The Cochran Firm Legal Blog

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), millions of Americans are involved in automobile accidents every year in the United States and these automobile accidents are the leading cause of catastrophic injuries and death for those aged three to thirty-three. Those sixty-five and older are another high risk group for injuries and deaths caused by automobile accidents.

The most common causes of automobile accidents involved driver error, mechanical failure, hazardous road conditions and dangerous weather conditions. Driver error encompasses driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, including prescription medications, speeding, texting and cell phone use while driving, and aggressive driving behaviors such as tailgating. Mechanical failures have been the focus of millions of recalled vehicles recently and have included malfunctioning gas pedals, brakes, defective tires and electronic systems.

The experienced automobile accident attorneys at The Cochran Firm employ experts in the forensic sciences and medicine when litigating accident claims for our clients, along with accident reconstruction specialists to ensure our clients have the best legal representation possible to prove liability and maximize financial compensation.

If you live in New Orleans, Louisiana or the surrounding area and have been involved in an automobile accident, please contact the experienced automobile accident attorneys at The Cochran Firm today to learn how to proceed with your claim and get the financial compensation you deserve.

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The incidence of surgeons leaving foreign bodies inside patients after surgery happens more frequently than you would imagine and has serious consequences, often leading to additional surgeries and even wrongful death.

Surgical teams have left surgical sponges, pins, blades, clips, gauze, cotton and other medical equipment and instruments inside surgical sites because of carelessness and negligence. The retained foreign bodies can cause damage to tissues, blood vessels and organs and cause life-threatening surgical site infections that can lead to permanent disability or death.

The surgical team, including the surgeon, anesthesiologist, nurses and healthcare facility can be held legally liable for medical malpractice and negligence if a preventable injury from a retained foreign body occurs. The Cochran Firm has medical malpractice attorneys with the knowledge and expertise to investigate and evaluate instances of retained foreign bodies and they will work meticulously to obtain the financial compensation their client deserves for their pain and suffering due to the negligence of others.

If you live in the New Orleans, Louisiana area and you have suffered unnecessarily due to a retained foreign body after your surgery, please contact The Cochran Firm today to schedule a confidential consultation at no cost to you to learn what you can do to protect your legal rights and get the financial compensation you deserve.

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No one should be above the law, especially those we entrust with the authority to serve and protect our communities. New Orleans and other cities in Louisiana have a reputation for police misconduct, the use of excessive force and wrongful arrests. After years of turning a blind eye to police abuse and misconduct, lawmakers and the general public will no longer tolerate the excesses of an abusive police force.

Although the use of reasonable force by police officers in the execution of their duties to protect and defend is warranted, there have been documented cases of police misconduct in some instances. Many people have been injured by police misconduct and brutality due to improper training, poor screening of those seeking jobs on the police force and inadequate supervision of police officers.

Police misconduct can take many forms including sexual harassment, physical abuse, the use of excessive force, improper use of restraints resulting in serious injury or death, intimidation and corruption.

The attorneys at The Cochran Firm aggressively pursue financial compensation for lost wages, medical expenses, pain and suffering and any other physical and emotional damages incurred as a result of police misconduct and have been at the forefront of civil rights advocacy for years.

If you live in the New Orleans, Louisiana area and you or someone you love has been the victim of police misconduct, please contact The Cochran Firm today to protect you rights and learn how to proceed with your case.

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Kidney dialysis treatments replace the function of the kidney which serves as your body's filtration system. The kidney dialysis treatment removes waste products and excess fluids from your bloodstream while maintaining the correct chemical balance of your blood.

Twenty million people over the age of twenty suffer from chronic kidney disease. Several hundred thousand people must undergo kidney dialysis treatments every year to stay alive. Unfortunately, kidney dialysis treatments themselves are not without risk to victims of chronic kidney disease.

There are thousands of incidents of errors in kidney dialysis treatments every day in the United States. Errors in kidney dialysis treatments may include medication errors, vascular access-related injuries, excess or prolonged blood loss, inadequate cleaning and filtering of dialysis machines, failure to properly monitor patient vital signs and patient falls.

If you or someone you love is presently undergoing kidney dialysis treatments and you have questions regarding the level of care you are receiving you should consult an attorney with experience in kidney dialysis errors like the attorneys with The Cochran Firm who are well-versed in kidney dialysis care and treatment and incidents of malpractice in that field.

If you are a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana or the surrounding area, please contact The Cochran Firm today to learn how to protect your legal right to high quality medical care and treatment.

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When innocent consumers are injured or killed due to the use of a defective or dangerous consumer product, the parties responsible must be held legally accountable.

Defective or dangerous consumer products cause catastrophic injuries or the wrongful death of thousands of innocent consumers throughout the United States annually. Defective consumer products do not discriminate, they injure all equally, and no one is safe. Unsuspecting consumers are killed or suffer burns, brain injuries, paralysis, amputations or long-term debilitating illnesses as a result of defective and dangerous products.

The list of defective consumer products is endless and encompasses food products, toothpaste, toys, household appliances, tools, cars, seatbelts, airbags, cribs, strollers, pet foods, tires, smoke detectors, drugs, medical devices and almost any category of product on the market today. It would be easier to list consumer products that have not been designated at some time as defective.

Injuries from defective consumer products can have long lasting physical, emotional and financial effects on the victims and their families. The attorneys at The Cochran Firm work together as a team so clients have the benefit of the skill and knowledge of many highly trained attorneys, paralegals and investigators working together to protect their legal rights and ensuring those responsible are held fully accountable.

Please contact the New Orleans, Louisiana office of The Cochran Firm today if you or someone you love has been harmed by a defective consumer product.

Labels: Louisiana, New Orleans

America relies on trucks to move important products across the country on a daily basis; consequently, it is no surprise to find there are over 3,000,000 trucks traveling our roadways at any given time. This reliance on trucks and truckers increases the likelihood you will be involved in an accident with a truck. Over 150,000 trucks were involved in an accident in a one year time span with over 5,000 fatalities. Most injuries and deaths in truck accidents involved the non-commercial driver and occupants of the other vehicle involved.

When sharing the road with a big truck it is important to keep a safe distance, take extra precautions in hazardous driving conditions, such as those present during heavy rain and high winds, and expect the unexpected. A passenger vehicle is no match in a confrontation with a truck.

If you do have the misfortune to be involved in an accident with a truck it is very important to have expert legal representation to ensure you are compensated financially for any injuries suffered as a result of the accident. The trucking company is your adversary in this instance and they will do everything legally possible to minimize their responsibility. It is important to protect your legal rights and the legal rights of your loved ones at the outset.

If you or someone you care about was injured or killed in a truck accident, please contact The Cochran Firm in New Orleans, Louisiana today.

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Exposure to asbestos fiber in the workplace is a major factor in the incidence of mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that affects the mesothelium, a thin layer of cells that lines the internal organs of the human body.

Pleural mesothelioma affects the lining of the lungs and accounts for 70% of the diagnosed cases of the disease. The dust created from working with the asbestos fiber settles in the lungs and abdomen if inhaled or swallowed. The irritation caused by the dust to these organs is thought to lead to a diagnosis of mesothelioma.

Workers who may encounter asbestos fiber on the job are widespread throughout the workforce and may be found in mining operations, factories, ship building installations, insulating manufacturing, construction sites, automobile repair, steel mills, oil refineries and cement plants. The risk of contracting mesothelioma increases when you are exposed to high levels of asbestos for long periods of time.

If you or someone you know has been employed in one of these fields and has been experiencing chest or back pain, coughing, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, shortness of breath, abdominal pain or difficulty breathing, you may be experiencing the symptoms of exposure to asbestos fiber and mesothelioma.

By contacting the experienced mesothelioma attorneys at the New Orleans, Louisiana office of The Cochran Firm today you can discuss your legal rights and learn whether you are entitled to financial compensation.

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Driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and drugs is a major cause of automobile accidents. Legally obtained prescription medications must also be included in this category of driving under the influence because prescription medications can also affect your ability to safely operate an automobile.

Commonly used intoxicants that impair the ability to drive and are a major cause of automobile accidents include, but are not limited to, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, heroin and prescription medications such as Vicodin, Percocet, Valium, and Xanax. These substances affect motor skills, impair and distort vision and slow normal reaction times.

The crime committed most frequently in this country is driving under the influence. An American is injured every two minutes or killed every thirty minutes by an impaired driver.

When you become the victim of an impaired driver, not only is the driver responsible for your injuries and losses, but the party or entity that supplied the alcohol in the case of a drunk driver, may also be held liable. This is referred to in legal terminology as "dram shop liability."

If you live in New Orleans, Louisiana and you or someone you care about was injured or killed by an impaired driver, please contact the experienced DUI accident attorneys at the New Orleans, Louisiana office of The Cochran Firm today to schedule a confidential consultation at no cost to you, to learn about your legal rights in this matter, and how you can obtain the compensation you deserve.

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Defective pharmaceuticals with dangerous and often deadly side effects infiltrate our healthcare system despite efforts to protect the American consumer. When there is a question about the health benefits of a certain drug being outweighed by dangerous side effects, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will issue a warning.

Common types of drugs considered to have issues of potential dangerous side effects to consumers have included drugs used for arthritis pain, cholesterol lowering drugs, diet drugs, anti-depressants and some vaccines. Recently two nasal cold remedies, Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel and Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs were withdrawn from the marketplace by their manufacturer after a warning from the FDA there were reports of consumers losing their sense of smell after using this product.

Although side effects from the use of certain medications are commonplace, the consumption of a defective pharmaceutical will do more harm than good. Defective pharmaceutical consumption results in great pain and suffering. Lawsuits against the pharmaceutical companies involved result in damages reaching hundreds of millions of dollars.

If you live in New Orleans, Louisiana or the surrounding area, and you or someone you care about has been the victim of a defective pharmaceutical, please contact an experienced defective pharmaceutical attorney at the New Orleans, Louisiana office of The Cochran Firm today to schedule a consultation to obtain justice for you and your loved ones.

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A slip, trip and fall accident refers to an accident that occurs when someone slips, trips and falls as a result of a dangerous or hazardous condition on someone else's property. The dangerous or hazardous condition may be caused by water, ice, snow, poor lighting, a broken or uneven sidewalk, a pothole in a roadway, a torn or rippled carpet, an oily substance or any other condition that can cause a slip and fall to happen.

A slip and fall accident can result in bruising, broken bones, a traumatic brain injury or a back injury that can cause life-long disabilities or death.

If you slip and fall and are injured on someone else's property due to a dangerous and hazardous condition, the property owner can be held legally responsible for your injuries. Fall related injuries are of great concern especially to those 65 years of age and older. Over 2 million senior citizens are treated annually for fall-related injuries and almost l million are injured seriously enough to be hospitalized. Of that number, over 16,000 will die from their injuries.

If you live in New Orleans, Louisiana or the surrounding area and you or someone you care about has been injured in a slip, trip and fall accident, please contact the New Orleans, Louisiana office of The Cochran Firm today to schedule a confidential consultation with an experienced slip, trip and fall lawyer, at no cost to you, to protect your legal rights.

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Wrongful death is a term used to define a death that occurs due to the negligence or willful actions of another individual. Legally, the victim's survivors are entitled to monetary damages as a result of the death from the responsible individual.

Wrongful death can result from an automobile accident, a criminal assault, a failure to diagnose a fatal illness, the use of a defective or hazardous product and many other scenarios.

Each state has a statute of limitations for filing a wrongful death claim. This time limit varies from one to three years in most cases. If the person responsible for your financial support has died because of the negligence or actions of another, you may be entitled to compensation.

You may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, funeral and burial expenses, compensation for the victim's pain and suffering prior to death, loss of present and future financial support and the pain and suffering of the survivors. It is very important to consult an experienced wrongful death attorney to protect your legal rights. Although nothing or no one can replace the loss of your loved one, holding the individual responsible for your loss legally accountable, can help bring a measure of comfort to you.

Residents of New Orleans, Louisiana who have suffered as a result of a wrongful death, should contact the New Orleans office of The Cochran Firm to schedule a confidential consultation at no cost to you to learn about your legal rights.

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An AHA Conference was held in New Orleans where a study was presented about a blood thinning medication called Plavix. Doctors have been prescribing this medication to patients who had received heart stents. Plavix thins the blood to prevent blood clots around the stent in the artery. This medication has recently been discovered to cause problems if the patient is also taking a heartburn drug such as Nexium or any medication from a family of proton pump inhibitors.

The patients that received these combinations of medications have been known to have a 50% increased risk of:

• Strokes
• Heart Attacks
• Bypass Surgery
• Heart-related death

Medical Malpractice and Medication Errors

Medication errors are more common in hospitals and doctors' offices than most Americans think. This form of medical malpractice is not limited to any one form of medication error. Several medication errors may occur such as:

• Administering the wrong medications
• Overdosing patients on their prescribed medications
• Improperly calculating the correctly ordered dose of medicine
• Failing to order the proper medicines under the circumstances
• Failing to give the appropriate dose of the ordered medicines in a timely manner

If you have suffered an injury due to a medication or pharmaceutical error, please contact the Medical Malpractice Attorneys at the Cochran Firm's New Orleans office today. You will meet with an experienced attorney in a confidential, no-cost consultation to discuss your case.

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Labels: Louisiana, New Orleans

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