Formulating a Discovery Plan for Your Personal Injury Lawsuit

On October 9, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

You have consulted with an attorney and have decided to pursue a personal injury lawsuit. Your lawyer has drawn up the complaint and has filed it with the appropriate court. The defendant has been notified of the lawsuit.

So what happens next? 

After the suit has been filed, both sides will begin preparing for the “discovery” phase of the case. Discovery involves gathering evidence and information about the incident, its participants, and its consequences. So you and your lawyer will have to formulate a “discovery plan.”

There are two basic parts of a discovery plan: an informal investigation and formal discovery.

During an informal investigation (much of which can be done even before the suit is actually filed), you and your lawyer might:

  • conduct informal interviews of witnesses or others involved in the incident
  • take photos of the scene where the incident occurred
  • collect documents related to your medical bills and lost time at work
  • establish whether the defendant is insured and to what extent

Formal discovery encompasses the legal processes leading up to a trial. This is when you and your lawyer would:

  • establish written questions (called interrogatories) that must be answered in writing under oath by the defendant
  • request that the defendant provide certain documents that are pertinent to the case
  • work with the defendant to establish which facts are true and which evidence is genuine
  • conduct a deposition where the defendant must answer specific questions orally and under oath 

If you have any questions about a discovery plan, an informal investigation, or formal discovery, your personal injury lawyer will be able to answer them for you.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Mobile Devices and Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawsuits

On September 20, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Cell phones, personal digital assistants, and similar mobile devices have all drastically changed the lives of Las Vegas residents. We can reach more people at different times in faraway places, send and receive ever-increasing amounts of data to help us work more efficiently, and we can socialize with our friends, family members, and acquaintances in a myriad of different ways.

But these devices have the potential to damage personal injury lawsuits.

“How?” you might ask. Well, I tell my clients they should not discuss their pending personal injury lawsuits with anyone. Despite that warning, some people think that one little cell phone call to their best friend or close relative won’t do any harm.

It’s important to remember that any such phone discussions, whether on a cell phone or a landline, can have negative repercussions. If the person you call isn’t as discreet as he or she should be, the subject matter of your conversation can find its way to the wrong set of ears. And that could come back to haunt you if the defense brings it up at trial.

But what’s even worse is texting sensitive information or inappropriate comments about a case to someone else. If that happens and the defense gets wind of it, they may be able to subpoena your phone records and get a copy of the actual text entered as evidence in your court case. It’s amazing how many people don’t know that phone texts can be recorded in a database operated by the wireless carrier. 

So if you are the plaintiff in a civil lawsuit, don’t use your cell phone to have a “private” (voice or text) conversation with someone about your case. Because like ships, civil cases can be sunk by loose lips.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Hazing Can Lead to Serious Injuries

On September 5, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyer

Most colleges and universities are back in session for the fall (or will be soon). UNLV began its semester a couple of weeks ago, with thousands of students buying their books and preparing themselves for another semester of classes.

One event which usually coincides with the start of the autumn term is the process known as “rush” for college fraternities and sororities.  Rush is the process by which the social organizations choose their new members. Those individuals which are selected are called “pledges,” which refers to the semester-long probationary period they must navigate before becoming full-fledged members of the fraternity or sorority.

And where there are pledges, there is often hazing.

Asking a fraternity or sorority if they allow hazing is pointless, because every one of them will tell you, “We don’t haze.” That’s because hazing is illegal on college campuses in Nevada and the rest of the nation. It’s like asking a company, “Do you exclude women from management posts?” All of them will tell you they don’t – but some clearly have done so in the past.

Hazing varies in its forms, but it can range from being forced to perform menial or disgusting tasks to ongoing shaming and mental abuse to physical assault and forcible confinement. In years past, fraternities and sororities have hazed pledge classes in the name of “building a bond forged through adversity” or simply for tradition’s sake.

Whatever the reason, you should know that you have the right not to be subjected to hazing. Furthermore, if you are injured as a result of hazing activities, the perpetrator(s) can be held liable for damages in civil court (which does happen). 

So if you are a student at an area institution of higher learning and you have been the victim of hazing, talk to a school administrator about it. Schools can impose penalties against sororities or fraternities who violate anti-hazing rules, including banishment from campus. If you have suffered injuries in a hazing incident, consider engaging the services of a personal injury lawyer who can file suit on your behalf.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Facebook and Personal Injury Lawsuits in Las Vegas Do Not Mix

On September 2, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Facebook has become ubiquitous in our country today. It’s a social phenomenon. Millions of American citizens, businesses, and groups all have a presence on the popular site (even I have a page! Feel free to friend me!). However, many of us are now discovering that Facebook can also be a liability when used inappropriately.

I thought about this when I came across a story about the removal of a juror from a criminal case in Michigan. Apparently, Hadley Jons wrote on her Facebook page that it’s “gonna be fun to tell the defendant they’re guilty.” Of course, jurors are strongly warned not to discuss a criminal case they are deciding (much less post a comment about it on a social forum). Jons has already been removed from the case and may face contempt of court charges.

As far as my practice is concerned, I also inform my clients that they should not discuss the details of their lawsuit with anyone else. The reason is because if those types of comments got back to the defense, they could be used against my client in court.

Obviously, if such comments appeared on a Facebook page, anyone in the world could potentially see them (in fact, in the Michigan case the inappropriate material was discovered by the son of one of the defense lawyers). Depending on the exact nature of the comments, any defense lawyer could either use them as evidence to erode my case or portray my client as hostile, vengeful, or boastful in front of a jury. 

If you have been wronged by someone else and think that filing a lawsuit might help, feel free to call or email me and we’ll set up a free consultation. But whatever you do, don’t let loose lips sink your case before I get a chance to argue it.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Man Wins Settlement from Taser Corporation After Suffering Serious Injuries

On August 20, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

I’ve talked about electric stun gun injuries (otherwise known as Taser guns) before. These weapons can deliver tens of thousands of volts into the body of a victim. Some victims of Taser guns have reported symptoms and effects long after the incident passed – and some people had even died after being shocked with a Taser.

Many individuals have sued the Taser Corporation alleging that the stun guns are more dangerous than they are reported to be. Company officials have always claimed that the weapons were either used improperly by law enforcement agencies or that the victims had an underlying condition which contributed to their injuries or loss of life. And in the past, the company has gotten away with it.

But that may be about to change.

In Watsonville, California (CA), a man was awarded $2.85 million in a settlement with Taser Corporation related to an anoxic brain injury after he was shocked by a stun gun. As part of the settlement, the company did not admit to causing 49-year-old Steven Butler’s brain injury. But Taser Corporation was unsuccessful in getting the dollar amount of the settlement sealed by the court. This marks the first time that a “price tag” has been attached to a personal injury lawsuit involving Taser guns.

In October 2006, Butler was shocked by a Watsonville police officer using a Taser X-26 after Butler refused to get off of a bus. Butler went into cardiac arrest, and medical personnel needed 18 minutes to revive him. By then, Butler had suffered irreparable brain damage. Today, Butler has no short-term memory, decreased mobility and motor skills, and the need for 24-hour care.

This settlement could potentially be the first of many reached between Taser Corporation and plaintiffs who have sued the company over stun gun use. If you have suffered injuries from an electric stun gun, seek medical attention and then contact a personal injury attorney right away to discuss your legal options.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Tire Blowout Leads to Terrible Truck Crash on I-15 in Las Vegas

On August 15, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

A family of five was driving along Interstate 15 (I-15) in Las Vegas when their right tire blew out. In many instances, when this happens, the driver and passengers are inconvenienced since they have to replace the tire or wait until AAA shows up. Unfortunately, this was not the case for the family on I-15.

Their pickup truck traveled across multiple lanes and eventually slammed head-on into a parked paving truck. Both parents were killed and the three children suffered serious injuries, according to fox5vegas.com.

My deepest sympathies go out to the injured children. Their lives will be changed forever after this awful accident. Not only will they need time to recuperate from their injuries, but they’ll now be forced to grow up without their parents; truly heart breaking.

Nevada Highway Troopers wanted to stress the importance of remaining calm when a tire blows out. The best way to avoid an accident is not to panic and keep your vehicle going straight until it can safely come to a complete stop.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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July Fourth Weekend Fireworks Leads to Four Injuries, One Loss of Life in Las Vegas

On July 13, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Four people, including two children, suffered serious injuries while playing with fireworks during the July Fourth weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada (NV). If that wasn’t bad enough, a man died due to the injuries he sustained from a fireworks accident. The man was in his 20s and suffered the injury while lighting fireworks in the street, according to rgj.com.

In a separate incident, a man and a woman suffered leg burns when they lit fireworks in their backyard. The two children were hurt in separate accidents.

In 2008, roughly 7,000 people (which breaks down to an average of more than 19 people every day) suffered injuries in fireworks accidents. More than half of the people hurt were children. The body parts most often injured were hands and fingers (1,400 injuries), eyes (1,000 injuries), and legs (900 injuries), according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

You might be asking, “What kinds of fireworks caused these serious injuries?” Well, firecrackers and sparklers were the culprits of most injuries. There were 900 fireworks injuries associated with firecrackers and 800 associated with sparklers.

Fireworks don’t just lead to injuries, but also property damage. In fact, an estimated $42 million worth of property is damaged in fireworks-related accidents, according to the CDC.

In order to avoid becoming a victim of a fireworks accident, read the instructions on the firecracker, sparkler, bottle rocket, or other device very carefully. Wear gloves and protective eyewear when igniting the fireworks. This will help decrease your risk of serious burns and eye damage in case something goes wrong. But the most important thing is to not let untrained, inexperienced teenagers and young adults handle fireworks haphazardly. Alert them to the importance of handling fireworks responsibly and carefully. If they don’t, the chances of suffering a serious injury and becoming another July Fourth statistic dramatically increases.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Should I Handle My Own Personal Injury Case?

On July 12, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

It’s a question I often get asked by people in and around Las Vegas. They think hiring a lawyer will just complicate the process. However, trying to negotiate with an insurance company on your own is extremely risky, especially since they will have high-paid defense lawyers and claims adjusters looking for any reason to deny or reduce your claim.

You do have the legal right to argue your own personal injury case, but a personal injury attorney has the training, experience, and legal knowledge to obtain a fair settlement for you. Because insurance companies aren’t in business to give you the most equitable settlement they can – they raise their profits by paying out the smallest possible amount they can get away with.

So yes, I do complicate the process – for the insurance company, not for my clients. And statistics support the notion that hiring a lawyer is a wise financial decision - plaintiffs who hire a personal injury lawyer get a settlement that is 3½ times higher on average than they would have if they had decided to handle the case on their own.

The choice is yours. I won’t charge you for an initial consultation. So what have you got to lose? (except perhaps a lot of settlement money)

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Las Vegas Truck Wreck and the Personal Injury Claims Process

On June 23, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Truck Accident Lawyer in Las Vegas

Here’s a scenario: let’s say you are traveling along a Las Vegas highway in your vehicle, when a tractor-trailer unexpectedly swerves into your lane and causes an accident. Because you suffered injuries in the truck wreck, you decide to file a personal injury lawsuit against the trucking company.

Now, the question: does the truck’s cargo have any relevance to the damages in your case?

The answer? Yes and no.

Under the letter of the law, the type of cargo being hauled by a truck should not directly impact the amount of damages to which you are entitled. Those damages are based on traditional factors such as medical bills, property damage, lost wages from work, pain and suffering, and so on. Unless the cargo itself contributed to your damages directly (for instance, if spilled cargo caused damage to your vehicle or additional injuries to you), then it does not factor into the compensation equation.

But the answer to above question is somewhat different in practice.

To understand why, we must first look at the different federal regulations which govern various types of trucking cargo in the U.S. As with passenger vehicles, tractor-trailers are required by law to maintain a minimum amount of liability coverage at all times. But this minimum financial responsibility varies according to the type of cargo being transported.

Federal rules dictate that any tractor-trailer carrying nonhazardous materials must have at least $750,000 in insurance or surety bonded coverage. For trucks hauling certain substances such as petroleum, that minimum amount rises to $1 million. However, any company that transports substances that are classified as hazardous by the federal government must obtain coverage which provides financial responsibility of no less than $5 million.

So what does this have to do with your accident? As a rule, the dollar amount of trucking company coverage affects any accident claims the company may have to pay out. In other words, the higher the minimum financial responsibility amount of a truck involved in an accident, the larger the damage award will be to the victimized motorists if the trucking company is found to be at fault.

An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to figure out the minimum financial responsibility required for the tractor-trailer that was involved in your accident – and then leverage that result to help you collect as much compensation as you deserve. 

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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How are Future Damages Calculated in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit?

On June 18, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Wrongful Death Lawyer in Las Vegas

When determining how much compensation you are entitled to in a wrongful death lawsuit in Nevada, the court examines several different factors. The hospitalization, medical care, and burial costs incurred by your loved one are computed as part of the damage award. But a large component of your ultimate payout is based on what is known as future damages.

As the name implies, future damages represent the amount of money that your family member would have been worth had the untimely death not occurred. These damages include how much wages or salary the decedent would have earned at his or her job over a lifetime of work. But future damages also take into account concepts which are harder to quantify, such as pain and suffering of family members and loss of consortium and companionship.

However, in order to come up with an accurate figure, these damages must be filtered through a present value calculation. Present value embraces the assumption that a given amount of money today would be worth more in the future (because it is assumed that it will earn interest over time).

Here are the steps to computing present value:

  • Determine the total amount of future damages involved in the case.
  • Estimate a probable rate of return as well as the number of years that the person would have lived had the accident not occurred.
  • Consult a present value table to figure out a percentage value of what the future earnings are worth today.
  • Multiply the total amount of future earnings by the percentage value.

As you can see, the calculation of future damages is complex. But your personal injury attorney has access to resources and experts who can help with this process.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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