An Update from Our Firm about COVID-19
Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner remains fully operational and committed to serving our clients and colleagues throughout the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. As we follow the CDC guidelines and practice social distancing, we remain available for phone consultations and remote meetings with both current and prospective clients and colleagues. Please contact our office by email or by calling 713-222-7211 with any questions. We look forward to hearing from you.
Houston roads are some of the most dangerous in the country. It is important to follow traffic laws, but obviously not everyone on the road does so.
What can you do to safeguard yourself, your passengers, and your vehicle from dangerous drivers?
One idea is to practice driving defensively. Below are tips to help you prevent accidents.
According to a recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, multiple systems that are designed to make driving safer and easier are actually creating a greater risk of crashing. Virginia Tech Transportation Institute researchers, who conducted the study in collaboration with AAA, assessed video of actual driving behaviors and found that adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assist technology systems were among the list of car safety systems that may lead to distracted driving. Adaptive cruise control helps drivers maintain a safe following distance on the highway by automatically accelerating or slowly down without the driver's help. Lane-keeping assist technology helps drivers stay in their lane by gently tugging the wheel when the car starts to drift out of lane. Both safety systems require the driver to remain alert and keep their hands on the wheel. When used correctly, these systems are designed to make roadways safer. However, researchers found that some drivers do not properly use or understand partially automated systems.
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled earlier this year that Amazon is a "seller" as that term is defined in the Second Restatement of Torts. As a result, Amazon will have to defend a product, sold through its website, that caused injury because the manufacturer cannot be located.
On December 3, 2019, three men were working with a backhoe on a construction site in Gregory, Texas, when a trench collapsed at the site. The collapse buried one of the men completely and partially buried a second man. When a third man jumped in to save the others, he was partially buried in the process.
United Airlines has announced it will ground all of its Boeing 737 Max 8 planes until June 2020 after the two recent crashes involving that plane. This comes in the wake of other developments following the tragic crashes, including actions taken by the FAA and Boeing's own halt to production of the troubled aircraft.
Car manufacturers are adding all kinds of bells and whistles to their vehicles. Some are touting safety features while others are simply for aesthetics and to make the vehicles seem cooler, fancier, and more technologically advanced.
Ford recently recalled nearly 550,000 Super Duty SuperCrew trucks across North America with a faulty seatbelt pretensioner design that generates excessive sparks that have caused quickly spreading fires along the cloth and carpet interior lining of the cab.
In early 2020, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia will decide whether Amazon is responsible for injuries caused by a defective dog collar sold by a third-party merchant which left a woman legally blind in one eye. In January 2015, Heather Oberdorf was walking her dog when the dog unexpectedly lunged, causing the D-ring on the dog's collar to break and the leash to recoil back. The leash hit Oberdorf in her face leaving her permanently blind in her left eye. Oberdorf purchased the dog collar on Amazon.com. Following the incident, both Oberdorf's attorneys and Amazon's private investigator made several unsuccessful attempts to locate the owner of the Nevada based company that sold the collar. Oberdorf then sued Amazon for strict products liability and negligence. Amazon defended on the basis that they are a services provider and not responsible for defects in products that third parties sell on their site.
Houston area roads still suffered a significantly high number of deaths in 2019 and will likely pass 2018's total. A recent study examined the greater Houston area consisting of Harris County and the seven adjacent counties. In these counties, local police, prosecutors, and transportation officials had taken several new steps to address the causes contributing to the high number of deaths. As of now, this has not yet reduced the number of deaths, but officials believe the efforts are helping.
A Tampa, Florida jury awarded more than $200 million to a woman and her young child as the result of being injured by a drunk driver. The automobile collision left the woman and her then unborn child with debilitating permanent injuries.
The firm successfully represented nearly 100 victims who suffered personal injuries and damages to property from a large fire and explosion resulting in a settlement of more than $50 million. The firm served as lead lawyers on the steering committee in this litigation.
The firm successfully represented 270 plaintiffs, taking a lead role in the plaintiffs’ steering committee, who suffered injuries in a large plant explosion resulting in a settlement of nearly $80 million.
The firm successfully represented 45 personal injury victims in a plant fire and explosion, serving on the plaintiffs steering committee, concluding with a settlement of more than $50 million.
The firm prevailed in a personal injury trial for a worksite injury client with the jury returning a verdict and resulting in a judgment of over $22 million for the firm’s client.
The firm successfully achieved a $12 million settlement for the family of a man who died in an 18 wheeler collision.
The firm prevailed on behalf of three burn victims with settlements totaling nearly $30 million.
