Recent Blog Posts

New Lawsuit Alleges Complications From Use of Polypropylene-based Hernia Mesh
Thousands of Tennessee residents require hernia repair surgeries every year. Surgical mesh is a common medical device used in such procedures to provide support for weakened or damaged tissue around the hernia. This mesh is made from either animal tissue or synthetic compounds, and the latter can remain in the body indefinitely as a… Read More »

Tennessee Supreme Court Reaffirms “Collateral Source Rule” in Personal Injury Cases
If you are in a car accident and the other driver is later determined to be negligent, does the fact you have health insurance reduce the amount of damages you can receive for your injuries? The answer to this is basically “no.” A defendant cannot escape liability by simply because a third party may… Read More »

Can I Collect Workers’ Compensation If I Just Quit My Job?
Tennessee workers’ compensation covers employees who are injured in the course of their employment. To give a simple example, if you fall at work and break your leg, your employer is responsible for paying your medical expenses and lost wages regardless of who was at fault for the accident. But your employer is not… Read More »

Judge Schedules “Bellwether” IVC Filter Case for Trial in March 2018
There are currently over 3,000 product liability lawsuits pending against the manufacturers of inferior vena cava (IVC) filters. IVC filters are metallic devices used to prevent blood clots from traveling from the lower body to the heart and lungs, i.e. causing a pulmonary embolism. While IVC filters were originally designed as permanent implants, the… Read More »

When Is a Parts Manufacturer Responsible for a Fatal Injury in Tennessee?
Product liability lawsuits are often complex undertakings because they can involve multiple manufacturers. In a motor vehicle or industrial machine there can be hundreds–and potentially thousands–of individual parts. And even when you identify the individual part that is responsible for a personal injury, that does not automatically make the manufacturer liable as a matter… Read More »

First “Bellwether” Taxotere Trials to Begin in 2018-2019
One of the most common side effects of chemotherapy is temporary hair loss. Unfortunately, the manufacturers of certain chemotherapy drugs like docetaxel–marketed by Sanofi-Aventis under the brand name Taxotere–failed to disclose their products may actually cause permanent hair loss. In 2015, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration required Sanofi-Aventis to amend its labeling for… Read More »

Do Tennessee Courts Still Apply “Contributory Negligence”?
In 1992, the Tennessee Supreme Court ended its longstanding rule of “contributory negligence” in personal injury cases. Contributory negligence meant that a plaintiff could not recover any damages if he or she was found to have contributed, even in a small way, to the underlying accident. For example, if the defendant was driving drunk… Read More »

Is Video Enough to Prove (or Disprove) a Driver’s Liability for a Car Accident?
We live in an age where just about everything we do can be recorded. In addition to our smartphones, which are essentially portable recording devices, many police departments and businesses now employ dashboard cameras to record constant video of highway activities. This can prove useful in the event of a car accident, although video… Read More »

How Can You Prove Nursing Home Neglect Led to Your Loved One’s Death?
Too many elderly people in Tennessee are the victims of nursing home abuse and neglect. In many cases, nursing home personnel fail to follow proper protocols and the patient suffers–or even dies–as a result. Unfortunately, connecting such failures to actual patient harm can prove difficult when pursuing a personal injury or wrongful death claim… Read More »

Dealing With Medical Malpractice Following a Motorcycle Accident
Motorcycle accidents often leave its victims with catastrophic injuries. This is understandable, given that motorcyclists lack the same physical protections as car and truck drivers. This means that a head-on collision can easily leave the motorcycle operator paralyzed–or dead. Appeals Court Rejects Amputee’s Lawsuit Against Hospital Of course, whether a motorcycle accident victim receives… Read More »