When Cell Phones and Driving are Good Things…….

Written by
Most of us get it that talking and texting on cell phones is a very bad thing for safety on the road. However, cell phones are fantastic tools to use if you’ve just been in a collision. Yes, of course people use their phones to dial 911 after they’ve been hit, but that’s not what I mean. The camera component of cell phones is such a good way to “preserve the evidence” as we lawyers term it. Obviously, taking photos of both wrecked cars is Read More +

No, Not Every State Allows a “No-Contest” Clause in a Will – Florida Doesn’t….

Written by
Recently, I was listening to a national cable show and their estatexpert for the day was an estate planner. Prattling on about how you don’t really need a lawyer to do your own estate planning, he advised going to a website and downloading a Will form, and added, don’t forget to put a “No-Contest” clause in your Will. “That way, if Junior ever contests his share from your Will, he won’t get a penny!” He went on to say, “All states allow a No-Contest Clause Read More +

Video Surveillance and the Death of a Case (Two Actually)!

Written by
All lawyers share “war stories”. This is usually a true tale about an unnamed client (must preserve confidentiality) that resulted in some horrendous outcome to the poor slob of a lawyer telling the story. Retelling it makes other lawyers feel a bit better about their practice and it’s a right of passage for every lawyer. If you don’t have a war story, you’re doing something wrong. Sooner or later, something will go wrong in your practice. A while ago I blogged about a client who Read More +

What’s “Sovereign Immunity”?

Written by
The word “sovereign” means : “a chief ruler with supreme power,” like a King or Queen or even a fiefdom run by a master. Back in the middle-ages when the world was largely run by sovereigns whether royalty or a chief ruler, one couldn’t sue the master. As the saying went, “rex non potest peccare”, or the king can do no wrong. So, if you couldn’t sue your sovereign, he or she had complete immunity. Royalty could rain down any number of nasties on you Read More +

“My Pet Groomer Just Smacked the **** Out Of My Pet! Can I sue?”

Written by
Occasionally I get a call from a client about possibly suing someone for injuries to their pet. Someone called me years ago to tell me that their new groomer basically cut the hell out of her standard poodle since he was inexperienced as a groomer and the poodle was quite experienced as a wiggly, impatient dog. The dog’s fur was unevenly groomed and worse than that, the poodle looked like he had run through a narrow hallway filled with razor blades. Recently, a good friend Read More +

Lawyer Ads: “Hire me. You can relate to me!”, “No, I’M your relatable attorney…”

Written by
As an injury lawyer I’ve represented injured people in every phase of life. I’ve helped out injured people who were in boat crashes. Guess what? I don’t own a boat. I’ve represented injured people who were hit by a car while in-line skating. I don’t skate. Clients on bicycles who were hurt have come to me and I’m not an avid bicyclist. I’ve even helped out a seriously injured client who survived a helicopter crash. No, I’m not a pilot. But I know the law Read More +