Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

“That's a knife.”

The Gerber® Instant™ Knife might be a knife that even Crocodile Dundee would be proud of, but the US Consumer Product Safety Commission last week declared a recall of the spring-loaded retractable blade after it was discovered that the locking mechanism can fail to properly engage. This can cause the blade to unexpectedly fold during use, posing a serious laceration or even amputation hazard to the user.

This recall affects approximately 3,000 knives with the model numbers 30-000435 and 31-001101. The knives retailed for $50 each and were sold in sporting goods stores throughout Texas from February 2012. Owners of these defective products are instructed to stop using the knives immediately and to contact Gerber Legendary Blades at 877-314-9130 to receive a free replacement.

Please remember that it is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.

As a Fort Worth personal injury lawyer, I know that it is possible to recover compensation if you or a loved one has suffered serious injuries as a result of using a faulty or malfunctioning product. If you believe you have a legitimate product liability case, please contact the Anderson Law Firm for a free consultation.

As a Dallas-Fort Worth personal injury and wrongful death attorney, I know that ATVs have the potential to cause serious injuries to their occupants in the event of an accident. By far the most common injury suffered in an all-terrain vehicle wreck involved broken, crushed or fractured bones, although injuries frequently experienced in DFW car crash cases are also common. These other injuries include blunt force trauma, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injury, and loss of limbs.

Many times, ATV accidents are the result of either design or manufacturing defects which caused the vehicles to malfunction, rendering them faulty and unsafe. One such off-road vehicle was this week recalled by its manufacturer, Kawasaki Motor Corp., USA.

The Teryx Recreational Off-Highway Vehicles were voluntarily recalled after it was learned that the 2012 model of the four-wheel vehicle was incorrectly labeled as having a higher occupant capacity that is actually safe. In actual fact, seating more occupants in the vehicle poses a serious risk of severe injury or even death. Fortunately, there are no reports of any such tragedy prior to the recall announcement.

The affected ATVs retailed for between $10,500 and $12,000 at Kawasaki dealerships throughout Texas since August 2011. Affected consumers are asked to please contact their local Kawasaki dealership for more information.

If you or a member of your family has been injured in an ATV, golf cart or off-road recreational vehicle accident, it is important that you are informed of your legal rights. Regardless of whether the accident was a result of product liability or driver negligence, you may be entitled to compensation. Please call the Anderson Law Firm for a free, no obligation consultation on your case. Call toll free at 800-354-6275 or locally at 817-294-1900. The Anderson Law Firm handles cases on a no win, no fee basis.

Whenever a viral video hits the internet showing someone texting while walking and then getting into an accident as a result of their inattention, it continues to baffle me why so many people still choose to engage in that most dangerous of activities; distracted driving.

As a Fort Worth personal injury lawyer, I know that texting from behind the wheel of your car is a very dangerous activity. According the the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 5,474 fatalities blamed on distracted driving in 2009 and a further 448,000 people injured. This means distracted driving was responsible for roughly 15 percent of all fatal auto accidents in 2009, and 20% of all traffic wreck injuries.

Of course, texting on your cellphone can make you less aware of your surrounding even if you're not driving. There are plenty of cases of pedestrians seriously injuring themselves because they are absorbed in the small screen of their cellphone while walking down the street. The video below shows the latest victim of distracted walking to have unfortunately found internet fame, a teenage girl in China accidentally fell into a sink hole after failing to spot caution signs along the sidewalk because she was texting on her cell phone. (It should be noted that no hazard warnings are visible in the video, but that Chinese media reports there were orange cones or yellow security tape blocking off the area around the sinkhole). Fortunately – as the video shows – the girl is doing okay, although she was understandably a little shaken up.

The staff at our law firm got very excited yesterday. A number of us are keen runners, so we were excited to see the Phyllis Tilley Memorial Pedestrian Bridge installed over Trinity River yesterday – just a short distance from our office. Although the new pedestrian bridge won't officially open until August, it was still awesome to know that the Trinity Trails development has become a true success and provides a safe off-road environment for Fort Worth residents who want to go for a run or a bike ride.

As a Tarrant County personal injury and wrongful death attorney, I cannot understate the value of having an outdoor exercise environment on our doorstep. The proposed network of bicycle lanes which will be located throughout the downtown area will also provide Fort Worth cyclists with safer routes and hopefully prevent serious collisions with motor vehicles.

Whenever a pedestrian or bicyclist is involved in an accident with a car, truck or other vehicle, it is always the pedestrian or bicyclist who will suffer the worst injury. In many cases, the injuries will be fatal. Just because you yourself were not driving an automobile does not mean that you have no legal rights. If you have been hurt as a result of someone else's negligence, Texas law gives you every right to make a legitimate claim for compensation to cover your medical expenses, lost income and other crash-related costs.

For a free consultation if you or a member of your family has been injured in a Fort Worth pedestrian or bicycle accident, please call the Anderson Law Firm toll free at 800-354-6275 or locally at 817-294-1900.

As a Dallas-Fort Worth personal injury lawyer, I know that children are particularly susceptible to suffer head injuries in car wrecks, falls and other accidents. Younger children in particular are at threat of suffering a traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a result of a vicious dog attack or through intentional abuse (for example, shaken baby syndrome).

Traumatic brain injuries can be extremely serious and have lifelong consequences for the victim. In the worst cases, the victim might suffer severe physical, cognitive and behavioral impairments which could be permanent.

Not all cases of traumatic brain injury are so pronounced, however, in many cases where a child suffered a significant head injury early on in life, they may develop conduct and behavioral problems later on in life. A decades-long study published by researchers in New Zealand found that children with mild TBI (also known as concussion) continued to display sub-clinical emotional and behavioral symptoms as late as 12 months after the injury occurred. Those children whose injuries were significant enough to require hospitalization also had a higher rate of developing attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In particular, the study noted that the children had decreased attention span, and increased distractibility, hyperactivity and impulsivity.

As any parent of an ADHD-diagnosed child knows, this can have a negative impact on the child's learning ability in school. According to ADHD experts, this chronic disorder persists into adulthood for approximately 60 percent of all sufferers.

If your child have suffered a head injury or traumatic brain injury, it is important that they receive the very best medical attention in order to reduce the risk of ADHD or other TBI-related symptoms. It is also wise to consult with a board certified child injury attorney as you might be entitled to seek some form of compensation. Although there is generally a two year statute of limitation for Texas accident injury claims, in child injury cases this deadline is extended to the 20th birthday of the child if a settlement has not already been achieved by their parent.

For more information on childhood traumatic brain injuries, please call a Fort Worth injury attorney at the Anderson Law Firm: toll free at 800-354-6275 or locally at 817-294-1900.

As a Fort Worth personal injury lawyer, I know that accidental gunshot wounds are typically the result of negligence on behalf of the owner or the gun handler. They are mistakes - of course – but they are more often than not the result of someone improperly handling the firearm, using the weapon while under the influence of alcohol, or not securely locking your gun safe; allowing a child or untrained person to access the gun.

However, sometimes an unintentional gun discharge could be the result of a malfunction with the gun itself. In those cases, the injured person is entitled to make a product liability claim against the gun manufacturer according to Texas civil law.

Meca Evanix, makers of the Evanix Speed Air Rifle and Evanix Conquest Air Rifle, this week announced a recall of these two products following discovery of a fault with the rifles which allowed them to be fired even after the safety switch was on. Fortunately, it does not appear that anyone has been accidentally injured so far as a result of this defective product, although there is a high risk of injury or death occurring. Evanix Speed Air Rifles and Evanix Conquest Air Rifles are sold throughout Texas at Air Venturi, Pyramyd Air, Top Airgun and Straight Shooters stores, retailing for approximately $1,800 each.

Owners of the affected rifles are advised to stop using them immediately and contact the store where you purchased the gun for more information.

If you or someone you love has been injured in an accidental gun discharge, it is important that you are aware of your legal rights. You may be entitled to compensation if an appropriate insurance policy exists. To discuss you situation in confidence with a board certified Dallas-Fort Worth personal injury and wrongful death attorney, please call the Anderson Law Firm toll free at 800-354-6275 or locally at 817-294-1900.

If you're riding your bike through Fort Worth traffic or along the Trinity Trails, the last thing you want is for your brakes to fail. As a Tarrant County personal injury lawyer, I tend to worry more about the possibility of a cyclist being juried in a collision with a motor vehicle – however, sometimes a bicyclist can suffer catastrophic injuries as a result of a defective bicycle.

This morning, Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc. in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that they are issuing a voluntary recall of Tektro TL-83 bicycle brake levers due to potential of them failing. This creates an increased hazard of the rider loosing control of their bike and crashing.

The affected brakes are sold as separate aftermarket modifications, as well as original equipment on 2010 and 2011 S-Works Shiv bicycle frame modules and 2012 S-Works Shiv TT bicycle frame modules. Affected consumers are asked to contact authorized Specialized Bicycle Components retailers for free replacement brake levers.

Any time that you or a family member is injured in a bicycle accident, it is important that you consult with a board certified Fort Worth personal injury lawyer who specializes in bicycle wreck injuries. Regardless of whether another road user was at fault or if there was a manufacturer's defect with your bicycle, you may be entitled to compensation.

The Anderson Law Firm offers injured cyclists completely free, no obligation consultation s on their injury cases. Call us at Fort Worth 817-294-1900.

As a Fort Worth personal injury and wrongful death attorney, I understand just how valuable safety is whenever you get in a motor vehicle. This is particularly true whenever you use public transport such as a bus or taxi as you have absolutely no control over your own safety. You put your trust in the bus driver and owner that the vehicle is well-maintained and will be safely operated.

Unfortunately, not all buses are maintained to a satisfactory standard. Others have hazards which jeopardize the safety and lives of their passengers. Last week, an investigation was announced into buses being used in Maryland. Six buses of the allegedly dangerous used by the company Ride-On in Montgomery County have caught fire within the past few years, and now a union representing the drivers is threatening to sue the county in order to get the hazardous vehicles off the road. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has initiated its own independent investigation into the safety of the buses in question.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a Texas bus accident of any nature, it is a good idea to discuss your case with an experienced Dallas-Fort Worth auto accident lawyer. You may be entitled to significant compensation.

Call the Anderson Law Firm toll free at 800-354-6275 or locally at either 817-294-1900 or 214-327-8000.

The NFL is facing a raft of legal issues brought by players who have suffered concussions that could potentially result in a traumatic brain injury – especially if they are reinjured. So far, 51 separate lawsuits have been filed against the NFL concerning concussions suffered by athletes while playing professional football.

Concussions are serious because they are a mild form of traumatic brain injury. Although most concussions don't have long-lasting effects, when the victim suffers repeat impacts to the head, there is a very real danger of severe damage being done, which could lead to permanent disability or even a fatality.

The danger of concussions is by no means limited to professional athletes. College and high school athletes who participate in heavy contact sports like football, ice hockey, rugby, taekwondo and cheerleading are also prone to suffer head injuries. During the last legislative session, the Texas State Senate introduced two separate laws, each aimed at reducing the number of concussions suffered in Texas schools.

Of course, serious head injuries are by no means limited to those participating in sports. Anyone who gets in a car wreck or other accident could potentially end up with a concussion or traumatic brain injury and not even realize the severity of their situation. That's why any time that you suffer a blow to the head, it is a good idea to seek expert medical assistance as soon as possible. Head injuries of any kind can seem minor at first, only to get more serious as time goes on.