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FARM ACCIDENT INJURY CLAIMS:

The Schmidt Law Firm, MINNEAPOLIS FARM ACCIDENT ATTORNEYS, has 30 years experience in over 6,000 cases involving personal injury claims of all types, including car, truck, motorcycle, airplane and railroad collision cases.

Senior trial lawyer Douglas E. Schmidt has successfully prosecuted injury cases in product liability cases against Ford and General Motors, John Deere, Case Equipment, Caterpiller, International Harvester, and Navistar.,

Many of these cases have involved MINNESOTA FARM INJURY CLAIMS, where a farmer or a farm worker has been seriously injured. They have involved combines, harvesters, silo blowers, grain augers, and a multitude of different items of farm equipment, in cases which have produced settlements or verdicts of over $1 million.

In addition, Schmidt has successfully handled cases involving defective pesticides and herbicides, defective milking equipment, and defective animal vaccines, in cases that have produced settlements or verdicts of over $1 million.

Schmidt has also successfully prosecuted cases involving injury to livestock, such as defective vaccine, defective milking machines, stray voltage, and defective feed and/or feeding rations, producing one on his many million dollar jury verdicts.

Two of Schmidt’s greatest successes involved CHILD FARM INJURIES, with one case in which a 5 year-old girl suffered the amputation of her arm and another in which a 14 year old boy suffered the loss of both arms.

Schmidt has been active in promoting farm safety, noting that “working around farm equipment is horribly dangerous and requires the utmost attention to safety, both by farmers themselves, farm workers, and the manufacturers of farm equipment.”

The Schmidt Law Firm, MINNESOTA FARM ACCIDENT LAWYER, has over 30 years experience, in over 6,000 successful cases, in representing the victims of injury and economic damage in cases of major and catastrophic injury to human beings and animals.

PHARMACY ERRORS CAUSE INJURIES AND DEATH

Pharmacy errors involving mistakes in filling prescriptions have resulted in a huge number of prescription-error injuries and nearly 7,000 deaths per year, according to recent studies.

Studies published by US Pharmacopeia indicate that prescription drug errors have doubled since 2004.

Over 4 billion prescriptions are filled every year. Studies show that over 1% of all prescriptions have been filled in error. That’s 40 million prescription errors!

These studies also show that 1.4% of the errors have resulted in patient injury or death. That’s nearly 400,00 injuries or deaths caused by pharmacy errors!

Pharmacies are legal responsible for their mistakes-just as car drivers are responsible, and other professionals, including doctors and lawyers, are legally responsible for their mistakes.

The Schmidt Law Firm has over 30 years’ experience in over 6,000 successful cases in bring justice to the victims of personal injury and death. The Schmidt Law Firm has experience in handling prescription error injury and/or death cases.

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Insurance Lawyers, offers this helpful advice:

HOME OWNERS INSURANCE CLAIMS LAWYERS

Most everyone who owns a home also has Homeowners Insurance.

Homeowners insurance protects the homeowner from liability for the negligent acts of the homeowner or the homeowner’s family members. This insurance also provides benefits to the victims of injury or wrongful death resulting from the homeowner’s negligent acts.

For example, people injured when they slip and fall on the icy sidewalks or steps of the homeowner may have a valid legal personal injury claim which can be recovered against the homeowner’s insurance.

Another example, a homeowner who is negligent away from home, causing a boating accidnet injury, a snowmobile accident injury, a bicycling accident injury, a sporting injury, or a large number of other injury situations may have coverage that would provide a settlement to the victim of the homeowner’s negligence.

It should also be remembered that the homeowner’s insurance may even provide insurance benefits to the homeowner’s own family members.

The Schmidt Law Firm has 30 years’ experience in helping the victims of personal injury and wrongful death to receive a fair settlement for their losses. It has special experience in dealing with insurance issues.

SLEDDING, SKIING AND SNOW BOARDING INJURIES.

As reported today in the Star Tribune, the number of serious injuries from snow sledding increased dramatically in 2008. According to statistics from the Hennepin County Medical Center, the number of serious injuries resulting from snow sled accidents almost doubled from 2007 to 2008.

The report stated that the injuries were quite serious, in fact “mostly spinal damage”.

The feature case of the article was woman who sustained injuries which were called “closed to paralyzing”. She is reportedly in a full body cast with smashed vertebra in her back.

Injuries from snow skiing accidents can be of equal or greater severity.

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Attorney, wants you to know that there may be legal remedies for the victims of snow sledding injuries or snow skiing injuries. This is especially true where someone on a snowchmidt sled or tobaggen, or on snow skis is not using reasonable care and causes injuries to another person on the sledding hill or ski slope. When that happens, the person who has been negligent in their sledding, tobaggening or skiing is legally liable and there may be benefits that the victim of injury can collect from the homeowners insurance coverage of the negligent party.

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Lawyer, has 30 years experience in over 6,000 successful cases in helping the victims of injury recover that which to which they are entitled under Minnesota Law.

The Minneapolis Car Accident Lawyers at the Schmidt Law Firm have produced many successful settlements in car accident cases in the over 30 year’s of experience in personal injury and wrongful death cases in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Blaine, Shoreview, Bloomington, Eden Prairie, Plymouth, Maple Grove, Burnsville, Chaska, Chanhassen, Anoka, Coon Rapids and other Twin Cities locations.

The Schmidt Law Firm, with locations throughout the State of Minnesota, whiches to cal your attention to the following information:a

The number of deaths resulting from car accidents dropped in 2008 in comparison to the numbers in 2007, according to statistics recently released by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

In 2008, 424 people were killed in traffic accidents, compared to 510 in 2007.

This drop is believed to be the result of less driving due to high gas prices and also due to increased seat belt use. The figures were also skewed by the fact that there were 12 deaths in 2007 due to the I35W bridge collapse.

The number of deaths due to motorcycle accidents continued to increase, from 61 in 2007 to 68 last year.

The number of deaths of bicyclists dramatically increased from 4 in 2007 to 12 in 2008.

25 pedestrians were killed in motor vehicle related accidents.

THE SCHMIDT LAW FIRM HAS SPECIAL EXPERTESE IN REPRESENTING THE FAMILIES OF THE VICTIMS OF WRONGFUL DEATH, WITH 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN OVER 40 WRONGFUL DEATH CASES. For additional information about Wrongful Death cases, whether due to car accidents, workplace injuries, or other types of personal injury, see the information contained at our Practice Area posting on Wrongful Death.

TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURIES IN CAR ACCIDENTS

The Schmidt Law Firm has 30 year’s experience in bringing justice to the victims of personal injury and wrongful death, in cases involving car accidents, truck accidents and motorcycle accidents.

Many of these cases involve traumatic brain injuries, many of which have been cateqorized as “mild brain injuries.”

Mild traumatic brain injuries have been called the “most frequently overlooked” medical condition known to mankind. Contrary to common belief in the medical community, traumatic brain injuries occur in as many as 60% of the more serious motor vehicle collisions. (This statistic has been documented in the medical literature.)

Yet, the medical community seems oblivious of this type of injury. So many people who have been in major collisions who present with classic symptoms of a traumatic brain injury find that their symptoms are completely overlooked and ignored by the medical community.

Doug Schmidt, the senior trial lawyer at the Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Attorney, states that he has observed, over his 30 years as a personal injury lawyer, case after case where major symptoms of closed head injury and traumatic brain injury have been totally overlooked and ignored. Schmidt noted,

“It is so simple. Just ask ‘what is the first thing you remember after the accident?’ If the answer is that the car was stopped in its final position. I don’t remember the airbags deploying. I don’t remember the car going into the ditch and coming to a stop. The first thing I remember is that people were around the car, pounding on the windows, asking if I was OK.’ What kind of rocket science does it take to figure out that there has been a period of loss of consciousness?”

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Lawyer, has been a leader in helping the victims of Mild Traumatic Brain injuries from car accidents, workplace injuries and other types of personal injury to get proper medical treatment and to obtain a fair settlement of their claims.

THE SCHMIDT LAW FIRM-30 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN OVER 6,000 SUCCESSFUL CASES. 1-800-656-8450

SCHMIDT SPEAKS TO CHIROPRACTOR SEMINARS

Doug Schmidt, the senior trial lawyer at the Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Attorney, was recently the featured speaker at a continuing chiropractic education seminar sponsored by Spine Imaging at the Central Medical Building in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Schmidt spoke on the subject of “Chiropractic Boundaries”, regarding the legal and ethics boundaries of the practice of chiropractic medicine. During his presentation, Schmidt discussed the various causes for professional discipline under Minnesota law. He also reviewed the Standards of Practice of the Minnesota Chiropractic Association, with special emphasis on the use of the Standards in charting and record keeping by chiropractic doctors.

Schmidt has lectured at seven continuing education seminars in the last 15 months. He has been a guest lecturer at the Northwestern Health Sciences University, speaking on various issues of interest to the chiropractic profession.

In the past, Schmidt has lectured at the Univesity of Minnesota Law School, the William Mitchell College of Law, Northwestern Health Sciences University, and Gustavus Adolphus College. He has lectured at continuing legal education seminars sponsored by the Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association, the Minnesota Bar Association and the National Business Institute on subject including product liability law, automobile accident injury claims, traumatic brain injury claims, effective jury arguments for pain and suffering, and a host of other topics.

He recently was one of the featured speakers at a continuing legal education seminar sponsored by the Minnesota Association of Justice, speaking on the topic of effectively cross examining medical experts.

The Schmidt Law Firm, St. Paul Minneapolis Accident Lawyers, is a 5 star rated attorney firm with over 30 years experience in successfully bringing justice to the victims of personal injury and wrongful death in car accidents, trucking accidents, motorcycle accidents, school bus accidents and pedestrian accidents.
The firm has successfully prosecuted cases involving car seat injuries, accidents causing by cell phone use, collisions caused by road rage and drunk driving, defective tires, and a wide variety of other accidents.
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p>IT IS THE GOAL OF THE SCHMIDT LAW FIRM TO AID IN THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE PUBLIC AND ITS CLIENTS OF CONFUSING LEGAL TERMS. WE TRUST THAT THE FOLLOWING DEFINITIONS WILL HELP YOU.

DAMAGES:

The term “damages” has a different meaning in the law from what it means in ordinary life. “Damages” , the the legal context, typically refers to the amount of money that can be recovered in a lawsuit or legal claim.

In a personal injury case, “compensatory damages” can be awarded by a jury for medical expenses and wages or earnings losses, both past and future. Damages can be awarded for disability and for emotional distress (also known as “pain and suffering).

In some cases, “punitive damages” can be awarded by the jury. That is true where the conduct of the “at-fault” party is so serious as to constitute a “reckless disregard for the rights and safety of others”.

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS:

The Statute of Limitations is a time period within which a legal claim must be made, or will forever be barred. A person having a legal claim must, within the time period that applies to that particular claim, file suit and served legal papers on the opposite party.

The Statute of Limitations for any case is controlled by the statutory law as passed by the Minnesota legislature which has determined what the time period is for any given type of case. /p>

The determination of the proper time period for any case can be a complex determination-and one the requires the advice of a competent attorney.

CAUTION: It is always better to simply file suit promptly and avoid any arguments about whether the case has been filed within the proper time period.

If you have a question about your legal rights, you can call the Schmidt Law Firm at 952-473-4530 for a free consultation about your case-or contact the firm on the internet at www.schmidtlaw.org.

DRAM SHOP LAW:

The “Dram Shop Law” is the law that governs legal claims against those that sell or dispense alcoholic beverages and the extent to which they may be liable at law for damages resulting from the illegal sale of alcoholic beverages.

The typical case is that of the drunk driver who has been illegally served alcoholic beverages as a bar or tavern and causes a motor vehicle collision as the result of drunk driving. The drunk driver is obviously at fault-but often has a bad driving record and very little insurance coverage.

The Dram Shop law in Minnesota imposes legal responsibility on the bar that served the drunk driver—if the sale was illegal!

An illegal sale occurs when the bar or tavern sells alcoholic beverages to a minor or to a person who is already “obviously intoxicated”.

CAUTION: When you or a loved-one has been injured by a drunk driver, you may have a claim not only against the drunk driver, but also against the bar or tavern that sold the drunk driver the alcoholic beverages. It is important to seek the advice of an attorney who is experienced in this field of law.

WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIM:
When a person is killed as the result of the negligent act or fault of another, Minnesota law allows the family of that person to bring a legal claim for damages against the “at fault” party. /p>

The term “Wrongful Death” is a legal term which refers to a claim where a person’s death has been caused by the negligence or fault of another person, whether it be from a car accident, a truck accident, a boating accident, or any other type of accident.

Under Minnesota law, the claim must be brought, on behalf of the family, by a court-appointed Trustee for the Next of Kin.

WORKER’S COMPENSATION:

Under Minnesota law, a worker who is injured in the course and scope of her/his employment is entitled to receive benefits in money and other compensation.

The worker is entitled to receive those benefits even where it is claimed that the worker was at fault.

If the injury to the worker is the result of the negligence of someone other than the worker’s employer or a co-worker, the injured worker may have a claim against that “third party”.

CAUTION: It is always wise to seek the advice of an attorney who practices in the area of Workers Compensation law. Most attorneys will provide you with advice without expecting to be paid for the first visit and the initial consultation. If it’s free-why not?

TORT:

The term “tort” refers to any legal claim in which one person has been injured or damaged as the result of the negligent act of another. It has been said that a “tort” is to civil law as a “crime” is to criminal law.

NEGLIGENCE
p>“Negligence” is the act of doing what a reasonable person would not do OR the failure to do that which a reasonable person would do.

For Example: A reasonable person would not drive a vehicle at an excessive speed, or while drunk. That would be a “tort” of doing what a reasonable person would not do.

It would also be a “tort” for a person to fail to stop at a stop sign. That would be the act of failing to do what a reasonable person would do.

LIABILITY INSURANCE:

Liability insurance is insurance that provides protection to the person(s) insured against being sued for damages by any person who claims to have been damaged by the negligent or wrongful conduct of the insured person.

NO FAULT INSURANCE:

Minnesota is a “No Fault” state, which means that all policies of insurance must provide No Fault coverage. This includes insurance coverage for medical and chiropractic bills. It includes coverage for wage losses and “replacement services” losses. For more information, please go to our Insurance section.

UNDER-INSURED MOTORIST INSURANCE (UM):

Minnesota law requires Under-insured Motorist coverage (UIM) to be included in every policy of automobile insurance. UIM coverage allows the insured person to collect money when that person has been injured in a car accident, or other motor vehicle collision, and the at-fault party doesn’t have enough insurance coverage to pay the full value of the injured person’s claim. The UIM insurance will pay that amount of the claim that is not covered by the at-fault person’s coverage-up to the amount of the UIM coverage.

UNINSURED MOTORIST INSURANCE

Minnesota law requires Uninsured Motorist coverage (UM) to be included in every policy of automobile insurance. UM coverage allows the insured person to collect money when that person has been injured in a car accident, or other motor vehicle collision, and the at-fault party doesn’t have any insurance coverage. The UM insurance will pay that amount of the claim up to the amount of the UM coverage.

DEPOSITION:

A deposition is part of the legal proceedings which lead up to the trial of the case. In a deposition, the attorneys for both parties are allowed to question other parties or material witnesses before a court reporter with all the questions and answers being recorded and preserved in a booklet form. Depositions allow the parties and their attorneys to learn about the claims of the other parties in order to prepare for trial.

For more detailed information, please request a copy of the Schmidt Law Firm’s informational brochure entitled “About Your Deposition”.

MEDIATION:

Mediation is a process by which the parties get together with a neutral mediator, usually a lawyer, who works to get the parties to agree to a settlement. The mediator has no power to decide the case. Instead, the arbitrator can only work to bring the parties to a mutually agreed settlement.

Mediation is different from Arbitration in which the arbitrator makes a decision or ruling which decides the case.

ARBITRATION:

Arbitration is a process by which a neutral party considers the evidence submitted by both parties and hears the arguments of the attorneys for both sides and reaches a decision in the case.

If the arbitration is “binding”, the arbitrator’s decision is final. If the arbitration is “non-binding”, then the arbitrator’s decision is not final but only serves as a guideline which will hopefully bring the parties to a mutually agreed-upon settlement.

Most arbitrations are binding.

In Minnesota, the No Fault Law requires arbitration of all disputed No Fault claims where the amount in controversy is $10,000 or more.

“FILING SUIT”

This is a term that describes the process of starting a law suit. The first step is for the attorney to prepare legal papers and have them served, by a process server, on the other party. The next step is to file those papers, along with proof that they have been legally served upon the other party or parties, at the proper courthouse.

NEGLIGENCE:

Negligence is doing something that a reasonable person would not do (such as driving faster than the speed limit or driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated) OR failing to do something that a reasonable person would not do (such as failing to stop at a stop sign).

CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE:

When one party makes a claim against another and that person claims that the party who initially made the claim is also negligence, the negligence of the party making that claim is referred to as “Contributory Negligence”.

PRODUCTS LIABILITY:

Manufacturers and sellers of dangerous and defective products are legally responsible, under the law, for injuries and damages caused by the defective products. This legal responsibility is generally referred to as “products liability”.

MINOR SETTLEMENT:
Under Minnesota law, any personal injury claim for a minor, a person under the age of 18 years, must be approved by a Judge and the settlement proceeds must be placed under the supervision of the Court. As a result, any settlement of a personal injury case for a minor must be taken before a Judge and receive the approval of a Judge.

DIRECT AND CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE:
Direct evidence is that which directly proves the point. Circumstantial evidence is that evidence from which a logical conclusion can be drawn. For example, if an eye witness saw a person walk across the lawn, that would be direct evidence that someone walked across the lawn. If, on the other hand, a witness saw footprints in the snow, that would be circumstantial evidence that someone walked across the lawn.

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Attorney, has over 30 years experience in over 6,000 successful cases in representing the victims of personal injury and the families of the victims of wrongful death in

-car accidents

-trucking accidents

-constuction site injuries

-industrial injuries

-agricultural injuries

-motorcycle accidents

-railroad crossing accidents

-workers compensation injuries

HOW LONG WILL MY CASE TAKE?

The answer to this question has two parts: (A) the medical part and (b) the legal part.

THE MEDICAL PART:

When you have been in a car accident or any other type of accident and have suffered an injury, the determination as to how much, if any, of the injury will result in permanent injury and long-term medical treatment is a very important element to the value of the case. Any injury that results in permanent disability and the need for long term medical treatment typically has a value far in excess of cases with no permanency.

Therefore, it is important to support your claim with medical evidence that your injury is a permanent one in order to get the best possible settlement. In order to do so, you must have the medical opinion of your Doctor or Chiropractor that your injury is permanent. This important medical evidence usually comes in the form of a medical report prepared by the Doctor/Chiropractor.

For that reason, a personal injury case must wait for the injuries to stabilize to the point where the doctors are able to certify them as permanent or not. Typically, this is totally a medical issue-not a legal one.

Most medical doctors and chiropractors are unwilling to get their opinion that your injury is permanent until at least one year has passed since your accident. This allows sufficient time for the injury to heal and also provides time for any hidden aspects of your injury, such as a herniated disc in your neck or back, to reveal itself.

For that reason, the length of the case is determined more by medical take at least one year or more before they are settled. Many take much longer. This is usually true, not because the lawyer is taking that long to process the case. Instead, personal injury cases usually take that long for medical reasons. For that reason, your Doctor or Chiropractor is usually a better person to answer this question than your lawyer!

The experienced personal injury lawyers at the Schmidt Law Firm consider it an important part of their job to help their injured clients to obtain the medical records and reports necessary to move the case into the legal side where it can be settled. Often, this part of the case can be very challenging and the assistance of an experienced personal injury lawyer can be very valuable.

NOTE: Wrongful death cases are totally different, in that it is not necessary to wait for the injury to stabilize. Typically, the necessary medical records, the death certificate and the autopsy report, if any, can be collected promptly and the case moved to the legal side soon.

THE LEGAL PART:

After the medical records and reports have been collected, the case can then move forward to settlement. An experienced personal injury lawyer will have, by that time, collected most of the other records that are necessary to effectively present a settlement demand to the insurance company of the at-fault party.

A competent personal injury attorney will then assemble the documents that can effectively support the settlement demand. Before doing so, the attorney will review the claim with the client and come to an agreement as to the amount that should be demanded and the targeted settlement amount.

After the claim has been submitted to the insurance company, it often will ask for additional information in order for it to arrive at what it feels is the value of the claim. The amount of time that this will take is totally determined by the insurance company.

After that, the insurance company will take more time to evaluate your claim before getting back to us with an “offer of settlement” (that is the amount of money that they are willing to pay to settle the case).

After the initial offer is made, there is often a period of negotiation in which the parties go back and forth with counter-demands and counter-offers.

This process usually takes many months to complete.

If these negotiations are not successful and the insurance company does not make a fair and reasonable offer, there is no choice but to “file suit”. For more information on that process, please review our client information sheet entitled “Filing Suit on Your Case”.

The Schmidt Law Firm, Minneapolis Accident Lawyer, has 30 years of experience in moving cases along promptly. It has an excellent track record of producing good settlements in personal injury cases and wrongful death cases.