Maryland Accident Law Blog

Judge Allows Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Church to Proceed

September 23, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A Superior Court judge recently ruled to allow a wrongful death lawsuit to proceed against a church and its pastor.

The lawsuit arises out of the circumstances surrounding the brutal rape and killing of a 35 year old church day-care employee by the church’s janitor. The woman’s husband and children were expecting her to come home from work as usual, but instead were informed that her body had been found in a roadside ditch the next morning several miles south of the church.

Authorities have since charged the church janitor with raping and killing her. His trial was initially set in Maryland, but has since been moved to Delaware. Trial has yet to begin, with the defendant having pleaded not guilty.

Baseball League Faces Lawsuit over Allegedly Dangerous Bleachers

September 17, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A youth baseball league in Preston County is facing a lawsuit, brought on behalf of the estate of a man who died seven months after he allegedly fell off of the top row of bleachers at a little league baseball game.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the man’s estate, by the man’s wife. It names the town where the incident occurred, the town’s youth league, and the park where the incident occurred as defendants. Collectively, according to the complaint, the defendants own, operate, and conduct necessary maintenance to the field where the fall happened.

Specifically, the complaint states, the 66 year old man was seated on the top row of the bleachers during the course of a baseball game that he was attending. According to the complaint, at some point during the game, he attempted to avoid being hit by a foul ball, and fell as a result of unsafe conditions, including the absence of safety railings on the bleachers.

Father Files Lawsuit Following Daughter’s Purported Liposuction Surgery Related Death

September 3, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A man recently filed a lawsuit against a surgeon, a cosmetic surgery company, and its parent company, on behalf of his daughter whom he claims died following a liposuction procedure at the facility.

The suit claims that the woman died following the procedure in which the surgeon purportedly anesthetized by inserting a propofol-soaked rag into her mouth, and accidentally pierced her liver, among other claims.

The man’s daughter died in February, and according to a police report a second woman died in June following a procedure at the same facility.

Kawasaki Motorcycle Design Defect Case Survives Motion to Dismiss

August 30, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The design defect lawsuit filed by parents on behalf of their minor son, who became permanently injured when his Christmas gift of a Kawasaki motorcycle crashed, survived a motion to dismiss earlier this month.

The couple bought a new Kawasaki motorcycle as a Christmas present for their minor son in 2010. When the boy first rode the motorcycle on Christmas Day, the bike crashed, which resulted in a serious and permanent injury. The parents claim that negligent assembly of the motorcycle’s throttle mechanism was responsible for causing the accident.

One of the defendants in the action moved to have the case, which was filed in federal court, dismissed against it, claiming that the court lacked the requisite personal jurisdiction over the company. However, the U.S. District Judge disagreed, and denied the motion, finding that the defendant had sufficient minimum contacts with New Jersey to justify keeping the claim against it.

Lawsuit Filed in Helicopter Crash Death of 3 Year Old Boy

August 23, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The mother of a 3 year old boy who was tragically killed in a helicopter crash last month in northeastern Pennsylvania was the first to file a lawsuit in connection with the accident. She is seeking unspecified damages from two aviation companies and the pilot’s estate.

The plaintiff sued Virginia-based Hampton Roads Charter Service, alleging that the company acted negligently in leasing the five seat helicopter to the pilot. All five individuals aboard the helicopter were killed in the crash, which occurred just 30 minutes after take-off.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the pilot failed to follow federal regulations when he initiated a flight in low-visibility conditions, a condition in which he was not certified to fly. The NTSB further stated that he also failed to file a flight plan for the trip or obtain a weather briefing.

Jury Awards $2 Million in Vaginal Mesh Case

August 16, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A victory was recently reported in a lawsuit against C.R. Bard, the manufacturer of the Avaulta line of vaginal mesh devices. The jury ordered the company to pay a Georgia woman $2 million for her serious injuries.

The individual lawsuit was filed on behalf of a plaintiff whose vaginal mesh injuries reportedly included perforation to her internal organs, vaginal scarring, pelvic pain and pain during intercourse. According to court documents, the plaintiff suffered an incredible lowering in enjoyment of her life, and the vaginal mesh eventually had to be removed.

After a reported twelve hours of deliberation, the jury reached a verdict for $250,000 in compensatory damages and $1.75 million in punitive damages. This was the first verdict in the first case to go to trial for similar lawsuits in the area.

Family Sues Rodeo After Golf Cart Puts Woman into Coma

August 9, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of a woman injured in a golf cart accident at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in February recently filed a personal injury lawsuit on her behalf.

The woman was reportedly a volunteer at the rodeo for some 30 years. She now remains in a coma, as a result of a severe brain injury she reportedly suffered after being thrown from a golf cart following a concert the night of February 25. According to the woman’s family, her medical bills are already past a half of a million dollars.

A statement from one of the attorneys in the case stated that the evidence will show that the driver of the golf cart was at fault for not being adequately trained to drive in a safe manner, and that the golf cart manufacturer is additionally liable for a defective design.

The case alleges that the golf cart that the woman was riding at the time of the accident lacked safety features such as seatbelts or handles. According to the legal team, some 15,000 people are thrown from dangerous golf carts nationwide every year, a majority of which are purportedly caused by sharp left turns.

The case reportedly focuses on negligence and product liability claims. The victim of the accident remains in a coma, and has a steep road of surgeries and recovery ahead.

Maryland High Court Refuses to Hold Bar Liable for Drunken Patron Actions

July 26, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The Maryland Court of Appeals refused to create a “dram shop” law when it ruled earlier this month that a bar cannot be held liable for the actions of a drunken patron after he or she departs.

The case was originally argued in March, on behalf of a family whose 10 year old was killed during a car crash on I-270 back in 2008. The driver responsible for the young girl’s death had been served 20 drinks at a local bar prior to getting behind the wheel.

The court held that individuals should solely be held responsible for their own decisions and actions. In addition, the court determined that General Assembly is the venue most proper in which to create new laws, not the court.

The dissenting opinion argued that this was a lost to ensure bars were held accountable for protecting the public from overly intoxicated customers. The judge wrote, “this case presented the opportunity to impose dram shop liability on commercial vendors of alcohol” which served their patrons even after they were visibly impaired as a result of their alcohol consumption. Further, according to a study cited in the dissent, studies have shown that these types of laws could potentially lead to 14 deaths fewer in Maryland every year.

Maryland Judge Refuses to Dismiss Suit Alleging College Ignored Warning Signs in Dangerous Student

July 22, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A Baltimore judge recently refused to toss out a lawsuit against Morgan State University surrounding a violent attack by a student against a visitor.

The school urged the judge to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming that the beating was not foreseeable given the student’s behavior, and noted that the student didn’t have a history of documented violence.

The attorney for the victim, however, stated that the perpetrator engaged in a variety of bizarre behaviors over a six month period leading up to the beating, and that those instances should have put the school on notice that the young man was violent.

Specific examples of violent behavior include when the student reportedly punched holes in the wall of a campus computer lab, which ultimately led to his dismissal from the ROTC program. Following the incident, an instructor told campus police that the student was “a “Virginia Tech waiting to happen.” He also made cryptic comments regarding a “blood sacrifice,” and allegedly wrote strange posts on various social media accounts. The judge acknowledged that the school should not be responsible for policing social media sites, but that the pattern of behavior suggested that the student was a potential risk.

Maryland High Court Upholds Contributory Negligence Rule

July 12, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland’s highest state court, the Court of Appeals, ruled earlier this month to uphold Maryland’s long standing, yet uncommon, manner of handling negligence cases.

The rule it upheld, referred to as the Contributory Negligence Rule, prevents plaintiffs from recovering anything in a negligence cause of action, if they are shown to be even one percent at fault for the incident.

The judge who penned the 5-2 majority decision stated that it is the court’s opinion that the legislature should decide the question of whether another model of determining liability would be more appropriate.

For example, an alternative model could require juries to allocate blame based on potential responsibility, and calculate damages according to that ratio.

While the Maryland legislature has reportedly considered changing the law several times since the 1960s, it has never done so.

Maryland first adopted contributory negligence in 1847 by way of a court ruling. It was once a widely used way of evaluating negligence cases, but has largely become the minority approach. Forty six states have switched to alternative views of fault, some of which allow juries to allocate fault according to responsibility.

The dissenting judges in the case referred to the rule as a “dinosaur” that should be rendered extinct.