If you’re having trouble paying your bills to the point you’re completely overwhelmed with debt, you may be a candidate for bankruptcy. Prior to making any financial decisions regarding debt management, it’s important to understand your rights and options, as well as the potential consequences for what actions you decide to take. At Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz, LLC, we can teach you how to file for bankruptcy in Maryland and help you decide if that’s the best way to manage your debt.

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.

No matter how it happens, the death of a loved one is tragic. Coping with the loss, however, may be more difficult if their passing was the direct result of another person’s actions. When someone causes a person’s death, there are laws that can hold them accountable. The laws that apply, however, depend on the circumstances surrounding the death. If you’re planning on taking legal action for the preventable passing of a family member, you’ll need to understand the differences between wrongful death and manslaughter. To understand those differences, let’s start by taking a look at how civil and criminal cases differ.

When someone is injured as a result of another party’s negligence, the injured victim has the right to file a personal injury claim to seek compensation for their related losses—including medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Personal injury claims, however, are subject to statutes of limitations. In Maryland, most injury claims must be filed within three years of the date of the accident. If that time passes, it’s likely the victim will no longer be able to take legal action or be eligible for compensation. In some situations, however, especially when a minor is injured, exceptions are made to lengthen the statute of limitations.

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 you’ve been in an accident and believe negligence played a role, you have the right to file a personal injury claim to seek compensation for your losses. As you will learn through the claims process, there are different types of damages you can seek—the most common being economic and noneconomic. Depending on the circumstances, however, you may be eligible for punitive damages. Let’s take a look at what punitive damages are and why they are rarely awarded in a personal injury trial.

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.

When a worker injures themselves on the job, a workers’ compensation claim can help them recover and pay their bills while they’re waiting for a medical clearance to head back to work. Depending on the situation, however, a preexisting condition could make recovery more of a challenge. While it’s not uncommon for employers to try to reduce what they have to pay out when a workers’ comp claim involves a preexisting condition, there are state laws in place that protect workers’ rights. Let’s take a look at how preexisting conditions can enhance the value of a workers’ compensation case in Maryland.

If you’ve been in an accident and are pursuing a personal injury claim to seek compensation for your losses, your lawyer has likely explained the long road ahead. During that time, you could run into financial difficulties—especially if you’ve had to take unpaid time off work to recover physically. If you start researching your options, you’ll likely come across lawsuit loans. While these do have some advantages, it’s important to understand the disadvantages and how signing up for one could impact your future. Let’s take a look at some facts about taking out a loan during a personal injury case.