Erbs Palsy

This is an injury that can be caused at birth and often times is the result of medical negligence. There are specific protocols doctors and mid wives are trained to follow when they encounter a birth emergency such as the baby becoming stuck due to the shoulders not passing through the birth canal. The various protocols include:

McRoberts Maneuver: Where the mother is repositioned and flexing knees to abdomen

Surapubic Pressure: Where push pressure is asserted over the mother's abdomen.

Wood's or Cork Screw Maneuver: Rotating the child's upper shoulder downward and the downward shoulder up ward.

C- Section: Which is extracting the baby through surgery.

There are four major types of injuries which occur to the nerves in the brachial plexus network which can result in some form of palsy:

1. an avulsion meaning the nerve is torn from the spine.

2. a rupture meaning the nerve is torn but not where it attaches to the spine.

3. a neuroma meaning the nerve has tried to heal but scar tissue has grown around the injury placing pressure on the injured nerve praxis. While the nerve has been damaged, it has not been torn and improvement should be seen within 3 months.

4. Neuropraxia is the mildest form of nerve injury. Neuropraxia, the most common form of Erb's Palsy is localized to the specific place where the injury occurs. It is a physiologic block of nerve conduction within an axon without any anatomical interruption. Many infants born with brachial plexus palsy have neuropraxia and sometimes recover within 4-6 weeks.

If you are not sure if negligence was involved in your baby's injury call my office. We will investigate the cause for you and provide those answers at no cost to you. 1-888-760-7339.

Medical Malpractice in Maryland. Those Cases Matter Too.

If you have been injured as a result of a doctor or hospital's careless treatment and you have been to the lawyers and each one tells you the damages do not justify filing suit call me before you give up the fight. A common opinion for many malpractice lawyers is that the case has to be worth seven figures to justify filing suit. I happen to disagree. I see many medical negligence issues each year where the damages are less then optimal but the case still has value beyond expenses. I am more then happy to give your case an initial evaluation or that final review after everyone has said no. Too frequently a blind eye is turned on those who deserve. This is done in favor of what many consider more prudent business decision making. Let my office be your last stop. Please feel free to call to discuss your medical malpractice case. 1-888-760-7339

Statute of Limitations in Maryland Personal Injury

You must be very very careful on issues involving the Statute of Limitations. Once your period of limitations has run out you will be forever barred from filing suit against the person(s) that harmed you. My first advise to you is when you are injured in an accident no matter what type accident, car accident, medical malpractice, slip and fall, not matter what, first call an attorney who practices personal injury law in Maryland. If for no other reason simply ask, what is the statue of limitations in my case. Oddly in the last week I have had two calls from people who have waited until one month before the limitations is about to expire on their cases now seeking an attorney. Let me explain some thing right off the start. First off every attorney will suspect something is wrong with this case when they get a call this close to limitations expiring. Secondly, it is a horrible risk to any attorney to try to investigate a case to determine who needs to be sued in such a short period of time before limitations will expire. Generally when an attorney gets this type call the suspicion is other attorney's have already reviewed the case and rejected it for some reason and now the potential client is still looking for an attorney to take the case and time is running out. Always contact an attorney when you are injured. You do not have to hire them just ask what is the period of limitations. Please feel free to call. I will review the case for you and answer your questions right over the phone 1-888-760-7339.

Bad Faith Failure to Settle in Maryland Personal Injury Cases

In the event you have damages that are in excess of defendant's liability coverage, setting aside the issues involving UM coverage for the moment, you can set up the potential for a bad faith claim against the defendant insurance carrier that might in the long run net you payment for the full extent of your client's harms. The Maryland personal injury case on point is Kremen v. Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund 363 Md. 663, 770 A.2d 170
Md.,2001. In this case defendant insurer had the chance to settle the case for policy limits however, refused to settle. The court determined the action for bad faith lies in tort and not in contract. In this case it was determined there was sufficient evidence in the record for the jury reasonably to have found that the defendant’s insurer did not fully investigate plaintiff's claimed head injuries. Because the jury was provided with evidence of the defendant insurers failure to investigate fully plaintiff's closed head injury claim and of plaintiff's willingness to settle unconditionally the underlying case for defendant's $20,000 policy limit, the trial court found that there was sufficient evidence before the jury to support its finding that defendant insurer acted in bad faith (negligently) when it refused to settle the case. The measure of damage was the difference between the policy limits and the amount of the judgment entered against the insured.

As a matter of practice when we conduct our initial client intake one of the first points of inquiry is UM/UIM coverage. Once our clients near completion of treatment we ball park value the case. When we feel we have an excess case we investigate defendant’s assets and upon confirmation of all damages forward a policy limits demand, if appropriate.