We are the law firm of Domnitz & Skemp, S.C. For over thirty years we have represented people injured in all types of accidents. Our record of success in the handling and the trial of personal injury accident is known and recognized throughout Wisconsin and Northern Illinois.
Whether it is the gathering of vital evidence and witness statements in timely fashion following an auto or truck accident, or the careful analysis of complex matters such as insurance bad faith or professional malpractice matters, our clients can attest to the efficient operation of our practice as well as the personal touch we bring to the handling of each of our files.
It is our intention on this blog to provide readers with important information in three essential areas: first, how to best safeguard their rights following any type of personal injury accident; second, to keep people apprized of new developments in the law, through legislation or court decisions, that could have an effect on their rights; and third, to provide information about our involvement in past and present cases that will hopefully serve as a vehicle for discussing the wide range of issues involved in personal injury litigation.
Recent Victory in Pre-Existing Condition Trial
Posted by: Ric Domnitz
July 08, 2008
Topic: Recent Victory in Pre-Existing Condition Trial
Do people with pre-existing physical injuries or ailments have the right to bring claims if they are the victim of an accident? This is a question with an obvious answer ("Yes") but which often creates issues upon which the insurance industry loves to bounce. All too often hard working people who have been injured on the job, in a prior accident, or who have developed back, shoulder, or neck problems are denied their right to recovery by insurance defendants. It requires a clear understanding of Wisconsin law and the ability to articulate the distinction between these pre-existing conditions and the aggravation or exacerbation of those injuries by a subsequent accident.
For example, medical studies have shown that a high percentage of Americans over the age of 40 have some degree of arthritis in their spine, whether it be cervical (neck), thoracic (mid-back), or lumbar (low-back). This often referred to degenerative spine disease and may even co-exist with degenerative disk disease (a breakdown of the cushioning material between the boney vertebrae of the spine). The point is that often this condition is first revealed on autopsy, i.e., after death. This is because in most people mild to moderate arthritic changes in their spine is asymptomatic (without pain).
However, when a person is injured in an automobile accident or a bad fall, the insurance industry seizes upon these arthritic conditions (usually revealed on x-ray or MRI studies) and claims that the pain the injured party claims is the result of these pre-existing arthritic findings and not any trauma caused by their insured. Wisconsin law, as expressed in rulings by our supreme court and incorporated in instructions read to a jury by the trial judge, clearly provides for compensation for accident victims with these pre-existing conditions. Juries are told that as long as they determine that the accident which is the subject of the lawsuit is "a cause;" a substantial factor in bringing about the medical condition of the plaintiff, the accident victim is entitled to compensation for his or her injuries. This means that the accident does not have to be the sole cause of a plaintiff's current medical condition, but rather "a cause;" i.e., one substantial factor.
Domnitz & Skemp recently represented a 47 year old man who operated a lawn maintenance business in the Milwaukee area. He had been the victim of an automobile accident in 1999 after which his doctors discovered he had degenerative changes in his spine. Although these changes clearly developed over years before the accident, they had not been discovered before the accident because they were asymptomatic. After the trauma of the motor vehicle accident, however, he began to experience back and neck pain. After treatment with doctors and physical therapists this client was assigned a minimal permanent disability rating and his claim was resolved short of trial.
Unfortunately, in December 2004 this same man was again struck from behind by a careless driver. Now his back and neck were even worse than before. The insurance company maintained that his problems were not attributable to the 2004 accident, but rather to the effects of his degenerative spine condition and/or the 1999 accident. Although the bills for related treatment from his 2004 accident totaled $20,000 - and his doctor clearly explained the worsening of his condition - the insurance company would offer little more than the medical bills to settle the case. The case proceeded to trial and we explained to the jury the provisions of Wisconsin law that provide for compensation for the aggravation of a pre-existing condition. The defense argued that $14,000 was adequate compensation since the treatment and the current medical condition did not relate to the 2004 accident. It took the jury less than two hours to return a verdict for $70,000.
Experience in the courtroom coupled with a clear understanding of the applicable Wisconsin law allowed this hard working man to obtain fair compensation as provided for by our civil justice system. Don't be fooled by insurance adjusters or inexperienced attorneys who want to pass your pain and suffering off onto pre-existing conditions or even prior accidents; if the medical facts indicate that your condition has been worsened by an accident, find an experienced lawyer who knows this area of the law - it is your only protection against an insurance company's attempt to deny you fair treatment under the law.
Domnitz & Skemp: There's no substitute for experience.
Nursing Home Abuse
Posted by: Ric Domnitz
May 14, 2008
Topic: Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing Homes have become a more prominent presence in the lives of many Americans. Advances in health care have made it possible for the elderly and the infirm to be cared for long term and for quality of life to remain an attainable goal. Unfortunately, along with this seemingly positive social development has come the specter of negligent care and outright abuse.
We recently resolved a claim for a woman who sadly now lives in a persistent vegetative state; i.e., she is totally dependent upon others for her every care need. She lies in bed day after day cared for by a combination of professionals and her loving family. During the course of this litigation we discovered much about how the basic rights of people in nursing homes are often trampled upon by the professionals charged with the responsibility of caring for them.
While this blog entry is not the place to detail the potential abuses by nursing home staffers, we want to alert the public to existence of the problem so that people understand that there is recourse in the event a nursing home resident is treated in an improper manner. There are state departments that can be accessed and private causes of action that can be brought against negligent nursing homes. The facility is responsible for the negligent or abusive conduct of their staff.
Some of the more common components of negligent care include, but are certainly not limited to failure to turn a resident resulting in pressure sores, failure to adhere to a prescribed dietary plan resulting in malnutrition, over/under medication, delayed diagnosis following falls, failure to properly staff and/or equip a nursing home unit, and on and on.
While it is true that many nursing home facilities deliver quality care and are dedicated to the welfare of their residents, negligent care and abuse do exist. Given the often defenseless condition of a nursing home resident this negligence often borders on outrageous conduct and has sometimes led to the imposition of punitive damages by a jury.
It is important to know your rights and those of a loved one residing in a nursing home or long term care facility. Speak up in defense of the resident and demand accountability for the acts and omissions of the staff. If you believe you or a family member has been cared for in a negligent or abusive manner, contact Domnitz & Skemp to explore your rights. See us at http://www.domnitzlaw.com/. We can help.
Beware of Statements
Posted by: Ric Domnitz
June 25, 2007
Topic: Beware of Statements
Beware of Statements
We often have clients come to us days, even weeks or months, after an accident has occurred. People are sometimes focused on their injuries, their ongoing medical treatment, or deciding whether they want to hire a lawyer. In the meantime, they receive a telephone call or a visit from a seemingly friendly insurance adjuster working for the company that insurers the person who caused the accident. BEWARE, danger lurks!!
I would never suggest that anyone relate facts other than the truth in a statement, a deposition, or at trial. But in nearly every accident scenario there are factual issues on both liability (who is responsible for causing the accident) and damages. Insurance adjusters are trained to ask questions regarding issues that, while they are potentially central to the determination of responsibility, may not be obvious to the average person. Time and distance analysis, for example, is a concept that often has great bearing on who is ultimately found to be at fault for an auto accident, and important information concerning facts that later get fed into complicated formulae are often gathered in early interviews with adjusters before people really think through their answers.
A good experienced law firm will protect an injured person from such early statements when potentially crucial information is otherwise provided unwittingly by an unrepresented person. All too often we see early statements where cleverly crafted questions by insurance adjusters result in an inaccurate description of accident facts which are later used against the injured party.
Similarly questions about your physical condition, your medical treatment, and your work status are often designed to limit your recovery. It is virtually impossible to know, in the days immediately following an accident, the nature and extent of your injuries, if any, or the full effect of those injuries on your life. The exchange of information with an insurance company needs to be metered to abide the determination by qualified medical professionals of the full nature and extent of your injuries.
The best protection against such unfair discovery efforts by insurers is to secure quality representation as soon after an accident as possible. Remember, you are dealing with claims adjusters who are professionals trained to record information on an accident in the light most favorable to the interests of the insurer. Don't be fooled by sweet talk about how they want to help you and how they just want to do the right thing by you. Never forget that every casualty insurance company makes their money in the same way: by taking in as much as possible in premiums and by paying out as little as possible in claims.
This is not to say that every insurance adjuster or investigator is out to cheat you. But none of them are out to serve your interests. The only person who will always look out for your best interests is an experienced attorney retained by you to work for you.
Be smart. Get quality representation as soon as practical after an accident. Don't let innocent answers to well-crafted questions eat away at your right to full and fair compensation under the law.
Auto Insurance issues
Posted by: Ric Domnitz
June 13, 2007
Topic: Auto Insurance Issues
The Need for Quick Action
When an automobile accident occurs and someone is injured, things can happen very quickly. The need for quality medical attention is the obvious priority. But other important matters must be attended to or valuable rights may be lost or compromised. Let's talk about just a few:
1. Law enforcement should be contacted at once so that there is a record made of the accident and identification of all involved parties can be documented;
2. Insurance information should be exchanged and coverage verified so that those responsible for paying for damages caused by the accident can be immediately notified;
3. Statements should be obtained from eyewitnesses to the accident; any delay in doing so can result in memories fading or accident accounts being influenced by investigators working for opposing parties or insurance companies;
4. In major crashes or very serious injury cases accident reconstruction engineers should be dispatched to the scene as soon as possible before physical evidence may disappear or fade through the passage of time or adverse weather conditions;
5. The vehicles involved in the accident need to be inspected and photographed to secure valuable information in the event of an argument over exactly how the accident occurred; once vehicles are crushed the evidence could be lost forever;
While all of these items seem pretty straightforward, in the crush of activity that follows an accident, with personal injuries occupying the fore of everyone's thoughts, valuable time and important evidence is sometimes lost. The way to guard against the loss of valuable evidence often necessary to obtain full and fair compensation under the law is to secure quality legal representation immediately following an accident. An experienced law firm will handle all of the above issues and a number of similar issues for you while you and your family concentrate on recovering from the effects of the injuries.
At Domnitz & Skemp we have over thirty-five years of experience in handling accident cases from the very beginning. The truth is, the sooner we are involved, the better we can fully protect your rights.
Car Accidents FAQ
Posted by: Ric Domnitz
June 13, 2007
Topic: Car Accident FAQ's
Protection afforded by automobile insurance is an issue with many different nuances. Responsible people who drive cars think of protecting their assets by purchasing liability coverage in the event they cause an accident which injures another. In addition, the liability policy will create a source of recovery for the person injured and help to lessen the impact of an accident. This is a kind of societal contract whereby citizens protect one another in light of the fact that accident can and do happen. However, since the law in Wisconsin does not require that an owner or operator of a car be covered by a liability insurance policy, there are fundamental steps that should be taken by anyone seeking to fully protect themselves and their families. First, of course, is the responsible step of purchasing a liability insurance policy for the reasons mentioned above. The minimum liability policy in Wisconsin is $25,000 and the premium for such a policy is a function of many facts, including where the car is garaged, the age and driving record of those who regularly drive the vehicle, and the make, model, and age of the vehicle. Once the decision is made to purchase insurance, be sure to price higher policy limits as extra coverage becomes cheaper as the limits go up. Fortunately, our legislature has mandated that every policy of liability insurance be accompanied by Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage. The result is that when a consumer buys a liability policy the car and its occupants are covered by insurance in the event they are injured by a driver who carries no insurance. What's more, this UM coverage is personal and portable, that is, it follows the insured if they are injured by an uninsured driver when they are a pedestrian or a passenger in someone else's car. However, that is not the end of the reasonable steps to be taken to fully protect you and your family. There is another type of auto insurance that is necessary. This coverage is referred to as Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage and it steps in to fill the gap between the policy limits of a driver with low liability limits and the full damages sustained by the insured. For example, if you are injured by a driver with $25,000 of liability coverage but your full damages are $75,000, there is obviously a gap between the other driver's policy limit ($25,000) and your damages ($75,000). If you had the foresight to purchase UIM coverage of $100,000 you would be able to go to your own company for the $50,000 difference between the other driver's policy limit and your damages. UIM coverage is inexpensive coverage and it is necessary for the full protection of you and your family. But you won't have it unless you insist that your insurance agent include it on your policy. Last, the procedure by which you can recover the other driver's policy limits and still keep alive your claim against your own UIM carrier is somewhat involved. If not done correctly you could forfeit your right to make a claim under your UIM provision. At Domnitz and Skemp we have years of experience in helping injured people wind their way through these procedures. Be smart, protect yourself and your family fully through the purchase of UIM coverage on all your auto policies. If you have questions about this or any aspect of personal injury matters, give us call (414-289-0909) or contact us through our website at http://www.domnitzlaw.com/.