Choosing the right hospital for your medical care is vital—if you decide to go to a hospital that is poorly ranked, it’s likely unsanitary, is understaffed, doesn’t perform medical tasks well, or a combination of any of these shortcomings. That’s why it’s important to know if the hospital you’re choosing is ranked high or low in your state.
Many people think that when they exit the highway and pull into the parking lot, the danger of an accident is over. It’s common for drivers to begin dialing or texting, unbuckling the seatbelt, and reaching for objects in the car even as they prepare to park. But parking lot accidents are more common than we might think.
The following fact should encourage us to think twice before driving carelessly in a parking lot: Nearly 20% of car accidents happen in a parking lot or garage—that’s more than 50,000 crashes a year. Thousands of injuries and deaths result from parking lot accidents each year, and roughly 40% of those deaths are pedestrians, especially vulnerable individuals like children, infants in strollers, and elderly pedestrians.
When you have a trial by jury, you face a jury of your peers. This selected group of individuals will sit, listen to the story, the facts, and the evidence presented, and will finally render their decision. And the decision they make as a group will dictate the future course of your life. This means that your life, in no uncertain terms, depends on the decision that jury makes.
Not a day goes by that a client doesn’t ask me what is going to happen in a deposition. I give my clients the simple truth about the nature of a deposition: it is a glorified question and answer session. Unlike the violent, outburst-filled depositions you may have seen on TV, most real-life depositions are pleasant, non-combative exchanges of information between opposing parties in a legal case. But whether your case is one of personal injury or criminal defense, you need to have the right lawyer to defend you. There are things that can happen in a deposition which could create serious problems for your case in the long run.
After a car accident, there are so many things you have to take care of—talking to the police, exchanging insurance information, talking to witnesses, and taking pictures of the scene all while trying to figure out if you’re hurt and planning your trip to the hospital. Even when you complete all of that, you’re likely thinking about your next steps and what you need to do.
Car accidents happen every day. You might not have been involved in the traumatic experience, but your friend or family member was. When someone close to you has been in a car crash and suffered injuries and other damages, you’re likely wondering what you can do for them to be supportive.
The good news is that your desire to be helpful and supportive will likely mean more to your hurt family member than your actions. But your actions will also make their healing easier and let them know they have people behind them rooting for their recovery.
If your insurance company acts in bad faith—uses tactics to avoid fulfilling their contractual obligations—it’s probably time to consider finding an insurance bad faith attorney you can trust to handle your case. Insurance companies hold a reputation for having deep pockets and no qualms about stacking the cards when it comes to business practices. Unfortunately, that reputation is often proved accurate. But those who know their rights also understand the importance of protecting them—and what to look for to know if your insurance company is trying to take advantage of you.
As we discuss these common tactics, keep in mind that not every insurance company or adjuster (someone hired to review and make assessments on accident claims) is out to cheat you out of the compensation you deserve. That’s why it’s important to be aware of these underhanded maneuvers—to help you separate honest companies and adjusters from dishonest ones.
She has joined Palo Alto University’s Clinical Psychology Program to obtain her PhD.
The first step in criminal proceedings is called the arraignment. This is when you are brought in front of the court to hear the charges against you and enter a plea. As a defendant who has been falsely charged with a crime, this is your first chance to state your innocence in front of a judge. There are different procedures that happen depending on whether you are in state court or federal court, but once you have completed this first step, the real work of defending your case begins.
There is one big question criminal lawyers hear again and again from clients who have been arrested: Should I talk to the police? If you interviewed every respectable criminal defense attorney in the United States, you would likely hear the same answer from all of them: No, and absolutely not alone. No matter what you may believe or have heard to the contrary, it is never wise to talk to the police before speaking with your attorney.
