If you have been injured in a car accident on Michigan roads and need to know how much money you will be entitled to for wage loss from your personal injuries, the accident lawyers of Michigan Auto Law can help.

As of Oct. 1, 2008 through Sept. 30, 2009, the new statutory maximum for Michigan no-fault (personal injury protection, PIP) wage loss is $4,948 per month. In other words, if you are out of work due to debilitating injuries from a Michigan car accident, you are entitled to at most, $4,948 each month.

Based on the no-fault wage loss formula, which is 85 percent of one’s gross income tax-free, the maximum amount for wage loss equates to an estimated annual income of $70,000. So if you earn less than $70,000 per year, your income should be fully covered by no-fault wage loss benefits in the event of an auto accident.

On Oct. 7, The Macomb Daily newspaper published another story about my car accident case out of Macomb County, Michigan. The case resulted in a $5.65 million jury verdict for my clients Tony and Lisa Broeren. Still refusing to accept responsibility, Chrysler is now contesting the verdict.

Tony sustained very serious injuries, including a traumatic brain injury, a broken jaw and a crushed knee, when he was run over by a pickup truck. Tony can never work again as an electro-mechanical engineer. Chrysler is responsible for the damages under Michigan law, because Chrysler insured the pickup truck that was driven by the defendant Roy Bates II, a Chrysler employee.

Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms that lawyers hear from clients who have suffered traumatic brain injury after an accident. In fact, 50-75 percent of people with traumatic brain injury report fatigue, and more than half of these people report fatigue as their worst symptom, according to the Journal of Head Trauma and Rehabilitation (Vol. 23, No. 1, 2008).

Still, many personal injury attorneys fail to adequately convey fatigue to insurance companies, defense attorneys and juries. That’s because fatigue can be so difficult for lawyers to prove. In this respect, fatigue is very similar to traumatic headaches, which are also quite common, and yet often completely ignored.

On Sunday, the Macomb Daily newspaper published a front-page story about Steven Gursten’s recent jury trial in Macomb County, Michigan; which resulted in a $5.65 million verdict for his clients, Tony and Lisa Broeren of Bruce Township. Tony was seriously injured in a truck accident after a friend accidentally ran him over and propelled him head-first into a log cabin.

The seven-day trial in Macomb County Circuit Court had more than 20 witnesses. The verdict is one of the largest Macomb County has ever seen for an auto accident. Doctors say Tony — who suffered crushing injuries to his leg that have required many surgeries and a traumatic brain injury for starters — will never be able to return to competitive employment. Prior to the November 2006 accident, he was an electro-mechanical engineer.

Last Wednesday, a Macomb County jury returned a verdict of $5.65 million for my client, Tony Broeren. Tony was seriously injured when he was literally run-over by a pick-up truck. For starters, he suffered crush injuries to his leg that have required many surgeries and a traumatic brain injury.

The person responsible for the accident, Roy Bates, was a Chrysler engineer who was driving a Chrysler test vehicle at the time. Under Michigan law, Chrysler was financially responsible for the jury verdict. But due to a quirk in Michigan law, Chrysler was not allowed to be named a defendant in the case.

After a comprehensive investigation of thousands of legal documents, the American Association for Justice recently compiled a list of the worst insurance companies in America. Each of these companies writes auto insurance policies in Michigan. For Michigan automobile accident lawyers, the list is no surprise.

Deny, Delay, Defend

Topping the list as the worst insurance company in America is Allstate. Car accident victims in Michigan have been experiencing Allstate’s “good hands” for years as the insurer has denied and delayed payments, and then defended legitimate cases after forcing a lawsuit to be filed. Following close behind Allstate was Unum, AIG, State Farm, Conseco health insurance, WellPoint, Farmers, UnitedHealth, Torchmark and Liberty Mutual.

On Friday, June 6, 2008, Michigan Auto Law lawyers Steven Gursten and David Christensen will be speaking at the Michigan No-Fault Institute Seminar in Southfield, Michigan.   This seminar is presented through the Michigan Association for Justice, for lawyers who handle car accident injury cases, truck accident cases, and attendant care and other no fault first party cases stemming from motor vehicle accidents.
 
Steve will be performing a live closing argument demonstration in a sample motor vehicle accident case where the plaintiff has suffered a traumatic brain injury.   The defense will claim the car accident did not cause a brain injury and that the plaintiff is malingering. 
 
David will be lecturing and performing a live jury selection demonstration in a “PIP case” involving a claim for Michigan attendant care benefits.  Attendant care no-fault benefits are available under Michigan’s No-Fault laws for people who suffer severe or catastrophic injury from automobile accidents.
 
Finally, Steve will also be presenting this week at the Association of Interstate Truck Lawyers of America on May 30, 31 and June 1st in St. Louis, Missouri.  Steve and Larry Gursten are both on the Board of Governors, representing the State of Michigan, in the AITLA.  Steve is also the chair of the American Association for Justice Interstate Truck Litigation Group.  The seminar will cover important topics for lawyers throughout the United States who handle serious truck accident injury cases, including “expanding theories of liability” and “damages” in truck accident litigation. 
 

There is a new auto new insurance company delay tactic in Michigan. Claims adjusters are putting innocent people “under investigation” to avoid or delay paying auto no fault insurance PIP benefits. These are lawful, reasonable, no fault claims made by people that were injured in Michigan car accidents. This blog explores how and why illegal delay tactics work for insurance companies, which companies deploy such tactics, what 3 options are available for injured people “under investigation”, and what Michigan Lawyers can do to help their clients.

What do you do when you are driving in your car and find a deer standing in the roadway before you?

Deer cause many car accidents.  According to AAA of Michigan, deer were directly or indirectly responsible for approximately 60,000 car accidents last year in Michigan alone.   Hundreds of people every year are seriously injured or killed.  There are so many deer in Michigan that in some areas, such as the Upper Peninsula, young drivers are taught by Michigan State Police instructors what to do when they too will one day find a deer in the road. 

On October 1st, 2007, the monthly maximum for work loss insurance benefits in Michigan was raised to $4,713 per month.  These work loss PIP benefits are paid by a person’s own no fault insurance company if a person suffers personal injury and is unable to return to work as the result of an auto accident.The statutory maximum was changed on August 27, 2007, when the State of Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Services issued Bulletin 2007-11–INS, enacting the yearly annual adjustment for the maximum amount of wage loss available under Michigan No Fault insurance policies.