Mecklenburg County

How to Value a Personal Injury Claim

September 12, 2018 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “Do I have to pay taxes on a settlement or jury award in a personal injury case?”

Anyone who has been injured in any way knows how difficult it can be to recover. From a minor injury to a major injury, the healing process can cause many inconveniences in daily life. For some injuries sustained, an injured party can file a personal injury suit to recover damages for medical bills, lost wages, and more. In North Carolina, a personal injury suit is filed on the basis of negligence. When another person is negligent and that negligence results in damages to you, there is the possibility to recover for those damages. Many people know that they can recover damages for injuries, but are unsure where those damages come from. How are personal injury suits valued? The following are the ways in which the monetary value of a personal injury claim can be determined.

Pet Friendly Businesses Could Result in More Dog Bites

July 18, 2018 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matt Arnold answers the question: “What does the “one-bite rule” mean in NC dog bite cases?”

Just about everyone loves dogs. If you walk down the street and see a cute dog, you smile and maybe even ask to pet it. More and more businesses are allowing dogs to be inside the premises. “Pet friendly” refers to the practice of businesses allowing patrons to bring their dogs into a store while they shop. This is not just service dogs, but dogs who are simply companions.

What to Consider When Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney

May 30, 2018 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “How much does your firm charge to represent me in a personal injury case?”

Hiring an attorney is not a one-size-fits-all situation. If you are considering filing a personal injury suit, hiring the right attorney is a crucial step that could make or break your case. You need an attorney you can trust and feel comfortable coming to with questions and concerns that arise during the lawsuit. The attorney you hire will ask you many questions regarding the circumstances that brought you to file suit. As important as it is for the attorney to obtain information from you, you also need to interview a potential attorney to find out if the or she is the right fit for you.

Ruling In New York May Give Plaintiffs Leverage

May 2, 2018 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matt Arnold answers the question: “How do worker comps payments work?”

We all know that in personal injury cases, settlement is a common end result. Though there are lots of reasons why this is the case, a big one is the degree of uncertainty on both sides. No one knows for sure how a jury may find, no matter how strong the case may appear in advance. The reality is that going to trial is inherently risky. Settling helps reduce that risk, ensuring you walk away with something, even if it is not what you may have hoped for.

Nursing Home Residents Appear Poised To Lose Their Day In Court

August 16, 2017 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matt Arnold answers the question: “What information will be helpful for my nursing home negligence claim?”

It’s been bad news recently for those residing in nursing homes or with loved ones in nursing facilities. After a seeming victory last fall, when the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that a new rule would go into effect banning the use of arbitration agreements, there was an important setback earlier this summer. Residents and those working to change the broken system were disappointed to learn that CMS would not continue to push for implementation of the new rule banning arbitration agreements, but would instead craft a new measure, one that helps nursing facilities deny residents and their loved ones access to the court system.

Jury Awards $18 Damages to Innocent Man Tasered, Punched and Illegally Arrested by Police

October 25, 2016 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “What is the value of my case?”

The jury on DeShawn Franklin’s civil rights case went to the trouble of finding in his favor. That made sense. Franklin had been an 18-year-old high school senior asleep in his bed when police officers stormed his family’s home in the middle of the night in 2012 and woke him up. The bewildered and freshly-conscious teen resisted, only to be punched multiple times; three of the officers’ blows landed on his face. Officers Tasered Franklin, fired their stun gun on him and dragged him out of his bedroom before realizing he was not the person they thought he was. Even after realizing this, the officers handcuffed him and put him in the police cruiser for resisting arrest.

How some companies avoid liability despite deadly recalls

July 26, 2016 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “What is the value of my case?”

If you’ve been watching the news recently you may have heard about the recall issued by the Swedish retail giant Ikea. The company, known for its stylish and cheap housewares, has decided to recall an astounding 36 million dressers. The reason for the recall is that the dressers were linked with the deaths of some six children in the U.S. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the dressers have been found to tip over when all the drawers are open, unless the dressers are properly secured against the wall.

Suing Snapchat for Car Crashes

July 12, 2016 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Personal injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “If I am injured in a car accident or at work what should I do?”

Everyone knows how dangerous distracted driving can be. Whether it’s fiddling with the radio, dealing with unruly kids in the backseat or, far more commonly, interacting with your smartphone, that split-second lapse in attention can, and frequently does, prove to be fatal. If you or a loved one are involved in such an accident, it might occur to you to sue the driver responsible, after all, he or she is the one who chose to text and drive. But what about the company that makes the app the person was using at the time? According to legal experts, holding the developers of the apps that distracted drivers are using legally liable is an emerging trend in the world of personal injury law. To find out more about these kinds of cases and how they would work, keep reading.

Liability When Cars Drive Themselves

July 5, 2016 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matt Arnold answers the question: “Can I wait a few months to pursue a personal injury claim?”

Back in May, a terrible accident occurred on a stretch of highway in Williston, Florida. That crash, involving a Tesla with its autopilot system engaged, left the driver, a man named Joshua Brown, dead. Since the crash, investigators with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration say that they want to learn more about what led to the accident. Experts believe that crash could have impacts far beyond the family of the accident victim, with potential financial impact on the automaker and an impact on national safety regulations for other autonomous vehicles that are currently in development.

Settlement Mills IV: The pros and cons of settlement mills and suggested solutions

June 11, 2015 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “If I am injured in a car accident or at work what should I do?”

When a personal-injury claimant’s case is turned down by a lawyer or law firm because the value of the claim is too low, the claimant has three choices. The claimant can not file a claim at all, can handle the claim on one’s own, or her or she can contract with a so-called “settlement mill” to resolve the claim.