Lois Farias, an 85-year-old former school crossing guard, was awarded $368,000.00 last month for injuries she sustained five years ago when a vehicle owned by the U.S. government struck her in a crosswalk while she was working as a crossing guard in Prince George's County.

Ms. Farias suffered deep tissue injury to her back, neck, knee and shoulder in the accident, for which the defendant took responsibility.  The only issue at trial was damages. The goverment contended that her pre-exisiting arthritis was to blame for her current complaints and early retirement.  Prior to trial, the government offered $125,000.00 to settle the claim.  Ultimately, U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul W. Grimm awarded Ms. Farias $22,000.00 in past medical expenses, $46,000.00 in lost wages and $300,000.00 in non-economic damages.  The Plaintiff was represented by Paul Bekman.

Our firm has received more than a few calls from prospective clients who suffered injury as a consequence of the recent and unprecedented snowfall that hit our region. We anticipated these calls and the lawyers at the firm continue to assess our ability to prevail in cases involving slips and falls on ice and snow, and motor vehicle accidents caused by the slick conditions or other naturally created or man made hazards.

Maryland law requires property owners and motor vehicle operators to act with "due diligence and care" in protecting others from harm. The question we have not had to confront in many years is what the standard of "diligence" encompasses when weather conditions are such that even a person's best efforts are not good enough to prevent harm.

We all can agree that the amount of precipitation in the area was such that even our state and local governments were overwhelmed with the burden of remediating the conditions. In Baltimore City, for example, it took more than a week for the City to open all secondary roads. For nearly two weeks, parking lanes and sidewalks were barely passable.

Reasonable care is dependant on the circumstances presented to those whose conduct is being judged. We believe in many instances that although injury may have occurred, due care would not have changed the conditions existing at the time. We encourage those injured as a result of the weather conditions and potential negligence to contact our office. We will consider all cases on the facts and will honestly and candidly offer our advice to help guide and counsel those suffering personal injury due to the recent storms.

After the massive snow storms of recent days, many have experienced the flying snow and ice scenario, where a car or truck is driving at high speeds with piles of snow and ice on their vehicles. Although some may believe that bad weather provides them with some sort of "natural" immunity for failing to take the time required to remove the snow from their vehicles and that nature will simply takes its course, the opposite is actually true. Should an operator fail to remove snow and ice that ultimately flies from their vehicle into another, and particularly if that flying debris causes property damage or an accident, the driver of the vehicle can and should be held liable for negligence in failing to take action to remove all snow and ice that could project into another vehicle.

Some states, like Pennsylvania, have state laws that require complete snow removal from vehicles before they are operated. In Maryland, no such state law is on the books. The common law of negligence, however, dictates that a driver who fails to take appropriate action to remove obvious snow and ice from their vehicles will be held accountable for damage and injuries should the debris dislodge. This concept is akin to operating a vehicle with a known mechanical defect that results in an accident. Drivers should take the time and make the effort to remove all snow and ice from their vehicles. Otherwise, they can and should expect a claim against their insurance policy. Severe accidents and injuries from flying snow and ice debris are reported daily. Drivers are on notice by virtue of their own driving experience and common sense that the operation of a vehicle under such conditions is a danger to other motorists on the highways.

The lawyers at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz have successfully represented victims of accidents caused by flying snow and ice debris. In the event of such an incident, be sure to control your vehicle first, and then take note of as much information as possible about the at-fault vehicle. Should you be unable to get sufficient identifying information about that vehicle, report the incident immediately to the police and your insurance company, who will likely establish an uninsured motorist claim on your behalf. Such a claim will protect your rights and afford you compensation for property damage and personal injury, and will have no adverse impact on your insurance rates, renewal, or your general insurability. Please consult with a lawyer right away, particularly if you have suffered personal injury. We are available, free of charge, to discuss your case.

Robert E. Cahill, Sr., retired Baltimore County Circuit Court judge, died on December 14th from a long standing illness.  He was 77.  Judge Cahill will be remembered as a no-nonsense trial judge with a great legal mind and lots of instinct and wit.  His obituary appears in the Baltimore Sun.

The lawyers at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz had the honor of trying a variety of cases before Judge Cahill.  We learned a great deal from his handling of trials, motions and courtroom procedures.  We knew he always expected a great deal of us as advocates for our clients and we hope we lived up to his expectations.  We learned a great deal from the judge and express our condolences to his family.

The head of the Maryland Attorney Grievance Commssion, Melvin Hirschman, will retire on June 30, 2010 after serving since 1981.  The Daily Record reported this breaking story earlier today.  Mr. Hirschman has led the commission, which investigates all complaints for attorney misconduct, since 1981.  The AGC was created only six years earlier, in 1975.  Attorneys who are publically sanctioned can be viewed at the Maryland Judiciary Web Site.

Belsky, Weinberg and Horowitz partner Alan J. Belsky serves as a Panel Member for the Attorney Grievance Commision and has sat on a number of peer review panels hearing various complaints of attorney misconduct.  Peer review is confidential unless public charges are brought.  Thereafter, the matter is referred to a Circuit Court judge for findings of fact and conclusions of law.  An appeal can then be taken directly to the Court of Appeals of Maryland.  Unfortunately, a fair number of reported opinions are issued every year by the Court of Appeals on issues involving attorney grievances.  Any reported opinion containing the AGC in the case name involves an attorney facing disciplinary action.

Auto accident claims nearly always involve property damage repair or reimbursment.  What many don't know is that, depending on the severity of the damage done, the accident may result in a diminished value of the vehicle at resale.  The laws of diminished value are everychanging, but the attorneys at Belsky, Weinberg and Horowitz have fought for our clients' entitlement to reimbursement for diminished value of their repaired motor vehicle. This is a legitimate but not oft fought for aspect of property damage.  If you believe your vehicle's value is diminished by virtue of a collision, our first advice is not to accept any payment for property repairs until the diminished value claim is preserved.

If you've been in an accident where your property damage and bodily injury claims are not yet settled, call us before it's too late.  We are here to help you with your case.  Call us anytime to speak with one of our attorneys.

In May of 2009, trial was held in Anne Arundel County in the case of a motorcyclist who was injured when he lost control of his bike and crashed. The motorcyclist alleged that another driver cut him off while trying to make a left hand turn in front of the him. The Defendant denied responsibility, arguing that the Plaintiff lost control of his motorcycle well before Defendant began to make her turn. The jury agreed with the Defendant, finding that the Plaintiff was solely responsible for his own injuries.

The attorneys at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz have represented many victims of automobile accidents. Our experience can be invaluable in assisting our clients who have been injured as a result of someone else's negligence. If you have been hurt in an automobile, motorcycle, or truck accident, call or email us for a free consultation and evaluation of your case.

Maryland law requires every motorist to carry "uninsured motorist" (UM) coverage as part of their vehicle insurance coverage.  This required coverage is designed to protect an injured motorist (whether bodily injury, property damage or both) from two all too frequent scenarios.  First, it provides coverage when the at fault vehicle has no insurance coverage at all.  Second, it provides "gap" coverage where the at fault driver has too little insurance to pay the full value of the claim.  Indeed, despite the law, there are drivers who continue to operate vehicles illegally without insurance.  In those instances, the claim would be submitted to the victim's UM carrier for payment.  A UM claim is no-fault in that a claim against the policy will not affect insurabilty, renewability or rates. 

A typical example where UM benefits are needed is where serious injuries have been sustained by one or more individuals in a vehicle struck by another who is deemed at fault.  Under Maryland law, the person (non-business) must carry a minimum of $20,000 of coverage for the bodily injury of one victim and a total of $40,000 to cover the bodily injury of all victims involved in a single accident.  Although this amount may seem significant, it is actually very scant coverage which oridinarily falls well below what is required to pay the claims in full.  When a shortage of coverage arises, the UM coverage may be tapped to provide additional coverage provided the UM limits of the victims' policies exceed the limits of the at fault driver's policy.  So, if one who is injured has a $50,000 per person UM limit, and the at fault driver has a $20,000 per person limit, the victim may claim the difference between the at fault's policy and their own as additional coverage.  In the example, that amount would be an extra $30,000.

UM claims can be very tricky and complicated due to issues surrounding the proper method for making claim, settling claims with more than one insurance company, and determining when the applicable statute of limitations begins to run.  If you find yourself involved in an accident involving an uninsured or underinsured driver, please contact our attorneys who will be happy to explain your rights to all appropriate benefits and coverage.

Our clients frequently ask us what they can expect to receive, in either a settlement or at trial, as compensation injuries sustained in an auto accident. This can be a very difficult question to answer, as each case is different. However, an experienced attorney is able to determine a range of compensation, based on a number of factors.

Your attorney will examine the specific facts of your case, including: the nature and severity of your injuries, your medical records, how easily or difficult it will be to prove liability (fault), the connection between your injuries and the accident, the witnesses' statements regarding the accident itself; the extent of insurance coverage and where the accident occurred as well as where the other driver resides. All of these factors are extremely important and must be taken into account when determining whether or not to accept an offer. The insurance company takes all of the same factors into account when deciding how much money to offer on the claim. These days, many insurance companies use computer programs to decide the offer. The adjuster inputs all of the information about you, about where the accident occurred and the type of injury you suffered and the programs gives that adjuster a "range' of settlement amounts. The attorneys here at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz have many years of experience dealing with auto accident cases just like yours. The insurance companies know which attorneys settle all of their cases and which ones will go to bat for their clients in court. These companies know that our attorneys will not hesitate to reject their "low-ball" offers and file suit for their clients.

If a case cannot settle, and a lawsuit must be filed, it is important to decide whether to file suit in a District Court or in the Circuit Court. In the District Court, verdicts vary widely, depending on which judge decides the case and in which jurisdiction the case is being tried. The attorneys at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz understand this, and are very familiar with the judges in Maryland Courts. Experience allows us to predict, within a fairly narrow range, the amount of money a particular judge will award as compensation.

If the case will be tried by a jury, it is more difficult to predict. Jurors in certain areas are more generous than others. In general, jurors in our western counties, and on the eastern shore, are much more conservative and less likely to award large sums of money, than jurors in places such as Baltimore city and Prince George's County.

In most instances, you will be compensated for your medical bills and lost wages. The other part of compensation is for "pain and suffering." This award can vary widely, depending on the type of injury. This type of award is much more difficult to predict, especially when the jury, which is comprised of six individuals from the local community, is making the decision. As I discussed above, a juror in Cumberland is likely to award much less than a juror in Baltimore city.

It is important to retain a competent, experienced attorney after you have been in an automobile accident. The lawyers at Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz will work to protect your interests and negotiate the best possible outcome for you.