent Both a Driver and Passenger?

February 9, 2016 by Tim Rayne

Pennsylvania car accidents often involve multiple injured people, both drivers and passengers in a car. In such cases, the issue can arise as to whether a single lawyer can represent both a driver and a passenger. The answer is that sometimes it’s possible but other times there can be a conflict of interest that probibits dual representation.

Conflict of interest is a big no no for lawyers. We have a duty of loyalty to our clients and can’t be involved in representing clients that have interests which are divergent. In a car accident case, representing a driver and passenger for personal injuries can be problematic for two reasons. First, the driver may have been partially responsible for causing the accident. If so, then the passenger has a legal claim against the driver which creates a conflict of interest. Second, even if the driver was not at fault and the other driver was completely responsible, if the other driver has limited insurance to compensate the injured parties, then a conflict of interest can arise because there will be a fight over limited funds in the case.

Representing a driver and passenger can be done when the driver was clearly not at fault (like with a rear end collision) and when there is plenty of insurance coverage. In such a case, the driver and passenger need to be informed of the conflict of interest issue and can agree to waive the conflict and let the lawyer represent both of them.

In my Pennsylvania Car Accident practice, there have been many times that I have had to turn down representing both a driver and passenger, but there have also been cases in which I have represented whole families who have been injured in a car accident.

For more information on Pennsylvania Car Accident or Conflict of Interest issues, contact Tim Rayne at trayne@macelree.com or 610 840 0124. For over 20 years, Tim has been helping victims of car accidents in Pennsylvania receive fair treatment from insurance companies either through settlement or trial. Tim has offices in Kennett Square and West Chester, Pennsylvania.

What are the Pennsylvania Limited Tort Exceptions?

February 3, 2016 by Tim Rayne

When you purchase car insurance in Pennsylvania you have to choose Full Tort or Limited Tort. Full Tort costs more, but your full legal rights are protected if you are injured in a car accident caused by someone else. You can recover Economic Damages for Medical Bills, Lost Wages and Out-of-Pocket Expenses and Non-Economic Damages for Pain and Suffering and the negative impact on your life and activities. If you select Limited Tort, you save money on your premiums, but in exchange, you give up your right to make a claim for Non-Economic Damages if you are injured in a car accident unless a Limited Tort Exception applies.

Pennsylvania Limited Tort Exceptions

Even if you select Limited Tort, there is a chance that you can still recover Non-Economic Damages if an Exception applies.

The following are the Pennsylvania Limited Tort Exceptions:

1- Serious Injury – If you suffer a “Serious Injury” which is defined as Death, Permanent Serious Disfigurement, or Serious Impairment of a Bodily Function, then Full Tort applies and you can recover Non-Economic Damages.

2- Pedestrians, Motorcyle or Bicycle Riders – Limited Tort doesn’t apply to pedestrians, motorcycle or bicycle riders.

3- Occupant of a non-private passenger motor vehicle – Limited Tort doesn’t apply if you are injured in a commercial vehicle, like a bus, taxi or commercial truck.

4- Drunk Drivers – Limited Tort does not apply if the driver who injured you pleads guilty or is convicted of drunk driving.

5- Intentional Acts – If a driver intended to cause the crash, then Limited Tort does not apply.

6- Uninsured Driver – If the person who caused the car accident has no insurance, then Limited Tort does not apply.

7- Out-of-State Registered Car – If the other driver was driving a car registered outside of Pennsylvania, then Limited Tort does not apply.

Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer Tim Rayne

For more information on Pennsylvania car insurance choices or for advice after a Pennsylvania car accident contact Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer Tim Rayne at trayne@macelree.com or 610 840 0124. For over 20 years, Tim has been helping injured car accident victims receive fair treatment from insurance companies.

Do I have a Legal Claim for Compensation if a Car Accident Aggravates a Pre-Existing Back Injury

January 31, 2016 by Tim Rayne

As a Chester County Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer, I often hear the question Do I have a legal claim for compensation if a Car accident aggravated my pre-existing back injury? The answer is Yes, but the fact that you had a pre-existing back injury is a complicating factor in the car accident case making it important that you have an experienced Personal Injury attorney to represent you.

Pennsylvania Law Regarding Pre-Existing Conditions

Pennsylvania law provides that someone who causes a car accident is liable for all harm caused by the collision. Harm includes physical injuries that are clearly caused by the trauma, like cuts, bruises and broken bones, but it also includes any aggravation or worsening of pre-existing conditions, like back injuries or degenerative conditions.

For anyone over age 20, and sometimes even younger people, back injuries and degenerative conditions are very common. Sports activities, trauma, hard labor or even a sedentary lifestyle can cause spine injuries and/or degeneration of the spine.

When a car accident causes the forward and backward whiplash motion, pre-existing back injuries or degenerative conditions can be aggravated. This often results in symptoms like pain and restricted range of motion.

Pennsylvania law provides that someone injured in an accident is entitled to recover compensation for the aggravation of pre-existing back injuries. This is the case even if the injuries are worse than might be expected because of the pre-existing conditions.

The only way a defendant can escape liability is if he can establish that the injured person would be suffering from the same symptoms from the pre-existing conditions even if the accident did not happen.

Insurance Company and Defense Lawyer Tricks

When insurance companies or defense lawyers learn of a pre-existing injury or prior accident related injury, they’ll do whatever they can to try do avoid accepting responsibility and blame the injury on the pre-existing condition or prior accident.

Common tactics include subpoenaing all of your prior medical records, having a private investigator follow you and take photgraphs and video and having you seen by a hired gun defense doctor to say that either there is nothing wrong with you or that your problems are caused by the pre-existing condition.

How to Get Justice

You can still get justice. But, particularly in car accidents involving pre-existing back injuries, it’s important to maximize your chances of winning by condidering these tips:

1- Be sure to hire an experienced Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer;

2- Be honest and up front with your lawyer about all pre-existing conditions and prior accidents;

3- Document your injuries with medical treatment and a daily journal of your symptoms, treatment and restrictions;

4- Never exaggerate your claims of injury and then get caught in surveillance photos or videos doing things you claim no to be able to do;

5- Think of several witnesses, including family, friends, co-workers, etc. who can corroborate your claims of the difference between your life before and after the accident.

Tim Rayne is a Chester County Car Accident Lawyer with MacElree Harvey. For more information on your legal rights after a car accident contact Tim at trayne@macelree.com or 610 840 0124.

Do I Have a Legal Claim If I Slipped and Fell in a Grocery Store in Pennsylvania

January 4, 2016 by Tim Rayne

I often get calls in my Pennsylvania Personal Injury practice from people who have been injured in slip and fall accidents in grocery stores. They inevitably want to know whether they have a legal claim for compensation as a result of the grocery store slip and fall.

The answer depends. Some people have valid slip and fall cases and some don’t.

In Pennsylvania, in order to have a valid legal claim after a slip and fall, the injured person must be able to prove that the grocery store was Negligent. Negligence is a legal term that essentially means carelessness. For a grocery store to be found Negligent, that means the store or its employees did something that created an unneccessary hazard or failed to do something that would have eliminated an unneccessary hazard.

In more practical terms, to have a good slip and fall case against a Pennsylvania grocery store, an injured person needs evidence that the store or its employees created a hazard OR if someone else created the hazard, that it existed for such a period of time that the store should have noticed and eliminated it.

To use concrete examples, here are two cases, one that I accepted and won compensation for a client and another that I rejected because I didn’t think that Negligence could be proven.

In Case 1, a grocery store employee was stocking shelves with soda and dropped a 12 pack. The employee cleaned up the spill, but left a small puddle of clear soda on the floor. An hour later, my client slipped in the puddle and hurt her knee. I took the case, filed a lawsuit and the case eventually settled with the grocery store paying compensation to my client. The store was Negligent because its employee carelessly created a slip and fall hazard that cause injury to my client.

In case 2, my prospective client slipped and fell on grapes on a grocery store floor. He had no ideas how the grapes got spilled, whether an employee or customer dropped them, or how long they were on the floor before his fall. Because of this, I rejected Case 2. Proving Negligence would be very difficult because the grocery store had records of regular safety inspections and could argue that the grapes could have been spilled just minutes before the fall and it would be unreasonable to say that it was Negligent for not noticing and cleaning them up immediately.

So, grocery store slip and falls can be good cases or bad. It just depends on what proof of Negligence can be found.

Tim Rayne is a Pennsylvania Personal Injury Lawyer who regularly handles grocery store Slip and Fall cases. For over 20 years, Tim has been helping injured victims of Slip and Fall accidents understand their legal rights and receive fair compensation from insurance companies. For a Free Evaluation of your Pennsylvania Slip and Fall case, contact Tim at 610 840 0124 or trayne@macelree.com or check out his website at www.timraynelaw.com.

Tim Rayne

Pennsylvania Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyer