Also present were State Representatives Tim Bearden, Bill Hembree and Roger Bruce. From the judiciary, we were pleased to have several elected officials join us, including Douglas County Superior Court Judge William H. “Beau” McClain, Douglas County State Court Judge William O'Neal Dettmering, Jr., Douglas County District Attorney David McDade, and Douglas County Solicitor-General Brian Fortner.

I want to thank my friends and coleagues for making this a successful event. We hope to have more events in the future.

If you are a fellow attorney or a judge interested in coming to the event, please contact our office. We will provide more details and put you down on our RSVP list.

This area accounted for a high number of tractor trailer accidents. There were 611 collisions involving commercial vehicles in Douglas County and Carroll County. 478 people were injured and there were 22 deaths from these accidents.

Here are some other sobering statistics. Commercial motor vehicle accidents account for 15% of the fatalities on Georgia’s roadways. When somebody dies in a wreck involving a commercial vehicle, often an 18 wheeler, the person who died was almost always - - 90% of the time - - an occupant of the passenger vehicle.

Some of the problems include changing lanes too quickly, tailgating, crossing the center of the interstate or road, driving recklessly, driving in the emergency lane, and trucks over six wheels traveling in the left lanes.

Please be careful out there. Our office handles truck accident cases in the Atlanta area, West Georgia, and throughout Georgia. If you have questions or concerns, please call us.

We attended the event and reception afterward. It was a great event for Douglas County and David McDade, the Douglas County District Attorney.

The Georgia Department of Transportation, headquartered in Atlanta, has created a nice guide for deciphering accident reports which can be found here.

Jurisdictions throughout Georgia pretty much stick to a standard accident report form called the Georgia Uniform Motor Vehicle Accident Report. Of course, there are a few law enforcement agencies, most notably in and around Atlanta, that use their own forms or use a modified version of the standard auto accident form.

I think that this guide will be helpful for the public as well as attorneys handling the occasional auto or truck accident case.

While watching a video where people on the street were asked their opinions about attorneys, I was moved by one particular response. An older woman peered into the camera with a look of disgust and said she could not express her true feelings because, as she said, "I am a Christian." This dialogue has stuck in my mind ever since.

The sermon I heard in church today compared God's world with the "other world." When I really think about the woman on the video, I see why she feels that way. I see why anybody does when you consider how lawyers are portrayed in the media and, sadly, how some lawyers portray themselves. Turn on your television any day of the week during the day and you will be bombarded with lawyer commercials. I would venture to say that 75% or more of the commercials fall into the tacky or despicable category. Dramatic television is also filled with law shows. We are portrayed as outrageous, cunning, devious, and out for the almighty dollar. Have you ever seen a legal TV show where the lawyers were portrayed as honest, hard-working, ethical, and professional? I haven't seen many. The few I have tended to die a quick death, probably due to low ratings.

I know a large number of attorneys read my blog across Georgia and beyond. Our profession needs a resurrection in the figurative sense. We need repair and healing. Will you do your small part, wherever you are? God bless you and your family.

Of course, there is the legal world where even the most elementary of disputes can become complicated in a hurry. Most of the time, somebody being sued files a Motion for Summary Judgment to end the lawsuit, narrow the issues, or get rid of some of the plaintiff's legal theories. However, I have filed them as a plaintiff's attorney to try to win my whole case or at least parts of the case.

The standard for granting a Motion for Summary Judgment is found, under Georgia law, at O.C.G.A. 9-11-56(c). It states, "... the moving party must demonstrate that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the undisputed facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, warrant judgment as a matter of law."

I tell people that a good way to look at this issue is like this. If the facts are not in dispute and agreed for the most part, the judge can decide things. After all, juries are meant to be deciders of face, not legal experts. The problem is that in most cases there is an issue of fact. Some examples of questions of fact in car & truck accident cases include the following:

- Who caused the car accident?
- If there were numerous parties, who bears fault by percentage?
- Were your injuries caused by the auto accident?
- How much should be awarded for medical bills? Are they all a result of the wreck?
- How much pain and suffering am I entitled to receive?
- How much should be awarded for lost wages?
- How much was my car worth when it was totaled?

If you have questions about the legal process and have been injured in an auto accident, on the job, or suffered another type of personal injury, you can contact our office anytime for a free confidential consultation about your rights. Our telephone number is (770) 577-2227.

First, punitive damages do not apply to Georgia's workers' compensation cases. Since that issue is off the table, let's focus on cases in which folks have been hurt and are filing civil lawsuits. Punitive damages can be recoverable in a personal injury case in certain circumstances. Simply stated, punitive damages are meant to punish a wrongdoer for very bad conduct or an intentional act. Punitive damages are not meant to reward you when you are injured - - they are meant to punish the person who harmed you. I tell people up front that they are often sought yet seldom gotten. In other words, you must have some pretty bad conduct with the law on your side.

Specifically, the law in Georgia says that you must prove, by clear and convincing evidence, that the defendant's conduct showed willful misconduct, malice, fraud, wantonness, oppression, or an entire want of care which would raise the presumption of conscious indifference to consequences, O.C.G.A. 51-12-5.1 This can mean many things to people. The trial structure is also changed if you seek punitive damages. One of the better books on the subject of Georgia Damages is called Georgia Law of Damages.

The question of whether you or a loved one have a case for punitive damages can only be answered after a thorough review of the facts and the law. If you are wondering if you can possibly get them after you were injured in an auto collision or other accident, you can call my office for a free confidential consultation. Punitive damages in personal injury cases can arise if there were factors involved such as alcohol, a drunk driver or driver on drugs, intentional conduct, a hit-and-run, etc. You can learn more about me and my office by clicking HERE.

I was asked this very question this week. The answer is simple. In Georgia, if an employer/insurer controverts or denies your workers' compensation claim, they have no obligation to pay for any medical treatment if and until you either (a) come to an agreement whereby your case is deemed compensable and/or a doctor is agreed-upon to treat you; (b) your employer and insurance company voluntarily "pick-up" your claim and offer you medical treatment; or (c) I take your case to court before an Administrative Law Judge of the State Board of Workers' Compensation and win.

One legal method that I employ that I do not see used very often is to request that the judge appoint a certain doctor for a one time evaluation at the expense of the employer and insurance company. This is done under O.C.G.A. 34-9-101. I am surprised at how many lawyers representing injured workers do not know about this Section or utilize it.

Of course, I also tell my clients that their company and the insurer will certainly be happy to send them to medical evaluations in the form of Independent Medical Evaluations. (Please understand, however, that these doctors are not generally treating you and making you better. They are simply evaluating you and providing a report to give to the judge when you go to court).

I help injured workers across the State of Georgia, but mainly in the Atlanta and the West Georgia area (Douglas County, Paulding County, Carroll County, and Cobb County). My office is in Douglasville. I will personally come to you if you cannot come to me if I think I can take your case after an initial free consultation on the telephone. Please call my office anytime at (770) 577-2227 or submit your question on this Blog. To read more about my law office and my qualifications, click here.

If you or a loved one has been injured because of an auto accident or work accident in Douglas County, GA, or Atlanta and would like to talk with a lawyer who provide information and an honest assessment, please call us anytime.

Under O.C.G.A. § 34-9-104, an injured worker can seek additional income benefits based upon a change in physical condition or a change in wage-earning capacity. When somebody is laid-off, the argument that they have undergone a change in their wage-earning capacity.

if you have been laid-off, and the workers compensation insurance company will not pay your weekly benefits, you should contact an attorney to evaluate your claim. Although it may take quite a long time for a court date or for a judge to decide this issue on a motion, income benefits can be pursued in many cases.

This case emphasizes the important point that attorneys seeking catastrophic designation should not, under current law, rely upon seeking catastrophic designation without requesting additional income benefits above and beyond what had been previously paid. In this case, it appears that more than two years elapsed between the time that weekly income benefits were last paid and the time a Notice of Claim was filed requesting catastrophic designation. It is also interesting to note in this case that the State Board of Workers Compensation apparently encouraged the injured worker to file a third application for catastrophic designation after her first two attempts failed. This case illustrates an important point that a catastrophic designation is a degree of separation from weekly income benefits and entitlements to such benefits. The counter argument in this case is that a catastrophic designation, by its nature, offers an injured worker weekly disability benefits for a long period of time into the future, sometimes for life.

If you or a loved one has questions about whether or not your workers compensation claim can be deemed catastrophic under Georgia law, please contact our office at 770-577-2227 for a free and confidential legal consultation. Mr. Clay has handled many catastrophic workers compensation claims throughout Georgia. We welcome your questions and concerns.

When selecting an attorney, please keep in mind that any attorney can advertise on television, have a fancy yellow pages ad, have a professionally designed website, or provide you with information in the form of pamphlets or booklets. Don't judge a book by its cover. Look beyond the surface to see what you are really getting. If I were looking for an attorney, I would evaluate the following factors carefully:

(1) Testimonials from former clients and references - One of the marks of good attorneys are satisfied clients. Ask for references. You wold not hire somebody without references. Why put one of the most important decisions you will make in the hands of somebody who cannot or will not provide references? While it is true that the identity of clients is strictly confidential, our office makes it a practice to keep a list of client references. These are past clients from whom we have received specific permission to disclose their contact information for prospective clients to call.

(2) Legal and trial skills or the "when push comes to shove factor" - Make no mistake about it, insurance companies and their attorneys care about the caliber of lawyer on the other side. When cases do not settle, they will inevitably size-up your attorney from their past experience and reputation of the attorney involved. There are numerous traits that good lawyers across the board seem to possess. Unfortunately, it may be difficult or impossible for a client to tell whether an attorney is really good. The best attorneys I know:
- Have mastered the substantive area of law in question
- Possess the wisdom and common sense to properly evaluate circumstances, strengths, and weaknesses
- Are diligent and push their cases forward -- in other words, they act instead of being acted-upon
- Understand what works and what does not work with judges and juries
- Understand the Rules of Evidence and Civil Procedure which permeate all injury cases whether it is a car accident case, defective product matter, or workers' compensation claim
- Communicate effectively
- Have experience taking cases to trial with a track history of success

(3) Specialization - The days of the general practitioner are become more and more numbered. Potential clients who are seriously injured should pick an attorney who specialized in one or two areas of law. Lawyers simply cannot be all things to all people and excel. I recommend asking the prospective attorney to tell you what percentage of their practice is devoted to your specific type of case.

(4) Organizations and community - Any attorney can join legal organizations. Pick a leader in the legal profession and the community. Ask the prospective attorney what leadership roles they have held in the past or currently hold. In my opinion, this is an indication of dedication to a profession, not merely the business of law. Or, put another way, it is the difference between passion versus a paycheck. Some attorneys are more interested in staying in their offices to make as much money as possible instead of offering a meaningful contribution to the legal profession by being leaders in organizations. We receive many referrals from other lawyers. I advise prospective attorneys to not only ask for past client references, but also ask for references of other lawyers in the community who have referred injury cases to the attorney you are considering hiring.

(5) Caseload and confidence - The attorney you hire should maintain a reasonable caseload and spend enough time with you during the first appointment to get to know you and your case. Many attorneys will send non-lawyers to your home to gather information and sign paperwork. Never hire a lawyer without meeting with the attorney personally at his or her office. You should feel comfortable and confident in their ability. Part of being a good lawyer is a limited caseload so the proper time and attention can be devoted to your case. You should connect with your attorney. Remember, if your case goes does not settle and goes to trial, you absolutely want the jury to connect with your attorney.

ABOUT US

In 2009, Jack Clay was selected as a Rising Star in Georgia's SuperLawyers Magazine. Mr. Clay is an experienced trial lawyer practicing in workers' compensation and personal injury law. He has tried over 50 workers' compensation hearings and 30 jury trials. He is a board member of the Georgia Legal Foundation and a graduate of Leadership Douglas. He is the author of the Georgia Law Blog (www.georgialawblog.com) which covers legal issues throughout Georgia. He is a member of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association and the Workers' Compensation & Torts/Insurance Law Sections of the State Bar of Georgia. While his office is in Douglasville, he handles cases throughout West Georgia and Metro Atlanta. His office offers free legal consultations to those who have been injured.

To read more about Mr. Clay and our law firm, click here.