It’s the time of year when people start planning their holiday vacations and among the top choices are trips aboard cruise ships. While on the surface these may seem to be a great choice – there have been a number of problems over the years that warrant the attention of persons who are considering a cruise.

The most ominous problems that have occurred on cruise ships are several high-profile disappearances – most of which have never been solved. According to one report nearly thirty people have disappeared off cruise ships in the last three years alone – and only 3 were ever found.

There are other crimes that have been committed more frequently than cruise line owners would care to admit. These include physical and sexual assault, rape and thefts. One source notes that there were 200 reports of sexual assault and rape and a handful of grand theft cases. Unfortunately when people are on vacation they tend to let their guard down and there are those on cruise ships that are watching for an opportunity to ‘strike’ when someone’s guard is down.

Another problem with cruise ships is the application of the law. Unlike the legal proceedings of countries – when ships are on the open sea they revert to maritime law. If you have any questions contact an offshore injury lawyer.

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There have been some interesting advances made in treating patients with traumatic brain injuries (TBI). One reason for the renewed interest can be traced to the increase in wounded veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq who are suffering from TBI and those in the medical field who are anxious to provide relief to our wounded heroes. A medical journal outlined some of these treatments that include the following:

*Intense physical workouts including martial arts and yoga combined with meditation.

*Cognitive therapies that address – among other things – memory and processing skills, increasing attention spans, and socialization.

*An interesting new therapy involving the use of hyperbolic oxygen therapy. The thinking behind this is that after a traumatic brain injury there is less oxygen getting to the brain.which hampers all aspects of human functioning. The hyperbolic oxygen treatment ‘forces’ quantities of oxygen to the smaller blood vessels thereby increasing the patient’s cognitive abilities.

One treatment that is being used less and less is the prescription of antidepressants. Doctors are finding that this often masks the problems associated with traumatic brain injury instead of offering authentic treatment and relief of symptoms

As a truck accident attorney one of the problems I face with survivors is varying degrees of TBI and making sure they are getting cutting edge help. These new therapies should be adaptable to  truck accident victims as well as our soldiers.

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Semi-truck accidents are different from automobile accidents in a number of ways that can make a difference to the person who is suing them for damages, injury or wrongful death. Consider the following information.

*A significant number of semi-truck accidents can be traced to the rig being overweight. When an 13-wheeler is carrying a heavier load than what it is legally allowed to – there is a greater possibility that the truck may tip – spilling its load and that it will be slower to stop. Semi-truck accident lawyers are aware of the frequency of overladen trucks and work to determine if this was a factor in your accident.

*Trucking companies are notorious for finding ways to keep costs down – even at the expense of the safety of other drivers on the road. In the case of an accident a semi-truck accident attorney will petition to review the trucking company’s records related to everything from maintenance records to their employees’ driving records. It’s about assigning blame – and companies that employ individuals that have multiple citations for various driving infractions are as responsible as the driver him or herself.

*Truck accident attorneys and the plaintiffs they represent should not feel pressured to agree to a settlement on the condition that the particulars of it are to remain confidential. When a company has behaved badly – we only compound the problem when we do not demand full disclosure. Many times truck accident settlements are made confidential on the demand of the trucking company.

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Recent studies have shown that texting while driving is almost as dangerous to the driver and the public as an intoxicated driver. With the rapid growth of smart phones and mobile e-mail and text messages as a dominant method of communication comes the unwelcome consequence of an increase in serious traffic accidents as a result of inattention.

It takes only a fraction of a of a second to radically alter and disrupt one’s life. That can be the short time it takes to look down at your cell phone after you hear the “bing” of a new text message and take your eyes off the road.

The problem is much greater with the younger driver who tends to text as opposed to talk on the phone as their primary method of communication. As parents of teenagers we can tell you, it is not unheard of for teenagers to send 5000 text messages a month and that spells disaster for the teenage driver.

It is critically important that parents demand that teenagers do not use their cell phone either texting or talking while driving. Not only should parents enforce this rule with the rigor but also monitor your teenage driver for the use of the cell phone while driving.

Sometimes with car accidents, there is no second chance. Make sure your teenage driver is aware of the dangers and not only does not text and drive but does not ride with the texting driver. Further, it is up to us as parents to lead by example.

There are apps which can detect motion on a cell phone and turn off texting functions and this may be a good start, however putting your phone on silence whenever driving is probably a better alternative.

Greg Baumgartner is a Houston  injury lawyer and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm, which is dedicated to helping personal injury victims seek civil justice. If you would like to speak with a Houston accident lawyer call the Baumgartner firm.

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Recently in the news was a Houston case about a 32-year-old man who has reportedly been charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child. According to reports, the assault was alleged to have taken place in a Houston area home of a six-year-old girl who was being babysat by someone for mother found on the popular Craigslist website.

Bail has reportedly been set and we will follow this case through the court process.

Reading the reports of this alleged assault on a young girl can serve as a wake-up call to all parents to double check those that they trust with their most important possessions–their children.

Just as though a family should scrutinize a day care center carefully before selecting that facility to care for your children. Babysitters should be well known to the family before placing them alone with her children. Certainly after the media frenzy from the Penn State scandal, the issue of child abuse arising from within different institutions has become front and center in the public’s mind.

Parents should be acutely aware of warning signs of abuse of children and always looking out for not only their children, but for all children.

Do your homework, and make sure that you have checked out the babysitter or day care center carefully before placing your trust with them.

Greg Baumgartner is a Houston day care abuse attorney and also the founder of the Baumgartner Law Firm, which is dedicated to helping victims seek civil justice. If you have a loved one who has been abused or involved in a Houston day care accident feel free to contact the Baumgartner law firm toll-free at 1-866-758-4529 for a free no obligation consultation.

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The scope of the trucking industry in general – and specifically the semi-truck industry – is sometimes easier to visualize through the use of statistics. Consider the following data.

*There are approximately one-half million semi-trucking companies in the United States operating 2 million semi-trucks – a majority of which are owner-operated.

*Seventy percent of freight in the United States relies on the semi-trucking industry to get from point A to point B.

*Semi-truck drivers make an average of $32,000 annually or thirty cents a mile.

*Less than five years ago the semi-trucking industry logged nearly 140 billion miles in a single year. That number climbs steadily.

*For those who think the trucking industry is not held accountable for the share of damage it inflicts on our roadways remember this data: in a single year the trucking industry contributes over 20 billion dollars to operate on our roads.

*The trucking industry consumes nearly 54 billion gallons of fuel for business purposes.

*Less than 9% of all traffic fatalities involve a commercial vehicle. Of these accidents – 4/5 or 80% are caused by the other drivers – not the professional truck driver.

*Currently there are over 200 million licensed drivers in the United States.

*Upwards of 40,000 people are killed in vehicle collisions annually. The financial cost of this figure is approximately $5000 per second.

As always – drive with care especially around 18-wheelers.

Greg Baumgartner is a Texas personal injury lawyer and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm, which is dedicated to helping personal injury victims seek civil justice. If you would like to speak with a Houston 18-wheeler accident lawyer call the Baumgartner firm toll free at 1-866-758-4529.

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A recent report indicates that in the case of vehicle collisions women are repeatedly at greater risk of more severe injury than their male counterparts. According to results published in a recent article of the highly regarded American Journal of Public Health women who are generally of smaller stature sustain greater injuries in comparable accidents even with the additional support of safety devices such as seat belts and air bags. In fact, according to the findings of their study women are actually nearly twice as likely to sustain catastrophic injuries as men!

Not everyone who has read the research agrees with the results. There are a number of anomalies in the study that bear closer inspection. In an interview on a television newsmagazine one expert counters by offering the following problem with the findings:

*the study relied on statistics that date back over a decade. This means that the types of vehicles from which data was collected did not have the safety features that are common on today’s cars and trucks. In fact, the vehicles under consideration could have been built in the late 1980s to early 1990s. Safety technology has evolved rapidly since then.

Those who take exception to this study believe that it is all but invalid and should not be presented as authentic science. It was suggested that one way to improve the findings would be to limit the research to vehicles that were manufactured in the last decade alone. The other side of the coin is that the study has pretty clear evidence the women may be more likely to be seriously injured in a car accident.

Greg Baumgartner is a Texas personal injury attorney and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm, which is dedicated to helping personal injury victims seek civil justice. If you would like to speak with a Houston accident lawyer call the Baumgartner firm

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Truck Accident Attorneys Houston

It is no secret that Texas has the largest share of wrongful death truck accidents in the nation. Houston being the largest city in Texas has the bulk of those cases. Each day in Houston there is a serious car accident and many of those are caused by 18-wheeler tractor-trailers.

Unfortunately, when a big rig hits a passenger car or pickup truck, the injuries from the automobile or pickup truck are usually significant. Such things as paralysis, spinal cord injury, closed head injury–concussions and broken bones are very common in truck accidents in Houston.

There are many different kinds of trucks that are involved in Houston area accidents. As a truck accident lawyer in Houston we see commonly, tractor-trailer accidents, 18-wheeler accidents, tanker truck accidents, UPS and FedEx truck accidents and many other commercial vehicle crashes.

Because of the size of the commercial truck, the truck drivers are required to have a special drivers license and with that special drivers license comes additional responsibilities. Additionally, the motor carrier or owner of the truck has further responsibilities relating to the drivers, condition of the vehicle, work conditions and safety regulations.

We have been representing families who have lost a loved one in commercial vehicle accidents for over 25 years. We have literally represented hundreds of accident victims from commercial vehicle accidents. If you would like to speak with a truck accident attorney in Houston contact the Baumgartner law firm for a free no obligation consultation. Our toll-free number is 1-866-758-4529.

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In Texas the employer has a general duty to provide a safe working environment for its employees that can include such things as proper equipment, proper training and sufficient personnel for the job. Many of the employers in Texas supply workers compensation insurance to provide money to pay for medical bills and lost wages for an injured employee and these employers are called “subscribers”.

Other employers may choose to forgo providing workers compensation insurance coverage for their employees. These employers are called “nonsubscribers”. Generally, if an employee is injured on the job and the company carries workers compensation insurance (subscriber), the employee’s remedies against the company for the injury will be limited to the workers compensation benefits. The good news is workers compensation is pretty good about paying medical bills and the bad news is the pain-and-suffering component and disability are pitiful at best.

A Texas employer who is a nonsubscriber to the workers compensation program takes the risk that if an employee is injured on the job the employee then will have a legal right to pursue the employer in court for the employer’s negligence in causing the injury and damages. Sometimes, having the right to pursue the employer and being able to collect from the employer for a very serious injury can be two different things as very seldom are on-the-job injuries caused soley by the employer covered by insurance  other than workers comp.

“One factor that should be considered when analyzing a serious workplace injury is the potential for a “third party claim”. The third-party claim can arise when a workplace injury is caused by the fault of a party other than the employer or their employees. Examples would be a construction site accident where the accident was caused by another contractor or company, or situations where a dangerous product was a cause of the injury. In effect, third-party claims are situations where other companies share responsibility for causing the victims injuries or damages.

It is important with serious injuries that the victim learn immediately whether or not the worker is covered by workers compensation insurance and if any other potential companies are responsible for causing the accident.

Greg Baumgartner is a Houston construction injury lawyer and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm, which is dedicated to helping workplace injury victims seek civil justice. If you would like to speak with a Houston accident attorney call the Baumgartner firm 24/7 at 281-587-1111.

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The Baumgartner law firm is pleased to report that we recently settled two 18-wheeler accident cases for our clients. Both accidents involved substantial impacts and serious injuries. The settlements were confidential at the insistence of the defendants.

Many times insurance companies and trucking companies require confidentiality agreements when settling the case under the assumption that reported settlements will make it harder to resolve a case in their favor later.

In other words the insurance company does what does not want a record of what they paid out on a claim getting out.

In other instances the plaintiff may not want the amount of a truck accident settlement published in order to keep some privacy as to the amount received for their injuries.

When selecting an 18-wheeler accident attorney it is important to consider the law firm’s experience in handling semi truck accidents and the track record of success for those cases.

The Baumgartner law firm offers free consultations to truck accident victims who have been seriously injured and to families who have lost a loved one.

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