Landau Injury Law

The scene as I left Oakton Woods during this morning's Fairfax rush hour bike crash between Reston Parkway and the Fairfax County Parkway in Oak Hill, Virginia

Having seen and assisted at more car, truck and bike crashes than I can recount, I was nevertheless shaken this morning by the scene outside my neighborhood.  A biker had apparently been hit by a car and badly injured at West Ox Road and Ashburton in the Herndon – Oakton Woods area of Fairfax County, in Northern Virginia.  Emergency Medical responders and Fire and Rescue teams were dispatched quickly and several motorists had already stopped to render assistance to the fallen cyclist as he lay on the pavement between the two corners of Ashburton, across from Franklin Oaks Drive.

Before loading the injured cyclist into the ambulance, Fairfax County EMTs assess, secure and prepare to transport the injured biker this morning after an apparent crash at West Ox Road and Ashburton Avenue across from Franklin Oaks Drive

The EMTs and ambulance came to the scene of this rush hour bike crash and immediately set about to assess and then treat the injured athlete.  This car and bicycle crash occurred between Oak Farms Drive and the Fairfax County Parkway (Route 7100), about exits North of Fair Oaks Hospital.  The injured cyclist was being loaded onto a stretcher and had been placed in a neck brace to protect his neck from spinal cord damage as we were allowed to pass.  It brought home the fact that bike crashes can happen around the corner as well as far away on the trails, tours and race courses.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to the injured cyclist and his family, and we hope that he gets appropriate medical care and recovers quickly.

If you or someone you know has been injured as the result of a bike crash, car accident or sports injury, please contact us by e-mail at ABRAMS LANDAU or call (703)-796-9555.

Broadlands Sprint Triathlon participants before the start of the race

At the Broadlands Sprint Triathlon today in Loudoun County, some 270 multisport athletes took to the streets.  Leesburg, Fairfax and Prince William bike injury lawyer Doug Landau wanted to try this TriPerformance event to test his early summer fitness.  Landau also likes competing in safe events like this, where the directors and volunteers take great pains to avoid accidents, crashes and injury.  The pre-race meetings and course previews are especially appreciated by the seasoned “Triathlon Trial Lawyer.”  In the transition area he discussed strategy with Alexandria General District Court Judge Moore, not for trials, but for triathlons !

The Broadlands Sprint Triathlon started with a 400 meter pool swim, followed by a slightly shorter than the advertised 12 mile bike ride, and ended with a curvy 5km.  The Loudoun, Prince William and Fairfax County bike crash injury lawyer finished in the top 10, and was the first grand master, master and age group.  Today’s race raises funds for the Infinitive Foundation, which was established to support programs focused on health and enhancing family life. Proceeds from the Infinitive Race Series will support local and US Military families.

While Interstate car and truck crash injury lawyer Doug Landau would have guessed that there would be fewer crashes from “hands free” cell phone operation, the numbers his mother sent him from New Jersey suggest that may not necessarily be so.  Landau grew up in Bergan County and has tried cases in Hudson County, so the interstate personal injury lawyer has travelled up and down the New Jersey Turnpike and I-95 hundreds of times.  Jersey lawyer Landau was surprised by these numbers:

Total crashes related to hand-held cell phone use:

2006        2007    2008

Bergan        164            177        149
Hudson        105            133        102
Passaic        125            110        84
New Jersey    1,854        1,866    1,821

Total crashes related to hands-free cell phone use:

Bergan        121            104        159
Hudson        214            221        310
Passaic        188            86        104
New Jersey    1,726        1,421    1,383

Bottom line: Using cell phones with or without the “hands free” option is dangerous.  If you must make an important call, pull over to the side of the road or, better yet, park the car and talk, take notes and concentrate on the conversation.  Multi-tasking behind the wheel may not be efficient if you or someone else winds up getting hurt.  When driving, focus on the road and the conditions around you, and driver defensively.   If you or someone you know has been injured due to a distracted driver, please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555)

Herndon, Loudoun & Leesburg Virginia bike crash injury lawyer Doug Landau notes that even on recreational and public park bicycle paths, riders must be aware of the road surfaces, obstacles and potential dangers

After his bike accident with the steel expansion joints on the Lee Bridge in Richmond, Doug Landau noted with interest the recent case of a Connecticut woman who was injured when she struck a steel grate while cycling.  The Hartford Metropolitan District Commission(”MDC”) has been ordered by a Connecticut jury to pay $2.9 million to a woman cyclist who was injured in a bicycle accident in 2002.  According to the Hartford Courant, the jury ruled that the MDC had improperly placed a steel grate on a recreational path.  The woman was on her bike when she hit the steel grate, breaking four vertebrae in her neck.  The jury’s verdict represents reimbursement and restitution for what has been taken from this active athlete.  If you or someone you know has become permanently injured or disabled in a bike accident or car crash, please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555)

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The Landaus rode on the W&D Trail to get to the Herndon "pit stop" on "Bike to Work Day," where the A-1 Cycling crew gave Mrs. Landau's bicycle a safety check

While Loudoun and Fairfax bike crash injury lawyer Doug Landau has participated for a number of years, this year’s “Bike to Work Day” was extra special.  This was Herndon’s first Bike to Work Day and a “pit stop” was located on the W&OD Trail by the Depot Museum and the Old City Hall !  The event supports and promotes bicycle commuting, safe biking and pollution-free “green” transportation alternatives.  Cindy Roeder, Director, Parks and Recreation Department was extremely pleased with the number of riders who stopped in to join us this morning. More than 8,700 riders registered in the DC metro area for this year’s event.  Over 200 bikers stopped in Herndon.

"Bike to Work Day" lead hundreds of cyclists to the downtown Herndon Depot, where A-1 Cycling and the Town of Herndon set up a "pit stop" complete with snacks, SWAG, mechanics and free information

The Town of Herndon and everyone at the Landau Law Shop thank A-1 Cycling bike shops in Herndon and Manassas for sponsoring our pit stop, as well as the Washington Area Bicyclists Association (WABA) and Commuter Connections.  A-1 Cycling is located in the “Clocktower Shopping Center” South of ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. on Elden Street, just the other side of the Dulles Toll Road, at 2451-I3 Centreville Road, Herndon, VA 20171  (703) 793-0400.  Doug Landau often has his racing bike checked out and repaired by the friendly and experienced crew at A-1 in order to avoid crashes, injuries and “technical difficulties !”

David Carson, moderator Deborah Waters & Doug Landau at the Annual VTLA Tort Law Seminar after the presentation on creative personal injury settlement packages and professional demand letters in Roanoke

Teaming up with another outstanding defense attorney enabled Herndon and South Riding area injury lawyer Doug Landau to show lawyers from South West Virginia how to maximize recovery for their disabled clients.  Roanoke defense lawyer David Carson of Johnson, Ayers & Matthews the view from the insurance company perspective in a “Point Counterpoint” presentation.  The Roanoke audience at this year’s Annual Tort Law Seminar heard from outstanding VTLA speakers as well as judges. Landau and Carson discussed personal injury settlement demand packages.

The two experienced Virginia trial lawyers gave their views and fielded questions from the audience, made up largely of attorneys who had been practicing for many  years.  Carson discussed some of the mistakes made by by lawyers who hold themselves out as being “personal injury lawyers,” but who do not actually try cases, invest properly in their disabled clients’ cases or even go to court.  Doug Landau showed effective ways of proving losses as the result of car crashes, dog attacks, bike accidents and slip and fall incidents.  If you would like to see Mr. Landau “in action,” please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555), as his calendar is an “open book” for trials, speeches, races and meetings.

Car & truck crash injury lawyer Doug Landau hopes that soon police will be able to recover "black box" data that can prove which vehicle was at fault in a wreck

It appears that in the next few years, cars will be equipped with black boxes, much like in airplanes, that can record data during a crash. The debate now, between Congress and safety groups, is how much and what type of data these boxes should record.  Lawmakers and automakers are struggling to agree on how durable the boxes should be as well, with car makers balking at the idea of an expensive piece of equipment being required in all vehicles.  One proposal suggests that the boxes be able to withstand a rollover crash as well as fire and water immersion, and record 60 second before a crash and 15 seconds after.  For more on this interesting debate, go to The Washington Post

If you or someone you know has been injured due to the fault of a driver whose vehicle may have been equipped with a “Black Box,” please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555), as these devices are sometimes removed by guilty defendants or destroyed when wrecks are salvaged for scrap.

Virginia Trial Lawyers Daniel Crandall & Douglas Landau taught at the Roanoke Higher Education Center today

As a member of the faculty of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Annual Tort Law Seminar Herndon injury lawyer Doug Landau will travel the length and breadth of the Commonwealth this month.  Today’s presentation took the traveling trial lawyer to the Roanoke Higher Education Center in the South West part of the state.  Since he had just returned from his son’s Virginia Tech graduation in Blacksburg over the weekend, Landau flew into the former Vinton Salem area airport as he had done so many times before to try workers compensation and meet with personal injury and Social Security Disability clients.  Because the lecturers got ahead of schedule (a rarity when lawyers are giving speeches !), the interstate injury lawyer started the presentation on demonstrative exhibits, trial strategy, settlement and mediation without his co-presenter from the defense bar.  Once Defense Counsel arrived, the duo it full stride and kept the audience intrigued, followed by a “Question and Answer” period.

Landau was followed by his friend and well-known Roanoke Valley trial lawyer Daniel L. Crandall, who gave a thorough Power Point presentation on “General District Court Practice.”  Landau and Crandall shared other ideas after the Continuing Legal Education programs was finished and before the Herndon Reston area injury lawyer had to fly back to Dulles Airport. If you would like to see Mr. Landau “in action,” please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555), as his calendar is an “open book” for trials, speeches, races and meetings.

Doug Landau has seen police on the New Jersey Turnpike and Interstate I-95 step up enforcement of the ban on hand held cell phones and texting while driving by "distracted drivers" of cars and trucks

The ban on texting or talking on a handheld cellphone have resulted in tickets being issued, according to Interstate 95 car crash lawyer Doug Landau.  Having seen drivers pulled over and ticketed on I-95 and the New Jersey Turnpike for talking on their cell phone, Landau is curious to see if this enforcement leads to a reduction in accidents caused by “distracted driving.”

According to North Jersey news reports, Jersey police have racked up 224,725 citations for violating the law in the 23 months since the law has been in effect. That’s about 4 percent of nearly 5.4 million total moving violations — not counting drunken driving offenses — in roughly the same time period, according to state judiciary statistics.

Although residents complain police aren’t enforcing the law, state Division of Highway Traffic Safety Director Pam Fischer said the numbers show otherwise.  “They’re doing everything they can,” she said. “The problem is, we have far more violators than we have police.”  Cranford Police Chief Eric Mason, first vice president for the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, said the law, which includes a $100 fine, has been a deterrence.  Since 2008, handheld cellphone use was involved in 3,610 crashes and 13 deaths, compared with 3,129 crashes and six deaths where a hands-free device was being used.  The Landau Law Shop has assisted injured drivers, bikers and pedestrians who have been struck by motorists operating cell phones.  If you or someone you know has been injured due to the fault of a “distracted driver,” please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU(703-796-9555)

Doug Landau will use the professional medical illustrations prepared by MediVisuals in all four of his May Virginia Trial Lawyers Association presentations

Speaking on how to quickly and effectively settle, mediate and arbitrate personal injury and wrongful death cases, Doug Landau actually brought a dozen exhibits from cases that the ABRAMS LANDAU trial team has won.  By showing lawyers in Richmond what kinds of real evidence and demonstrative aids work in the court room, Herndon, Broadlands and Ashburn area injury lawyer hoped to assist them in getting better results for the victims of accidents and their families.  ”You have to invest time AND money in your exhibits and trial preparation if you want to get good results for your disabled clients” Landau told the nearly sold out audience, “You cannot do serious personal injury cases on the cheap.  You must spend the money on professional MediVisuals medical illustrations, enlargements, transcripts and investigation.”

The Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (”VTLA“) followed Landau’s speech and demonstrations with “Use of Technology: High Tech, Low Tech, No Tech A Panel of Local Judges will discuss Admission of Exhibits.” The panel of judges will change at each location, and will consist of:

• May 4, 2010 – Richmond: Hannah Lauck, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District, Richmond Margaret Spencer, Richmond Circuit Court Theodore Markow, Richmond Circuit Court
• May 18, 2010 – Roanoke: Waugh Crigler, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Western District, Charlottesville Charles Dorsey, Roanoke City Circuit Court James Swanson, Roanoke County Circuit Court
• May 25, 2010 – Norfolk: Jerrauld Jones, Norfolk Circuit Court Stephen Mahan, Virginia Beach Circuit Court, Bradford Stillman, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District, Norfolk
• May 27, 2010 – Fairfax: Thomas Horne, Loudoun Circuit Court Dennis Smith, Fairfax Circuit Court Anthony Trenga, Eastern District, U.S. District Court, Alexandria