January 3, 2014 By

What Is an Attractive Nuisance?

Mount Laurel Personal Injury / Pool Attorneys

Homeowners who have a swing set, pool or trampoline in their backyards may be exposing themselves to unwanted liability without carefully thinking about it. What is an “attractive nuisance”? Legally, an >attractive nuisance is any potentially hazardous or dangerous condition or object that might attract children to enter a piece of property in order to play with or explore the hazardous condition or object in question. This means that construction companies, schools, even businesses can be held liable if equipment, jungle gyms or sculptures are considered an attractive nuisance by the court.

Taking Steps to Secure Property — Will this Reduce Liability?

Property owners might think that if they comply with existing codes regarding safety and security fences, they can’t be held responsible for injuries to children who trespass on property and hurt themselves on a trampoline, back hoe or abandoned car. Under the doctrine of attractive nuisance, however, property owners are strictly liable for creating conditions that pose a risk to children, who are unable to fully appreciate the danger posed to them.

For example, if a salvage yard has a security fence surrounding its property with “No Trespassing” signs posted, the yard’s owner can still be held liable for injuries to any children who enter the property to play with discarded refrigerators, washing machines or junked cars. Since younger children are not always able to accurately assess the risks inherent in a situation, the attractive nuisance law holds property owners liable for any failure to completely secure or remove an attractive nuisance, even if a property owner’s property is up to code.

Holding Property Owners Liable under New Jersey Attractive Nuisance Law

An important issue in any personal injury case involving an attractive nuisance is whether or not the injured child could have properly identified and assessed the dangers inherent in a situation. For many courts, however, the issue is whether or not the injuries were foreseeable. For instance, if a construction company working on a job near a school leaves the keys in its tractors overnight, is it foreseeable that children or young teenagers might be attracted by the tractors and try to start them up? If so, then a failure on the part of the construction company to eliminate this risk by removing the keys could be considered negligent.

Contact Mount Laurel Premises Liability Attorneys at Taylor & Boguski

Attractive nuisance cases require investigation, consideration of the evidence and a thorough review of a property owner’s actions. At Taylor & Boguski, we understand what needs to be done to investigate and present these kinds of cases. For more information regarding our practice and how we can help you, contact Mount Laurel premises liability attorneys at Taylor & Boguski today.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With:
August 27, 2013 By

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after an accident

After an accident, post-traumatic stress disorder is a common medical condition that can arise. In one such recent instance of crime related to post-traumatic stress disorder in the news, Jodi Arias who is 32 years-old, suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. She was put on the stand in court for 18 days after killing her ex-boyfriend. She claims that because of her disorder she cannot remember the majority of her actions. Arias was charged with first degree murder but is claiming she killed him out of self-defense but doesn’t remember that she ever stabbed him over two dozen times, that his throat was ever slit or that he was shot in the head. Some doctors believe that memories can be limited and do not form when people experience acute stress since it their chemistry makeup under those conditions prevents it from forming. Arias could face the death penalty if she is convicted of this crime. Read here for more.

After an accident, PSTD is a common disorder which can form. In fact, PTSD can develop after a traumatic event that threatens your safety or is life-threatening. PTSD usually forms differently in person, and also varies from person to person. PTSD can develop hours or days after a traumatic event, but it can also form weeks, months, and even years later. For more information, see here. It is important to talk to an attorney in the wake of an accident, because PSTD is a disorder which should be considered when damages are awarded and calculated.

If you or someone you know is suffering from PSTD

The attorneys at Taylor & Boguski, LLC, are a South New Jersey law firm located in Mount Laurel. We represent clients in a variety of personal injury claims such as Psychiatric Injuries, Social Security Disability Claims, Brain Injuries, Back, Neck and Spinal Cord Injuries, Wrongful Death, Medical Malpractice, and many other injuries. Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a free consultation with a Personal Injury Attorney. Get the legal advice you need from an experienced attorney so that your rights can be availed.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With:
July 26, 2013 By

Personal Injury Damages

In Bayonne, New Jersey a recent accident has raised the question of damages in personal injury matters. The Bayonne Fire Department captain was charged with drunk driving and in the process caused three separate accidents within 30 minutes. The captain named John Leahy, who is 46 years old has since been suspended without pay within 48 hours of the crashes that took place on March 5, 2013. Read more.

Damages awards in a personal injury matter can vary depending on fault. To prove negligence in New Jersey, the complaining party has to show that the opposing party acted negligently by failing to exercise the standard of care that a reasonably prudent person would have exercised in a similar situation. The plaintiff must prove that there was a duty of care that was breached and that the breach of that duty of care caused the plaintiff injuries which resulted in damages. New Jersey is a comparative negligence state which means that, if a plaintiff is 51 percent or more at fault for his injuries, he may not sue. If he is 50 percent or less at fault, he is only allowed to sue for an amount proportional to that person’s percentage of the fault. Notably, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in New Jersey is two years. Moreover, punitive damages are limited to five times the compensatory damages or $350,000, whichever is greater. For more information, see here.

Find out what damages you may be entitled to

If you’ve been injured in a car accident, truck wreck, motorcycle crash, your slip and fall, contact Mount Laurel personal injury attorneys at Taylor & Boguski today to discuss your case. Taylor & Boguski represents clients in personal injury accidents in the Mount Laurel, Cherry Hill and other South Jersey areas. If you have been involved in a serious accident or a loved one died in a fatal accident, contact the serious injury lawyers at Taylor & Boguski for a free consultation call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 or contact us online.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With:
June 21, 2013 By

School bus accident calls to mind the common causes of 18 wheeler accidents

In recent Newark, New Jersey transit accident related news, 10 students and 2 adults were injured after a school bus crash. According to the reports, none of the injuries were considered to be life threatening. However further details have not been disclosed. The site of the crash was at Grove and Grain streets and it occurred around 8:25 am but the cause of the accident is still under investigation. Additionally, no charges or summons have been issued. See article here.

There are about 500,000 truck accidents that happen each year. One of the major causes of an 18 wheeler accident is driver fatigue. Some lesser causes include poorly maintained equipment, which can lead to tire blowouts and sideswiping another motor-vehicle when changing into another lane. After suffering from a car accident, an insurance company may ask you to sign away your rights in exchange for money. It is in your best interest not to sign anything for the insurance company without speaking first to an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Truck accidents wrecks can be more complex than Car Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, or Bicycle Accidents. This is because multiple parties such as the truck driver, the truck owner, the transportation company, the shipping company and their separate insurance carriers can be involved in the accident. Many parties will deflect blame from to one another. It is important to seek legal counsel from someone you can trust. The lawyers at Taylor & Boguski have over 30 years of experience and they can help you with your questions and your claims. Contact us online, or us at call 856-234-2233, or toll free at 1-800-404-5299, for a confidential, free of cost consultation.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With:
May 20, 2013 By

Home Insurance lawsuits

Homeowner’s insurance coverage in event of a natural disaster is quickly becoming an important aspect to homeownership in the tri-state area. Most standard homeowners and commercial property policies do not cover flood losses. In order to get coverage flood damage, consumers must purchase a separate policy through the National Flood Insurance Program. Homeowners and business owners in high risk flood zone areas are required by law to purchase federal flood insurance if they have mortgages from a federally supported lender such as a bank. Without a mortgage, there is no bank requirement that the homeowner purchases flood insurance. When looking to blame an insurance agent for failure to warn homeowners about flood insurance, court cases look into the specific discussions that occur between the agent and the client. In New Jersey, courts have decided that policyholders can rely on their brokers’ knowledge in certain circumstance. In fact, they don’t even have to read their policy to be protected.
Read full article here.

Before buying a homeowner’s insurance policy, it is important to understand the way homeowner’s insurance works, identify the kind of policy and coverage you really need, and compare different policies to find the best values. New Jersey State law regarding homeowners insurance gives consumers the information they need to know about their policies. However, it is important to speak to an experienced attorney to get advice and guidance when your policy fails to provide coverage and fails to take into account what the policy covers.

Having problems with your home insurance plan? Get legal advice

The attorneys at Taylor & Boguski, in Mount Laurel, represent clients throughout New Jersey with personal injury and other legal problems in the counties of Cherry Hill, Mount Holly, Burlington, Pennsauken, Willingboro, Camden, Moorestown, Medford, Voorhees, Haddonfield, Marlton, Pemberton and other locations in Burlington County, Camden County, Gloucester County and Mercer County. Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a free consultation with a Personal Injury Attorney.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With:
April 18, 2013 By

Police detective in N.J. State in accident and charged for drinking and driving

In Trenton, NJ, State Police Detective Sgt. 1st Class Joseph P. Brennan who is 43 years-old, was charged with drunk driving after a car crash. It was reported that he drove his car off a road in Chatham Borough. The car crashed through a concrete wall and ended up on a large rock. The officer had been drinking after playing the bagpipes at a private birthday party. He is a member of the Pipes and Drums of the Blue and Gold which is a nonprofit bagpipe band. When police asked him if he had been drinking, he mumbled the word no. Nonetheless, he was charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless driving and refusal to submit to a breath test. The detective was suspended without pay which will remain pending until the outcome of the charges. No one was injured in the accident. Coverage on this news can be found here and here.

If you or someone you know gets into an accident while working, you may be entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits. Thus, if you were acting within the scope of your employment, such as accidents while running errands for a boss, accidents while delivering packages as part of your job duties, or accidents which occur on business trips, your could be eligible for compensation benefits. Injured persons can be covered for medical bills and lost wages. However, there is a ceiling on the compensation available for you. When serious injuries are involved, the negligent driver’s insurance policy or your own uninsured or underinsured insurance coverage will be able to provide additional coverage beyond the basic compensation amounts.

If you or someone you know have lost time from work because of a job related injury or an injury on the job which is a repetitive-stress injury you should speak to someone bout your rights to receive workers’ compensation benefits. Learn about your rights and discuss issues of liability with the experienced personal injury lawyers at Taylor & Boguski in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a free of charge consultation with a Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Attorney.

Filed Under: Car Accident Attorneys, Personal Injury Tagged With:
February 25, 2013 By

TBI and Psychiatric Disorders – New Jersey Personal Injury

Traumatic brain injury and psychiatric disorders are common in people who have been injured in car accidents, construction site accidents, workplace accidents, and other types of accidents. Despite the frequency of this type of brain injury, a closed head trauma can be challenging to diagnose, at least initially.

Many people who have been involved in crashes that have involved a blow to the head often seem perfectly normal after the crash, especially if the injury has not penetrated the skull. However, inside the skull, the brain is telling a different story.

TBI Inside the Brain

What’s happening inside the brain may be swelling of the brain, bruising of brain tissue, and internal bleeding inside the brain, brain lacerations, or nerve damage. While about two-thirds of the nearly 1.7 million individuals in the U.S. who suffer from a TBI each year do recover, some 125,000 victims experience permanent brain damage.

Personality Changes and TBI – Psychiatric Problems

People who have suffered TBI may not notice their own changes, but their loved ones will. They may begin to act out of character, sometimes alarmingly, heartbreakingly so. Symptoms can include:

  • Poorer social functioning
  • Depression, sometimes severe depression
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Dramatic shift in sexual functioning
  • Decrease in ability to concentrate or to be satisfied
  • Memory problems
  • Extreme emotions
  • Obsessive compulsive disorder
  • Anger management issues

Examples include a person who is normally responsible and very controlled in his behavior may become obnoxious, impulsive, and irresponsible. A married woman who has always been loyal to her mate may become sexually promiscuous. Another person may become very emotional where before he was generally calm and centered. A heretofore well-balanced person may experience depression.

TBI Statistics

In the U.S. 50,000 people die each year from TBI, with 235,000 being hospitalized, and 1.1 accident victims being treated and released from emergency rooms each year.

If you or a loved one has suffered a closed or open head injury as a result of a car crash or other accident that was not your fault, you might have a legal basis to recover compensation that can pay for your treatment, and damages related to pain and suffering.

See a Lawyer Who Helps the Injured: 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233

Discuss your concerns and learn your rights by scheduling a free, private consultation with an experienced attorney at the southern New Jersey law firm of Taylor and Boguski, in Mount Laurel, NJ. Our practice is focused on helping the injured. In particular, we have extensive experience working with clients who have suffered traumatic brain injury. Please call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 or contact us online.

Filed Under: Construction Accidents, Personal Injury Tagged With: , ,
February 25, 2013 By

Repetitive Stress & Cervical Radiculopathy

Shooting upper back or neck nerve pain and appendage numbness may be a symptom of cervical radiculopathy. This type of nerve damage can occur due to work-related repetitive heavy lifting, keyboarding, or other types of repetitive movements on the job, or the sudden impact of a car crash.

When nerve function along the upper seven vertebra in the upper spine and neck are injured to the point of severe pain, numbness, muscle weakness, or other problems, a person may be experiencing cervical radiculopathy. If you are dealing with this type of injury that has happened due to repetitive motion on the job, workers’ compensation may pay for your medical treatment and your lost wages for the time that you could not work due to the injury.

Cervical radiculopathy means that there is an impingement or compression of a person’s nerve or nerves in the neck and upper back area. Sometimes an injury like this happens when the cushiony disk that separates each person’s vertebrae is ruptured or in some other way has been compromised as a protector. Nerve roots may then be compressed, causing damage.

A hallmark of cervical radiculopathy is pain, sometimes shooting or burning that can spread throughout the afflicted area. Other signs of cervical radiculopathy may or may not include a feeling of numbness or tingling in hands or fingers, a sensation of hot or cold in the afflicted part of the body, weak muscles, including the neck, shoulders, upper back and chest, and arms, and problems with coordination.
The reason for the numbness of lack of sensation is that when the nerve is pinched, it cannot work effectively and the arms or shoulders that are in the area will then have less feeling.

Treatment for Cervical Radiculopathy Pain

There are many ways to treat this type of nerve damage pain. These include:

  • Physical therapy
  • Steroid injection
  • Cervical fusion

Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a Free Consultation with a Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Attorney – New Jersey

If you have lost time from work due to a job-related repetitive stress injury or cervical radiculopathy, you have a right to workers’ compensation. Learn more about your rights and issues of liability by speaking with a workers’ compensation and personal injury lawyer at Taylor & Boguski in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. We offer a free, private consultation where you can get your questions answered and your case will be evaluated.

Filed Under: Personal Injury, Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: , ,
January 14, 2013 By

Workplace Toxic Exposure and Health Impact

Many people are employed in workplaces where harmful or hazardous materials are used. If they come in contact with or are absorbed into the body, through inhalation of fumes, contact with the skin, or other types of body contact, a person may become seriously ill. However, when determining the health impact of certain materials at work, one must distinguish between toxic and hazardous.

What Is Toxicity?

Toxicity means that the material causes an unwanted effect when the substances reach a certain level of concentration at a particular site in the body.

If a material is high in toxicity, then just a small dose may be necessary for a body to absorb before it causes harm in some way. The lower the level of the toxicity of the substance, the greater amount of substance needs to be absorbed to cause toxicity.

What Is Hazardous?

A hazard is a probability that a toxic concentration in a person’s body will actually happen. For example, a material can be toxic by its nature, but not hazardous if all safety rules are followed and the material does not come into contact with the body.

Two liquid compounds may be equally toxic but have different degrees of hazard associated with each. For example, the first material may not irritate the nose or eyes and have no smell, as in the case of gas. The other may irritate eyes and nose and have a strong smell. In this case, the first material is more hazardous, because people have no ability to know when they have been exposed.

Toxicant Routes of Entry to Body

A toxic substance can enter the body through:

  • Ingestion – swallowing the toxic material
  • Skin or eye absorption – contact with the toxic material
  • Inhalation – breathing the toxic material

Chronic and Acute Health Impact of Toxic Exposure

A toxic substance can have immediate effects or it may take a long time to actually present the effects. For example, acid spilled on skin will immediately burn the skin. However, asbestos exposure or tobacco smoke exposure can take a much longer time to impact the health, in some case as much as 20 years.

What Type of Exposure?

On the job, you may have been exposed to a dose of toxic material once, or you may have experienced chronic exposure that has built up toxicity over time. In a one-time exposure, or an acute exposure, the dose and absorption into the body is quick. Chronic exposure is generally a low does that builds over time.

Some materials, however, may not cause toxicity over the long term, but they may have impact if a person suffers a high dose all at once.

Certain types of toxins include:

  • Carcinogens
  • Mutagens
  • Asphyxiants
  • Narcotics
  • Systemic poisons
  • Nephrotoxic agents
  • Sensitizers
  • Teratogens

Are you dealing with health troubles related to toxic exposure in the workplace?

Email or Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a Free Consultation with a Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Attorney – New Jersey

If you or a loved one has been exposed to a toxic chemical that has cost you your health or caused you to suffer in some other way, a workers’ compensation and personal injury lawyer at Taylor & Boguski in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, can help you understand your rights, including rights to sue for damages or to obtain lost wages. We offer a free, private consultation where you can get your questions answered and your case will be evaluated.

Filed Under: Personal Injury, Toxic Exposure Tagged With:
January 14, 2013 By

Tragedy When Car Strikes Morning Bicyclist

A morning bicycle ride ended in tragedy when a Mount Laurel cyclist was struck and killed by a car. The cyclist left behind four children, 13 grandchildren, his wife, his mother, and his company which he owned.

Bicycling is a healthy, joyful, and generally safe activity. Bicycling is growing significantly each year, especially in cities where bike rental is available and convenient to access.

Despite increased awareness of cyclists on the road in New Jersey and elsewhere, in most cases, car drivers are not looking out for cyclists on the roads. In 2010, there were more than 52,000 cyclists injured in crashes in New Jersey and throughout the nation.

While bicyclists have the same rights to the road as car drivers do, car drivers often disregard this to a biker’s peril. Motor vehicle drivers whose careless or negligent actions strike and injure a bicyclist may be held liable for medical costs, pain and suffering, and other damages related to the crash.

Common causes of NJ bicycle accidents include:

  1. A bicycle and car are riding parallel to one another and the car driver turns into the bike’s path, striking the cyclist.
  2. A bike and a car are heading in opposite directions toward an intersection. When they get into the intersection, the auto driver fails to yield right of way to the cyclist, striking him or her.
  3. A car driver parks the car and opens the door into the path of an oncoming bicyclist, who cannot swerve to avoid it.
  4. Inattentive car drivers simply do not see a cyclist.
  5. A bicycle that has been poorly maintained or is missing something as critical as brakes – and yes, cyclists do ride on occasion without brakes.

When cars are driving at speeds and crash into a bicyclist, the chances are great that the biker will suffer life-changing injuries. It can help a great deal to have someone who understands personal injury law and bike accident issues protect your rights.

Call 800-404-5299 or 856-234-2233 for a Free Consultation with a Lawyer

To learn more about your rights and issues of liability and damages on behalf of injured bicyclists and pedestrians, email or call the personal injury lawyers of Taylor & Boguski in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. We offer a free, private consultation where you can get your questions answered and your case will be evaluated.

Filed Under: Bicycle Accidents, Car Accident Attorneys, Personal Injury Tagged With:
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