Missouri Injury Lawyers Blog

Damages received as a result of a lawsuit are made to compensate victims for injury. Furthermore, these damages are designed to make the victim whole again, not as a form of enrichment that should be taxed as income. This is true regardless of whether the damages were the result of personal injuries arising from a tort or some other form of legal wrong.

The earlier IRS rule was that only those damages recovered for a "tort or tort type rights" were excluded from gross income for tax purposes. Treating damages that arise from tort-type rights differently than other damages resulted in inequitable treatment against victims of discrimination and those that live in no-fault states.
The new regulations deleted the requirement that to qualify for exclusion from gross income, damages received from a legal suit, action, or settlement agreement must be based upon "tort or tort type rights." The proposed regulations provided, instead, that the section 104(a)(2) exclusion may apply to damages recovered for a personal physical injury or physical sickness under a statute that does not provide for a broad range of remedies, and that the injury need not be defined as a tort.
A full copy of the new rule can be found here.

The lawyers at Tatlow, Gump, Faiella & Wheelan, LLC are long time members of the American Association for Justice (AAJ) formerly known as the Association of Trial Lawyers of America (ATLA). The organization was established in 1946 to safeguard the rights of the injured, strengthen the civil justice system, promote injury prevention, and foster the disclosure of information critical to public health and safety. AAJ advocated for the proposed IRS rule change. TGFW is pleased that the IRS has removed the tort-type rights tests from the taxable determination of damages.

Attorneys Rex Gump and Chris Faiella of Tatlow, Gump, Faiella & Wheelan, LLC obtained a global seven figure settlement on behalf of a couple who were injured when their pickup truck was struck from behind by a commercial box truck on a divided highway. The client's vehicle went off the right hand side of the roadway, struck a highway sign and continued into a ditch where it landed upside down. The husband sustained multiple broken bones and was hospitalized for an extensive period of time.

Our investigation revealed that the operator of the box truck was in the course and scope of his employment. It also revealed that he was operating a vehicle in a rain storm at a high rate of speed with his windshield fogged over. Numerous eyewitnesses and medical and police personnel were interviewed to determine these facts.

Continue reading "TGFW Attorneys Negotiate Large Settlement in Serious Truck Crash" »

The Missouri Department of Transportation maintains an interactive map to keep people informed about roadway conditions throughout the state. This is particularly helpful when winter weather hits and you need to know the condition of the roads you plan to travel. Visit the MODOT Traveler Information Map and stay safe.

Summer may be over, but that doesn't mean that the risk of children drowning is over. Unfortunately there are still other places your children can drown besides the backyard pool. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has highlights from 2005- 2006 of nearly 600 reports with children under five years old involved in "submersion incidents." The majority of those incidents involved bath and bath related materials with children under two. Out of 431 reported fatalities, 92 percent of those occurred in homes.
Below are a few tips on keeping your children safe in the bathtub:

• Don't leave a baby or young child in a bathtub under the care of another young child.

• Always keep a young child within arm's reach in a bathtub.

• If you must leave, take the child with you.

• Never leave young children alone near any water or tub or basin with fluid. Young children can drown in even small amounts of water.

Other safety precautions:
• Consider placing locks on toilet seat covers in case a young child wanders into the bathroom.

• Learn CPR. It can be a lifesaver when seconds count.

• Never leave a bucket containing even a small amount of liquid unattended. Toddlers are top heavy and they can fall headfirst into buckets and drown. After using a bucket, always empty and store it where young children cannot reach it. Don't leave buckets outside where they can collect rainwater.

Texting and driving is one of the most dangerous types of distracted driving because it involves the three types of distraction: visual, manual and cognitive. It is especially dangerous for teenage drivers who have little experience on the road. Parents should encourage their children to limit driving after dark and the number of passengers their teens have, but most importantly, there should be a rule that cell phones are never in use while the teen driving. This insures there is little to no distraction in the car and that the teenager can operate the vehicle as safely as possible.

In order to really understand the dangers of texting and driving and get a front row seat to the reality of its dangers, please visit the following link: http://heathersstory.org/ . This site shares the painful story of 19 year old Heather Lerch who was killed in a texting and driving accident as she was on her way home from work one night. Her parents have been working extremely hard to spread the message about texting and driving. This site provides you with pictures of Heather's car before and after the accident, videos of the parents urging others, "Don't let an LOL become an OMG," and the full story about Heather's accident. The site was created by Heather's parents and will let you comment and ask any questions you may have about Heather or just texting and driving in general.

What is ESC and why is it important? ESC stands for Electronic Stability Control, a safety feature in vehicles that can actually detect and prevent/ recover from skidding in a vehicle. Before a driver has time to panic or lose control when skidding, ESC has already recovered from the skid and has the vehicle under control again. ESC uses sensors that determine the direction of the car and compares that to the direction the car is actually going. If and when the system senses a skid or if the car is already skidding the system begins to apply the brakes on individual wheels to bring the car back on track.

Because of the effectiveness of ESC the US Government has mandated that all vehicles must have ESC by the 2012 model year. Manufacturers may use different names for their ESC, but it still does the same thing.

Crash Test Results
The internet is really the first place a person would need to look for results on crash testing. Websites that are maintained by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) would be the best places to begin looking. Both sites have begun posting the results of "roof" testing. It is now a requirement with the IIHS for all vehicles to get a "good" rating on the roof test before the vehicle can be passed.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced 66 models of cars to their Top Safety Picks for 2011. The IIHS has a new roof test that must be passed with a "good" rating in order to be chosen as a Safety Pick. The IIHS uses four ratings when testing vehicles; they are "good," "acceptable," "marginal," and "poor." The roof test is now mandatory on all vehicles due to the increasing frequency of rollover accidents in recent years. If a vehicle has a strong roof, the liklihood of severe injuries occuring in a rollover accident is much lower. To see if your vehicle made the list, visit this website.

Viva Stokes, 76, of Versailles, Mo was transported by ambulance to Capital Region Hospital for treatment to serious injuries she sustained in an accident that occurred on July 24th around 1:40PM on MO-52, .1 mile West of MO-135 North. Stokes was driving a 2010 Lincoln at the time of the accident. Also involved was Stacy Markes, 42, of Cole Camp, MO. Markes was flown to University Hospital in Columbia for treatment to serious injuries. Markes was driving a 1992 Oldsmobile at the time of the accident.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop F, the accident occurred as Markes crossed the centerline and struck Stokes' vehicle head on.

Lori Holbert, 41, and her passenger Donald Holbert, 14, both of Centralia were transported to Boone County Hospital in Columbia by Monroe County Ambulance for treatment of moderate injuries they sustained in a car accident that occurred on July 23rd around 8:17PM. The location of the accident was on Route C and Route M intersection, 8 miles South of Madison. Holbert had been driving a 1997 Buick at the time of the accident. Also involved was Michael Glasson, 34, of Holliday, MO. Glasson was driving a 2001 Chevrolet at the time of the accident.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop B, the accident occurred when Glasson failed to stop at a stop sign or to yield to Holbert causing Glasson to collide with Holbert's vehicle at the intersection.

Libbie Foeste, 30, of Sedalia, MO was transported to Truman Medical Center for treatment to serious injuries sustained from a car accident that occurred on Westbound Highway 50 at Northwest 1601 on July 19th around 2:12PM. Foeste was driving a 1999 Mazda and had two occupants at the time of the accident. In the vehicle with Foeste was a 4 year old girl and a 7 year old boy who were transported to Children's Mercy Hospital for treatment to serious injuries. Also involved in the accident was Derek Voss, 25, of Kingsville, MO. Voss was driving a 1998 Ford at the time of the accident.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop A, the accident occurred as Voss was Southbound on Northwest 1601 Road and Foeste was Westbound on Highway 50. Foeste struck Voss after Voss had failed to stop at a stop sign.

Addie Kronk, 59, of Fulton, MO was transported by ambulance to University Hospital for treatment to serious injuries sustained in a car accident that occurred on July 22nd around 5:10PM on Route WW at County Road 350. Kronk was driving a 2005 Chrysler at the time of the accident. Also involved in the accident was Matiul Islam, 68, and his passenger Fetema Islam, 56, both of Columbia, MO. Matiul was driving a 2010 Mercedes at the time of the accident.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop F, the accident occurred as Islam was driving to fast for conditions and failed to negotiate a curve. Islam's vehicle crossed the centerline and struck Kronk's vehicle head on.
Fetema Islam sustained serious injuries and was flown by Staff for Life to University Hospital. Matiul Islam also sustained serious injuries and was transported by ambulance to University Hospital.

Linda Bowen, 26, of Durham, MO was transported via private auto to Blessing Hospital in Quincy, IL for treatment to minor injuries following a car accident that occurred on Oak Street, 1.5 miles East of Durham. Bowen had been driving a 1996 Jeep at the time of the accident. Jason Guilfoyle, 35, of Maywood, MO was also transported via private auto to Blessing Hospital in Quincy, IL for treatment to minor injuries. Guilfoyle was driving a 2007 Toyota at the time of the accident. The accident occurred on July 11th around 3:00PM.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop B, the accident occurred as Guilfoyle was Eastbound and Bowen was Westbound on a county gravel road and struck each other head on.

Laura Welch, 30, of Brookfield, MO was transported by Linn County Ambulance to Pershing Hospital in Brookfield for treatment to moderate injuries she sustained in an accident on Jarboe Road, 2 miles East of Brookfield. Welch was the passenger of a 2000 Chrysler Van driven by Richard Welch, 37, of Brookfield. Also involved in the accident was Scott Armstrong, 33, of Brookfield. Armstrong was driving a 1991 Ford truck at the time of the accident. The accident took place on July 18th around 4:10PM.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop B, the accident occurred as both drivers temporarily lost visibility from dust by another uninvolved vehicle causing Armstrong's vehicle to strike Welch's from behind.

Robert Caviness, 61, of Keosauqua, IA was transported to Nevada Regional Medical Center by EMS for treatment to minor injuries sustained in an accident that occurred on US- 71, 5 miles South of Nevada. The accident took place on July 10th around 9:35AM in Vernon County. Caviness was driving a 2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer at the time of the accident. Also involved in the accident was Lacey Harmon, 22 of Shawnee, KS. Harmon sustained moderate injuries and was transported to Freeman West Hospital in Joplin by helicopter. Harmon was the occupant of a 2007 Ford Mustang that was driven by Marcus Dibben, 30, of Shawnee, KS.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop D, the accident occurred as Dibben's vehicle struck the rear of Caviness' vehicle.

Corey Calhoun, 38, of Palmyra was transported to Blessing Hospital by private vehicle for treatment to minor injuries. Calhoun had been involved in a car accident on MO- 27 at St. Francisville, MO. The time of the accident was around 3:20PM on July 1st. Calhoun had been driving a 1999 Ford at the time of the accident. Also involved in the accident was Sandra Akers, 57, of Kahoka, MO. Akers sustained minor injuries as well and was transported to Keokuk Area Hospital by private vehicle. Akers was driving a 2000 Chevrolet at the time of the accident.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop B, the accident occurred as Akers was headed Westbound and crossing MO-27 failed to yield and was struck in the passenger door by Calhoun.