Blog
Can Your Body Affect Your Settlement Value?
March 14th, 2024
I recently settled the second step of a case for my client. First, in May, we obtained the full policy limits for the at-fault party. Then, in January of 2024, we settled the Underinsured Motorist (UIM) claim. My client, S, drove through an intersection (she had no lights or traffic control devices…
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Categories: Personal Injury
What is “Comparative Negligence”?
February 29th, 2024
I recently settled a case that was in lawsuit and ready for trial. Like all good settlements, neither I nor my client were overjoyed by the settlement. It wasn’t exactly what we hoped the case was worth, but it was certainly far more than any previous offers. In short, we were able to push the def…
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Categories: Bicycle Accidents
What Makes a Lawyer Super?
February 19th, 2024
You can’t watch television, browse online, or even play a game on your phone without being bombarded with lawyer commercials. I mean, how many of us had even heard of mesothelioma before the ubiquitous lawyer ads for these cases? Lawyers, particularly personal injury lawyers, get picked on often,…
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A Picture is Worth A (Hundred) Thousand Words
January 31st, 2024
I have seen the aftermath of many horrific car crashes in my 33-plus years of practice. In one old blog post, I shared the photo of my client J’s lower leg, where the x-ray indicated one could easily place a fist into the gap between where both of his lower leg bones (tibia and fibula) had been sn…
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Categories: Auto Accidents
Utah Stops and Illinois Vehicles
January 11th, 2024
I apologize for being the “get off my lawn” type, but as a bike rider and dog walker in the city of Chicago I see a lot—and I mean A LOT—of people blowing through stop signs. Just this morning on the dog walk, I observed three separate drivers go through three separate stop sign intersection…
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Categories: Bicycle Accidents
Can Big Brother Watch Your Driving?
December 28th, 2023
Our world is so technologically interconnected, technology is part of every facet of our existence, from household devices, to smart speakers, to our smartphones. It’s everywhere. The other day, my wife took “my” car (oops, I mistyped “our”) to pick up her parents from the airport. I manag…
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Categories: Auto Accidents
Dead Pedestrians and Podcasts
December 13th, 2023
I admit to being unusual in that I like to work out while listening to podcasts, the nerdier the better. While most people like to blast Metallica, Foo Fighters, or pop hits from Taylor Swift, I generally don’t listen to music when I work out (and I never listen to anything when I ride outside, so…
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Categories: Pedestrian Accidents
Educating the Public…And The Jury
December 6th, 2023
If you read my blogs regularly, whether for lack of anything better to do or the need to fall asleep quickly, you have probably noticed that I like to explain complicated legal concepts so that non-lawyers can understand them. I enjoy teaching. It also helps me understand those concepts, by forcing…
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Categories: General
What Belongs in a Bike Lane?
November 10th, 2023
I am about to ask a simple question, but cannot promise you a simple answer. Well, I know what the answer should be. But I know from personal experience that is not always the case. Bike lanes are created for bikes. That much seems to be obvious and agreed upon by nearly everyone. How then, can we e…
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Categories: Bicycle Accidents
What Happens When You Get Hit and Everybody Scatters Away?
October 27th, 2023
That’s exactly what happened to my client, R. This hardworking guy was returning to his home on the south side of Chicago after working the night shift in a north side parking garage. It’s a long commute, but he’s used to it. But the traffic in the wee hours of the early morning is almost non-…
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Categories: Auto Accidents