South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

A federal statute regulating locomotive safety preempts a state products liability and wrongful death lawsuit, according to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former railroad worker, and later his estate, sued multiple companies, alleging that exposure to asbestos in their products while he was a railroad employee caused his cancer. In Kurns v. Railroad Friction Products Corp., 132 S. Ct. 1261 (2012), the Supreme Court affirmed lower court judgments dismissing the lawsuit due to federal preemption.

George Corson, the decedent, worked for nearly three decades as a machinist and welder for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad. He worked in locomotive repair, installing brakeshoes; and in locomotive maintenance, removing boiler insulation. He ceased employment with the railroad in 1974, and received a diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma in 2005. He and his wife filed a lawsuit in Pennsylvania state court in 2007 naming fifty-nine defendants, including Railroad Friction Products Corporation (RFPC) and Viad Corp. The lawsuit alleged that RFPC distributed products containing asbestos, and that Viad succeeded a company that manufactured and distributed products containing asbestos. The plaintiffs asserted causes of action for defective design and failure to warn of danger. Corson died after filing suit, and the court substituted his executor, Gloria Kurns, as a plaintiff.

The defendants removed the case to the federal district court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. That court granted their motion for summary judgment based on the argument that the Locomotive Inspection Act (LIA), 49 U.S.C. § 20701 et seq., preempted state claims for damages. The statute, enacted in 1911, requires “railroad carriers” to maintain locomotive equipment in safe working order. 49 U.S.C. § 20701(1). The Supreme Court held that the LIA preempts state claims for injuries by both railroad passengers and rail workers in Napier v. Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Co., 272 U.S. 605 (1926). The Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s ruling, and the plaintiffs appealed.

Continue reading "Supreme Court Finds that Federal Law Preempts State Asbestos Lawsuit: Kurns v. Railroad Friction Products Corp." »

If you live in Fort Lauderdale, or Miami, you are under increased risk of exposure to toxic chemicals. Many businesses, including restaurants, retail stores, rental properties, and even some well-managed country club communities in Boca Raton and West Palm Beach, are increasingly under scrutiny for their excessive use of toxic chemicals.

The most commonly abused toxic chemicals of those used to control insects, rodents, and other common pests. Because of a lack of proper supervision, there is often negligence in the over application or abusive overuse of toxic chemicals in our homes, shops, and restaurants.

The State of Florida has extensive guidelines, which are effective in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, in Broward County, which clearly indicate a level of appropriate and inappropriate use of toxic chemicals. Many South Florida personal injury lawyers have experience in dealing with personal injury lawsuits by those who are exposed to excessive levels of toxic chemicals. Premises liability and personal injury lawsuits arise when a company, or an individual, who has a duty of due care acts negligently.

The types of personal injuries that can occur differ on the type of chemical and the amount of its concentration. If you feel that you have been injured by exposure to toxic chemicals, in your home in South Florida, or in a business establishment anywhere in Miami, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, contact a South Florida personal injury law firm.

An experienced South Florida personal injury lawyer handles not only slip and fall, and automobile accident and automobile collision lawsuits, but is also trained to advise you on medical malpractice, and other personal injuries. Most South Florida personal injury lawyers will gladly meet with you, one-on-one, for a consultation at no cost. Contact us for your FREE consultation via telephone 954 431 8100 or 305 624 9186 or online.

You may have read in the news or seen on TV that many homes in Hollywood, Pembroke Pines, Hialeah, West Palm Beach, Pompano Beach, and all over South Florida have been found to contain toxic particles such as asbestos, and hydrogen-sulfide gas that can lead to very serious diseases such as Asbestosis, Mesothelioma, or chest diseases such as Emphysema, Bronchitis, or Asthma. These are very serious conditions that can cause many medical problems, serious injury, and expensive hospital and medical treatment bills. If you live in South Florida and think you are currently being exposed or previously have been exposed to such particles, you should contact a South Florida personal injury attorney immediately.

Your home in Margate, Miami Beach, Key Biscayne, Redlands, or Belle Glade may contain such dangerous particles and you should not have to suffer through any medical condition and/or expenses caused by chemicals placed in your home by someone else.

Asbestos is a naturally produced mineral that is harmful when its fibers enter the air and are either ingested or inhaled. Therefore, you may not even know you are inhaling such dangerous chemicals into your body causing personal injury. Because it takes so long to develop symptoms, asbestos cases may be filed years after the asbestos exposure took place.

However, you should not wait. If you think you have been exposed to asbestos, your South Florida personal injury lawyer has experience in the Courts in Broward, Miami and West Palm Beach and can advise you of your rights related to the exposure of this substance. While this is not meant to scare anyone, it is a very real and very prevalent problem in South Florida and one is always better safe than sorry. We can help you if you call 954-431-8100

A news article caught my eye as a Coral Springs car wreck lawyer recently because it featured a celebrity resident of South Florida caught driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. David Cassidy, a former teen idol who appeared on the 1970s-era television show “The Partridge Family,” was arrested Nov. 3 for driving under the influence of both alcohol and hydrocodone, a powerful prescription opiate painkiller sold most commonly as Vicodin. Cassidy lives in Fort Lauderdale, but was pulled over in St. Lucie County on the Florida Turnpike after an officer noticed erratic driving. Cassidy tried but failed to complete field sobriety tests to the officer’s satisfaction, which was captured on a video released Nov. 29. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel said Cassidy has pleaded not guilty to DUI, failing to stay in his lane and an open container violation.

According to information released by the local prosecutor’s office, Cassidy was pulled over after an FHP trooper noticed him weaving around the road and nearly causing a crash. The trooper tried to take Cassidy through field sobriety tests, but Cassidy apparently had trouble following directions and kept interrupting. However, the video shows him apologizing and trying to cooperate, saying he does not believe he is impaired and offering to run through the tests a second time. Instead, he was arrested, and blood tests later registered blood-alcohol concentrations of 0.139 and 0.141, both above the 0.08 legal limit. Cassidy said he’d taken legally prescribed hydrocodone and had a glass of wine at lunch, but troopers also found a half-empty bottle of bourbon in the car. He was scheduled to appear in court again Nov. 30.

As a Wellington auto accident attorney, I was particularly interested in this case because it might raise drivers’ awareness of the dangers of driving on prescription drugs. Many drivers are surprised to find out that even when a drug was legally prescribed for a legitimate medical need, that doesn’t mean it’s legal to take it before driving. Florida law lists some of these drugs in detail, but in general, the prohibited drugs are the ones that could affect drivers’ ability to drive safely, including sleep aids, strong painkillers, sedatives and anti-anxiety medications. Vicodin, the drug Cassidy had apparently been using, has the further problem of increasing the effects of alcohol. This can make patients drunker than they expect from even small amounts of alcohol. But this should be very well marked on the drug’s label, giving Cassidy little excuse to be surprised by it.

Continue reading "Former Partridge Family Actor Arrested for Intoxicated Driving on Florida Turnpike" »

A jury has awarded $995,600 to a Lynn Haven woman suing over her husband’s death, the Panama City News-Herald reported April 29. Betty McBride was continuing the lawsuit filed by her and her husband, Woodrow McBride, against former employers and parts manufacturers they believe exposed him to asbestos. As a result, they argued, Woodrow McBride developed mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer of the internal tissues. He died in September of 2006, a month after the lawsuit was filed.

Woodrow McBride had worked at two power plants in the Panhandle between 1968 and 1996. During that time, the McBrides’ lawsuit charged, he was exposed to asbestos, a known carcinogen, though the installation and maintenance of Foster Wheeler brand boilers insulated with the substance. In the suit, the McBrides named Foster Wheeler and fifteen other companies they believed had contributed to the asbestos exposure. In its decision, the jury found that products from Foster Wheeler and a company not part of the lawsuit, Gulf Power, made products that caused the illness. It apportioned 25% of the blame to Foster Wheeler, 60% to Gulf Power and 1% to each of the remaining defendants. Because Gulf Power was never part of the claim, it does not have to pay its share of the damages.

Asbestos exposure is a common subject of lawsuits because it is the only known risk factor for mesothelioma, a rare but deadly cancer of the tissues lining the chest. Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was once widely used in industry; it is composed of tiny fibers that human beings can inhale but not exhale. Once the fibers are inside the victim’s body, they get stuck in the lungs and are eventually absorbed by the body, resulting in cancer anytime from 10 to 60 years later. Because this cancer is frequently detected late, and because its location near vital body organs makes surgery difficult, the prognosis for most victims is grim. Though some patients live with the disease for years, most, like Woodrow McBride, die within 18 months of diagnosis.

History shows that scientists understood the dangers of asbestos for decades before it was removed from most U.S. workplaces. However, employers in multiple industries continued to expose workers to the material without warning or protection throughout the 20th century, which is why most mesothelioma sufferers are older men, often retired. Many of those patients and their loved ones are now striking back with South Florida mesothelioma lawsuits. A lawsuit cannot reverse mesothelioma, unfortunately, but it can help victims pay for the medical care they need, provide for their loved ones and hold the companies responsible for the asbestos exposure legally liable for their actions.

Cohn, Smith & Cohn is proud to represent mesothelioma victims throughout the state of Florida. Our Hialeah asbestos exposure lawyers can help patients and their families win compensation for a serious illness or a wrongful death caused by the carelessness of former employers and their suppliers, sometimes including the U.S. military. Unfortunately, time is of the essence in mesothelioma claims -- in addition to concerns related to the illness, it can take time to trace back all of the sources of the asbestos exposure. That’s why experts recommend that you contact a Miramar mesothelioma attorney as soon as you begin considering a legal claim.

If mesothelioma has struck you or someone you love, you can learn more about your legal options at a free, confidential consultation with Cohn, Smith & Cohn. To arrange one, please contact us online or call our main office in Pembroke Pines at (954) 431-8100 today.

Three men were arrested Sept. 12 for allegedly dumping asbestos-laden debris into Central Florida’s Green Swamp more than 43 times over this summer, the Orlando Sentinel recently reported. According to the report, Ronnie Lee Spears, Jr. of Bartow told his employees at the Florida Environmental Compliance Corporation to dump asbestos-laden tiles in the swamp in order to save on landfill fees. Another employee, Thomas Barnhill, arranged for the dumping, and Warren Gregory Gay, the owner of the land, participated and allowed it. All three men were arrested after a tipoff sparked a joint state and local investigation into the practice, which the Sentinel reported may have saved the company more than $10,000.

Dumping is a crime in Florida, of course, and it's despicable that some people feel entitled to spoil our environment in order to save a few dollars. But what really raises eyebrows in this case is what was dumped -- asbestos building materials. Asbestos causes cancer, and it has been known to cause cancer for decades, which is why its use in buildings and other applications is highly restricted. In fact, the type of cancer it causes is a particularly fast-acting cancer called mesothelioma, which is frequently not diagnosed until it has reached an advanced state. Victims of mesothelioma are generally given months, rather than years, to live. In short, mesothelioma is an ugly disease -- but because asbestos is almost always the cause, it is also highly preventable.

Because asbestos makes people sick, special precautions must be taken when it's removed from buildings, as it was in this case. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that the Florida Environmental Compliance Corporation specializes in that sort of high-risk removal -- which would make it highly ironic that the company's employees (apparently acting on their own) exposed others to this carcinogen by introducing it into our air and water. Their company is cleaning up the swamp at its own expense (which I applaud), but its employees could still be legally liable in any asbestos exposure lawsuit or mesothelioma lawsuit that results from their careless and illegal behavior.

If you or someone you care about is suffering from mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, please contact Cohn, Smith & Cohn as soon as possible to discuss your case and your legal options.