Oregon Injury Lawyer Blog

The Oregon Senate passed Senate Bill 311 this week to increase the liability lawsuit limits that a government agency can be made to pay plaintiffs. Whereas the old limits, set in 1987, placed a cap of $100,000 on noneconomic and economic damages, $50,000 for property damage, and $500,000 for all claims from one incident, the new bill proposes raising the state government’s liability lawsuit limit maximums to $1.5 million for one claim and $3 million for all claims stemming from a single incident. The distinctions between the damages would be eliminated, and the Oregon Supreme Court would deal with any challenges to the new limits.

Caps would increase $100,000 a over a five-year period. After 2015, amounts would be indexed according to inflation. All other governments in Oregon would have caps that are one-third of the state’s caps. Individual workers would also be covered against civil claims for accidents that occur while he or she is on the job. The bill now goes to the House.

In 2007, the family of young Jordan Michael Clarke sued Oregon Health & Science University and seven of its employees for medical malpractice after he suffered permanent brain damage following surgery to repair a congenital heart defect. Using the state’s liability shield, however, OHSU replaced the individual defendants named in the complaint with itself to limit liability at $200,000.

While the Oregon State Supreme Court ruled that OHSU was legally entitled to do this, it also found that the existing government caps were too low that they prevented the boy's family from receiving an appropriate legal remedy for his injuries. A $9.3 million personal injury settlement was eventually reached between OHSU and Clarke’s family.

Senate approves increase in liability lawsuit limits, Statesman Journal, February 24, 2009

Oregon may welcome higher lawsuit caps, SeattlePI.com, February 12, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Oregon Health and Science University

General information about the Oregon Tort Claims Act, OHSU.edu

Continue reading " Oregon Senate Approves Bill to Increase State and Local Government Agencies' Liability Lawsuit Limits " »

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Posted In: Personal Injury

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In Multnomah County, the family of Ruth Reimann and her children Chris, 13, Sarah, 11, and Julia, 10, has filed an Oregon wrongful death lawsuit. The Reimanns, who are from Portland, were fatally injured on August 4, 2008 when a small plane crashed into the vacation home they were staying at in the coastal town of Gearhart.

Early that morning, the Cessna 172 dove through the house and burst into flames. Following the airplane accident, Ruth, Chris, and Sarah spent weeks in Portland at the Oregon Burn Center at Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health for treatment of their burn injuries before they died.

Also killed in the Oregon airplane accident were pilot Jason Ketcheson, passenger Frank Toohey, and siblings 12-year-old Hesam Farrar Masoudi and 8-year-old Grace Masoudi. The children were at the home of the Reimanns when the deadly aviation accident happened.

The Oregon wrongful death complaint accuses Ketcheson of negligence for flying the aircraft while under the influence of prescription sleep medication Ambien. The lawsuit is also suing Greg and Nancy Marshall, who are the owners of the Gearhart vacation home, for failing to make sure that all the windows on the second floor and in the bedrooms could be opened. The Reimann's relatives are seeking unspecified damages for their wrongful deaths.

Plane Accidents
Airplane crashes are usually catastrophic accidents resulting in serious injuries and deaths to passengers and crew members. Depending on the location of the crash site, a plane crash can also claim the lives of residents, motorists, pedestrians, and patrons on the ground.

Common causes of aviation accidents:
• Pilot error or negligence
• Defective equipment
• Poor maintenance
• Plane design problems
• Air traffic controller mistakes
• Repair negligence
• Defective plane parts
• Third party negligence

There is a lot to know about how to properly pursue your Oregon plane accident recovery. Your Portland personal injury attorney should be familiar with the different laws and safety regulations that govern Oregon plane crashes, including the Federal Aviation Administration regulations.

Lawsuit filed in Oregon Coast plane crash that killed five, OregonLive.com, February 17, 2009

Gearhart plane crash family files lawsuit, Daily Astorian, February 18, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Federal Aviation Administration

Plane Accidents, Justia

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Wrongful Death

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The family of Jakobi Mulgrave, the 10-year-old boy who survived a Eugene drunk driving accident that killed his mother and three other people last month, is suing several plaintiffs on his behalf for personal injury. According to the Oregon car accident lawsuit, which is seeking approximately $13 million, Jakobi sustained a brain injury, a fractured skull, a fractured pelvis, as well as damage to his kidney, spleen, and liver. Mulgrave is being treated at a Portland hospital.

The catastrophic motor vehicle accident took place on the night of January 21 when an Isuzu Rodeo, driven by Matthew Ellmers and the Toyota Highlander carrying Jakobi, his mother Yvonne, Connie Marie Vermilyea, 34, Jaziah Vermilyea, 10, and Nima Gibba, 11, collided, causing the Highlander to turn in the air and hit a utility pole. Ellmers, who is the only other person to survive the crash, also sustained serious injuries. Police say the 24-year-old Eugene driver was driving drunk.

The Mulgrave family’s Oregon personal injury lawsuit involving injuries to minors contends that Jakobi should receive $10 million for noneconomic damages, $2.8 million for lost wages throughout his lifetime, medical expenses, and other costs.

The defendants in the case are Matthew Ellmers who is accused of negligence for causing the auto accident, Kimberly Snyder, who lent her Isuzu Rodeo to him (the lawsuit contends that she either knew or should have known that Ellmers had a history of drinking heavily and that this could result in a fatal Oregon drunk driving accident), and businesses Strike City and The Nile for serving alcohol to Ellmers, who the complaint claims was already noticeably intoxicated.

On February 3, an Oregon grand jury indicted Ellmers with four counts of assault, manslaughter, DUI, and other criminal charges. Ellmers has pleaded not guilty.

Lawsuit seeks $13 million for boy injured in crash, KVAL, February 3, 2009

$12.8 million suit filed in Eugene crash, Oregon Live, February 4, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Children, 2007 Traffic Safety Fact Sheet, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Deadly Oregon Motor Vehicle Accident Leaves Four People Dead and a Young Boy in Critical Condition, Matthew D Kaplan, Attorney at Law, January 23, 2009

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Car Accidents , Injuries to Minors , Motor Vehicle Accidents , Personal Injury

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A 62-year-old Portland man is suing the Franciscan Friars of California for injuries he says he sustained as a child when a priest sexually abused him. In his Oregon sex abuse lawsuit, he is seeking $4 million in damages. The plaintiff claims Father Claude Riffe sexually abused him during the 60’s at the St. Francis Minor Seminary in Troutdale.

Clergy Sex Abuse
Clergy sex abuse by a number of priests and other members of the Catholic Church has been a problem for a long time. Fortunately, there are legal remedies available to victims—whether they are still children who were recently abused or adults who were the victims of sexual abuse when they were children.

In Oregon, sex abuse victims can sue their perpetrators for damages within six years of turning 18 or within 3 years of discovery that a specific injury was a result of the abuse. Sexual abuse can consist of:

• Rape
• Sodomy
• Molestation
• Sexual exploitation

The effects of sexual abuse can last a lifetime and may seriously impair the victim’s ability to lead a happy and productive life.

In the United States, the Roman Catholic Church has spent tens of millions of dollars to compensate the many victims who have come forward to report they were sexually abused by a priest or another clergy member. While some of these abusers have gone to jail, many of them remain free. The church has also come under fire for looking the other way on many occasions when parishioners have come forward to report an abuse incident. It is not uncommon to find out that a priest accused of abuse was conveniently transferred to another parish where he would proceed to abuse more victims.

If you or your son or daughter was sexually abused by a clergy member, a teacher, a counselor, a doctor, a family friend, a daycare center worker, a nursing home employee, or any other party, you may be entitled to file an Oregon sex abuse lawsuit against the perpetrator.

Oregon firm files abuse lawsuits against churches, Oregon Live, February 11, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Abuse in the Catholic Church, The Boston Globe

Sexual Abuse Effects, Child Abuse

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A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed in an incident involving an Oregon woman who went missing and was found dead close to Wynooche Lake a little over two years ago. Beverly Johnson disappeared on January 2, 2007. Her body was found 11 days later.

Now, Delbert Johnson, Beverly’s husband, and her estate are suing the Oregon city of Beaverton and the state of Washington for $3 million. Delbert is seeking $2.5 million for damages he claims he has suffered due to loss of mutual affection, love, and companionship. Beverly’s estate is asking for half a million dollars for the fear, anguish, thirst, hunger, and pain that she likely felt after she got lost. According to a medical examiner’s report, Beverly, who ended up getting locked out of her vehicle, died of hypothermia.

On the afternoon of the 69-year-old’s disappearance, Delbert reported that she failed to return home from a visit to the Beaverton Library. He says that the defendants allowed his wife to die because of the way they handled the search for her.

Some 90 minutes after he told authorities that she was missing, a driver reportedly contacted the local 911 center to report that a car was seen driving erratically on the freeway. A computer check of the vehicle’s license plate linked the 1999 Honda Accord to Beverly, who was by that time considered “missing or endangered.” However, no attempts were made to let Grays Harbor police officers or the Beaverton Police know she had been sighted. The motorist would call again after watching a news report about Beverly’s disappearance to inquire about the car.

The wrongful death lawsuit contends that the 911 center could have done more to get authorities to locate Beverly as soon as she was spotted. A search for the elderly woman reportedly wasn’t conducted until much later.

The complaint also accuses Grays Harbor County of negligence because of the way the 911 center responded to the driver’s calls. The county and the State Patrol are also cited for failing to assign an emergency phone number to the case or let Beaverton police know that Beverly’s car had been spotted. The lawsuit accuses Beaverton of negligence because of its failure to request notification if Beverly was sighted.

Beverly had a medical history of experiencing twilight seizures that affected her memory and made it hard for her to communicate. She was taking medication for her condition at the time of her disappearance.

Wrongful Death
Law enforcement officers and emergency officials can be held liable for personal injury or wrongful death if their negligence, carelessness, or mistakes result in someone getting hurt or dying.

Missing Woman's Family Upset by Failure to Find Car in Time, Beaverton Valley Times, February 22, 2007

Husband sues sheriff's office over death of wife, KATU.com, February 4, 2009

Related Web Resources:
City of Beaverton, Oregon

Grays Harbor County, Washington

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In Oregon, a Multnomah County jury has awarded the family of an Oregon family $560,000 for injuries sustained by a toddler who fell head first from the second-story duplex that her family was renting in Gresham. The girl, Isabella White, cracked her skull, suffered brain tissue loss, and experienced bleeding in her brain when her head struck the concrete pavement in April 2007. The Oregon premises liability defendants in the case were Keys Rental Management and Keys Rental Holding Co. Only the management company was found liable.

Isabella is now 4, but she was just 2 ½ when the fall accident happened. She fell through a window after her mother had opened it and the window screen gave way.

During the premises liability trial, the family’s Oregon personal injury lawyer argued that the apartment management company should have warned Isabella’s parents that the window in the duplex—just 23 inches off the ground—was a potential injury hazard for kids. Their lawyer also accused the defendant of failing to install safety devices, such as a child-safe screen, that could have prevented Isabella’s fall accident.

Isabella was not the first child to fall through a window managed by Keys Rental Management. In 2004, a 4-year-old boy broke his arm after he fell through a second story window.

Some 4,700 kids in the US end up in emergency rooms each year because of window-related falls. About 18 of them end up dying from their injuries. According to the Oregonian, over six children fell out of Portland windows last summer.

If your child suffered injuries because he or she fell through a window, your family may be entitled to Oregon personal injury compensation. There may have been more a premise owner or manager could have done to prevent the fall accident from happening. Or, a company may have made mistakes during the design or manufacturer of the window and these errors could be grounds for a products liability lawsuit. There also may be more than one party that can be held liable for your Oregon injuries to minor case.

Landlord liable in toddler's fall from window, Oregonlive.com, January 30, 2009

Oregon company to pay in fall from window, Seattle Times, February 1, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Falls From Heights: Windows, Roofs, and Balconies, American Academy of Pediatrics

Recent accidents show open windows are dangerous to small children, BNET.com, July 6, 2008

Posted by Matthew D. Kaplan | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Injuries to Minors , Premises Liability

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