Chances are when you’re driving on a highway or even a more rural road, you’ll likely see a truck driver. Most times, you can both coexist on the road without problems because truck drivers are highly trained. Unfortunately, sometimes truckers can be exhausted, intoxicated, or distracted at the wheel, and cause an accident with an object or another vehicle on the road. When that happens, you could report them for their reckless driving.

Using a cell phone while driving in Maryland is against the law. While this is a step in the right direction for preventing deaths from smartphone-related distracted driving accidents, people still use their cell phones behind the wheel. In 2017, 14% of fatalities in distracted driving crashes were specifically caused by cell phone use, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Even though our state has these laws in place for the safety of everybody on the road, people still break the law every day.

Everyone knows that texting and driving is dangerous, but that doesn’t stop negligent drivers from doing it. When a person isn’t fully focused on the road in front of them, the chances of an accident happening skyrocket. While most states have bans on texting and driving, state laws don’t always seem to be a strong enough deterrent.

Wireless companies are well aware of the problem, as many of them have instituted safe driving campaigns to discourage distracted driving. Those companies, however, may be able to do more. Let’s take a look at the possibility of phone manufacturers creating a cell phone that prevents use while driving.

If there comes a time in your life where you need to file a lawsuit for injuries or losses, you’ll want to be supported by an experienced and resourceful lawyer. Unfortunately, there are legal representatives out there that do not provide the representation their clients deserve and, as a result, the client is harmed financially. In some situations, this may be considered legal malpractice. While these cases are among the most challenging to prove, they are not unwinnable. If you think you’ve been wronged by a lawyer, it’s important to understand legal malpractice and how the “case within a case” doctrine works.

Workers in Maryland are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits in the event they’re injured on the job. There is a system in place that determines the benefits eligibility, which is based on factors like injury severity, wage losses, and job retraining. When injuries are severe and impact a person’s ability to work at all, they may be diagnosed as permanent. It’s important to understand how permanent impairment is calculated in workers’ compensation cases, so the injured party has an idea of what they’ll receive and how they’ll maintain their health in the future.

Dear Clients, Friends, and Colleagues of Belsky & Horowitz:

Our thoughts are with those currently affected by the coronavirus and the healthcare workers caring for them. The safety of our clients, our office team, and our colleagues is our top priority during this chaotic time.

As of yesterday, our physical office locations across the state are closed, although the attorneys and staff are now working remotely to continue to provide legal services to our clients.  We are complying with the CDC guidelines and Governor Hogan’s most recent executive orders. To that end, although we have closed our physical facilities in an attempt to do our part to reduce the spread of COVID-19, we continue to communicate with clients, insurance companies, defense attorneys, medical offices, etc.

If you’ve been injured and are in the midst of a personal injury trial, your lawyer has already explained to you what the path is likely to look like. In some instances, however, there are motions that can delay or stop a trial. If you hear the phrase “conflict of interest” brought against your lawyer during trial, it’s important to understand the implications and how it could affect your outcome. Let’s start by taking a look at the legal definition of conflict of interest.

If you’re in the process of filing a personal injury claim, you’ll benefit from understanding how it works and what a successful claim looks like. When it comes to proving you’re deserving of compensation for your injuries and losses, your attorney will need to build a claim that meets the burden of proof. This legal term refers to being able to believe something beyond a certain level of doubt.

The lawyers at Belsky & Horowitz, LLC understand how confusing and complicated civil cases can seem when you’re dealing with legal terminology. That’s why we make sure to break the information down for our clients so it’s digestible and they feel comfortable with how their cases are being handled. Let’s take a closer look at how the burden of proof applies to negligence claims.

As an injured worker, you have a right to collect workers’ compensation benefits. In most cases, negligence is not a factor. The fact that the injury occurred while you were employed and completing your assigned duties is all that matters. The benefits you receive can cover medical and therapy bills, out-of-pocket expenses, and a portion of your lost wages.

Depending on how your accident happened, however, could impact your eligibility for benefits. Understanding the state laws and process for determining compensation is an important part of submitting a successful workers’ compensation claim. Our lawyers can explain the details to you, so you’re fully informed and know what to expect.

When you go to a hospital for surgery, you are surrounded by medical professionals who know what they’re doing. Not only do they have complete knowledge of the surgery they’re completing and how your medical history factors in, but they also know what to do in an emergency situation. At a surgery center, that may not always be the case. While most surgical procedures at outpatient centers proceed without error, recent information has uncovered that some do not go as planned. A simple surgery at an outpatient center has the potential to turn deadly from a surgical error when something goes wrong.