contributory negligence

North Carolina Legislature Considers Moped Regulations

June 5, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What can you sue for in a personal injury case?”

A North Carolina Senate committed has added language to a piece of legislation that will now require drivers of mopeds to purchase liability insurance before legally operating the vehicles on state roadways. The measure, House Bill 1145, has already been approved by the house, though the new language will need to be agreed to before the bill progresses any further.
The language attached by the Senate says that moped drivers are required to register their vehicles with the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles, in addition to purchasing liability coverage. Moped drivers will have until July 1, 2015 to comply with the new regulations.

Under current North Carolina law, mopeds are not among those vehicles that must be registered or insured in the state. Mopeds are also not subject to any property taxes, allowing owners to essentially avoid any fees associated with their use.

The new measure would require moped owners to pay a $15 registration fee as well as demonstrate to the Division of Motor Vehicles that the moped was designed and manufactured specifically for highway use. These requirements mirror those for motorcyclists, something that some legislators believe is necessary to guarantee the safety of all North Carolina motorists.

Alcohol And High Speed Responsible For Deadly Charlotte Crash

June 3, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

Police in Charlotte say that a recent deadly accident likely involved high rates of speed and alcohol. Law enforcement officials say they believe the two risky behaviors combined to cause the death of a four-month-old girl as well as injuries to five other people.

Police officers say that a 21-year-old driver was seriously injured in the accident and is believed to be responsible for the collision. The man, Thabiti Ashim Pierre-Louis, has been charged with felony death by vehicle, reckless driving, possession of marijuana and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

The wreck happened around three in the afternoon when Pierre-Louis was in his 2000 Nissan Altima heading north along Old Statesville Road. Investigators say they believe that the 21-year-old then tried to pass another car, but eventually lost control and crashed into a telephone pole located near the driver’s door.

The force of the collision resulted in the car being flipped, landing on its roof. Given the position of the car, it’s understandable why the accident resulted in such severe injuries to passengers. The four-month-old child sustained critical injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash by emergency medical responders.

Woman claims anxiety over work commute entitles her to damages

May 29, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Can my employer fire me because I filed a workers’ compensation claim?”

A New Jersey woman is driving workplace discrimination claims in a new direction, claiming that congested roadways on her work commute aggravated her “great anxiety and depression.” The woman, Andrea DeGerolamo, doesn’t blame Gov. Chris Christie for the congestion; instead, she blames her former employer, Fulton Financial Corp., for not letting her change her work schedule to avoid it.

DeGerolamo alleged in the suit that her doctor mandated the change in commuting times after determining that DeGerolamo was clinically depressed and that her condition was “especially aggravated by crowded roadways during the heavy traffic of rush hour.”

Fulton hired DeGerolamo in 2007 as a marketing coordinator. In her suit – premised upon New Jersey’s workplace antidiscrimination act – she alleged that Fulton refused “to enter into an interactive dialogue… aimed at reaching a reasonable accommodation.”

DeGerolamo alleged that she took a medical leave of absence in 2012, but after returning to work she was terminated. She said her termination amounted to discrimination, based on her efforts to “address alleged workplace bias.” She also alleged that Fulton retaliated against her for using the Family Medical Leave Act to take some time off.

In the lawsuit, DeGerolamo sought damages for lost wages and benefits, front pay, medical insurance, punitive damages, emotional distress damages, and attorneys’ fees. Fulton has removed the case to Federal Court, where it is pending in the New Jersey District.

New “fracking” law anything but by and for the People

May 27, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question ” I have been injured on another person’s property. What should I do now?”

If Carole King still feels the earth moving under her feet, it may not be Carolina’s own James Taylor. Soon it could be Carolina herself.

With Gov. McCrory’s signature on new legislation, the Tar Heel State took some giant steps towards beginning hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) – a process of natural gas extraction that uses horizontal drilling and the injection of sand, water and chemicals into shale formations deep underground. Fissures made in the formations by the injections allow natural gas to rise to the surface, where it is captured.

The state legislature has been working on the issue since at least 2010. North Carolina’s 1945 Oil and Gas Conservation Act prohibited horizontal drilling, so legislators had to change the law in order to sanction hydraulic fracturing.

While the state legislature has been moving to the right in recent years, the “fracking” legislation – rife with apparent political and corporate cronyism – leaves little over which Conservatives can crow.

An unelected commission is tasked with “energy modernization,” which means local communities that do not want hydraulic fracturing will be forced to accept it. If a community wants to know how a company plans to conduct its operation, it can’t.

If you get sick and your doctor wants to know what chemicals you might have been exposed to, he or she can find out, but only after signing a written waiver promising not to tell anyone. Ditto on the fire chief; he or she has to sign a written waiver while the inferno is raging because a “fracking” company’s intellectual property is more important than putting out a fire. If “fracking” information leaks – no pun intended – the leaker is a criminal.

The bottom line on “fracking” is the legislature has said “We’re doing this, you’re not going to stop us, and we’re not even going to tell you how we’re doing it. Ever.”

Overcorrection Leads To Deadly North Carolina Car Crash

May 22, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “If I am injured in a car accident or at work what should I do?”

One person has been charged and another is person is dead after a terrible two-car crash in North Carolina took place earlier this month as a group of friends were heading to a neighborhood cookout. The accident left 22-year-old Jatara Moore dead and six others seriously injured.

Police say the crash happened just before 10 p.m. on Highway 601 in Salisbury, North Carolina. Authorities believe that the two cars involved in the crash were heading in opposite directions when one of the vehicles carrying five people lost control and veered off the road.

The driver of the car that eventually lost control overcorrected and ended up sliding across the road, leading the driver of the oncoming car to smash into the side of the skidding vehicle. Moore was a passenger in the skidding vehicle and her side of the car absorbed the brunt of the impact of the crash. The other car involved in the accident had two occupants at the time it T-boned the out-of-control car.

Emergency responders arrived at the accident scene quickly and found Moore dead, having suffered catastrophic injuries. The driver of her vehicle, a 19-year-old, is being charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle, according to officials with the North Carolina Highway Patrol.

Deadly Tractor-Trailer Accident Leaves Young Woman Dead

May 20, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What exactly is a wrongful death claim?”

A North Carolina woman is dead after being hit by a tractor-trailer on I-95 this holiday weekend. Authorities with the Virginia State Patrol say the deadly crash took place in Prince George County, just outside Richmond.

According to police officers, the crash took place late last week at 4:40 in the afternoon near mile marker 42 on I-95. A tractor-trailer was heading south in the far right lane of the interstate when it drifted off the road and crashed directly into the back of a 2007 Hyundai Elantra. The Hyundai had pulled over on the shoulder of the road due to mechanical troubles.

Officers say that the driver of the car, 24-year-old Rachel Gradia, was sitting in the passenger side of the vehicle when the impact occurred. Emergency responders say that Gradia was thrown from the car due to the force of the collision. The accident also caused the tractor-trailer to jackknife off the side of the interstate.

North Carolina Bicyclists Face High Hurdles After Being Involved In An Accident

May 15, 2014 | AS Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What can you sue for in a personal injury case?”

A recent article by the Carolina Public Press concerned some of the difficulties injured bicyclists have when bringing a personal injury claim against those drivers who were responsible for the collision. The article explains that a combination of factors, including North Carolina’s contributory negligence doctrine and a deeply ingrained bias against bicyclists, contribute to making it difficult for cyclists to successfully sue after being involved in a car accident.

The first thing that makes it hard for bicyclists to bring personal injury cases after a car accident is the negligence system that exists in North Carolina. A handful of states, including North Carolina, use a contributory negligence standard that says that if an injured party is at all responsible for the accident that led to their injuries, then that person will not be able to recover damages in a personal injury lawsuit.

The vast majority of states in the U.S. follow a different doctrine known as comparative negligence, which apportions damages based on the percentage of responsibility of each of the parties. For example, if a bicyclist is found to be even 1 percent at fault for an accident, in comparative negligence states, they will only be able to collect 99 percent of the total damages awarded in the case. In North Carolina, that same cyclist would be barred from collecting any damages.