Lawsuit Finance Blog

I recently came across an article in the Wall Street Journal that may be good news for victims of employment discrimination. Last month, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law. While this is certainly a positive step, recent and long term trends suggest that discrimination victims are not getting a fair shake in America's courtrooms. According to the article, recent studies show that discrimination victims suing in federal court, lose at a higher rate than other types of litigants. Studies also show that judges are also quicker to toss these cases out of court, pre-trial.

As reported previously at this location, employee and plaintiff attorneys are hoping for a better legal climate for discrimination claims in the new Obama administration. The legislation recently signed into law will make it easier to sue for gender, race or age based discrimination by extending deadlines for suit filings.

The article indicates that only 15% of plaintiffs won job-discrimination cases in federal courts, from 1979 to 2006. Thus, an improvement in standing does not necessarily mean that a litigant will receive better treatment in federal court. In other types of cases, plaintiffs' win rates are 51%, according to a recent Harvard Law & Policy Review study. Plaintiff attorneys have become very cautious about accepting discrimination case, and, as such, case filings have declined considerably in the new century. There are many reasons for this, but one reason is that good cases are settled. Employers know when they are in trouble; they settle the cases that they could get hammered on and try the questionable ones. Questionable cases in federal court are easy targets for dismissal. Discrimination is often a "he said/she said" controversy; credibility is a very important issue in resolving these cases.

It is troubling, though, that plaintiffs have found judges increasingly willing to prematurely dismiss (on motion to dismiss or summary disposition motion) plaintiffs' cases before they able to conduct discovery to support their cases. The article indicates that a recent report by the Federal Judicial Center found that judges, nationwide, have terminated 12.5% of employment discrimination cases before the cases reach trial. That compares to only 3% of contract cases and 1/7% of personal injury and property loss cases.

David Hittner, a U.S. District Court judge in Houston, opines, in the article, that employers have become more careful to avoid discriminatory behavior and are better at documenting their reasons behind firings. An extensive record that the employee was not doing his/her job well will support a reason for the termination, even if there may have been discrimination.

The purpose of the study cited in the article was to analyze the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2007 ruling in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, authorizing federal judges to dismiss cases if plaintiffs could not detail enough facts in their initial complaints to state a "plausible" claim. This "plausible claim" standard was higher than the standard that previously existed.

So, hopefully, these cases will proceed on a more level playing field under the recent legislation. Despite the substantial risk of a negative outcome in these cases, Lawsuit Financial has provided litigation funding for victims in a significant number of employment discrimination cases and will continue to evaluate these cases for legal funding. If you have been a victim of employment discrimination, or have been injured and filed an auto accident case, premises liability/slip & fall case, medical malpractice case, airplane crash case, construction accident case, or any other personal injury case, please call Lawsuit Financial, toll free, at 1-877-377-SUIT or visit us on the web at www.lawsuitfinancial.com. Lawsuit Financial provides non-recourse lawsuit funding for victims who have pending lawsuits need help to pay important obligations like mortgage, rent or car payments, or to prevent foreclosure or repossession. The call and the advice are free. Call us today.

Posted by Mark Bello of Lawsuit Financial Corp. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Lawsuit Funding Tip of the Day

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As I have reported, many times, at this location, the arguments that there is some sort of "lawsuit abuse" or lawsuit crisis" in America are insurance industry and chamber of commerce conspiracies to justify unneeded and anti-justice tort reform. Continued big business and insurance industry success in this phony endeavor will result in even more obscene profits for these industries and a greater injustice for the injured and disabled. Recent statistics from an staunch ally of big business, support my theory that further tort reform is unnecessary and the "lawsuit crisis" is, and always has been, a myth.

Former President George W. Bush's Justice Department statistics show that the number of lawsuits filed in the country are actually declining. According to the former president's Justice Department, the number of personal injury cases filed in U.S. District Courts fell by 79% between 1995-2003. According to Bureau of Justice statistics, state lawsuits are declining as well, showing a 31% decrease from 1992-2001.

So, why would big business and big insurance lie about "lawsuit abuse" and cry at the top of their voices that there is a "lawsuit crisis, you ask? They do it to make more money! They do it to deprive ordinary citizens, injured or disabled through no fault of their own, of their appropriate level of compensation and/or their day in court. They do it to insulate themselves from laws meant to protect the weakest segments of American society. But, the numbers do not lie and the statistics have no stake in the outcome. Further, these numbers and statistics come from agents of George W. Bush, one of the largest proponents and benefactors of "tort reform" in the last 14 years (6 years of proposing it as Governor of Texas and 8 years as President).

The American Association for Justice (AAJ) has the report. For more information, click here. Ask the AAJ or your local or state trial lawyer association what you can do to help debunk these myths.

Lawsuit Financial is committed to exposing these types of myths about our civil justice system. All we advocate is a level playing field for the injured and disabled. Lawsuit Financial is please to provide legal cash advances to personal injury plaintiffs who are suffering physically and financially following an accidental injury. We provide non-recourse auto accident lawsuit funding, airplane or helicopter crash lawsuit funding, medical malpractice lawsuit funding, premises liability/slip & fall lawsuit funding, Maritime/Jones Act lawsuit funding, construction accident lawsuit funding, and lawsuit funding for any other personal injury lawsuit that has resulted in financial hardship. We offer free telephone advice at 1-877-377-SUIT (7848) or you can visit us on the web, for free, with no obligation, at www.lawsuitfinancial.com. The call and/or the visit are free; the advice and assistance could be priceless.

Posted by Mark Bello of Lawsuit Financial Corp. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Lawsuit Funding Thought of the Day

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Does a mother have "a duty to supervise the activities occurring in her home" if her daughters, aged 16 and 17 are partying there? A Lake County, Illinois Circuit Court Judge decided that she does. Judge Christopher Starck ruled that Lauralee Pfeifer was responsible for George Baldwin, being paralyzed from the chest down in a car accident following a night of drinking Nov. 19, 2006. Baldwin was only 19 years old at the time of the incident.

Baldwin's attorney, Patrick Salvi, said that "the growing trend in society is to hold parents accountable when serious injury or death results from otherwise preventable underage drinking." Obviously, one way to do that is to find them liable for two and a half million dollars in damages. Salvi should be congratulated for the nice job he did for his unfortunate client.

According to the article, Pfeifer's daughters invited teenage friends over for a party and the teenagers began drinking. Salvi stated that the mother had numerous opportunities to monitor and stop the drinking, but did absolutely nothing. Baldwin received a ride from another teen, who also was drinking that night, and the teen crashed his car into a utility box. The driver was cited for a DUI; no criminal charges were levied against Pfeifer.

The $2.5 million settlement will likely be paid in full because, according to Salvi, that amount represents the entire amount of the Pfeifer homeowner's insurance policy. This is a significant amount of money, but it certainly does not replace the use of all of Mr. Baldwin's lower bodily functions. An additional trial is scheduled for March 2, 2009 against the then teenage driver. Hopefully, we can report a substantial additional award at this location.

According to a recent FindLaw survey, 28 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 24 encountered underage party drinking in the last year. All states and the District of Columbia have laws prohibiting serving alcohol to minors. However, many states have exceptions that allow parents to provide alcohol to their minor children or wards. Under social host liability laws, adults who provide alcohol to anyone under the age of 21 may be held criminally liable for the minor's injury or death or a death that the intoxicated minor causes. In addition, many states and municipalities have teen party ordinances that make it illegal to host a party where underage youth are drinking. To be liable under these standards, adults can be arrested for simply hosting a party where underage drinking occurs with their knowledge.

Individual state ‘dram shop laws’ also hold commercial hosts responsible for property damage, injuries or death resulting from alcohol being served to people who are clearly intoxicated. Typically, this type of liquor liability statute applies to restaurants and taverns.

If you or someone you love have been seriously injured in an automobile accident caused by a drunk driver or any negligent driver, Lawsuit Financial would like to provide assistance. If you have retained a lawyer and filed an auto accident lawsuit, we can get you a lawsuit cash advance against your pending personal injury lawsuit. Lawsuit Financial provides lawsuit funding, not only for Auto Accident cases, but for Slip and Fall/Premises Liability cases, Dog Bite cases, Medical Malpractice cases, Employment Discrimination Cases, Construction Accident Cases, Airplane Crash Cases, Maritime/Jones Act cases from injuries at sea, and many other personal injury cases. If you think you have a case, but don't yet have an attorney, call us for an attorney referral, nationwide. The call to 1-877-377-SUIT (7848) is free. The advice could be priceless. Visit us on the worldwide web at www.lawsuitfinancial.com.

Posted by Mark Bello of Lawsuit Financial Corp. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Legal Funding Case of the Day

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My readers may recall two previous posts relating to use of Tasers (stun guns) to abuse our citizens. On May 29, 2008, I reported on the filing of a $20 million lawsuit against the City of San Jose, CA. On June 9, 2008, I reported on a $6 million jury verdict, also in San Jose, against Taser manufacturer, Taser International, for the family of Robert Heston, a Salinas man who died after being tasered 30 times by police. A federal judge in the Heston case has now ordered Taser International to pay Heston's attorneys $1.4 million in attorney fees. It is difficult to tell whether the $6 million award has been paid or appealed, but it is obvious that this $1.4 million is an additional award, over and above the original verdict; this makes the total award $7.4 million. Congratulations to the Heston family and their attorneys on their hard fought victory.

According to the article, the case in question is a Products Liability case involving the manufacturer's (in this case, Taser International) failure to warn police that repeated use of a Taser could result in serious injury or death. Simple and appropriate safety measures and/or simple instructions would prevent many injuries caused by products that can, otherwise, be used safely. A product does not have to be 'defective' to be misused, and a company that issues appropriate warnings about potential misuse may not be liable if those warnings are deemed sufficient to put a reasonable user of the product on notice. In this case, either warnings were not given or they were not sufficient. That creates liability, and Mr. Heston paid the ultimate price. Hopefully, this significant award will result in appropriate manufacturer warnings and provide a measure of closure for the Heston family.

Lawsuit Financial is a national litigation funding company specializing in providing litigation cash advances to plaintiffs involved in pending litigation. Call us today, toll free, at 1-877-377-SUIT (7848) for a free analysis of your injury case financing situation. We can provide lawsuit financing for any type of personal injury case, from Product Liability Legal Funding to Auto Accident Legal Funding, to Medical Malpractice Legal Funding and beyond. Visit us on the web at www.lawsuitfinancial.com. The call to 1-877-377-SUIT (7848) is free; the advice could be priceless.

Posted by Mark Bello of Lawsuit Financial Corp. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Legal Funding Case of the Day

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A recent article in the New York Times reports that medical helicopter crashes have risen over the past year. In the past eleven months, nine fatal accidents have occurred across the country, causing 35 deaths. The National Transportation Safety Board will, today, begin four days of hearings in Washington and safety advocates are expected to demand a crackdown on the medical helicopter industry, which, they say, is loosely regulated and highly (in the billions of dollars) profitable. The industry has doubled its size over the past ten years.

“I think you have a moral obligation and a legal obligation to operate at the highest standard of care", says Robert Sumwalt, safety board member and chairman of this week’s hearings. Hospitals used to operate these flights themselves; today, according to the article, they outsource most of the flights to commercial operators and the article speculates that competition for these contracts has added additional elements of risk.

Safety advocates are calling for greater and tighter state and federal regulation. I agree with Mr. Sumwalt and with the call for increased regulation. The industry needs more oversight and more consistent safety standards, equipment, and training. While accidents do happen and some are not preventable, it is clear that specific guidelines need to be implemented to reduce the number of crashes. The Times article indicates that in 2004, after 18 people were killed in six crashes, the safety board (which cannot issue orders, only recommendations) urged the FAA to take four safety steps, only one of which has been implemented.

Nothing improves safety like the threat of a lawsuit. If you have been seriously injured in any type of accident, notify a personal injury lawyer and discuss, usually for free, whether the accident circumstances merit a lawsuit against the person or company responsible for the accident and your injuries. If you need a referral to an excellent attorney in your neighborhood, please go to www.lawsuitfinancial.com and request a referral. We are pleased to provide a referral with 48 hours of your request. If you find yourself running short on money while your lawsuit is pending and you await justice, call Lawsuit Financial, toll free, at 1-877-377-SUIT (7848). We can help you with the cash you need now, to avoid eviction or foreclosure, to put food on your family's table, or for any other important financial obligation. Whether you have been in a helicopter accident, airplane crash accident, automobile accident, motorcycle accident, or slip and fall accident, construction accident, or an accident at sea (Jones Act, Maritime injury), we can provide you with financial assistance within 24-48 hours of your initial request. The same is true if you are the victim of medical malpractice, hospital negligence, or nursing home neglect. Call Lawsuit Financial, toll free, at 1-877-377-SUIT, for all of your lawsuit financing or legal finance needs.

Posted by Mark Bello of Lawsuit Financial Corp. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Lawsuit Funding Tip of the Day

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