All Topics

• ERISA is Turned on Its Head

  Ben Glass | June 22, 2006 6:32 AM | 0 CommentsNorthern Virginia, VA

  ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) was passed in 1974 to protect the cash in your pension fund. Today it protects the insurance companies from lawsuits for disability benefits. In fact, your employer's disability insurance policy may be providing only illusory benefits.Ninety-nine percent of all disability insurance plans offered to employees are governed by ERISA. Under ERISA,...

• Highway Motor Vehicle Death Rates Increased in 2005

  John Cooper | June 21, 2006 3:01 PM | 0 CommentsVirginia Beach, Chesapeake & Suffolk, VA

  The highway death rate increased in 2005 for the first time in about 20 years, according to recently released federal statistics. Although more people are using safety belts and there have been various national campaigns against drunk driving, 43,200 people died in motor vehicle wrecks in 2005, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Many of these deaths are caused by...

• Illegal Sexual Assault At Nursing Home Not Governed by Medical Malpractice Act

  Rick Shapiro | June 20, 2006 8:10 AM | 0 CommentsVirginia Beach, Chesapeake & Suffolk, VA

  The news media seems to be reporting on all kinds of cases of wrongful death, serious injuries, and sexual abuse at nursing facilities. Seniors at nursing homes are so vulnerable to malpractice and poor medical care in the first place. Most states have specific statutes covering medical malpractice and actually define what is "medical care" for example.In a recent case in Virginia, the Va....

• Large Massachusets Verdict for Breast Surgery

  Ben Glass | June 19, 2006 3:20 PM | 0 CommentsNorthern Virginia, VA

  According to wire reports from the Boston Globe a jury has just awarded a woman $3.5 million for a failed breast reduction surgery. Apparently the woman lost both breasts to a failed blood supply after the surgeon failed to check to see how a prior breast reduction therapy had been performed many years ago. ``I think the jury recognized the effect of the trauma and the emotional injury," said...

• Is Sexual Assault Medical Malpractice?

  Ben Glass | June 19, 2006 7:11 AM | 0 CommentsNorthern Virginia, VA

  In a watershed decision for Virginia, the Supreme Court has ruled that when a patient claims that she was sexually assaulted at a nursing home, the nursing home may not hide behind Virginia's medical malpractice laws and it's artificial limits and restrictive rules.Woodbine Nursing home in Alexandria, Virginia was sued by the estate of a resident. The resident, now deceased, was sexually...

• John Cooper, Attorney at Law

  Staff Writer | June 15, 2006 3:04 PM | 0 CommentsNorfolk, Portsmouth & Hampton, VA

  John Cooper returned to Norfolk in 1988 for a one year clerkship with U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca B. Smith after law school at the University of Virginia. John's law practice is devoted exclusively to personal injury litigation in the eastern United States. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa academic honor...

• Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton, P.C.

  Staff Writer | June 15, 2006 2:07 PM | 0 CommentsNorfolk, Portsmouth & Hampton, VA

  Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton, P.C. is dedicated to representing those injured due to the carelessness and fault of others, including railroad, truck and car accidents, faulty product injuries, and medical malpractice claims. The firm has represented thousands of accident victims throughout the Eastern United States and the firm's lawyers have over 100 years combined legal experience. Our...

• Virginia Law Firm Disclaimer

  Staff Writer | June 15, 2006 1:10 PM | 0 CommentsNorfolk, Portsmouth & Hampton, VA

  WARNING: No attorney or law firm can or should guarantee results or outcomes to a potential client. Every case presents different facts and different legal challenges. This website may include real case accounts and prior case references, however, this information is presented to demonstrate legal strategies that were adopted in the past, and the results that were obtained cannot be a predictor...

• Disclaimer

  Staff Writer | June 15, 2006 1:09 PM | 0 CommentsNorfolk, Portsmouth & Hampton, VA

  The information found on this website should not be construed as legal advice and is not a substitute for professional legal consultation. You should not base your legal decisions solely on the information found in this site and you are encouraged to seek the counsel of an attorney regarding your specific questions or situation. The information found herein may represent the opinions or...

• Doctor Can't Wait For Expert To Leave to Make Objection

  Ben Glass | June 11, 2006 7:57 AM | 0 CommentsNorthern Virginia, VA

  Settling a long-running debate about the proper form of a question put to an expert, the Supreme Court of Virginia has ruled that medical malpractice experts must state opinions "within a reasonable degree of medical probability." However, a lawyer's failure to make a timely objection to an improperly phrased question means that objection is waived. The doctor loses his appeal. Cosmetic plastic...