Milwaukee Personal Injury Lawyer - Property Owner's Liability (Slip & Fall)

Smoke Detector Could Have Saved Lives Says Lawsuit

Paul Jacquart — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 13:14:42 GMT

The Baltimore Sun reports that a man who lost his pregnant fiancee, son and fiancee's niece in an apartment building fire is suing the landlord for failure to install smoke detectors. The lawsuit claims damages totalling 53 million dollars. The lawsuit alleges that only three of the twelve apartments in the building had smoke detectors. The lawyer for the claimant has said that he hoped the lawsuit would prompt other landlords to make sure they have smoke detectors installed in all apartments and "instead of trying to save a few bucks, they might try to save a few lives."

A few years ago we represented a renter who suffered severe injuries from smoke inhalation that resulted from an apartment fire that could have been put out, but the building did not have working fire extinguishers. The absence of working fire prevention equipment is more prevelant than one would think. Unfortunately, fire prevention issues are often an afterthought for most landlords and It takes a tragedy such as this to serve as a wakeup call. To check whether your building is taking adequate fire prevention steps, look at the website maintained by the National Fire Protection Association which contains fire safety codes and standards in a database that can be accessed online.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Jacquart

Insurance Company Takes Heat for Filing Slip and Fall Lawsuit

David Lowe — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 16:16:48 GMT

It's nice to see the shoe on the other foot. Sentry Insurance is being criticized for being too litigious. Sentry has sued an 81-year-old Brookfield, Wisconsin woman over injuries suffered by a member of a meal-delivery team who slipped and fell on a patch of ice in her driveway three years ago. Apparently, Sentry paid medical benefits for the delivery person and is seeking to recover those from the homeowner. Sentry is now the butt of criticism for the suit in local papers and blogs.

Sentry feels justified in using the court system to seek recovery of losses it believes should in fairness be borne by another party-- in this case the homeowner's liability insurance carrier for the elderly homeowner. The courts are there to sort out claims of this kind. Hopefully, Sentry will be sensitive the next time I file a slip and fall lawsuit against one of its customers.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

Dangerous School Parking Lot Design Leads to Wrongful Death Verdict

David Lowe — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 16:39:43 GMT

A Los Angeles, California jury has awarded more than $10 million to the parents of a first grade student killed when struck by a van in an improperly designed school parking lot. The jury found that the lot was not built in accordance with the state-approved plans, and that hte school was aware of its dangerous design before the accident.

Reacting to the verdict, the child's father said he intended to use the money to open a foundation to address safety issues at schools nationwide. Mark J. Henderson, the attorney for the victim's family said that he hoped the verdict would draw attention to parking and traffic safety on school campuses.

We would all do well as parents and concerned citizens to be alert to these issues in our own communities.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

Propane Explosion In Factory Kills 3 Workers, Injures Many Others

David Lowe — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 16:27:11 GMT

An apparent propane gas explosion at a Milwaukee factory has claimed the lives of at least three workers and injured at least 37 others. Rescue workers are sifting through the remnants of the building in which the explosion occurred, part of the Falk Corporation manufacturing headquarters in the Menominee Valley adjacent to downtown Milwaukee.

According to a report on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Website:

The explosion occurred in a 100-foot by 500-foot building identified as the 2.2 Annex, which served as a manufacturing area for gears, Falk's core product.
Only the building's steel frame remained standing after the blast, and surrounding structures were heavily damaged. The blast shattered windows up to a mile away.

Most of us in the Milwaukee area, particularly those downtown this morning just after 8:00 am, felt the concussion of the blast and heard the explosion. It was quite frightening.

OSHA and state authorities are on the scene investigating.

Our sincere condolences to those who have lost loved ones or who will be dealing with the consequences of serious injuries, and our prayers go out to those families still anxiously awaiting news about those still unaccounted for.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

Death and Injury at the Workplace: A Mixed Report Card

David Lowe — Sat, 29 Apr 2006 09:27:40 GMT

A state-by-state report issued by the AFL-CIO, issued in conjunction with the upcoming Worker's Memorial Day this Friday, presents a mixed picture on the status of workplace safety in America. Analyzing data from 2004, the report shows that rates for deaths in the workplace increased for the first time in a decade, while rates for illnesses and injuries experienced a slight decline. The picture in Wisconsin is reversed,

with its rank at 15th lowest for workplace deaths, but above average for its rate of workplace injuries and illnesses. And it is likely that workplace injuries have been undercounted as a result of reluctance of migrant workers and teenagers to report workplace accidents. "Progress in protecting workers' health and safety is slowing, and for some groups of workers jobs are becoming more dangerous," the report says. The report cites a policy of decreased regulation under the Bush Administration as coming at the expense of worker safety and health, and recommends strengthening of OSHA standards and giving workers a voice in the development of workplace safety and health standards.

Having seen a year of mining disasters that claimed many workers' lives, let's hope that fresh energy will devoted to the improvement of workplace heath and safety.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

$7 Million Verdict Against Manufacturer of Inadequate Smoke Detector

David Lowe — Tue, 25 Apr 2006 16:22:09 GMT

The Business Review reports that a jury in New York has rendered a $7 million damages verdict against First Alert and BRK Brands Inc. for selling smoke detectors that failed to alert a family of a fire in their home.

Two family members died in the fire because the ionization type detectors never went off. According to the victims' attorney,

The detectors at issue were ionization type smoke detectors that sense high temperature, fast moving fires, as opposed to detectors employing photoelectric cells which are better at detecting smoldering fires, like the one which apparently killed William and Christine Hackert, Hacker said. A photoelectric smoke detector would detect the smoke from a fire 15 minutes earlier than the ionization type, Hacker said. During the trial the jury heard from witnesses who testified that the company was aware of the shortcomings of the ionization only detector but continued to market the product instead of selling only dual detectors. The dual detectors cost from $20 to $25 while the ionization only types sell for $10 to $15.

The attorney added that his investigation revealed "750 complaints from consumers whose ionization type detectors failed to sound during smoke or fire events", according to the news story.

Consumers would be wise to check that their homes are equipped with smoke detectors that include photoelectric technology. Hopefully, there will be no other cases like this tragic one.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

Wisconsin Attorney Handles Olympic Slip and Fall

David Lowe — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 06:36:24 GMT

While I am managing cases involving slips and falls on ice in Wisconsin, across the globe in Turin, Italy a classmate of mine is handling a much more high profile case.

When U.S. Olympic figure skater and gold medal hopeful Michelle Kwan fell during practice in Turin, Italy, raising concerns that ultimately led to her withdrawal from the 2006 Winter games due to injury, she was seen being comforted by US skate team leader Roger Glenn, a classmate of mine from the Marquette University Law School class of 1977 who hails from Appleton, Wisconsin. Glenn has judged skating competitions at the international level for more than two decades. Wish the US team luck with the loss of sentimental favorite Kwan, who has won many world championships but has never won the Olympic gold.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Lowe

Public Property Owners Held to Higher Standard

Staff Writer — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 11:26:33 GMT

Wisconsin's Safe Place Statute holds owners and operators of public buildings and places of employment to a higher standard than the standard to which private homeowners are held. This ensures that public premises are as safe as possible. Public property owners and operators may be held responsible for your injuries because of their duty to protect customers from hazardous conditions on their property. Homeowners also have a level of responsibility to keep their property hazard-free.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Staff Writer