Alabama Personal Injury Lawyers

HOTLINE ALERT!!

Defective Mesh Claims:

We are presently evaluating and meeting with clients who have been injured by defective mesh used in surgeries involving bladder tacking and transvaginal repair. The FDA has recalled and issued a Public Health Notification advisory regarding some of these mesh products. If you or a loved one has had complications from one of these procedures, please contact us for a free consultation and evaluation to see if one of the defective surgical mesh devices was a possible cause.

Something every Alabama driver should know!

Although Alabama law requires every driver to have at least the minimum liability insurance ($20,000) to protect victims of injuries caused by a negligent driver, statistics show that nearly 1/3 of Alabama drivers are uninsured. We tell clients that it is basically a "coin-flip" whether the car that hits you is properly insured.

We advise our clients to immediately contact their own insurance agent and increase their levels of UM and UIM (uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist) coverage just in case the driver that injures them does not have any insurance, or does not have enough insurance to cover the personal injuries that they caused in an auto wreck. By the way, UM/UIM rates are extremely inexpensive, but can make all the difference in the world if you are seriously injured in a wreck.

Our firm can also assist you in determining exactly how much you are entitled to recover in a UM/UIM situation. Never trust the insurance company claims department to tell you the whole truth about the value of your claim, whether it is the driver's company, or even your own!

Penn State Tragedy

In this space I try to give our clients and friends information about how they can protect themselves legally in different situations on a monthly basis. This month however, I feel there is an issue that has arisen which has touched all of our hearts, especially those of us with children. As you all have heard, a longtime assistant football coach at a storied football program, Penn State, has been accused of molesting young boys for a period of over a decade, and sadly on the Penn State campus. Most of those young boys were under privileged and were a part (supposedly as beneficiaries) of a foundation designed to help the boys develop self esteem and empower them to go forward into the world with a better opportunity to achieve success.

Instead, the boys were raped and humiliated in the one place they and their parents felt the children would be safe and protected. Possibly worst of all, it appears that the witnesses to the criminal acts and the administrators of the University chose to cover up the atrocities rather than take the chance of tarnishing the "brand" of Penn State football.

I love college football, but I pray that I never am so blinded by pride and greed that I lose my ability to do the right thing.

Tort Reform or Civil Rights Violation?

Recently in the Montgomery Advertiser, a column appeared which points out how recent legislation passed by Alabama’s elected officials may take away your rights as a citizen to a fair trial by jury. The columnist notes that the restrictions “reduce the statute of limitations on some suits, prohibit suits against businesses that merely sell a harmful product, reduce post-judgment interest rates, prohibit ‘forum shopping’ for wrongful death cases and redefine the standards set for expert testimony.” In other words, so-called “tort reform.” As pointed out in a recent documentary film that premiered on HBO, Hot Coffee, the tort reform movement is little more than a very successful public relations effort on the part of big business. Backed by millions of dollars of corporate money and filtered through groups with names that imply grass-roots citizen efforts, this movement has slowly but surely stripped away an individual’s right to their day in court. Legislation that puts caps on damages also strips the jury of its intended power to level the playing field and provide an unbiased and uninfluenced decision on matters of civil justice. Of Alabama’s new laws, which are added to existing laws that cap punitive damages in Alabama at $1.5 million, Moon writes, “The message from politicians to businesses is clear. If you’ll bring jobs to Alabama, we don’t mind if you defraud our citizens, sell us products that will kill us, operate in a careless way, or generally do whatever it is you’d like to do to increase profits.”

COUMADIN RECALL!! BE AWARE!!

The U.S. Food and Drud Administration has recently RECALLED certain lot numbers with the expiration date of September 30, 2012. The study found that there is a possibility that there may be too much of the active ingredient (which helps to thin the blood for those with histories of blood clots.)

A higher than normal dose of Coumadin may cause stroke, risk of severe internal bleeding, and occasionally, heart attack and death.

If you are experiencing unusual side effects from what you believe to be your normal dose of Coumadin, immediately contact your healthcare professional. If you find that you have received a negligently manufactured dose of Coumadin, please contact us to see if you may qualify for an award for the medical effects you have suffered.

Settlement in Misfilled Prescription Case

The Wininger Law Firm is proud to announce the confidential settlement of a lawsuit on behalf of a female client against a large, national chain pharmacy doing business here in the Birmingham area.

The lawsuit alleged that the pharmacy, through the actions of its pharmacists, negligently filled and dispensed  a prescription drug which was TEN (10) TIMES the dosage actually prescribed by the patient's prescribing physician. Our client suffered reactions and injuries, some unfortunately permanent, as an alleged result of the overdose.

All terms of this settlement are confidential, but we are extremely satisfied with the result, as is our client.

We ask all our clients to always closely check their prescriptions, especially those filled by the large chain pharmacies. The pharmacists and technicians at those operations often fill hundreds of prescriptions per day and it is not uncommonthat errors occur. Always talk with the pharmacist if you are not positive that you have received the proper drug and dosage, or are unsure how to properly take the medicine.

If you or a loved one has been injured by a negligently filled prescription, please call our office for a free evaluation of your potential claim.

 

Defective Hip Implant Hardware Leads To Major Recalls

I saw today that famous singer from the 50's, Eddie Fisher, died yesterday at age 82. He was as famous for his glamorous wives as he was for his singing, having been married to Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor and Connie Stevens, among others.

via birminghaminjurylawyers.typepad.com

Defective Hip Implant Hardware Leads To Major Recalls

I saw today that famous singer from the 50's, Eddie Fisher, died yesterday at age 82. He was as famous for his glamorous wives as he was for his singing, having been married to Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor and Connie Stevens, among others.

What I had not known was that he had recently undergone hip replacement surgery, and problems with the procedure led to his death. You may also remember that excellent sportswriter Dick Schaap died soon after  a similar surgical hip replacement a few years ago.

Many do not know that recently several manufacturers of artificial hip hardware medical devices have recalled their products because of defects. In fact it was just announced that Johnson and Johnson has just recalled over 90,000 hip implants.

Johnson & Johnson, through its subsidiary known as DePuy Orthopaedics has announced that it is recalling parts used across the country by orthopedic surgeons for hip replacements.  There have been a large number of repeat surgeries necessary for patients who have had this defective product installed in their bodies. 

These parts include the recall of the DePuy AFR XL Acetabular System and the ASR Hip Resurfacing System.  Problems have been reported with these things and revisional surgery has been necessary in a large number of cases.  Some of the symptoms have included problems walking, swelling, pain, and other problems.  The parts may loosen when the implant does not stay attached to the bone in the correct position; there have been fractures where the bone around the implant has broken and the two parts of the implant that move against each other sometimes become unaligned and dislocated.  Also, metal particles from the component parts moving together can spread across the hip area.   

We sincerely hope that you or a loved one has not had a bad result in a hip replacement surgery, but we at The Wininger Law Firm will be pleased to consult on any cases involving individuals who have had a DePuy hip device implanted.  If you, a friend or loved one has had revision surgery and experiences hip pain, swelling, or difficulty walking, they should contact our law firm at (205) 322-3663 or at 1(888) 808-4655.

Good Lawyers Know the Difference Between a Good Lawsuit and a Dumb Lawsuit

There is an old saying in law that you can find some lawyer to file almost any lawsuit for you, but as we know, a good lawyer will not accept those cases. Recently we read of a lawsuit filed in Utah by a woman who wanted to go for a walk. She had gotten walking directions on her smartphone by "Google Maps."

Of course the woman ended up walking onto a busy highway, where she, of course, got hit by a car. Not only did she sue the driver of the vehicle that hit her, but she also sued GOOGLE, for failing to warn her that the road (State Route 224) had vehicles traveling at a high rate of speed and that there were no pedestrian sidewalks.

Is it just me, or did there come a time when she needed to stop blindly following the directions? Maybe when she realized that she was about to walk onto a busy highway? 

As Katt Williams would say, "How hilariously sad."

Lawyer In High Stress Injury Law Practice Must Learn To Relax - RINGO STARR and his ALL-STARR BAND

Usually this blog is devoted to tips and results which hopefully help our clients deal better with their legal issues, which as you know can often feel overwhelming. Well, having done this kind of work for well over 20 years, I've learned that the only way to get back into the swing of working hard for our clients is to take a day now and then to recharge the batteries.

Those who know me best know that I love music and am a HUGE BEATLES follower. We jumped at the opportunity to see RINGO STARR and his ALL-STAR BAND in Biloxi last weekend. His band included A-List musicians that have all had #1 hits on their own. Together, it was magic. On sax and synth was EDGAR WINTER, who can still blow away the room. He played 'FREE RIDE' and 'FRANKENSTEIN.' Keyboardist GARY WRIGHT performed his hits 'DREAM WEAVER' and 'MY LOVE IS ALIVE." Incredible guitar shredder RICK DERRINGER rocked on "ROCK & ROLL, HOOCHIE KOO."

Of course the night really belonged to RINGO who sang several of his BEATLES songs and his best solo efforts, beginning with 'IT DON'T COME EASY' and concluding with 'WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS.'  The finale included everyone in the showroom singing John Lennon's 'GIVE PEACE A CHANCE.' What a great experience and much needed I must say. Here's a pic we snapped from our seats. Rock on Ringo! Thanks for a wonderful evening.      PEACE AND LOVE!!