Articles Posted in Personal Injury

By Fred Lewis and George Casper

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speeding is a contributing factor in roughly 30% of all fatal crashes. This percentage would increase if non-fatal car accidents that resulted in serious personal injury were factored in. It is quite simple; driving a car recklessly over the speed limit when others are not doing so increases the chance an accident will occur. If you are involved in a car accident with a driver who was cited for any kind of speeding violation, you can file suit against the other motorist in order to pay for the damages of your vehicle. If you are injured, a personal injury lawsuit can be filed on your behalf. At Racine Olson, we combine years of experience with exceptional legal ability to obtain fair compensation for any injuries, vehicle damages, and pain you and/or your loved ones suffer.

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Discovery is the process parties in litigation use to “discover” the information the opposing party has or is aware of that will assist in prosecuting or defending a case. Long gone are the days when a litigant can come to court with a “smoking gun” piece of evidence that the opposing side was previously unaware of (because the information was requested and not disclosed) and use that evidence to their advantage. The primary tools to conduct discovery are through the use of depositions (oral statements given under oath), interrogatories (written statements requiring verification), requests for production (produce documents or other materials), and requests for admissions (admit to the question).

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Following the filing of your lawsuit for the recovery of damages arising from your personal injury action, it is common that the defendant’s attorney will want to take your deposition. A deposition is a scheduled meeting where a witness, accompanied by their attorney if they have one, responds orally to questions from the opposing party’s attorney. Also present in the deposition is a court reporter who assists in reducing the oral testimony to written form for later use in court or for discovery purposes. The purpose of a deposition is to gather information that is relevant to the prosecution or defense of the case.

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Compensatory damages or “actual damages” are those monetary amounts that are awarded to compensate for a proven injury or loss. Compensatory damages are broken down into two sub-categories, called “special damages” and “general damages.”

Special damages are those damages that are readily identifiable through documentation and must be specifically claimed and proved. Some examples of special damages include: medical bills, property damage, lost wages, rental bills, and economic loss.

General damages are those damages that the law presumes follows from the type of wrong complained of. General damages would include: loss of enjoyment of life, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.

Punitive damages are those damages awarded in addition to compensatory or actual damages. Punitive damages are awarded in those circumstances where the defendant’s actions are outrageous, oppressive, fraudulent, wanton, reckless, or the defendant acted with malice. The goal of the award of punitive damages is to serve the public policies of punishing a defendant and deterring future like conduct.

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Idaho has adopted the Comparative Negligence Doctrine when damages are being assessed in situations such as automobile collisions. Basically, this doctrine provides that a plaintiff’s recovery is reduced in proportion to the plaintiff’s degree of fault in causing the damage. If a plaintiff’s degree of fault is 50% or greater, then no recovery can be had by plaintiff. An example of this doctrine is explained as follows. John Doe is involved in a collision and sustains $100,000.00 in damages. The jury decided John was 40% at fault in the collision and the Defendant was 60% at fault. John’s damages of $100,000.00 are reduced 40% due to his own negligence, thus John’s recovery of damages is $60,000.00.

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By Fred Lewis and George Casper

The red light and stop sign are arguably two of the most universal of traffic signals. Every driver knows what these signs mean: Stop. Yet, every day there are car accidents all across the country because one of the motorists involved ran through a red light or stop sign. These types of car accidents can often cause extreme amounts of damage because the motorist running the red light/stop sign is often speeding in order to get through the light or simply doesn’t see the sign. When you get hit by a motorist running a red light or stop sign, the damage can be quite extensive to your vehicle because of the amount of momentum the other car has.

These types of crashes can also result in the injury of you, the people accompanying you in the car, or both. In order to file suit and properly build a case against the opposing motorist, you will need an Idaho car accident personal attorney that is well experienced in automobile-related personal injury issues. Racine Law is the first firm you should call. We are dedicated to getting you the most favorable settlement possible for your claim and will work tirelessly to do so. At such a stressful time in your life, there is nobody better for you to put your trust in. Steve Muhonen is a former Idaho State police officer and has investigated many accidents involving stop signs and red lights. Steve is a partner at Racine Olson. Put his experience to work for you in your Idaho car accident case. Steve knows how to get the most out of your Idaho personal injury claim. Give him a call now at (877) 232-6101.

By Fred Lewis and George Casper

Car accidents in Idaho that result in personal injury can be upsetting to all. You accumulate medical bills that need to be paid, you lose wages due to time away from work, and you can suffer from pain that may never go away for the rest of your life. If you are not at fault in the car accident, you have the ability to use the other motorist’s insurance to help pay for all these expenses. There is only one problem. The motorist you hit is one of the roughly 14% of the driving population that doesn’t have automobile insurance. What do you do if this happens?

The best way to protect yourself from being hung out to dry after being in a car accident with uninsured drivers is to have a solid insurance plan in place before the accident even occurs. Review your insurance plan. Most general insurance plans have a specified coverage limit for accidents caused by uninsured drivers. Make sure your uninsured limits are high as you can afford in order to cover all the effects associated with the accident. A limit in the $250,000 may not be enough. This will be some of the least expensive insurance you can buy.

By Pat George

A Nampa man who was driving drunk struck a 19 year old pedestrian in March, 2015. It’s a tragedy that plays itself out all too often across Idaho almost everyday. In 2012, one third of the accident fatalities across our great state were alcohol related. What this means is that innocent people in Idaho were killed leaving family and friends due to no fault of their own. Of course, this does not include those people who were injured but not fatally.

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By Brent Roche

Spoliation of evidence is a rule of evidence that applies when there is an intentional destruction of relevant documents or objects. If a party to a lawsuit is guilty of spoliation of evidence, the presiding judge may instruct the jury that they may presume that the destroyed evidence would have been adverse to the party who intentionally destroyed it. The party is free to try to overcome the negative presumption by presenting other evidence addressing the issue in question. An example of spoliation of evidence is where a tire manufacturer, who received an allegedly defective tire that was believed to have caused an accident, discards the tire before the victim’s representatives have examined and tested the tire.

An opportunity to collect some evidence can be forever lost unless prompt action is taken soon after an injury accident. Preservation of evidence can greatly assist an injured person pursuing an injury claim. For example, the severity of a traumatic injury is best shown with pictures of bruising, swelling, abrasions and lacerations. Likewise, most newer cars and trucks have “black boxes” that record key data for use in reconstructing an accident. When your car or the other vehicle is totaled it is important to talk with your insurance agent or lawyer about arranging for an expert to download the data from the vehicles before they are sold for salvage.