June 13, 2016 In Personal Injury

Neck Injuries from Slip and Fall Accidents

memphis personal injury lawyer neck injuries

The Costs of Slip and Fall Accidents

Most of us in our life have at some time slipped and fallen down with no long lasting effects, but a slip and fall accident can potentially result in a serious neck injury. When it can be proven that the cause of a slip and fall accident was due to someone’s negligence, that person or their company can be held liable. This includes the victim’s company if it can be determined that the slip and fall accident was caused by unsafe work conditions. Neck injuries can be serious.

A “simple” slip and fall accident may not have simple consequences. Serious neck injuries can result and wreak havoc on the victim’s long term health and well-being. The associated damages can be high as a result of:

Ambulance transportation from the accident scene to the emergency room.
Examination and x-ray fees plus any additional diagnostic tests.
Medical costs associated with immediate, short and long term treatments.
Physical rehabilitation.
Surgery
Lost wages from the present into the future.
Lost benefits as a result of not being able to work.

Symptoms of a Neck Injury

Immediately after experiencing a slip and fall accident, seek medical attention. There’s no substitute for qualified medical expertise to diagnose the extent of your injury. If you suspect you may have sustained a neck injury, any of the following symptoms may be present but their absence does not mean your neck isn’t injured:

A dull aching in the neck
Pain when turning your head or moving it in any direction
Shooting pains, tenderness, numbness, or tingling in the neck area
Difficulty swallowing
Headache
Facial pain
Shoulder pain
Numbness or tingling in the arm

Types of Neck Injuries

A neck injury may affect the nervous system as well as the spinal cord. In the worst case scenarios, neck injuries can cause paralysis or death.

Whiplash can be caused by the head forcibly and suddenly moving in one direction and then snapping backward.
Neck fracture. A slip and fall accident can result in a break of the cervical bone, resulting in a neck fracture. The elderly and those suffering from osteoporosis are at greater risk of this injury due to the brittleness of their bones.

Who can be held accountable for a slip and fall accident?

This will largely depend on where the accident occurred, the circumstances of the accident, and who owns the property on which the slip and fall occurred. Negligence must also be proven. The following are only general guidelines and are in no way a substitute for legal advice:

If on private property, was the owner aware of the dangerous conditions but did nothing to address them?
If at your workplace, did your employers ignore unsafe working conditions?
If on public property, were those responsible for its maintenance knowingly ignore dangerous conditions that led to your slip and fall injury?

Statute of Limitations

Most slip and fall accidents will fall under the statute of limitations which limits how long you can wait before you seek legal recourse. If the at-fault party is a government entity, the statute of limitations period may be even shorter. It’s important that if you have had a slip and fall accident and suffered a neck injury as a result that you immediately consider contacting a Washington DC slip and fall lawyer.

Need a Memphis Personal Injury Lawyer?

Call Patterson Bray at 901-372-5003 or email us here.

If you’d like to receive email notifications for our blog posts, please sign up here.

0 COHEN

Thanks to our friends and contributors at Cohen & Cohen, P.C. for their additional insight into neck injuries as a result of a slip and fall accident.

February 3, 2016 In Auto Accident, Business Litigation, Civil Litigation, Contracts, Estate Planning, General, Government, Medical Malpractice, Personal Injury

Lawsuit Deadlines: How long do I have to file a lawsuit in Tennessee?

lawsuit deadlines, personal injury lawyer memphis

Don’t let lawsuit deadlines kill your case before it even starts.

Why are there statutes of limitation or lawsuit deadlines?

In Tennessee, there are lawsuit deadlines called “statutes of limitations,” so it is important to speak to a lawyer as soon as possible if you believe you may need to file a lawsuit. If you wait too late, you may lose your ability to seek a remedy or recovery in court.

Statutes of limitation serve a number of purposes. They promote stability in personal and business relationships; they prevent undue delay in filing lawsuits; they help to avoid uncertainty in pursuing and defending old claims; and they help to ensure that evidence is preserved and not lost due to the lapse of time, fading memories, or death of witnesses or parties.

What time limit applies to my case?

It depends on what kind of case you have. Even our courts sometimes struggle with which statute of limitation applies. Generally, a court looks to the “gravamen” of the complaint to determine which statute of limitation applies. Think of the “gravamen” as the “real purpose” or the “main point” of a lawsuit.

The Tennessee Supreme Court, in Benz-Elliott v. Barrett Enterprises said that when determining the gravamen of a complaint in order to decide which statute of limitation applies, “a court must first consider the legal basis of the claim and then consider the type of injuries for which damages are sought. This analysis is necessarily fact-intensive and requires a careful examination of the allegations of the complaint as to each claim for the types of injuries asserted and damages sought.”

You may have multiple legal theories and claims available to you in your case, but those claims could have different statutes of limitation that will affect your ability to recover. Because this analysis can be difficult, and it is to your advantage to include as many viable claims for recovery as possible, you should consult an attorney as soon as possible to discuss your case.

Statutes of Limitation in Tennessee for Common Claims

Below are statutes of limitation for common types of claims. There are others, so make sure and consult with an attorney to make sure you understand what time limit applies to your case.

Personal injury or wrongful death – 1 year
Property damage – 3 years
Conversion – 3 years
Breach of Contract – 6 years
Fraud/Misrepresentation – 3 years
Legal or medical malpractice – 1 year
Consumer Protection Act claims – 1 year
Sale of Goods Contract Claims – 4 years
Slander (spoken defamation) – 6 months
Libel (written defamation) – 1 year

Exceptions

There are certain exception to the statutes of limitation in Tennessee, but you should never assume an exception will apply to your case. For example, if a person took active steps to keep you from discovering an injury or claim (i.e., fraudulent concealment), then you may have additional time to file suit.

Courts will not allow you extra time to file suit simply because you did not know the applicable statute of limitation, or because you suffered an injury but didn’t find out the full facts or extent of your damage until later in time. Consult with an attorney as soon as you think you have a claim.

Don’t Lose Your Ability to Recover. Call us today.

Statutes of limitations and lawsuit deadlines can kill your case before it even starts. If you think you may have a legal claim against someone, please call us today at 901-372-5003 or email us here. Don’t wait too late and lose your ability to file suit or recover damages. Let the attorneys of Patterson Bray help you today.

September 27, 2011 In Business Litigation, Civil Litigation, Contracts

Are Oral Contracts Enforceable?

oral contracts

Elements of a Contract in Tennessee

With a few limited exceptions oral contracts are enforceable in Tennessee just like a written contract. Of course, a written contract is much easier to prove because there is hard evidence of the agreement. However, an oral contract IS enforceable in most cases. The parties and/or their witnesses can testify about the terms of the agreement, and things such as partial performance or “normal course of dealing” can serve as powerful circumstantial evidence of the terms of the deal.

A contract is a contract – oral or written – so long as it has the following elements:

A legal purpose (e.g. Tennessee courts will not enforce a contract between neighbors to illegally use one cable box);
A mutual agreement that is free from fraud or undue influence;
Terms that are definite enough to be enforced (e.g. a promise to work for a person’s lifetime would be too vague because a lifetime is not a definite duration); and,
Adequate value exchanged by both parties (referred to as “consideration” in legal terms).

Contracts Required to be in Writing

There are certain contracts that are required to be in writing under a legal doctrine called the “Statute of Frauds.” In Tennessee, the six types of contracts that must be in writing include contracts for the following:

Marriage;
Contracts with a term greater than 1 year (i.e. a 2 year lease must be in writing);
Sale of land/property;
Executor’s/Administrator’s promise to pay debts of the estate;
Sale of Goods/Personal Property that costs $500 or more; and
Suretyship agreements (i.e. a promise to guarantee payment of the debts of another person).

Even after you have successfully navigated all of the above requirements, you should still be careful to file a lawsuit for a violation of an oral contract within 6 years in Tennessee – the same statute of limitation as a written contract. Additionally, oral contracts often require the testimony of a witness to verify the terms of the agreement.

We advise avoiding oral contracts.

While oral contracts are enforceable, you should avoid them, if at all possible, simply because written contracts are so much easier to prove and enforce. Contracts can be difficult to navigate, and if you have any doubts when drafting or entering into a contract, it is best to consult an experienced contract attorney. If you need help in negotiations, contract drafting, or even contract disputes, please give us a call at 901-372-5003.

Patterson Bray

8001 Centerview Parkway, Suite 103

Memphis, Tennessee 38018

(901) 372-5003 Office