South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

Trampolines are a common feature in the backyards of homes with children across the country. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), however, they pose a significant risk of injury to children and teens, including traumatic brain injuries and spinal fractures. Estimates of the total number of injuries caused by trampoline-related accidents every year extend into the hundreds of thousands. The trampoline was not originally intended for recreational use, but rather to train athletes and pilots. The AAP therefore advises against the recreational use of trampolines, especially in a home environment.

A competitive gymnast named George Nissen patented the trampoline in 1945 as a “tumbling device.” He intended to use it to train gymnasts and acrobats, and he expanded its use to include training of military pilots. Once manufacturers learned how to produce trampolines that could be broken down, shipped, and reassembled, the recreational trampoline was born. The AAP’s Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness published a study on trampoline safety among children and teens in the October 2012 issue of the AAP’s journal, Pediatrics. It estimates that nearly 100,000 injuries resulted from trampoline use in 2009, with about 3,100 hospitalizations and deaths.

The most common injuries resulting from trampoline use, according to the AAP, occur in the lower extremities. These account for one-third to half of all trampoline-related injuries, and largely involve sprains or fractures of the ankle. Injury to the cervical spine is a common result of trampoline accidents, caused when a trampoline user lands incorrectly or falls off the trampoline entirely. Between ten and seventeen percent of trampoline-related injuries consist of head and neck injuries, many of which resulted in some degree of physical or cognitive impairment. The AAP states that 0.5% of all trampoline accidents result in permanent neurological impairment.

Continue reading "Pediatricians Warn of Risk of Serious Injury to Children from Recreational Trampoline Use" »

A federal judge in Miami has dismissed multiple claims without prejudice in a putative class action lawsuit against two football helmet manufacturers. The claim was filed by a father who purchased the defendants’ helmets for his two sons, both of whom are high school football players. Concern over injuries to youth in sports, particularly traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries, has led to closer scrutiny of athletic equipment and more claims for damages when equipment malfunctions or defects cause injuries to players.

Most lawsuits rely on the legal theory of products liability, which holds the manufacturer or distributor of a faulty or defective product liable for damages caused by the product. In this case, the plaintiff pleaded breaches of contract and warranty, as well as violations of consumer protection statutes. The court found that he did not plead his claims with sufficient substance, but gave him until July 20 to amend the complaint.

Frank Enriquez filed suit against Easton-Bell Sports, Inc. (EBSI) and Riddell, Inc. in February 2012 over the line of football helmets known as Revolution Helmets. He states in his amended complaint that the defendants marketed the helmets as offering greater protection against concussions in young players, claiming a thirty-one percent reduction in the likelihood of concussion in athletes that used Revolution Helmets.

Continue reading "Miami Court Dismisses Consumer Claims Against Football Helmet Manufacturers" »

A recent article in Highlands Today highlights one of the least understood aspects of a serious motorcycle accident -- the financial costs. The May 11 article focuses on 28-year-old Jason Pearson, who was gravely injured in January after a driver made a U-turn into his motorcycle. The accident broke bones in nearly every part of his body, tore all of the ligaments and tendons in one knee and left a steel plate in one arm. Doctors had to amputate part of his left foot and remove his spleen. Perhaps most heartbreakingly of all, the accident damaged his brain, leaving him with speech problems and sometimes trouble recognizing his family.

Right after the accident, hospital administrators told the Pearson family to consider making funeral arrangements. Luckily, they were wrong -- but healing is coming at a very high financial cost. The newspaper said Pearson has had 18 surgeries since he arrived at the Tampa General Hospital trauma center, at a cost of $3 million and rising. His therapy is showing signs of success -- he recently began to eat solid food again -- but it costs another $1,850 a day. To pay some of those costs, family and friends are holding a benefit breakfast and bike run May 16.

As a motorcyclist and a Pembroke Pines motorcycle accident attorney, I am all too familiar with staggering medical bills like these. Medical care for serious motorcycle accidents like Pearson’s can easily reach into the seven figures, especially if the victim sustained brain damage or severe burns. These costs can quickly exceed the lifetime cap on the victim’s health insurance -- if there is any -- and no ordinary family can pay these costs out of their own pockets. When another driver is at fault, his or her insurance company should pay at least some of those costs -- but when claims are this expensive, insurance companies are willing to fight, even going so far as to blame the victim to keep from paying what they owe.

Sometimes, a Broward County motorcycle crash lawsuit is the only way to force insurance companies to do the right thing. In a lawsuit, motorcycle accident victims can win money not only for their current and future medical bills, but also for other costs of the accident, including repairs to the bike and lost income if the victim cannot work. Just as importantly, it allows victims and their families to claim compensation for their injuries, physical pain and emotional suffering and any disability or wrongful death they suffered.

If you or a loved one has suffered a catastrophic motorcycle accident, my firm, Cohn, Smith & Cohn, can help. My wife and I both ride, so I understand the prejudice and wrong ideas that motorcyclists face -- and as a Hollywood motorcycle accident attorney with more than 25 years of experience, I know how to fight it. Our firm offers free, confidential consultations, so you risk nothing by speaking to us about your rights and your case. To set one up, please contact us online as soon as possible or call us at (954) 431-8100.

This week, an Orlando jury will hear a Florida brain injury lawsuit brought by the daughter of a man hit by a municipal bus. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Gwendolyn Gill of Connecticut is suing over the injuries to her father, Robert Lee Jones. Jones was 71 when he was hit by a LYNX bus while crossing a street in Midway. The report said the collision broke the front window of the bus. Jones did not die then, but lived for 15 more months in medical facilities, or a nursing home, before dying of pneumonia. Gill is suing the municipal bus authority for her father’s medical costs, as well as his pain and suffering.

According to the Sentinel, the plaintiff and the defense offered different accounts of the accident. The accident took place as Jones was crossing the street at 9:40 p.m. in September of 2003. Gill’s attorney told the jury that the bus driver ran a stop sign and made such a wide right turn that the nose of the bus intruded into the grass on the far side of the road, where Jones was standing. The defense, by contrast, said Jones was 50 feet from the intersection, outside the crosswalk where drivers expect to find pedestrians. Jones made progress in his recovery after the accident, the defense said, but it was complicated by his preexisting dementia and cancer.

It’s impossible to know whose claims are true. But thanks to my experience as a Fort Lauderdale brain injury lawyer, I know it would be exceptional for a 71-year-old man to make significant progress in a serious brain injury. Unfortunately, older people are less resilient than others -- but even healthy young people can never fully recover from a brain injury. Brain tissue does not heal like most of the other tissues of the body, so a serious brain injury permanently robs its victim of some abilities. Dementia can only complicate those problems. The victim is likely to be left at least a little disabled, and may need months of rehabilitation or a lifetime of full-time care.

These medical needs can be staggeringly expensive, particularly for a victim on a fixed income. Nursing home care alone costs tens of thousands of dollars a year, and medical expenses for a serious brain injury can easily reach into six figures. When the injury was caused by someone else’s carelessness -- as alleged in this lawsuit -- victims and their families have the right to sue for all of the costs of the injury. That includes the cost of all medical care and support care the victim needs, as well as any income he or she lost and compensation for pain, suffering and life with a permanent disability.

If you or someone you love has suffered this sort of serious brain damage because of a negligent driver, you should speak to the Broward County brain injury attorneys at Cohn, Smith & Cohn. We have more than 25 years of experience with cases of very serious injuries, which means we have the expertise and experience to make our clients’ cases thoroughly and successfully. To learn more about your options at a free, confidential consultation, please contact Cohn, Smith & Cohn today or call our main Coral Springs office at (954) 431-8100.

The Associated Press reports that sixteen professional athletes, including Florida Panthers hockey player Noah Welch, have agreed to donate their brains after they die for research into concussions. The donations will help medical researchers at Boston's Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy better understand the effects of the repeat concussions that many professional athletes sustain in the course of their work. The project is a joint venture between the Boston University School of Medicine and the Sports Legacy Institute. The SLI was founded by Chris Nowinski, a former college football player and wrestler who became a neurologist.

This is great news, and long overdue. As a Florida brain injury lawyer, I've worked with many victims of traumatic brain injuries -- injuries to the brain caused by a blow or pierce wound to the head. These are serious, disabling injuries that always impair the victim's ability at least slightly and cannot be cured. After falls and traffic accidents, sports injuries are the most common cause of civilian traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Worse, because athletes are often under pressure to perform and to be tough, they are frequently discouraged from leaving the field after a mild concussion. Not only does this deny them access to medical care, it also raises their chances of death or serious brain damage after another TBI.

The donors include six former NFL players, which raises another issue: Some former players' allegations that the NFL unfairly denies disability benefits to former players who sustained multiple concussions on the field. (None of the NFL alums involved Nowinski's project are making those allegations, at least in this article.) Some former NFL players have developed memory loss, depression and other symptoms consistent with multiple concussions.

Part of the problem is that brain injuries are still not fully understood; the effects of a minor concussion can actually go unnoticed for days or weeks, even when medical tests show clear signs of injury. Players and coaches need more information to make the best decisions possible after an injury, which is why studies like these are so important. I applaud the selfless decisions of these athletes to donate their brains to science, and I hope this and similar projects are able to help prevent devastating traumatic brain injuries for other athletes.

If you or someone you love has suffered a brain injury through sports, a car wreck or another serious accident, contact Cohn, Smith & Cohn today to discuss your rights and your legal options.