Pasadena Personal Injury Blog

Targeting the state of California for wrongful death

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Wrongful Death on Tuesday, September 11, 2018.

In addition to the heartbreak of losing someone you love, an unexpected death in the family sends out ripples that are difficult to predict. Such a death has a profound impact on the deceased's loved ones and the loss often leads to financial hardships as well. While most people are resilient enough to cope with their loss, seeking a legal remedy for a wrongful death can lessen the monetary hardships surviving family members must endure.

In an ordinary incident involving private citizens, the law offers families several ways to seek compensation. Examples include personal injury claims, premises liability suits and wrongful death claims. However, when an employee of the California state government causes a death, the available legal remedies typically shrink to almost nothing. This is because government entities or agencies in the U.S. enjoy a degree of immunity from lawsuits.

What contributes to lawyer malpractice? 3 big mistakes

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Legal Malpractice on Monday, September 10, 2018.

When you hire a lawyer, you expect that they know what they're doing. You trust them to follow through on what they say. And you rely on them to avoid missteps that could cost you your rights.

When lawyers make mistakes - and you suffer the consequences - it often boils down to these three reasons:

Both drivers killed in fiery crash on 105 Freeway

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Fatal Motor Vehicle Accidents on Friday, September 7, 2018.

Collisions involving commercial trucks can shut down Southern California freeways for hours on end. Many of us have been stranded on the road in the aftermath of one of these crashes. The real victims, of course, are usually those in the vehicles that collided.

Last month, a Land Rover SUV and a tanker truck were involved in a crash in Hawthorne that killed both drivers. The incident occurred shortly after 5:00 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 24 on the 105 Freeway. The collision caused a massive fire.

Are electric scooters a recipe for disaster?

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Injuries on Wednesday, September 5, 2018.

Walk around Santa Monica and you're bound to see several of them: the pay-as-you-go electric scooters that are all the rage. They're convenient when you need to go a short distance, fast. But they can also be dangerous. Learn more about how to use them safely:

Some classes of blood-pressure drugs do more harm than good

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer on Tuesday, September 4, 2018.

High blood pressure is a common medical condition. Also called hypertension, it affects roughly one in three Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And seventy percent of sufferers take medication for it.

Yet two classes of drugs commonly used to treat hypertension might actually be doing more harm than good, according to a recent study from the Medical Center Heart Institute. These medications include:

Can a brain injury impact your sense of smell or taste?

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Brain Injury on Friday, August 31, 2018.

Brain injuries can have a dramatic impact on your life, and the way they manifest is different in almost every case. Different parts of the brain control vastly different parts of the body and the severity of the damage also plays a critical role. It is important to remember that the experience will not be the same for everyone.

That said, it is absolutely possible for a brain injury to have a profound impact on your sense of smell or your sense of taste. For instance, one woman had an accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury, and she couldn't smell or taste anything at all after the accident. The senses were just gone.

Not all roofing crews have proper fall safety gear

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Construction Accidents on Friday, August 24, 2018.

Many roofing crews must wear fall protection equipment in order to comply with OSHA's safety standards. These harness and rope systems are similar to those worn by rock climbers. They can keep someone safe, though that person could still suffer injuries in the event of a fall. Working at heights is very dangerous, and even experienced workers can slip and fall due to factors that are out of their control.

However, not all roofing crews have or use the right equipment. Some experts have speculated that only about 50 percent actually put on their fall protection gear.

Soccer-related brain injuries more common in women

By Ball & Bonholtzer on Tuesday, August 21, 2018.

There are more than 265 million soccer players both male and female in the world. Just in the United States there are 25 million players. Among all contact sports, soccer is the only one where purposely using your head to control or advance the ball is a strategy.

For many years studies have been conducted to learn the severity of a soccer ball repeatedly being hit with the head. One new study has found that female players are more sensitive to a soccer ball impact to the head than males.

How California courts decide damages for the death of a child

By Ball & Bonholtzer on Tuesday, August 21, 2018.

Losing someone you love proves to be a traumatic experience. Sudden, unexpected deaths leave family members without the ability to prepare for a new life without loved ones. Especially excruciating circumstances involve the death of a child.

In cases involving wrongful death, California court works to remedy the loss of your child through compensatory damages. No awarded money can make up for your loss, but the court works to have those responsible for your child's death provide financial benefits to you and your family. Determining the specific amount to award family members involves deciding elements of your child's predicted future and the loss you now face. Though wrongful death cases are extremely devastating, know that a court will determine proper compensation.

Beware the dangers of "co-sliding" with your kids

On behalf of Ball & Bonholtzer posted in Injuries on Monday, August 20, 2018.

"Co-sliding" isn't a term you hear often, but it's something that happens all the time, every day, at parks and playgrounds across America. You can easily picture the scene: A wide-eyed toddler standing atop a slide that suddenly seems much taller than the little guy (or girl) realized. Mom or dad climbs up and offers to take the kiddo down in their lap - "wheeeeeeeeeeee!"

What could go wrong?