Injuryboard Commentary - settlement

Wal-Mart Settles for $40 Million for Wage-and-Hour Violations

David Mittleman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:00:00 GMT

The retail giant Wal-Mart has agreed to pay $40 million in settlement costs to 87,500 current and former employees that alleged that the company altered time cards, refused to pay overtime and failed to provide rest and meal breaks. Under the terms of the agreement, filed in Middlesex, Massachusetts Superior Court last week, any employee who worked for Wal-Mart between 1995 to the present will receive a payment of about $400 to $2,500, depending on the number of years of employment. The average worker is expected to receive a check of about $734.

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, neither party is allowed to comment. However, Wal-mart spokeswoman, Daphne Moore, stated that the settlement was “in the best interest of our company” and that the “allegations are not representative of the company we are today.”

The settlement is believed to be the largest of its kind in Massachusetts history. However, this lawsuit is but one of many filed against Wal-Mart in 2001. In fact, Wal-Mart has agreed to pay $640 million to settle 63 wage-and-hour violations in the past.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Senator Delay, Senator Defend, And Senator Defend: Do The Job For Insurance Companies

Mike Bryant — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:17:14 GMT

We have talked about the insurance company strategy of Deny, Delay, Defend many times here at the Injurboard. A couple of companies have almost come right out and admitted that is their strategy. Say no. Some people will go away. Say you need more time. Some people will die or give up. Say Hell No! Some people will not have the resources or the help to fight. It is the way to push the unrepresented around.

Well should we be surprised the tactic is at the heart of what the Republicans are doing in the Senate with the Heath Care Bill? How do we know? They told us.

Here is the whole letter and supporting documents.

If you think maybe they are doing what's right for the consumer. Keep in mind, many of these same Senators had the chance to do something about health care in the past. They didn't. Just like insurance companies could pay the bills they are responsible for.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

La Salle University Settles With Family of Former Football Player for $7.5 Million

David Mittleman — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:00:00 GMT

In the past week the media has covered Ben Roethlisberger’s head injury and subsequent decision to first play in last Sunday’s game and then opt-out at the last minute when the doctors wouldn’t clear him. This was probably a good decision, since this is Roethlisberger’s fourth concussion. Unfortunately, Roethlisberger received flack from an unlikely source: his teammate, Hines Ward, suggested that Ben could’ve lied to team doctors for the good of the team. His reasoning was that he had lied to team doctors before when he wasn’t feeling perfectly healthy, so why couldn’t Ben? This is scary news in light of the mounting scientific evidence that repeated concussions can lead to severe brain damage and long-term neurological disorders.

Now the NFL might want to think twice about allowing this type of criticism of players who don’t play because they are seriously injured. In a lawsuit against La Salle University, the family of Preston Plevretes settled for $7.5 million with the school after Preston suffered a severe brain injury in 2005 after an earlier concussion went untreated. Preston will require care for the rest of his life.

Preston was a 19-year-old sophomore at the time of the incident. He was apparently injured during a 2005 game when he was hit while covering a punt against Duquesene University in Pittsburgh. He was immediately knocked unconscious and took three to five minutes to awaken. He then became extremely combative and lapsed into a coma. He later had surgery to relieve brain swelling, but returned to practice on October 4, where he sustained more helmet-to-helmet impact. Furthermore, he played in the next game but opted-out in the fourth quarter after complaining of a headache. Despite the settlement amount, La Salle University claims no responsibility in the accident.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Minnesotans Live a Long Time

Joe Crumley — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:56:11 GMT

The front page of the St. Cloud Times lists deaths in the area, and today’s caught my eye. It is accurately reproduced below, with the ages highlighted:

Madolin Bay, 91, Glenwood
Melvin Beranek, 84, Foley
Doris Butcher, 88, Onamia
Annie Francis (Saumer) Carlson, 94, Isle
Ruth Christ, 90, Shakopee, formerly of Princeton
Allyn Davidshofer, 89, Cold Spring
Eldon H. Lockhart, 100, Sauk Rapids
Norma Elaine (Soberg) Norling, 76, Brainerd
Robert E. Riddle, Sr., 81, Little Falls
Geraldine L. Wieczek, 85.

Wow. the lowest age was 76, the average was 87.8!

Is there something in the water up here? I'm sure the families of all these people are grieving their loss, but they must also be praising the long lives these folks had.

It got me thinking, how does life expectancy in Minnesota stack up? Pretty high on the list, according to a story from Business Week. The story noted:

Minnesota is one example of how income isn’t necessarily correlated with life expectancy. The Harvard study found that low-income, white rural populations in the North, including Minnesota, the Dakotas, Iowa, Montana, and Nebraska, have life expectancies of 76.2 years for men and 81.8 years for women. That’s substantially more than 98% of the average white population. Many counties in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” fared well in life expectancy, but Nicollet County was the top at 81.1 years.

Here's a chart ranking the states from a recent study:

Rank

State

Life Expectancy

1

Hawaii

80.0

2

Minnesota

78.8

3

Utah

78.7

4

Connecticut

78.7

5

Massachusetts

78.4

6

New Hampshire

78.3

7

Iowa

78.3

8

North Dakota

78.3

9

Rhode Island

78.3

10

California

78.2

11

Vermont

78.2

12

Colorado

78.2

13

Washington

78.2

14

Wisconsin

77.9

15

Idaho

77.9

16

Nebraska

77.8

17

Oregon

77.8

18

South Dakota

77.7

19

New York

77.7

20

Maine

77.6

21

Florida

77.5

22

Arizona

77.5

23

New Jersey

77.5

24

Kansas

77.3

25

Montana

77.2

26

Alaska

77.1

27

New Mexico

77.0

28

Virginia

76.8

29

Delaware

76.8

30

Texas

76.7

31

Pennsylvania

76.7

32

Wyoming

76.7

33

Illinois

76.4

34

Michigan

76.3

35

Maryland

76.3

36

Ohio

76.2

37

Indiana

76.1

38

Missouri

75.9

39

Nevada

75.8

40

North Carolina

75.8

41

Georgia

75.3

42

Kentucky

75.2

43

Arkansas

75.2

44

Oklahoma

75.2

45

Tennessee

75.1

46

West Virginia

75.1

47

South Carolina

74.8

48

Alabama

74.4

49

Louisiana

74.2

50

Mississippi

73.6

51

District of Columbia

72.0

Data: Harvard University Initiative for Global Health and the Harvard School of Public Health

Life expectancy is something to which lawyers and insurers pay close attention. If a person suffers a permanent injury, that means they will carry that pain and suffering for a very long time. That's one reason an insuarnce company will often pay a lot more for an injury to a 30-year-old than the identical injury to a 70-year-old.

But when highly qualified personal injury lawyers argue these claims with insurers, we point out a 70-year-old Minnesotan is just getting started!

We look for the opposite when a settlement is structured, as I pointed out in my Spring 2007 Practice Pointers Column:

Structured Settlement Specialist Tom Dunlap taught me another use of the [Life Expectancy] tables... When we buy structured settlements with lifetime benefits, we want the annuity company to use the lowest life expectancy, since this will tend to increase the amount of the periodic payments the company is willing to pay.... Tom indicates that an excellent specialist will investigate the medical records to see if there is anything that the insurer can use to reduce the life expectancy of the plaintiff. In many situations, the plaintiff receives millions of dollars more with a rated life expectancy!

Now, everything will be just fine if we can get Hawaiian InjuryBoard lawyer Wayne Parsons to lend us Minnesotans the weather they have in his #1 state.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Settling workers compensation cases takes time

Doug Landau — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:19:00 GMT

While Herndon job injury lawyer Doug Landau advises clients that settling comp claims take time and effort, there are still many questions about the settlements of workers compensation cases. Workers Comp claims seem to take a lot more time from acceptance of the settlement offer to the ultimate approval of the paperwork. This is especially true according to Herndon injured workers lawyer Landau, when compared to the settlement of a car crash or slip and fall case. In those "liability' or "negligence" cases, the check and release comes withnin days or weeks from the insurance company or defense lawyer. In Virginia comp claims, the ultimate approval takes months after the parties submit the signed (and notarized) paperwork to the Workers Compensation Commission ("VWCC") in Richmond. The Virginia Code provides (65.2-701) that compromise settlements of workplace accident, occupational disease or job fatality cases, "may be approved only when the Commission...is clearly of the opinion that the best interests of the employee or his dependents will be served thereby." Rule 1.7 sets forth the requirements for a compromise settlement package. Unlike the resolution of a car crash or dog attack case, a workers comp case requires a number of documents (and signatures !).

The Virginia Workers Compensation Commission does not approve every single settlement that is submitted to it. The VWCC is not a "rubber stamp" and settlement documents are carefully reviewed. Deputy Commissioner Courtney Mercer manages the Compromise Settlement Department, with a claims examiner who supervises the department and who is assisted by a claims technician and two senior judicial secretaries. Deputy Commissioner Mercer shared his thoughts with Doug Landau recently in Richmond. Workplace accident and fatality lawyer Doug Landau was invited to a special "Retreat" for lawyers who only represent injured workers and not insurance companies. If you or someone you know, has questions about their workers compensation case or settlement, please contact ABRAMS LANDAU or call us today.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Doug Landau

Disbursing Funds under Michigan's Wrongful Death Statute

Timothy Smith — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 15:01:22 GMT

Recently, we've resolved a number of wrongful death cases here in Northern Michigan. In Michigan, these types of cases are governed by a statute that controls every aspect of the case, including how the recovered funds are distributed to the family members that survive the deceased. One of the families that I represent asked me to explain to them how the distribution of the monies we recovered would take place.

In order to fully answer their question, I turned to Andrew Shotwell, a probate specialist with my office here in Traverse City, Michigan. I asked Andrew to draft an informative letter to the family to answer the question and thought I'd share the substance of it with my readers in case they were facing a similar issue.

The procedure and applicable law depends on various facts. First, if a complaint has been filed in circuit court, the distribution is governed by MCL 600.2922. Essentially under that statute, if no conscience pain and suffering was present or to the extent an award is for other than conscience pain and suffering, the circuit can distribute under 600.2922. The Court approves distributions “to those…who suffered damages and to the estate of the deceased for compensation for conscious pain and suffering, if any, in the amount as the court or jury considers fair and equitable considering the relative damages sustained by each of the persons and the estate of the deceased.”

If there is conscience pain and suffering awarded, the award passes to the estate and is distributed in accordance either with the decedent’s last will and testament, or by intestate succession [this is the law that governs how an individual's estate passes when they have no will]. There is no precise formula for determining the damages for the loss of a loved one’s society and companionship. In re Claim of Carr, 189 Mich App 234, 471 NW2d 637 (1991). The measure of damages is gauged by the relationship the decedent had with the claimant, including the amount of time the decedent and the claimant spent together. McTaggart v Lindsey, 202 Mich App 612, 509 NW2d 881 (1993).

If a complaint has not been filed and settlement has been reached, the distributions occur pursuant to MCL 700.3924, which is similar to 600.2922, requiring the distributions to be fair and equitable. The persons entitled to notice and an opportunity be heard in a wrongful death case under both 700.3924 and 600.2922 are as follows:

1) The deceased's spouse, children, descendants, parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters, and, if none of these persons survive the deceased, then those persons to whom the estate of the deceased would pass under the laws of intestate succession determined as of the date of death of the deceased.

2) The children of the deceased's spouse; and

3) Those persons who are devisees under the will of the deceased, including beneficiaries of a trust under the will, those persons who are designated in the will as persons who may be entitled to damages under this section, and the beneficiaries of a living trust of the deceased if there is a devise to that trust in the will of the deceased.

In any case, an estate would need to be opened with the probate court in the county of residence for the decedent. If a will exists, it is submitted to probate and a Personal Representative appointed, as nominated in the will. If no will exists, or the will fails to nominate a Personal Representative, the Court will appoint one according to the priority schedule, starting with the surviving spouse. Notice is required to be sent to all the people indentified above as having an interest in the distribution.

Once a settlement or an award has been granted, if all of the potential distributees are competent, nondisappeared adults, they may stipulate to a specific distribution scheme. If all of the interested persons stipulate to a proposed allocation, the court must order that distribution. However, if a disagreement exists, a hearing would be required.

If a minor is involved a guardian ad litem may be required to advocate on the minor’s behalf.

If after reading this summary of the approaches to distribution under the wrongful death statute, you still have questions, feel free to shoot me an email or call with further questions.

In my next article, I'll address and give some examples of what happens when the family can't agree on the distribution and an evidentiary hearing is required.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Timothy Smith

Federal Judge Approves $5.9 Million Settlement for Inmates Affected by Strip-Search Policy

David Mittleman — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 10:00:00 GMT

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania—the city has long since had a procedure that involved strip-searching every person admitted into the city’s prison system. However, a federal judge has finally brought closure to the civil rights suit that challenged that blanket policy.

In fact, the judge approved a $5.9 million settlement that will be divided between two groups: arrestees who were sent to prison on misdemeanor charges and had no previous arrests for drug charges or violent crimes, will receive $1,400 each. The second group of arrestees includes those with riskier claims involving drug or violence charges, and will receive $100 each. Overall, 5,321 individuals filed claims and will receive compensation. Furthermore, the city will also adopt a new policy that replaces strip-searches with non-invasive metal detectors and ion scanners that can detect smuggled weapons.

The lawsuit covered the years between 2003 and 2007 and involved approximately 37,000 inmates who were strip-searched upon entering the Philadelphia prison system. The law firm of Levin, Levin, Fishbein, Sedran & Berman, began receiving complaints from their clients that they were forced to submit to “visual cavity searches”. Even new inmates who were held overnight with no bail money were forced to submit to the policy. The lawyers involved in the suit estimated that they spent a total of 2,877.65 hours on the case, and were determined to win. As Levin stated: “[p]eople only see cases when you are successful.”

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Zyprexa Settlement: Eli Lilly to Pay Utah $24 million

Brett Emison — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:32:06 GMT

The Deseret News has reported that pharmaceutical company, Eli Lilly, will pay the state of Utah $24 million to settle a lawsuit over Lilly's anti-psychotic drug, Zyprexa.

Attorney General Mark Shurtleff sued the company after a nearly four-year investigation revealed that Lilly concealed its knowledge of significant weight gain and obesity associated with the anti-psychotic medication Zyprexa. Investigators also showed that Lilly's sales representatives illegally promoted the drug for uses not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

"We're not just asking them for money. We want their bad conduct to stop," Shurtleff said Wednesday while announcing the settlement.

"As part of the settlement agreement, there are corporate integrity responsibilities and remedial provisions that will continue to be monitored by the court to stop (Lilly's) harmful behavior."

Kudos to Attorney General March Shurtleff for holding this drug maker accountable for its actions and working to make sure Eli Lilly's bad conduct stops.

Lilly's conduct -- like that of many other drug makers -- was reprehensible. Lilly encouraged Zyprexa's for other conditions without FDA approval and actually trained its sales staff to avoid discussions with doctors about dangerous side effects.

Zyprexa is approved for the treatment of schizophrenia and certain types of bipolar disorder in adults. But authorities say that in 1999, Lilly's marketing arm that focuses on doctors who treat the elderly began encouraging physicians to prescribe the drug for dementia, Alzheimer's disease, agitation, aggression, hostility, depression and generalized sleep disorder without prior FDA approval. Lilly also trained its sales teams to avoid discussions with health-care professionals about the weight gain side effect, investigators said.

Why do these drug companies think they don't have to follow the rules the rest of us live by?

"Bringing the money back into the state to take care of the children who so badly need it and the people who so badly need the medical care that Medicaid provides is, I think, one of the most important things we can do."

The settlement is the largest in Utah's effort to hold drug companies accountable for illegal practices, according to Shurtleff.

It's time that more states hold these drug companies responsible when the companies put profit over safety and knowingly mislead doctors and the public about their drugs. Just recently, Pfizer has come under fire for altering study results for its drug, Neurontin, in order to make the drug appear to be safer and more effective that it actually was.

You can learn more about dangerous drugs and how to protect yourself at our pharmaceutical safety blog or by visiting our web site.

You can learn more and become a fan of Langdon & Emison on Facebook.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

CVS Pharmacy Settles with NY Officials After Selling Expired Products

David Mittleman — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:33:31 GMT

New York Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo, recently announced that CVS Pharmacy, Inc. has agreed to pay $875,000 in settlement costs after the company sold expired products. The officials discovered that CVS was selling expired products, including food, medicine, and baby formula, after canvassing 60% of CVS stores across New York State. Some of the expired products were over 2 years outdated.

CVS has had similar problems in the past: in fact, the lawsuit accused the company of breaching a prior agreement with New York officials to stop sales of expired products. CVS spokesman, Mike DeAngelis, recently stated that the company is committed to keeping expired products off of store shelves. However, he declined to admit any wrongdoing and also added that he is unaware of any customers who were harmed from using expired products.

Cuomo experienced similar problems with other stores in the past. The most recent case involved Rite Aid, which settled with New York officials in 2008.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

AstraZeneca’s Seroquel Subject of $520 Million Settlement

Greg Webb — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:58:05 GMT

AstraZeneca, a pharmaceutical company, has reached a $520 million agreement to settle two federal investigations and two whistle-blower lawsuits over the sale and marketing of its best-selling psychiatric drug Seroquel. According to research firm IMS Health, Seroquel was the top selling anti-psychotic medication in 2004 with about $17 billion in sales. AstraZeneca joins a list of drug manufacturers forced to pay billions of dollars to settle inquiries filed by former company insiders.

AstraZeneca disclosed one of the investigations related to physicians who participated in clinical trials involving Seroquel and another related to off-label promotion of the drug. However, a company spokesman refused to give more specifics about the physicians or clinical trials under investigation. He also said the company was in final negotiations to settle the whistle-blower lawsuits and reach a corporate integrity agreement with the U.S. Justice Department.

As a result to the company’s aggressive marketing campaign, Seroquel has been used for children and elderly patients for indications not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); doctors are allowed to prescribe any approved medication for off-label uses. AstraZeneca has also said that as of October 9, it has been served with 14,444 civil lawsuits over Seroquel’s misleading marketing because many of the patients using the drug have developed diabetes and other health problems.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Webb

Rank	State	Life Expectancy
1	Hawaii	80.0
2	Minnesota	78.8
3	Utah	78.7
4	Connecticut	78.7
5	Massachusetts	78.4
6	New Hampshire	78.3
7	Iowa	78.3
8	North Dakota	78.3
9	Rhode Island	78.3
10	California	78.2
11	Vermont	78.2
12	Colorado	78.2
13	Washington	78.2
14	Wisconsin	77.9
15	Idaho	77.9
16	Nebraska	77.8
17	Oregon	77.8
18	South Dakota	77.7
19	New York	77.7
20	Maine	77.6
21	Florida	77.5
22	Arizona	77.5
23	New Jersey	77.5
24	Kansas	77.3
25	Montana	77.2
26	Alaska	77.1
27	New Mexico	77.0
28	Virginia	76.8
29	Delaware	76.8
30	Texas	76.7
31	Pennsylvania	76.7
32	Wyoming	76.7
33	Illinois	76.4
34	Michigan	76.3
35	Maryland	76.3
36	Ohio	76.2
37	Indiana	76.1
38	Missouri	75.9
39	Nevada	75.8
40	North Carolina	75.8
41	Georgia	75.3
42	Kentucky	75.2
43	Arkansas	75.2
44	Oklahoma	75.2
45	Tennessee	75.1
46	West Virginia	75.1
47	South Carolina	74.8
48	Alabama	74.4
49	Louisiana	74.2
50	Mississippi	73.6
51	District of Columbia	72.0