How Can I Protect Myself Against Dog Bites?

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Tips for Avoiding a Dog BiteMore than 4 million Americans are bitten by dogs every year. And according to the Centers for Disease Control, one in five of those bites cause injuries serious enough to warrant medical attention.

To help protect you and your family against dog bites, here are a few general rules you should always follow:

  • Stay away from dogs you don’t know. Unless you have the permission of the owner, don’t try to pet a dog you aren’t familiar with.
  • Watch children around dogs. Children are much more likely to be bitten by a dog than adults.
  • Approach dogs slowly. Always allow a dog to sniff you before you pet it.
  • Avoid dogs who are eating or nursing puppies.
  • Don’t run away from an aggressive dog. Instead, remain calm and back away slowly. Running away only encourages a dog to attack.
  • Never make eye contact with an aggressive dog. Eye contact can be taken as a challenge and, like running, may also cause a dog to attack.

If you or someone you love has been bitten by a dog due to the actions of a negligent owner, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact the Barry Law Group today to set up a free consultation with one of our dog bite attorneys.

Will Not Wearing a Helmet Affect my Motorcycle Accident Claim?

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austin motorcycle accident attorneyWhen you’re injured in a motorcycle accident that was the fault another driver, you’re entitled to compensation for medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering. However, if you were not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident, your claim could be reduced significantly.

In many cases, the fact that you were wearing or not wearing a helmet is irrelevant. If you didn’t suffer any injuries to your head or neck, for instance, a helmet wouldn’t have made a difference and isn’t considered in the claims process.

However, if you did suffer a head injury, the insurance company will want to know whether you were wearing a helmet or not. Their goal is to prove that you were comparatively negligent, meaning that some portion of your injuries were due to your own negligent actions.

If you were wearing a helmet, you can’t be held comparatively negligent because you were taking all the right precautions to protect yourself. However, if you weren’t wearing a helmet, the insurance company will often try to prove that you would not have sustained the same level of injury had you been wearing one.

Since Texas does not have a universal helmet law for riders 21 and up, the burden of proof for comparative negligence falls on the insurance company. In states with a helmet law, however, failing to ride with a helmet automatically establishes your negligence in the situation.

If you’ve been injured in a motorcycle accident that was not your fault, you need an experienced personal injury attorney on your side who can fight for your rights during the settlement process. To set up a free consultation, contact the Barry Law Group today.

Texas Considered Dangerous for Construction Workers

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texas construction accientAccording to a recent study, Texas is the most dangerous state in the nation for construction workers.

The study, co-authored by faculty at the University of Texas and the Austin-based Workers Defense Project, found that more construction workers die in Texas than in any other state. In Texas, the rate of construction worker fatalities is 10.7 for every 100,000 workers. In California, the rate is 5.2 and nationally it’s 8.8. The study also reported that 1 in 5 Texas construction workers will be hospitalized because of injuries sustained on the job.

Much of Texas’ problem stems from the lack of regulation and government oversight of the construction industry. Of the 1 million construction workers in Texas, over half are undocumented. That allows many employers to pay less than minimum wage and prevents many workers from ever reporting their injuries. Texas is also the only state in the nation that doesn’t require employers to carry mandatory worker’s compensation insurance, leaving many workers unable to pay for medical bills or make up lost wages.

At the Barry Law Group, we have years of experience recovering compensation for injured workers. If you’ve been injured in a construction accident, give us a call today to set up a free, confidential consultation with one of our attorneys.

4 Most Common Causes of Burn Injuries

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4 Most Common Causes of Burn InjuriesAccording to the National Institute of Health, more than 2 million people in the United States require treatment for burn injuries each year, and between 3,000 and 4,000 die of severe burn injuries every year. Burn injuries are tragic and often due to the negligence of someone else.

It’s important to know the typical causes of burn injuries and deaths, so you can try to protect yourself. The American Burn Association’s 2012 Fact Sheet shared the four common causes of burn-related deaths for last year:

  • 2,550 deaths from residential fires
  • 400 from contact with electricity, scalding liquids or hot objects
  • 300 from vehicle crash fires
  • 150 deaths from flame burns or smoke inhalation in non-residential fires

Deaths from fires and burns are the third leading cause of fatal home injury. To help keep you and your loved ones safe, here are some ways you can prevent fires in your home:

  • Put covers on any electrical outlets that are within children’s reach, and throw out electrical cords that are frayed or damaged in any way.
  • Never leave candles unattended. Always blow them out when you leave the room.
  • Cooking fires are the leading cause of residential fires. Put out a small fire on your stove by sliding a lid over the flames. Don’t wear long, loose sleeves when cooking or let your child near the stove.
  • Unplug hot irons, such as clothing irons or curling irons, and keep them out of reach of children.

If you or a loved one were the victim of a burn injury due to the negligence of someone else, you deserve compensation for your medical bills, missed work and emotional and physical trauma. Contact the experienced burn injury attorneys at the Barry Law Group today and set up your free, no-obligation consultation.

April’s CPSC’s Children’s Product Recalls

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You never would intentionally injure your child, but it’s easy to buy them a toy or children’s product that could harm them without even realizing it. We want to help you keep your children safe by sharing with you some of the Consumer Products Safety Commission’s April children’s products recalls:

Baby Socks Recalled by Trumpette Due to Choking Hazard

April's CPSC's Children's Product RecallsThe flowers and the bows on these Trumpette baby socks can detach, posing a choking hazard to your child. The company has received eight reports of the flowers or bows detaching from the socks, but no injuries have been reported.

This recall involves Trumpette’s “Aubree’s” socks, which have flowers attached to the toes, and “Hearts” socks that have bows attached to the toes of the heart-patterned socks. These recalled socks were sold at Buy Buy Baby, Right Start and Trumpette stores and online from December 2012 through February 2013 for about $15.

If you own these recalled socks, you should take them away from your baby and remove the flowers or bows, or return the socks to the place of purchase or Trumpette for a full refund or store credit.

Gingham Bunny Forks and Spoons Recalled Due to Choking and Ingestion Hazards

April's CPSC's Children's Product RecallsThe pink coloring on the bunny’s ears can come off, posing choking and ingestion hazards to babies. Reed and Barton has received one report of the pink coloring on the bunny’s ears coming off the flatware, but no injuries were reported.

This recall involves infant flatware from the Gingham Bunny Flatware Collection. It’s silver-colored, nickel-plated and has a bunny with pink coloring on its ears at the end of the handle. The recalled flatware was sold at Reed and Barton factory stores, various gift shops and online from September 2012 through January 2013 for between $15 and $40.

If you have these recalled flatware, you should immediately take it away from your baby, and contact Reed and Barton for a full refund or free replacement flatware.

April's CPSC's Children's Product RecallsHuffy Recalls Slider Tricycles Due to Loss of Control Hazard

The handlebar on this Huffy tricycle can unexpectedly loosen while in use, causing the rider to lose control. This poses crash and fall hazards for the rider, but no injuries have been reported yet.

The recalled tricycle is a 2012 model, three-wheeled Slider. It has a white frame with a black seat and black handlebars, and “Huffy” is printed on the front of the frame, and “Slider” is printed on the frame’s side. The tricycles were sold at Toys R Us from January 2013 through February 2013 for about $100.

If your child has this tricycle, they should stop using it, and contact Huffy for instructions on how to obtain a refund.

You can find the rest of the CPSC’s April children’s products recalls here. If you or a loved one used a product that caused you an injury, you deserve compensation for your emotional and physical trauma. The experienced product recall lawyers at the Barry Law Group can help you receive the justice you are entitled to. Contact us today and set-up your free consultation.

How to Prevent Slip and Fall Accidents

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How to Prevent Slip and Fall AccidentsThousands of people are injured every year because of slip and fall accidents on someone else’s property. Whether you own a home, apartment complex or business, you can find yourself in a personal injury lawsuit if someone slips and falls while on your property due to your negligence. Here are some tips to keep in mind to help you prevent slip and fall accidents at your home or business:

  • Stairways: Ensure that all your stairways are well-lit. Also, make sure that the handrail is secure and supported. If any of the stairs get damaged, you should fix them immediately.
  • Floors: If anything is spilled on the floor, clean it up as soon as possible, and put up signs warning people that it may still be wet. Try to keep floors clean of any debris or obstacles that may cause someone to trip. If you have mats on the floor, use something to tack them down, so they don’t move around when people walk on them.
  • Parking lots and sidewalks: When it snows or any wintery weather accumulates in your parking lot or sidewalks, it’s important to try to remove the snow and ice to ensure that no one slips while walking to your business. Sprinkle salt on the icy spots as soon as possible. Don’t forget to fix your potholes so that no one trips on them. And make sure your parking lot is well-lit at night.

If you ever slip and fall on someone else’s property or business, it’s important to contact the property owner as soon as possible, so they can make sure no one else is injured. Be sure to seek medical help, and then contact a personal injury attorney.

A personal injury attorney can help you get the compensation you deserve for your medical bills and loss of income due to your slip and fall. The Barry Law Group has years of experience in slip and fall cases and can get you the justice you deserve. Contact us today and set-up your consultation.

When does it make sense not to settle your case?

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When does it make sense not to settle your case?If you have been the victim of a personal injury and decide to file a lawsuit, it is so hard to know if you should take the settlement offered to you or take a risk and sue. If you are trying to decide which route to take, here are some tips on when it makes sense not to settle your case:

  • The offer is too low: Before your mediation, you and your personal injury lawyer will discuss how low an offer you are willing to take. If the final offer the opposing party gives is so low that your medical bills and other expenses aren’t going to be covered, it might be best to not settle, and go to court to get more compensation.
  • You have a high chance of winning your case: A good personal injury lawyer will be honest with you to tell you if you are likely to win if you go to trial or not. Attorneys know how judges and juries think more than you do, so if your personal injury lawyer thinks you are likely to win more compensation if you go to court, you should listen to your lawyer.
  • The case could affect many others: Sometimes a case doesn’t just impact you and your loved ones, but all of society. If your personal injury lawsuit was due to the negligence of a company that affects many other consumers, you might want take your case to court to alert others about how the company harmed you and how it could harm them too.

The choice to settle your personal injury case or not isn’t up to your personal injury attorney, but up to you. At the Barry Law Group we will give you advice about the options that are best for you and your loved ones, but won’t pressure you. If you were the victim of a personal injury, we want to help you get the compensation you are entitled to. Contact us today and set-up your free, no-obligation consultation.

When does it make sense to settle my case?

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When does it make sense to settle my case?If you decide to file a personal injury lawsuit, it can be hard to know if you should settle your case instead of taking it to trial. Most of the time cases are settled before going to trial, which means that each side usually compromises some on their initial offers. Here are some of the reasons it might make sense to settle your case instead of go to trial:

  • Less expense: Trials can be expensive since they take so much time to gather expert witnesses, do depositions and more. If you settle your case before going to trial, usually you won’t have to worry about the extra costs or the extra time it could take.
  • Privacy: If you are concerned about someone finding out the details of your case, it’s best to settle and not go to court. Once you go to court, your trial becomes public record, so anyone can see the details of your case. If you settle, all the records are kept private. Some settlements also have confidentiality agreements, which means it can’t be talked about in public.
  • Quicker resolution: Settlements usually are more quickly resolved than trial cases. Trials can go on for one to three years or more if the other side decides to appeal the decision. If you want your case to be resolved as soon as possible, it makes sense to chose a settlement over going to court.
  • More control: When a case goes to court, you have less control over the outcome since a judge and a jury decide your compensation instead of you having a say. When you settle your case, you play a role in determining the best solution for your personal injury lawsuit. Plus a settlement can’t be appealed, so you know the decision is final.

It’s important when filing a personal injury lawsuit to have an experienced personal injury lawyer who can help you decide if it’s worth it to settle your case or take it to court. Next week we will share when it makes sense to take your case to court.

The personal injury attorneys at the Barry Law Group have years of experience in determining if their clients should settle or not to get the compensation they are entitled to. If you were the victim of a personal injury, contact us today and set-up your free consultation.

New Software Could Help Patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries

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IBM and Excel Medical Electronics are working with the UCLA Department of Neurosurgery in a study to test the effectiveness of a real-time alarm that will predict rising brain pressure in patients with traumatic brain injuries.

New Software Could Help Patients with Traumatic Brain InjuriesThe system uses software developed by IBM Research and EME. The software analyzes vital signs in real-time streams continuously collected from a bedside monitor. It spots subtle changes in the patient’s vital signs, which would signal that dangerous high-risk increases in brain pressure are on the way.

Right now brain injury patients’ vital signs are always monitored, but nurses are only alerted by the bedside monitor alarm when brain pressure crosses a critical threshold—many times when it’s already too late to help.

The goal with the new traumatic brain injury technology is to provide advance warning to medical personnel of upcoming changes in the patient’s condition, so they can take preventive action to keep patients safe from rising brain pressure.

Research has been underway for years to monitor and predict critical changes in brain injury patients, but until now it has been difficult to analyze the data that flows in real-time. UCLA study’s will be testing whether recent advances in streaming analytics software can now make this possible in the critical care setting.

The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 1.7 million people in the U.S. are victims of traumatic brain injuries every year. Many times traumatic brain injuries occur due to the negligence of someone else. If you or a loved one were the victim of a brain injury, you deserve compensation for your emotional and physical trauma. Contact the brain injury attorneys at the Barry Law Group today and set-up your free, no-obligation consultation.

4 Boating Safety Tips

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4 Boating Safety TipsAs the weather starts to warm up, boat engines are revving up all over Austin’s beautiful lakes. Even though it’s the perfect time to enjoy the sun out on the waters, it’s also a time when many Austin boating accidents occur. To help you stay safe on the waterways, here are four boating tips to keep in mind:

  • Always wear a life vest: It’s important not only to have life vests on your boat, but also to wear them at all times. Even if you are a good swimmer, if you get in a boating accident and end up in turbulent water for a long period of time, you have a high risk of drowning. There are many thin and flexible life vests, so find one to meet your needs.

  • Have a designated driver: Most boating accidents occur because the boat driver was under the influence of alcohol. It’s easy to not be mindful of how much you’ve been drinking when you are out on the boat all day. Make sure someone volunteers to stay sober and drive the boat to protect you and your loved ones.

  • Take a boating safety course: Operator errors account for 70 percent of boating accidents. Try to have the whole family take a boating safety course that covers the basics of boating such as boat handling, navigation and reading the weather. Check out the Texas Parks & Wildlife website to learn more about Texas boater education courses.

  • Get your vessel checked: The U.S. Coast Guard offers a free vessel safety check for your boat every year. The certified Vessel Examiner can even come to your home to check out your boat. Once your boat is checked, you will know you are safe and won’t be found in violation if the law enforcement stops your boat.

Even if you practice boating safety, accidents still happen. If you or your loved one has been the victim of a boating accident, you deserve justice. Contact the Austin boating accident attorneys at the Barry Law Group today and set-up your free, no-obligation consultation.