The Law Office Of Gerald Oginski, LLC

Practice Areas

Blog

Car Accidents

Ambulance chasing? Lawyers zero in on metro-east clients
Posted on 10/4/2008
$15 Million Awarded to 14 Year Old Car Accident Victim
Posted on 5/12/2008
Driving while on cell phone cost $5.2 Million
Posted on 2/13/2008
5 Deadly Sins That Could Sink Your Case-Gerry Oginski explains
Posted on 8/23/2007
Florida Jury awards nearly $7 million, victim gets nothing
Posted on 7/8/2007
Brain Injury Verdict Among Virginia's Largest
Posted on 5/17/2007
Dallas jury awards $20.8 million in fatal 18-wheeler crash
Posted on 5/17/2007
Auto insurers play hardball in minor-crash claims
Posted on 3/14/2007
Pennsylvania Jury awards $450,000 to family of injured 15 year old
Posted on 1/7/2007
Diocese, charity agree to pay $6.1 million to disabled woman hurt in '05 van crash
Posted on 12/9/2006

Physical Therapy You Can Expect to Receive After a Car Accident

An automobile accident is a traumatic experience, one that brings on various mixed feelings. On the one hand you’re grateful to be alive, but on the other you’re wondering how you’re going to cope with the injuries the mishap has left you with. Different accidents give rise to different kinds of mishaps, so your treatment needs tend to vary accordingly. In general, if you suffer broken bones and sprained muscles, you may need surgical care first before moving on to physiotherapy.

Labels: accident ambulance attorney broken bones car accident fracture hospital injury lawsuit lawyer motor vehicle new york ny physical physiotherapy therapy

3/10/2010
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

Traumatic Brain Injury

The brain is a complex and vital organ that shapes who we are. It allows us to understand questions and solve intricate problems, it produces our emotions while crafting our personality, and it helps us to live on both a biological and spiritual level. If it should experience damage than the essence of who we are could be lost forever. This is why traumatic brain injuries can cause grave damage to the life of its victim.

Labels: accidents bicycle bike bronx brooklyn car accident nassau negligence new york ny nyc pedestrian queens tbi traumatic brain injury truck

10/3/2009
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

Woman Hit By Mack Truck Wins $350,000

At 6:30 in the morning a young woman was crossing 23rd Street in Manhattan at the intersection of First Avenue. Despite her crossing with the walk signal, and walking in the crosswalk, a Mack truck carrying demolition debris was making a left turn at the same time. Despite three separate signs that direct drivers to yield to pedestrians, the truck continued to make its left-hand turn knocking down this young woman causing her to hit her head and suffer severe fractures of her wrist.

Police arrived at the scene along with an ambulance, and she was taken to Bellevue Hospital trauma center in New York City for evaluation. In the emergency room she had all of her clothes cut off, she had x-rays, CT scans and a thorough physical exam which revealed the following:

She suffered a bleed in her head, lacerations to her forehead and the back of her head, a contusion, a concussion, loss of consciousness, and a fracture of her wrist in multiple places. She received stitches to the lacerations on her head, and was given a cast to mobilize her wrist and told to follow up with an orthopedic surgeon for further treatment.

A few days later she consulted with an orthopedic surgeon who advised her that she needed to have surgery, known as open reduction with internal fixation and external fixation. What this means is that in order to stabilize the broken bones, she would need to have surgery to put the bones back into place and hold them together with hardware that would be attached to her bones. That is known as internal fixation. In addition, she would also require a device to hold the bones in the place from the outside of her arm, known as an external fixator.

After many weeks of being in a cast with metallic titanium rods sticking out of her arm, the external hardware was removed along with the cast. She remained out of work for a number of weeks, and with physical therapy was able to get most of her motion back.

Despite the fact the trucking company had no defense, they refused to try and settle this case until the day before jury selection.

I'm pleased to say that my client was satisfied the settlement offer of $350,000 which will compensate her for the injury she suffered through no fault of her own.

Labels: attorney bus accident car accident careless carelessness driver knockdown lawsuit lawyer negligence negligent new york ny nyc pedestrian truck accident

4/3/2009
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

Is It Ethical For a Lawyer To Send a Letter to a Car Accident Victim?

Q: My mother was in a car accident last week, and already she's gotten letters from lawyers

asking if she's ok, and if she wants a lawyer? Is it ethical for a lawyer to send such a letter?

A: First, I hope she is feeling better. Second, in limited circumstances in New York, it may be

'acceptable' for an attorney to send such a letter to a victim of an accident. However, new ethical rules

say that a lawyer may not send an unsolicited letter to a victim's family within the first 30 days of the

incident.

In any event, the majority of lawyers feel such a letter to a victims' home is demeaning and degrading.

Some lawyers feel this is nothing but a solicitation, which is clearly not permitted in New York. Other

attorneys (the ones who send these letters) feel that it may be their only chance to entice the injured

victim to come to them as a client.

The letter is supposed to only offer them legal assistance and guidance- should they want it. Again, how

do you choose which attorney to use when you're inundated with a flood of letters from different

lawyers promising to help you with your accident claim?

The answer is simpler than you think. Ask yourself why an attorney would even bother to send such a

letter. Are they really that desperate to need to send such a letter? How did they get your name anyway?

I'll tell you how- maybe it came from the tow truck operator who took your car away. Maybe it was

from an ambulance technician. Maybe it was from a police blotter at the police station. (That's public

information that many investigators working for lawyers troll for in various police stations).

Ask yourself another question. Do you let a stranger into your house simply because he says he saw you

need a paint job, and amazingly, he's a painter who is willing to paint your house for a great price? Did

you call him? No. Did you seek out other customers of his to determine if he's reliable and professional?

No. He just showed up while trolling through the neighborhood. Is this the type of painter you want

working on and in your house? I don't think so.

The same rationale holds true for a lawyer that sends you an unsolicited letter following an accident.

What do you know about that lawyer? Probably nothing. Does that mean that he (or she) isn't a good

lawyer? No. But, again, think who you want for your attorney. Does it help knowing that your lawyer

gets many cases this way, by sending out unsolicited lawyer letters hoping that a few unknowing people

will answer the letter? The choice, as always is yours. Make an informed choice.

Labels: "gerry oginski" "new york" accident accident report ambulance attorney bicycle bike bronx brooklyn bus car death fracture lawyer long island nassau negligence negligence cases

11/26/2008
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

NY NEGLIGENCE LAWYER-The Large Law Firm Trap

You suffered a terrible accident. You have been in the hospital for weeks now. Your family is angry that you are now physically disabled. You wonder when, if ever, you'll be able to return to work. Physical therapy is not helping much. Your treating doctors are not that encouraging. You fall into a state of despair. You know you want to sue the driver of the car that hit you and caused all these ailments, but you do not know a New York accident attorney. Nor do you have any friends who know a good attorney they could recommend.

11/17/2008
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

NEW YORK CAR ACCIDENTS- 12 Key Deposition Techniques in a Car Accident Case

Here are 12 key tips to help you question a defendant in a car accident case:

1. Were you taking any medication or non-prescription drugs on the day of the accident?
You want to know whether the driver was high on drugs while driving. The natural follow-up is whether he drank any alcohol within 24 hours prior to getting into the car that day.

2. Weather: You want to know whether the weather had any effect on contributing to the accident.
Was it raining? Had it rained? Was the ground wet? Do you have snow tires? Was your window open? (To determine if he could hear anything immediately prior the accident like screeching tires or kids playing.)

3. Their senses: You want to know whether their sight, sound and balance were all in good working order. If not, you need to question them extensively about their limitations. Do you wear eyeglasses? Any difficulty hearing? Any neurological problems? Previous medical problems such as a stroke?

4. Speed: You must establish their speed at impact, as well as at various points immediately before impact. If the witness does not know an exact speed, ask for an estimate. In New York, an attorney can, without objection, ask for estimates of speed. Once you have established the approximate speed, you can now move on to timing.

5. Timing: You need to establish how long it took to go from point A to point B. It is those reference points that will tell you conclusively whether this witness' testimony about their speed, time and distance are accurate. For example, "How long did it take you to travel 1/4 mile?" "How much time did it take you to travel the one block before impact? "How long did it take from the time you left the intersection at Main Street until the impact?" The follow-up questions lead directly to the next question: Distance.

6. Distance: You need to establish how far the driver was at various reference points. "How far were you from the impact point when you saw the red light?" "How far did you travel from Main Street until the impact?" Why is this important? There are simple mathematical formulas that will allow you to plug in the numbers that the witness testifies to that will either support their testimony, or allow you to prove that they are wrong. "Speed, time and distance" is the mantra of any personal injury trial lawyer who tries car accident cases. If you know any two out of the three elements, you can calculate the third. It's a very valuable tool for a trial lawyer, and allows you to create a devastating point when making closing arguments.

7. Geographic area: What is surrounding you? Is this a residential area or a commercial area? Was there parking on the street? Were there any trucks, busses or cars that blocked your view?

8. The car they were driving. Besides the usual make, model and color, ask for their license plate number and when their car was last inspected before the accident. Ask whether they have an ipod dock or a GPS system. Is the GPS portable, or fixed on the dashboard? Are there fuzzy dice hanging from the rearview mirror? Do you smoke? Were you smoking at the time?

9. Were you distracted?

10. WHEN DID YOU SEE THE OTHER CAR FOR THE FIRST TIME? This is important to establish that the defendant may not have seen the driver until it was too late to do anything. The failure to see that which should have been seen may establish liability for you in your case.

11. Mechanics of your car: Was it in good working order? If not, when had it last been serviced?

12. Passengers in your car: Who were they? Ages? Addresses? Conversation level? Distracted by passengers?

This list gives you an outline of key elements you need to establish liability in a car accident case in New York. As always, preparation is the key to knowing what questions to ask.

11/17/2008
Gerry Oginski
Comments (1)

New York Car Accident Victim Loses Settlement Money After Government Steps In

Here's a perfect example of a case where the driver of a car who hit a young man crossing the street, did not have enough insurance coverage, leading to insufficient compensation for his injuries:

This particular man was in a shopping center crossing the street when he was hit by a car entering the shopping center. The driver was going about 25-30 miles per hour. He hit the man squarely on the left side of his body, causing him to go flying through the air and land about ten feet from where he started. The injured man was rushed by ambulance to the closest trauma center where he was diagnosed as having a broken femur (the largest bone in your body), trauma to his face, and a bleed under his skull. The victim required a tracheostomy; a hole made in his windpipe to allow a tube from a ventilator to help him breathe. This injured victim spent more than three weeks in the hospital.

When he was discharged, he was sent to a rehabilitation facility and ultimately made his way home.

The driver of the car had insurance. However, when I investigated the insurance policy he had, it turns out it was a "limited" policy. This means it was a relatively low policy amount. Shortly after I was able to document all of my client's injuries to the insurance company, they promptly paid the full insurance policy since they recognized that the injuries my client suffered far exceeded the available insurance in this case.

Q: What other options were available to this young man after the insurance company "tendered" (paid) the insurance policy?
A: One option would have been to sue the driver personally and try to get a judgment against him. If successful, then I would be able to enforce the judgment by seizing his property in order to fulfill the judgment. However, after investigating this possibility, we learned that the driver had no assets- at least none that were in his name. Bringing a lawsuit against him, just to get a "paper" judgment would serve the client no purpose.

THE GOVERNMENT STEPS IN...

In this case, my client had been receiving medicare benefits because of a pre-existing disability. When Medicare learned (as they always do) that my client had received some compensation for his injuries, they asserted a "lien" against the proceeds of his case. This meant that they were asserting their right to recoup money that Medicare paid for his hospital and medical bills arising out of this car accident. The medical bills alone were astronomical. They were over $300,000! Medicare wanted everything that my client would receive as his share of the settlement. In effect, this young man potentially would get nothing as a result of his injuries.

I appealed to Medicare advising them that it would be tragic if this young man who was severely injured were required to pay back Medicare everything he was awarded in the settlement. Yet Medicare made a reasonable argument: Who else paid for his medical bills when he was in the hospital? Nobody. He did not have any other health insurance. Medicare did not expect to get reimbursed for paying his medical bills. But, when an injured victim brings a lawsuit seeking compensation from the driver of a car, bus, truck or someone else- and is successful, then Medicare steps in and says "You are now required to reimburse us." Many times Medicare will try to negotiate with you, depending upon the amount you recover. Yet the bottom line is that they must be repaid.

If your attorney ignores a Medicare lien, they do so at their peril. If your lawyer pays you your net share of the settlement without allocating money for Medicare, this is what will happen. Medicare will file a lawsuit against your attorney in federal court. They will ask not only for the money that they were supposed to recover, but also ask for three times the amount (called treble damages). Needless to say, if your lawyer has reached this stage, he has significant problems. The government is not required to go after the client (you, the injured victim). Your lawyer may try to get the money back from you, but what if you already spent it? Now the lawyer has even bigger problems.

The bottom line? Medicare must be repaid.
The bottom line for this client? He got the short end of the stick since the driver of the car that hit him did not have sufficient car insurance to cover the severe injuries he received. Then, the government stepped in and asked for the total amount of money to cover at least some of their expenses. After an appeal to Medicare, they were "generous" enough to allow my client to take home a token amount of the original compensation he was entitled to receive.

What is the moral of this story? Carry enough car insurance on your insurance policy to cover a serious injury. Then buy an "umbrella" policy (also known as an excess policy) to protect you and your assets in the event your main insurance policy is insufficient to pay compensation to someone seriously injured.

Thanks for taking the time to become informed.

About Gerry:

Gerry Oginski is an experienced medical malpractice & personal injury trial lawyer practicing law in Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, New York, Staten Island, Nassau, Suffolk & Long Island and has been in practice since 1988.

He is a graduate of Touro College, Jacob Fuchsberg College of Law in Huntington, NY and he is admitted to practice law in New York and Connecticut. He started his legal career working for a defense firm on Wall Street representing doctors, hospitals and businesses who were sued. Four years later he felt the gravitational pull to represent injured victims of medical negligence and accidents. After doing defense work, he joined a personal injury law firm in Brooklyn, NY representing injured victims, and then four years later, joined forces with a large law firm in Queens, NY. While there, he was in charge of the medical malpractice department, and in 2002 opened his own office for the practice of law. His main office is located in Great Neck, Long Island, and he has affiliate offices in Brooklyn and Staten Island.

Gerry prides himself on knowing all the details of each case he handles. Cases are not handed off to associates. When a client calls, he doesn't need to check a file to determine what happened last on the client's case. He knows what happened, since he was the one who handled the matter.

Gerry has become a prolific writer and publishes a monthly newsletter full of legal news, fun trivia games, and a never-ending fictional story that has won him accolades with all who read his newsletter. In addition to his newsletter, he has produced and created an entire video library of instructional videos that help consumers learn about medical malpractice and accident law in New York.

Gerry welcomes all calls about any accident or injury from a doctor or hospital in the State of New York. He promises to give you a straightforward and honest answer about every question you ask. Take a look at his website, where he has over 200 FAQ's, free reports about medical malpractice, wrongful death and accident cases, actual testimony of doctors in cases he's handled, and an entire video library you really should see.

If that's not enough, take a look at his blog where he offers free information about medical malpractice and accident law and when you've finished reading his blog at http://nymedicalmalpractice.blogspot.com, jump over to his video blog where he has most of his videos posted at http://medicalmalpracticetutorial.blogspot.com - you'll be glad you did.

11/17/2008
Gerry Oginski
Comments (0)

NEW YORK CAR ACCIDENTS-6 REASONS TO SUE THE DRIVER WHO HIT YOUR CAR

You were on your way to work that morning, and never saw him blow past the stop sign without ever slowing down. 1. You can’t believe he destroyed your car. 2. You can’t believe you had to be removed from your car with the “Jaws of Life” that the fire department uses to open crushed cars. After being taken out on a backboard and having your head, neck and body strapped to the board and placed onto a stretcher in the ambulance, you still can’t believe you had to go to the emergency room.