Fatalities caused by falls continue to be a leading cause of death for construction employees. Lack of proper fall protection remains the most frequently cited violation by OSHA. In response to the number of fall related injuries and fatalities, OSHA launched its National Safety Stand-Down Campaign to Prevent Falls in Construction. The annual event strives to raise fall hazard awareness. The 4th annual National Fall Prevention Stand-Down will take place May 8-12, 2017.
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Medical Malpractice Claims Paid on Behalf of Physicians Decrease
A recent database study conducted at Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that the rate of medical malpractice claims paid on behalf of physicians in the United States declined substantially from 1992 to 2014. The study analyzed data from the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), a centralized database of paid malpractice claims that was created by Congress in 1986. Researchers found an overall drop in the amount of paid claims across all specialties, but the extent of the decline was markedly different by specialty, according to Adam Schaffer, MD, lead author of the paper. The findings are published in the March 27, 2017 issue of the JAMA Internal Medicine journal.
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Senate Nixes Volks Rule, an Obama-Era Workplace Safety Rule
The Senate recently voted to nullify an Obama-era OSHA safety regulation – the so-called “Volks rule” – which extends the time period for OSHA to cite employers for failing to report workplace injuries and illnesses.
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Morning-After Hangover Accident Results in Judgement Against Driver & Night Club
If you think you think you can drink heavily all night and be okay to drive in the morning you may end up seriously injuring someone on your way to work. And if you are the bar or restaurant that served that drunk driver, you remain open to liability lawsuits. Worse than either of these is the result for innocent drivers who are caught in the ensuing accidents from “morning-after” drunk drivers.
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Understanding the Recent Decision on Comparative Negligence
This blog was co-authored with my colleague, Michael Donahue.
In Fernandes v. DAR, the New Jersey Supreme Court was recently asked to consider whether the issue of an employee’s comparative negligence in a workplace construction injury case should be submitted to the jury. We at Stark & Stark had the pleasure of serving as
FMCSA Considers Raising Minimum Levels of Insurance for Motor Carriers
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced that it is considering a rule making that will increase the minimum levels of financial responsibility for motor carriers, including liability coverage for bodily injury and property damage, establishing financial responsibility requirements with passenger carrier brokers and to implement financial responsibility requirements for brokers and freight forwarders,
Do Construction Workers Have a Meaningful Choice- New Jersey Supreme Court Hears Argument
Construction workers on a job site have no meaningful choice when told by their employers to perform an assigned task. When a construction worker is injured, while performing his assigned task, should the defense of comparative negligence be a defense in a lawsuit filed by the injured employee against the general contractor? That is the
Why We Need More Corporate Regulations and Less Tort Reform
Ten years ago, Candace Anderson, a 21 year old young woman, was convicted of criminal negligent homicide as a result of a one car motor vehicle crash. Ms. Anderson lost control of her 2004 GM Saturn Ion. Her fiancé, a front seat passenger, was killed in the crash when his passenger side air bag failed
New Jersey Supreme Court Hears Argument on Two Bad Faith Cases in Uninsured/ Underinsured Motorist Cases
In September, the New Jersey Supreme Court heard argument in two cases, which address the issue of bad faith conduct by an automobile insurer in failing to fairly investigate and resolve uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) claims brought by two of its policyholders.
In New Jersey, when a person is injured as a result of the negligence of