Kirk Bernard

A lot of us may not think of nursing home negligence or abuse as a personal injury case. But if you have a loved one who is in a nursing home or a convalescent home, then you know that the elderly are a particularly vulnerable part of our society. In fact, nursing home abuse can take several forms. There are facilities where the elderly have been physically abused or sexually abused by employees. There have been nursing homes where elderly residents have been emotionally and verbally abused by staff members.

There have been a number of cases where nursing home residents have died or suffered serious personal injuries because they weren’t cared for properly. Examples of such nursing home negligence include failing to monitor the patient’s medical needs, giving them the wrong medication, not changing soiled clothes causing bed sores, and lack of supervision that leads to falls. A number of nursing home negligence and abuse cases have to do with these facilities’ lack of trained or adequate staff. A number of nursing homes, in fact, deliberately understaff their facilities to keep expenses lower and profits higher.

If your loved one has been abused or neglected at a nursing home, please contact the skilled Seattle injury personal lawyers at The Bernard Law Firm to find out how we can help. Please call us at 1-800-418-8282 or e-mail us at info@bernardlawgroup.com to schedule your FREE, comprehensive and confidential consultation. We can also send you our FREE informational brochure about Washington nursing home negligence and abuse cases, which has useful educational information to help you understand your legal rights and options. Get in touch with Kirk Bernard and his experienced legal team today.

The holiday season is one of the deadliest times of the year for alcohol-related car accidents in Seattle and King County. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, more than 1,000 people die nationwide during the time frame between Thanksgiving to New Years in drunk driving car crashes. This is of course because of the increased consumption of alcohol and the increase in the number of special holiday events and parties. This is also the reason why drinking and driving is more prevalent during the holidays. That being said, drinking and driving is entirely preventable. There are many options available to drivers including taxicab and towing services especially during the holidays. These tragedies can be averted.

Avoid getting in a DUI accident or causing a DUI accident by following these tips:

1. Always appoint a designated driver. This is always a good option because it means that you are responsible and still able to enjoy some holiday cheer.
2. Call a cab. It might seem like an added expense. But consider the costs associated with a DUI arrest or worse, injuring yourself or someone else. It’s certainly not worth it.
3. Know how you’re getting home before you go out and have a back-up plan.
4. Carry cab money and phone numbers.
5. Drink responsibly and know your limits.
6. If you find one of your friends or acquaintances getting drunk, take the keys away from them.
7. Never ride with an impaired driver. Use public transportation if you have to.
8. Always report drunk drivers by calling 911. You may be saving a life.
9. If you don’t have a ride or your friends cannot pick you up, stay where you are until you sober up.
10. Finally, never drink and drive.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a DUI accident, please contact the experienced Seattle personal injury attorneys at The Bernard Law Group at 1-800-418-8282 or info@bernardlawgroup.com for a FREE comprehensive and confidential consultation. We can also send you our FREE informational brochure, which has useful educational information that will help you better understand your legal rights and options. Get in touch with Kirk Bernard and his skilled legal team today.

Driving while talking on the cell phone or worse, texting, has become one of the leading causes for car accidents in Seattle and elsewhere in Washington State. Talking on a handheld device or texting can be extremely dangerous because the driver must take his or her eyes or attention off the road for several seconds while completing those actions. Rear-end accidents are caused quite often as a result of drivers attempting to talk on their cell phones or text while on the road.

A study recently conducted by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, found that texting while driving increases the risk of a car accident by 23 times. The results of this study show conclusively that the real key to significantly improving safety on the road is keeping your eyes on the road. The same report also states that just before crashing, drivers spent nearly five seconds distracted from the road by their cell phones. At 55 mph, that time is enough to cover the length of an entire football field. It’s about time that the cell phone and texting laws are enacted in all states to deter distracted drivers.

The skilled car accident attorneys at the Bernard Law Group recently settled a case where a woman was rear-ended by a person who was talking on her cell phone. The victim, whom we represented, was unable to work for several weeks as a result of injuries she suffered in this car accident clearly caused by a negligent driver. At mediation, the victim settled her case for $40,000. In Washington State, a new law went into effect last year banning texting or talking on a cell phone without a hand-free device.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a Washington car accident caused by a distracted driver, please contact one of the experienced Seattle personal injury attorneys at the Bernard Law Group. Kirk Bernard and his legal team have a successful track record pursuing these negligent drivers and holding them accountable for their recklessness. Call us today for a free, comprehensive consultation and evaluation of your Washington car accident claim.

There is a basic premise to every type of personal injury claim: someone sustains injury to person or property because of the negligence of another person or entity. In order to establish the existence of a personal injury claim, the injured party bears the burden of proof. This means that the injured party or a representative, usually a personal injury attorney, must establish three elements to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a negligent party should be held accountable for injuries and damages.

1. Standard of Care or Negligence
   A general definition of negligence in the legal community is a civil wrong whereby a person or entity owes a legal duty of care to another and fails to exercise the degree of care considered reasonable under the circumstances, resulting in loss or injury to another party. Here are a few common examples of negligence in personal injury claims:
• Automobile Accidents: A person operating a motor vehicle runs a red light and broadsides another vehicle or hits a pedestrian in the crosswalk. Under the law, a red light signals that the vehicles facing the red light have a legal obligation to stop until the signal turns green. Failing to stop at a red light shows a failure to exercise a legal duty. The person running the red light, therefore, is negligent.

• Premise Liability or Slip and Falls: An employee mopping the floor in a grocery store inadvertently leaves a puddle of water on the floor and does not put up a sign warning customers of the wet area. An elderly shopper slips in the water and falls, breaking a hip. The store, and its employees as agents, knew or should have known that someone could slip in the puddle and fall. The store breached its legal duty to its patron by failing to mop up the puddle of water and to warn the patrons of the slippery condition of the floor. The store, and its employees as agents, are negligent.

• Professional Liability: Most professional persons are held to a higher standard of care because others rely on their expertise. Those exposed to professional liability include, but are not limited to, medical and legal professionals. Medical malpractice occurs when a medical professional fails to perform to a standard of care expected within that profession. This means that when an omission or error on the part of the medical professional causes injury to a patient, the medical professional is negligent.

2. Causation
   Causation is established by showing that the negligence or breach in standard of care or legal duty by another person directly caused the harm suffered by the injured person. The common link is shown by using the examples above:
• Automobile Accidents: If the driver had not run a red light, causing an automobile accident, the injured party would not have sustained the injuries.

• Premises Liability: If the store clerk had mopped up the puddle and placed a sign notifying patrons of the wet floor, the store would have upheld its legal duty. However, that was not done and a patron did not notice the puddle or wet floor and fell. The fall was caused by the negligence of the store and its employees.

• Professional Liability: A patient reports symptoms to his or her doctor indicative of appendicitis. The doctor fails to consider appendicitis, the appendix ruptured and the patient dies. The doctor’s misdiagnosis caused the death of the patient.

3. Damages
   An injured party is entitled to compensation for all damages directly caused by the negligence of another person or entity. This can include past, present and future injuries, such as physical injuries, psychological and/or emotional injury, pain and suffering, permanent disability, lost wages, permanent impairment of earning capacity, medical costs, out-of-pocket expenses, and more. One cannot turn back the clock and prevent the circumstances from which the damage was incurred so compensation is translated into dollar amounts.

While these three elements are the general foundation of a personal injury claim and the examples used herein might appear to be clear-cut, it is rarely straight forward. Federal and state legislation and the intricacies of insurance policies must also be considered. Therefore, it may be in the best interests of an injured person in Washington to seek the advice of a Seattle personal injury lawyer like Kirk Bernard at the Bernard Law Group. A personal injury attorney will be able to guide an injured party through the legal process to ensure that maximum compensation is awarded under the law. Contact the Bernard Law Group today for a free case consultation.