Football on field

Study Shows Concussions in Young Athletes Increasing Dramatically

The problem of concussions in athletes is an issue that has been receiving lots of press lately, in large part due to the new found understanding of the seriousness of these types of head injuries. In the past, concussions were believed to be mild injuries, requiring little if any follow up attention. However, as we’ve […]

Man drinking and driving

Illinois Court Holds Dram Shop Act Inapplicable in Automobile Accident Lawsuit

Generally speaking, in Illinois, lawsuits may not arise from the sale or gifting of alcoholic beverages, since the Dram Shop Act (S.H.A. 235 ILCS 5/6-21) preempts all alcohol-related liability claims. However, where the claim is based on legal theories independent from the defendant’s provision of alcohol, the Dram Shop Act does not preempt the lawsuit. […]

X-ray of brain

Congress Considering Passage of Concussion Treatment and Care Tools Act

In a prior post, we discussed traumatic brain injuries and how concussions, once described as “mild” traumatic brain injuries, are anything but. More and more medical research is showing that concussions are serious injuries with lasting effects. The issue of the seriousness of concussions and the ramifications for athletes is becoming a hot topic. Both […]

Parked cars

Consumer Safety Groups Want Car Rental Companies to Fix Recalled Cars

When you rent a car, you assume the vehicle has been properly maintained, don’t you? And wouldn’t you expect that a car rental company would only rent vehicles that had been fixed following safety recalls? Well, if that’s the case, perhaps you need to lower your expectations. Because currently, car rental companies have no obligation […]

Wooden gavel

Judicial Impartiality Threatened in Illinois

In February 2010, Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride voted, along with 3 other justices, to overturn an Illinois law that placed monetary caps on damages awarded in Illinois medical malpractice cases. Medical malpractice caps had been struck down in two prior Illinois Supreme Court decisions, as well. Justice Kilbride is up for reelection this […]

law book and gavel

Illinois Court Holds Private Landowner Is Not Liable for Plaintiff’s Injuries

In Gilmore v. Powers, No. 1-09-1478, the First District Appellate Court of Illinois, Sixth Division, addressed the issue of whether a private landowner owner or the City of Evanston was liable for maintenance of a walkway that straddled the city-owned parkway in front of the defendants’ house. In this case, the plaintiff was the co-owner […]

Arnold Schwarzenegger

New California Law Permits Lawsuits Against Those Who Serve Alcohol to Minors

Over the last month we discussed two different Illinois personal injury cases addressing the liability of parties who provided alcohol to someone who then left the premises and caused a deadly automobile accident. This is an issue that is becoming more frequently litigated, in part because of the tragic consequences–which are especially apparent when the […]

Law book and gavel wall image

Northern District of Illinois Rules on Lawsuit Alleging Adverse Reaction to Motrin

At issue in a recent Illinois products liability lawsuit was whether the manufacturer of Motrin was liable for an adverse reaction to its product. In Robinson v. McNeil Consumer HealthCare, 2010 WL 3156548, the plaintiffs brought a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The facts in this case […]