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May 20, 2013 Robert A. Clifford, senior partner at Clifford Law Offices, will be speaking on “Closing Arguments” Wednesday (May 22) at the Chicago Bar Association Young Lawyers Section Trial Techniques Seminar. The three-hour afternoon program will deal with the four components of a trial: opening statements, direct examination, cross examination and closing arguments. The program provides continuing legal education credit. Also part of the program are Collin Smith of Holland & Knight on opening…

Kevin P. Durkin, partner at Clifford Law Offices, was a sponsor of the Chicago Police Memorial’s 9th Annual Run/Walk to Remember. Durkin, who also is a member of the Chicago Police Memorial Board, along with several staff members of Clifford Law Offices, participated in the 5K event May 4, 2013. The organization is dedicated to honoring the lives of Chicago Police officers who were killed or injured while on duty. Shannon McNulty, partner at the…

When a personal injury occurs – whether it is from an auto, work, property or other type of accident – it can be emotionally taxing on the individuals involved. It is also one of the most crucial times to gather evidence in the event you need to file a lawsuit. Here are five things to do in case of personal injury: Seek medical treatment – Even if you don’t feel any pain at the onset,…

Ever since the Stryker hip recalls of the Rejuvenate hip implant and the ABG II hip replacement device in 2012, patients have been filing lawsuits against the manufacturer. As cases continue to mount, it is important for those who undertook hip surgery to know how to pursue the most effective litigation. Facts about Stryker Hip Recalls Fact: The manufacturer voluntarily initiated its own recall of the Rejuvenate and ABG II devices on July 6, 2012,…

Question: What are the costs and attorneys’ fees associated with a medical malpractice lawsuit? Susan: Medical malpractice cases can be very costly to prosecute. We are talking tens of thousands of dollars. And the attorney will pay these costs and be reimbursed at the end of the lawsuit if we are successful. But the biggest cost I think in any medical malpractice case is expert witnesses. A doctor to simply review medical records can charge…

Question: What will happen after the medical malpractice lawsuit is filed? Susan: A process called discovery occurs. And basically what discovery is, it’s where the attorneys will engage in various practices to determine the facts of the case that will be presented at trial. The attorneys will exchange written questions; those are called Interrogatories. And the client will have to answer some written questions under oath. There is also something called a Request to Produce,…

Question: How do I choose an attorney to investigation a potential malpractice claim? Susan: That’s a good question. Medical malpractice is a very distinct and specialized type of law. You want to choose an experienced medical malpractice attorney — an attorney who deals with these types of cases and who has handled these cases in the past. Most law firms now have websites and you can go to the website of the law firm and…

Question: If I think I have been a victim of medical malpractice, what should I do? Susan: I think it’s a good idea to begin documenting. Document what happened. Document everything that happens after the malpractice. Dates of surgery, lab results, if you have a CT scan, the results of the CT scan. Document the names of the doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers involved. Question: Times, places of conversations? Susan: Absolutely. And you may…

When the Texas fertilizer plant explosion occurred on April 17, 2013, it signaled a need to understand how often these types of events occur. The answers – spanning nearly the course of a century – may be an indicator of where we could be headed. History Repeats Itself   Since 1921, there have been at least 17 unintended explosions of ammonium nitrate worldwide, according to the Guardian. Six of these happened in the U.S., and…