Child Injury Laws - By Jonathan Rosenfeld

Adoption and foster care arrangements can be terrific alternative for children with troubled backgrounds.  After all, children living in these type of arrangements may be blessed with a loving family.  If you are looking for insights one these family situations, you've come to the right place.

1)Thin Q Fitness http://www.thinqfitness.com/blog.asp?z1060Brn4=al8rzor4-FDED

Fitness regimens that are on video that has something for everyone's fitness ability level. Contact Fiona Russell at info@thinqdigitalmedia.com.

2) Adoption Blogs http://www.adoptionblogs.com

This is a blog about parents of adopted children and what they go through parenting a child who is not biologically theirs. Stories include meeting birth parents, holidays, families and much more.

3) Adoptions Together Birth Parent Blog http://www.birthparentblog.com

Detailed accounts are discussed from people who are considering putting their children up for adoption. The process of emotions the birth parents can go through are described in detail.

4) Never a Dull Moment http://fletcherclan.blogspot.com

Claudia, author, chronicles her life as a professional in the adoption industry as well as an adoptive parent of foster children. She discusses day to day life and struggles personally and professionally.

5) Carrie’s Adoption Blog by Carrie Craft http://adoption.about.com/bl

A professional in the foster care/adoption field, Carrie discusses her personal and professional life as well as what is going on around the world with adoptions. Through work and experience, Carrie uses foster care to assist these children in their lives while in protective custody, long and short term care and respite homes.

6) My Adoption Chronicles Blogs http://www.myadoptionchronicles.com/

These are stories about people (many of them single) in different stages of the adoption process.

7) My Life in a Foster Care Space Warp http://fostercarespacewarp.blogspot.com/

This is a very personal blog written by a mother who fosters children in the dependency system. She writes of the ups and downs of the foster process for the kids she fosters.

8) Kate and Joel’s Adoption Blog http://kateandjoelsadoption.com/

This is the personal story of Kate and Joel’s adoption of a baby girl, Holly. It chronicles life after they get Holly to the present day.

9) My Crazy Adoption http://mycrazyadoption.org

Stories in this blog come from a family who live life to the fullest and celebrate everyday. The author is a mom of three and total proponent of adoption and features adoption videos monthly for inspiration for adoption.

10) Production not Reproduction http://www.productionnotreproduction.com/

This blog is written by a mother of two children, both adopted through open adoption. Open adoption means that the biological and adoptive parents meet each other and in some cases, the biological parents remain part of the adoptive families lives. This is the story of their lives and how open adoption worked for them.

Have a child-related blog or website that you find useful? Please send me a link and I will include it in our next round of web-related resources.

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers is proud to have national recognition for our work on behalf of children injured or abused in a variety of setting including: foster care, adoption services, day care, Religious institutions, camps and schools.  Our experience has allowed us to develop a network of some of the most respected names in fields of: counselling and therapy services.  We would honor the opportunity to speak to you regarding the legal rights of your children. (888) 424-5757

In the days following a personal injury accident, many injured people receive an outpouring of calls and messages from friends, family and.... insurance adjusters.  While it may be easy to give the insurance adjuster a return call while in the call returning mode, the fact remains that insurance adjusters are not your friends.  

From a personal perspective, insurance adjusters and the investigators they commonly associate with may be good, fine people.  However, as soon as a car accident, fall, or any other type of personal injury occurs, their interest is directly opposed to yours.  

Truth be told, the insurance companies for responsible parties have a job to do in terms of defending their insured's rights.  What many injured people fail to appreciate is that by taking an oral or written statement from you, they are actually in the process of assembling a case against you!  That's right, the friendly voice on the telephone who seems sincerely concerned about your physical condition is jotting down notes about your injuries and medical care in order to minimize or deny payments down the road.

As a personal injury lawyer, I consistently find insurance companies trying to gain the upper hand in the claims process from the moments following an incident.  While it may be completely legal, I strongly suggest injured parties resist the temptation to discuss any aspect how an incident occurred or their injuries with anyone aside from their immediate family, doctor or lawyer.

You never mentioned that!

Though I've never been to a training session for insurance adjusters, I imagine the insurance companies spend a good deal of time teaching their representatives how to take a recorded statement that is supportive of the companies position.  In reality, it's not that hard considering that few people indeed know what their rights are or even consider how a short statement can impact the course of their claim for years to come.

Just recently, I was retained by the family of a teenage boy who was struck by a car as he crossed the street.  Unfortunately, the impact resulted in fractures to the boy's leg and hip.  The family came to see me after they received a letter from the insurance company that they were denying the boy's claim.

Delay, Delay, Delay

During our meeting, I quickly understood the underlying reasons for the denial.  After returning from the hospital, a representative from the insurance company made a house call to the boy's home under the guise of 'just wanting to see how he's doing'.  Within a five minute discussion (taken on a tape recorder) the boy divulged that he had injured the same leg in a soccer practice years before, but also that he was listening to music at the time of the incident.  

While these two tidbits, likely have nothing to do with the driver's failure to keep a proper watch or extent of the boy's injuries, they arguably provide enough information for the insurance company to deny payment on the claim in a pre-litigation context.

As I prepare to file the lawsuit in this case, I am again reminded that the the handling of personal injury claims is a business-- and indeed a very big one-- for insurance companies.  If you think about it--- and I'm sure many, many actuaries have-- the denial or minimal offer on a legitimate personal injury claim is simply good business for the insurance company.  For one or two years during the course of litigation, they get to hold onto the money for the claim and invest it or do as they wish with with it.  While some insurance companies do have to pay their attorneys to represent them, many lawyers who do insurance defense work have relatively low rates and many times are on retainer--- meaning it doesn't cost the insurance company an extra penny to litigate the claim. 

For a large insurance company with thousands of claims, the cost benefit of completely denying or offering substandard payments can be substantial!  Consider the time value of money for a significant injury case worth $500,000?  If an insurance company conservatively invests the money during a two year litigation process at 3%, the company has effectively made an extra $30,450 by simply holding on to their money.  When similar calculations are spread amongst the thousands of open claims, the added benefits to the insurance company afforded by the delay is staggering!

As a lawyer who regularly goes to court, litigating another case is nothing new or especially burdensome to me.   In fact, I enjoy going to court and trying tough cases for my clients, but when I think about the inefficiencies created by an insurance companies delay and deny claims handling practice, I get downright disgusted.

So what's the answer?

Rather than try to instruct clients on what information may be disclosed or how to answer queries about liability or the extent of their injuries, I've simply adopted a 'no contact' policy for all clients when it comes to their involvement with insurance companies.   There is no legal obligation (outside of uninsured or under-insured motorist matters), to provide insurance companies any personal information prior to filing a lawsuit.  Why given them an upper hand?

Related:

7 Steps To Help Your Child's Personal Injury Or Medical Malpractice Case

Can You Afford Not To Speak To A Lawyer Following Your Child's Injury?

80% Of Vehicle-Pedestrian Accidents Occur Within Crosswalks

Kids' Fractures Require Special Attention To Avoid Complications Down The Road

Shortly after our sister blog, Nursing Homes Abuse Blog, was featured on Tom Mighell's Inter Alia blog, I am pleased to announce that he was kind enough to mention Child Injury Laws several days later.  For years, Inter Alia has been a recognized authority in the area of legal blogs and a mention from them certainly means a lot to me.

Is there a more difficult job than being a parent? Of course, the rewards are unimaginable, but as parent we are faced with situations that we never anticipate facing. Here are some useful websites I have accumulated to help when these situations arise-- and others just for fun.

PARENTING

1) family-health-and-nutrition.com http://www.family-health-and-nutrition.com/family-nutrition-blog.html

The kids nutrition blog share helpful news and ideas on health and nutrition for the family focusing on childrens healthy eating.

2) What’s cooking with kids http://whatscookingwithkids.com

Michelle Stern runs the company that teaches and offers healthy and seasonal, fresh cooking classes to kids in the San Fransisco Bay area.

3) My Family Exercise.com http://www.myfamilyexercise.com/kids-exercise

Jeff Wise, author of the blog, loves teaching kids the importance of health, fitness and proper eating. Contact Jeff Wise at info@myfamilyexercise.com.

4) Circle of Moms http://circleofmoms.com/?trk=header_logo

This blog allows moms from all over to connect and address issues facing motherhood today.

5) The Parenting Coach by Barbara Desmarais http://www.theparentingcoach.com/blog/

Barbara Desmarais uses self development, education and parenting theory to help with modern day parenting resources. Contact Barbara at barb@theparentingcoach.com.

6) I guess you could say we have… a good life http://www.agoodlifeblog.com/p/contact-me.html

Sam (father), Amy (mother) and Parker (son) blog about life as a young family. The adjustments and changes in life the way it was prior to a baby to the way life is now. Contact Amy at agoodlifeblog@gmail.com.

7) Empowering Parent http://www.empoweringparents.com/blog/

This is a parent to parent communication regarding parenting and focusing on child behavioral help. There is expert feedback as well. Anyone looking for some answers and help in working with some behavioral issues should read this blog.

8) Mama’s Boy by Christine Coppa http://www.parenting.com/new/blogs/mamas-boy

This blog deals with the life of being a single mother. It touches on societal views, juggling work with childcare, exercise and living daily as a single parent.

9) Parenting Post http://www.parenting.com/new/blogs/parenting-post

Written by parents regarding the good, bad and ugly of parenting. Topics include nannies, school choices, becoming a “green” parent, birth control, miscarriage and much more.

10) Parenting Blog http://www.parenting-blog.net

A wide array of activities for parents to do with their children, including directions, are outlined in this blog. Exemplified is parenting ideas for kids of all ages.

A recent New York Supreme Court decision will allow a personal injury lawsuit initiated by the estate of elderly woman, who sustained injuries prior to her death, to proceed against a four-year-old allegedly responsible for causing the injuries.

The case stems from an incident that took place in 2009 on a Manhattan sidewalk when two four-year-olds were riding their tricycles with their mothers and accidentally rode into an 87-year-old woman who was walking on the sidewalk. 

When the four-year-old struck the elderly woman, she fell to the ground and fractured her hip requiring surgery. Three months after sustaining her injuries, the woman died from unrelated causes.

After the elderly woman's estate filed a lawsuit against the four-year-old and their mother's, a lawyer for one of the toddlers filed a motion to dismiss the case against the youngster based on the fact that she was incapable of negligence based on her young age.

In New York, the long standing tradition is that children under four are simply incapable of negligence given their age.  Most other jurisdictions approaches when dealing with young children and lawsuits.

Certainly, the estate of the injured woman will still need to establish that this youngster's negligent conduct was responsible for the injury.  However, as a child injury lawyer, my fear is that other courts will look at this decision and allow comparative fault to be imposed on very young children who are victims of other people's negligent conduct-- in personal injury matters-- thereby diminishing their permissible recovery.

Related:

4-Year-Old Can Be Sued, Judge Rules in Bike Case The New York Times, October 28, 2010

Comparative Fault to the Limits (PDF) EM Bublick - Vanderbilt Law Review, 2003

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers: Bicycle Accidents

Years ago, the treatment options for children with cerebral palsy were incredibly limited. Today, there is an increased understanding of the condition and the specific treatment needed to provide the most significant impact for children with CP. 

The Center for Independence through Collective Education is part of a new generation of treatment facilities specifically geared towards helping children with cerebral palsy.  Children at the center receive various types of therapies to help them live as normal a life as possible.

Currently, the Northern Illinois facility serves 12 children living the the Chicagoland area with hopes of growing to accommodate a significant void for children with similar disabilities who don't currently have access to specialized treatment.  

Utilizing conductive education, a program developed by Hungarian researchers in the 1940's, the program focuses on using techniques to re-train the brains of children. The Center utilizes the expertise of: physical therapists, occupational therapists in conjunction with other therapeutic modalities.

Not surprisingly, the costs for these treatments can be significant. In an effort to offset the expense and expand the service to a larger group of children, the Center for Independence through Education is holding its 5th annual fundraiser on March 4th.  For more information call (847) 401-2995.

Cerebral Palsy In Children

Unlike many medical conditions afflicting children that may be due to genetic defects, cerebral palsy is a condition that may be traced to an injury to the brain.  Many scientists now believe the brain injury is due to a lack of oxygen immediately prior to and during the birthing process.  A diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy is usually made during the formative years.  

Though the extent of disability associated with Cerebral Palsy varies significantly from child-to-child, most children require a good deal of intervention to assist in learning basic developmental skills such as eating, dressing and using the toilet.

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers represents families in cerebral palsy due to trauma at birth.  If your child has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, call us today and talk candidly about your concerns.  All legal consultations are free and completely confidential.  Why not begin the process today and secure your child's future? 888-424-5757

The Child Injury Law Blog wishes all readers and their families the best in health and happiness in 2011.  As we close the books on 2010, I want to thank our readers for the feedback they have provided me with this new project.  

Through the Child Injury Law Blog, we have received many inquiries from parents interested in seeking information regarding a child who may have been harmed due to the conduct of another person or company.

As a parent, I am grateful for the confidence clients have put in me be allowing them to represent their child in an injury case and am committed to seeing that their case gets the attention required to achieve the best possible outcome for their situation.

I look forward to continuing the child safety dialog in 2011 as we continue to discuss important legal developments impacting children in the following areas:

• Cerebral Palsy
• Car Accidents
• Dog Bites
• Day Care Injuries
• Foster Care Abuse
• Accidents On Others Property

As we head towards the cool fall weather, it is important to remember to have your furnace checked by certified hvac personnel.  Faulty furnaces, boilers and other types of heaters can be responsible for creation of unhealthy levels of carbon monoxide gas. 

Carbon monoxide is a nearly inperceptable gas (no color, taste or scent) that can rapidly accumulate in a home or apartment setting.

When carbon monoxide levels reach a level of 150 to 200 parts per million, serious injuries-- and even death may result.

Just recently, I read a news report regarding three residents in a Chicagoland suburb who were hospitalized due to the accumulation of carbon monoxide in there home that accumulated due to a faulty boiler.

Children are particularly susceptible to the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning due to their developing lungs and organs.  Families should be sure to install carbon monoxide detectors in their homes to alert them if levels rise.  Renters, should always contact their landlord if they have problems with furnaces, boilers or other heating equipment.

When landlords of homes and apartments fail to take steps necessary to protect their tenants, they may be civilly responsible for subsequent injury or death.  As Chicago personal injury lawyers, we are well versed in the applicable building codes and property maintenance issues unique to carbon monoxide poisoning cases.

Related:

Protect Your Family and Yourself from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, United States Environmental Protection Agency

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, Keep Kids Healthy

Carbon Monoxide Awareness Week: Children Are at Greater Risk For CO Poisoning; Know How to Protect Your Family Kid Source Online

This past weekend, I went with my family to the 30th annual Misericordia Family Festival. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time supporting a tremendous organization in the Chicagoland area.

If you are unfamiliar with Misericordia, I suggest you take time to support this unique facility.  Situated on beautiful grounds on Chicago's Northside, Misericordia offers customized programs for people with mild, moderate and profound disabilities.  Living arrangements include:

• CILAs (Community Integrated Living Arrangements for small groups in neighborhood homes outside Misericordia’s main campus)
• On-campus apartments
• Group homes on-campus
• Skilled nursing residence

I can tell you firsthand how important this organization is to disabled children and adults who require emotional and medical support.  For several years, my wife worked at Misericordia, during her tenure she exposed me to the dedicated families and staff who make the facility operate day in and day out.  Bravo!

I was really happy to help sponsor a community event for children in the south-side of Chicago that was put together by the Help n' Hands group.  Help n' hands is a community based group dedicated to improving the neighborhood in some of Chicago's tougher areas.

As lawyers who frequently assist children from all walks of life, I am particularly proud of the fact that we always continue to give back to the communities.

Below are some great photos from the event.

Ride 'em cowgirl!

Forward or backward?

What's an event without some music and dancing?

90-degrees, sunny skies, I'm ready for a sno-cone.  Cherry please.

All for the kids. 'Peace in the Hood' God Bless.