If you live in the Chicagoland area, you’d have to live under a rock, not to notice the variations and diversity amongst the types of road users that occupy communities. Traveling alongside cars, motorcycles, commercial trucks, and public transit vehicles, are commuting bicyclists and pedestrians; delivery/courier pedacyclists; and resident or tourist recreationalists, whether runners, joggers, walkers, moms with strollers, or children at play. Chicago has long recognized its need to account for its road-user diversity, the result of which has led to more marked and/or barrier separated bike lanes, increased enforcement in intersections and along sidewalks, as well as the construction of paths and trails that create throughways to increase accessibility and improve safety. However, as we push for more use of the pathways and trails, which are intended to protect vulnerable road users, another safety issue has begun to rear its ugly head, and increasingly so—that is, pathway and trail accidents.
Bestowing Trust in Your Legal Advocate: Attorney-Client Communications in Personal Injury Cases
As seasoned practitioners, the Chicago attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. have provided representation to Illinois residents in a diverse range of personal injury cases. During our decades of practice, we have continued to relay to our clientele that open and honest communication is a two-way street. On one side there is our promise to you, the client, which extends not only from our obligations as professionals, but from our personal desire to help persons harmed by others. On the other side there is your agreement to us, your legal advocates, to be as candid as possible in relaying any information to us that may be relevant to your claim, so that we represent you in the most effective manner possible.
Illinois Court Rules against Motorcyclist Injured in ‘Wind Shear’ Case
The Chicago Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. take note of a decision handed down by the Illinois Appellate Court earlier this month, involving a claim for uninsured motorist coverage extending from a 2009 motorcycle accident that injured two. The case, State Farm Mutual Auto Ins. Co., v. Benedetto, 2015 IL App (1st) 141521, arises from the trial court’s entry of a ruling in favor of the injured motorcyclist. State Farm, filed its timely appeal, contending that both insurance and contract law warrant reversal.
Ford Recalls Place Millions of Motorists in Danger
The Chicago Auto Accident Injury Attorneys, of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C., take note of several recent vehicle recalls affecting more than a million vehicles manufactured by Ford Motor Company. The recalls involve later-models of the Ford Fusion, Fiesta, Edge, Focus, Transit Connect, F150, and Lincoln MKZ. Problems include door latch issues that prevent doors from latching properly or that can come unlatched while driving; steering gear motor components susceptible of corrosion, which can cause loss of power steering; faulty fuel pumps that can cause the car to stall; underbody heat shield issue that can cause fire; and parking lamp software issues.
Teen Driver Accident Prevention: Car-buying Tips for Parents
Decades of research and data have consistently identified the direct correlation between teen drivers and accident causation. In fact, the CDC reports an average of 7 fatalities per day amongst teens between the ages of 16 and 19, making motor vehicle crashes the leading cause of death for this age group. Ensuring that your teen has the skills and training to handle the responsibility of driving is certainly one of the most critical factors to preventing accidents. However, parents are also encouraged to take into consideration the type of vehicle that their teen will be driving. The Chicago Auto Accident Attorneys, of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C., discuss some important tips to guide parents in the process of buying a car for their teen driver.
Recall of Nearly a Million Trek Bicycles, Lawsuits Expected to Follow
The Bicycle Accident Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer take note of the recall of nearly a million bicycles manufactured by Trek. This recall involves models of Trek bicycles equipped with front disc brakes that were produced from 2000 to 2015. According to the recall summary, released by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) last week, “An open quick release lever on the bicycle’s front wheel hub can come into contact with the front disc brake assembly, causing the front wheel to come to a sudden stop or separate from the bicycle, posing a risk of injury to the rider.” The manufacturer reports three incidents associated with the product defect, each of which resulted in injury, including one victim becoming paralyzed, another that sustained a broken wrist, and a third that resulted in facial injuries.
Metra on track to Improving Rail Safety
With one the largest, oldest, and most extensive public transit systems in the nation, concerns over safety are nothing new to the resident of Chicago. Railway safety, in particular, has become an increasingly concerning problem in recent years. Train-to-train collisions, rail crossing accidents, derailment, plat-form jumping—train component failures and operating errors—speeding, switch position mistakes, door opening issues—the list goes on and on. The Train Injury Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. take note of recent developments in Metra’s ongoing efforts to prevent accidents and close-call incidents—Installation of Control Systems and Union approval to launch a Confidential Reporting Program.
Family files Lawsuits against Trucker and his Employer Following Fatal Truck Crash
The Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. take note of two lawsuits filed in connection with last month’s truck crash that took the lives of three pedestrians—30-year-old Elizabeth Peralta-Luna, and her two children, 4-year-old Dylan Peralta and 9-year-old Elizabeth Peralta—as they were attempting to cross a busy intersection on Chicago’s South Side.
Truck Driver Found Guilty and Sentenced to 3 years for Causing Fatal Crash
The Chicago Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. take note of some justice handed down by the court in the state’s case against a trucker charged with several felonies in connection with a January 2014 crash that killed an Illinois Tollway worker, and severely injured a State Trooper. We must emphasize the word ‘some,’ in terms of justice though, given the quite disturbing circumstances surrounding this horrific wreck, and the inexcusable actions of the truck driver.
FMCSA Hours-of-Service Regulations—Where do we stand now?
The Chicago Trucking Accident Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. take note of the ongoing debate over Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) Hour-of-Service regulations. In understanding where we stand now, it may be helpful to first understand a bit regarding the origination of these rules, and how they have developed over the past 8 decades.
In recognizing the correlation between driver fatigue and accident causation, the federal government first began limiting the number of daily and week hours, as well as rest period requirements in the 1930s. Over the next several decades, some revisions were made to the hours-of-service regulations, but many argued that such changes were ineffective in combating the issue of fatigued driving. It was not until recently—first in 2003, and then again in 2005—that any substantial changes to HOS rules were made.