Landau Injury Law

The 3 steps to preventing unnecessary head injury for kids on bikes are: have a helmet; have the helmet properly fitted; and wear it !

Just like the free helmet giveaway in Herndon, fitting young bikers with helmets in Maryland in order to protect young riders from preventable head injury was the goal of the Helmet Giveaway at the Children’s National Medical Center “Cyclefest.” The Trial Lawyers Association of DC (“TLA-DC”) volunteers donated 400 helmets and helped fit kids to their “lids” so that they could ride safely on the streets of Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. Formally known as “Bicycle Safety Day,” (more…)

Tall dogs, fuzzy dogs, dogs that fit into purses and all of them are called man’s best friend. Fortunately, that is true of most house dogs, but sometimes we are sadly reminded that dogs are animals and are not rational. For this reason insurance companies are charging higher rates to cover dogs or just not covering some breeds. The cost of coverage has gone up about 6.4 percent and dog incidents cover about 25% of home owner claims it is a substantial consideration for insurance companies. This is why many of them are not even covering certain breeds (rottweilers, dobermans, pittbulls, etc…) and dropping coverage on animals if they have any history of violence. One reason for the change in insurance practices is medical costs have risen and dog attacks can cause both physical and mental wounds which the victim should seek medical help them heal.

As stated by Doug Landau, an experienced attorney in canine attacks, In some car accidents, the injured plaintiff never sees the defendant trucker or hit and run motorist. But in dog attack cases, the innocent victim feels the teeth, claws and grabbing, sees the dog, hears the sounds of the attack, and can even smell and sometimes taste the dog’s saliva on her face. These are nightmarish experiences for anyone. The results the Landau Law Shop has had throughout the East Coast suggest that juries and judges take these harms and losses very seriously.

If you have questions regarding dog attacks please contact us at The Herndon Law Shop.

When workers are injured performing tasks their employers have trained them to do, the “safety net” of workers compensation is supposed to provide for their medical care, medications and a portion of their wage loss. This is especially true when they are on their employer’s premises helping co-workers save others from imminent harm. Courage in the face of a tornado’s 200 mph winds is something to be respected and honored. The EF-5 tornado that struck Joplin, Missouri was among the nation’s worst ever. It killed 162 people and destroyed more than 7,000 homes. A Joplin Social Worker’s heroic acts have resulted in permanent injuries, disability from work and a denial from the workers compensation insurance company. (more…)

Hellish road construction took on a new meaning when a tragic and unusual accident occurred at a local construction site. A local construction worker from Woodbrdge was crushed by an asphalt roller and died as a result of the injuries. The accident ensued after the operator of the roller lost control and ran his coworker over. The police determined there was no foul play and gave the investigation to the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry. The VDLL will take 6 months to determine if any fines or citations would be prudent. The construction company expressed its shock and sadness and have a full internal investigation going on as well.

If you have questions about workmans comp, roadwork or construction incidents please contact us at Landau Law Shop. We are also on Facebook now and would welcome your comments, suggestions and questions

Herndon bicycle police officers and bike safety lawyer Doug Landau preparing to give free Bell Sport cycling helmets to Hutchison Elementary School students

Yesterday, all sixth graders at Hutchison Elementary School learned about using their heads, protecting their brains and then received complimentary bicycle helmets. With the “hands on” help of Dr. Paul Aravich from Eastern Virginia Medical School, Fairfax County Police Officers, and bike safety lawyer Doug Landau of the Herndon law firm Abrams Landau, the students got rubber gloves and were encouraged to hold and touch real human brains, skulls and spinal cords.  The focus of the program was making good choices, including the choice to wear head protection when cycling, skate boarding, roller blading, long boarding, mountain biking and other wheeled sports.  According to the Virginia Department of Health, bicycle helmets, when worn properly, reduce the risk of a serious brain injury by almost 90%.  The Herndon school children were encouraged to wear a helmet when biking.  After the school assembly, a Bell Sports bike helmet was given to every child in the Hutchison Elementary School sixth grade.

Mr. Landau is known as “the Athletes Lawyer” because of his representation of many injured cyclists and other injured athletes.  Landau is a competitive triathlete, who is a three time winner of the Herndon Super Sprint Triathlon, a USAT Triathlon All American and World Championship qualifier.  Mr. Landau is sponsoring the event in cooperation with the Virginia Trial Lawyers Law Foundation and Mr. Henry Tragle, an outstanding local triathlete and father of 2, who was injured on his bike.  Fortunately Mr. Tragle’s brain was protected by his helmet.  Mr. Tragle won this year’s Reston Sprint and was runner up at last month’s Reston Triathlon.

Doug Landau hopes to visit other Reston, Herndon and Oak Hill Virginia area schools in order to protect other students and prevent disabling and fatal head injuries to these young cyclists.  If you or someone you know or care for would like Mr. Landau to come to their school to discuss bike safety and traumatic brain injury, please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555).

Between gas prices being too high, cities funding bicycle lanes, and finding time to exercise; commuting via bicycle is looking better everyday.  Unfortunately for the fashionistas out there something which looks good doesn’t always “look”.  Many would-be cyclist are shying away from the idea because of hat-hair concerns or helmets clashing with outfits.  Now they can have another option which would give them the best of both “looks”.  Hövding, a Swedish company, has created a airbag helmet which is wore in a stylish collar.  The collar can detect an accident and will deploy a helmet shaped airbag.  The sensors are also smart enough to know the difference between a crash and everyday movement.  Though the most important feature is the removable shell which can come in an endless array of colors and patterns to match any outfit.  To check out the Hövding is action check out this test video.

If you would like to know more about helmet safety or the next event Herndon Law Shop will be at checking helmets contact us on our Facebook page.  If you have any legal question please fill out our contact form and we will respond promptly.

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) was created in 1972 with the purpose of protecting those in the USA “against unreasonable risks of injuries associated with consumer products.”  So it is sad to see Perfect Fitness try to hide a defective product for years from the CPSC, which could have created a more streamlined solution for customers.
In August Perfect Fitness was required to pay a civil penalty of $425,000.  The fine comes from their product Perfect Pullup, where in June 2008 the company discovered there was a defect in the handles.  In July 2008 they did issue a redesign to fix the problem but did not inform the CPSC.  The company waited until December 2010 at which point it was too late to claim ignorance and the CPSC was forced to take action.

If you have a legal question please contact us at The Herndon Law Shop.  If you don’t have a legal question and you want to ask a simple question or comment on something you seen from us check out our new Facebook page.

Bridgeway International has voluntarily recalled its product “NEXT”-branded men’s 26-inch hybrid bicycles, a hybrid bicycle. The recall is voluntary and will effect about 91,000 bicycles.  If you own one of these bikes or think you do please STOP USE IMMEDIATELY to confirm and then contact the company for a free repair.  The defect is in the chain of the bike and it could break without warning resulting in injury.  There have been 11 incidents, 9 of which ended in injury.  These bikes where sold from Walmart between February and July of this year.

If you have a legal question please contact us at Landau Law Shop.  If you don’t have a legal question and you want to ask a simple question or comment on something you seen from us check out our new Facebook page.