Landau Injury Law

Doug Landau of the Herndon law firm ABRAMS LANDAU and clients after Mediation in Richmond Virginia

As Deputy Commissioner Blevins pointed out in a recent presentation, successful Mediation depends on the parties’ willingness to negotiate in good faith towards a workable solution. This solution can be an agreement as to particular problems in the claim (like who will be the treating doctors) or settlement of the entire case. One of the other aspects of Mediation that many injured workers and their families do not understand is that the process is confidential. In other words, materials and communications during Mediation are not subject to disclosure in discovery or in any judicial or administrative proceeding, with limited exceptions. The purpose of Mediation is to identify the issues, clarify any misunderstandings, explore solutions and alternatives for resolution, and negotiate an agreement.

While the majority of the Virginia Workers Compensation Commission Mediations are scheduled for the purpose of reaching a full andy final settlement of the claim, almost any issue can be mediated. Plus, adds Herndon workplace injury lawyer Doug Landau, solutions outside of the workers compensation claim may be reached, such as “Global Settlements” where there is an on-the-job car crash or slip & fall case. Issues outside of the Workers Compensation Act that have been resolved in Mediations handled by the Herndon law firm ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., have included: Long Term Disability insurance coverage; repayment of the workers comp lien; Social Security Disability, sick, vacation and holiday leave repayment; subsequent claims; voluntary resignation; retirement; return of work equipment; and other issues to numerous to list here. If you or someone you know or care for has been injured on the job as the result of a car, truck, bicycle or motorcycle crash or slip and fall or dog bite attack and there are questions about what laws apply, e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555) at once.

Herndon workplace injury lawyer Doug Landau knows that Mediation can lead to the successful settlement of a difficult workers comp claim

Mediation of workplace accident cases has long been a “win-win” proposition. This form of “Atlernative Dispute Resolution” was offered free of charge and recommended for all kinds of disputes, from medical payment, to vocational rehabilitation to rules and procedures. The Virginia Lawyers Weekly October 18, 1999 headline read, “Mediating Workers’ Comp Claims – Commission promotes its new program.” When ABRAMS LANDAU lawyer Doug Landau of Herndon, Virginia, was interviewed for that front page article, he noted that the parties “will have another means of decision-making at their disposal.” However, after its introduction in 1999, the Commission cut back on staff, and the Herndon law firm saw very few, if any, workplace injury claims referred to the Mediation docket in the last 10 years.

This Fall Deputy Commissioner Blevins spoke to some of the best trial lawyers in Virginia about mediating workers comp claims. This able and experienced comp trial judge noted that 80% of mediated claims are resolved. Normally scheduled for (more…)

When the Loudoun Times-Mirror reported December 28, 2011 that a dangerous driver plead guilty to DUI and involuntary manslaughter in Loudoun County Circuit Court and that it was his “third DUI charge in five years,” car crash lawyer Doug Landau wondered how this man even had a license to drive BEFORE the fatal crash that killed his stepfather. Usually a Virginia driver will be assessed points as the result of a moving violation, in addition to a fine, court costs, and, in the case of drunk driving, ASAP (Alcohol Safety Action Program) attendance. Too many points, and the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (“DMV”) will (more…)

Getting a settlement in a permanent injury workers compensation case in Virginia can be very difficult.  There is no law that says that the workers comp insurance company EVER has to settle with the injured worker or their family, even if the claimant is permanently disabled.  This is true even if the disabled worker is receiving Social Security, retirement, Long Term Disability (“LTD”) benefits or even a pension due to an “early retirement” for “medical reasons.”

This can be very frustrating, as there are a number of very good reasons why an injured claimant (or the family in a fatal accident case) may want to settle a Virginia comp claim.  Litigating a comp claim over years, and even decades, (more…)

Our daughter Danielle Landau wrote the following about her most recent experience at Comfort Zone Camp:

Comfort Zone Camp ("CZC") volunteers from the University of Miami KKG sorority give generously of their time to work with grieving children who have lost a parent

As my little buddy and I watched the bright, beautiful flames take our messages up to our loved ones, we held each other close and cried until we felt a true release. To think we had only met earlier that day further exemplifies the impact two days with an incredible program can have on a child.

This past October I volunteered at Comfort Zone Camp (“CZC”) in Ocala, Florida, with two of my KKG sorority sisters. This weekend was my second CZC experience; Comfort Zone Camp is a nonprofit bereavement camp that provides a loving and accepting environment in which children can grieve their losses. Each trained volunteer, or big buddy, is paired with a child, their little buddy, to shadow and support during the weekend’s events. Little did I know when I first connected to CZC that it is supported by the Virginia Law Foundation, to which my father, Herndon trial lawyer, Douglas Landau contributes.  As my dad would say “Small world isn’t it?” (more…)

Because they are so hard to win, many so-called “personal injury” law firms do not handle, and certainly do not go to court and try “slip and fall” or “trip and fall” cases.  In these “premises liability claims, the injured victim must show “Notice” in the Commonwealth of Virginia.  I am reminded of a particular case we filed in Prince William County.  The 7-11 manager shouted “I told them to fix that month’s ago,” after my client, a nurse, had her shoe caught by a missing chunk of concrete that had been painted over in front of the convenience store.  As our client lay on the sidewalk, with her mouth bleeding and other injuries causing pain throughout her body, the manager’s words would not soon be forgotten.  Yet the 7-11 defense lawyers asserted that the nurse could not bring her personal injury case unless she could show:

• that their premises was dangerous (that there was some defect that could cause harm), AND
• that the store had NOTICE of this defect such that they had a reasonable amount of time to fix it, warn about it or replace it.

My client’s testimony as to the manager’s excited utterance showed that the store management KNEW and had notice as to the defect on their property.  The chunk of concrete that formed a “V” on the curb leading from the parking lot to the store entrance had not only been there for a significant period of time, but it had been painted over by the 7-11 maintenance crew !  So this ABRAMS LANDAU client was able to show that her case satisfied the “notice requirement” and would go to a jury.  The case settled before trial.  Proving “NOTICE” can be supported by:

• prior similar incidents in the past,
• work orders to repair the defect in the property,
• other, prior claims by people injured in a similar manner,
• statements by employees, managers, owners or others.

If you or someone you care for has been injured in a trip and fall, slip and fall or other injury caused by a dangerous building or other structure, let our Herndon law firm help you prove NOTICE and the other important aspects of your injury or disability case.  You may reach ABRAMS LANDAU by e-mail or by phone at 703-796-9555.

In keeping with our promise to enable injured workers and accident victims to “SEE US IN ACTION,” upcoming trials, cases, races and programs are set forth below.  You will not see this from any of the pusillanimous advertising lawyer.  In fact, we know of no other plaintiff’s personal injury law firm that has the courage to: (1) Encourage their clients to come to court BEFORE their trial to see their lawyer “in action,” and. (2) Actually publish the calendar of their public appearances, court cases, races and Continuing Legal Education programming.  But remember,

                 Always call the day before you come to see us in action !  

Cases set on a court’s schedule can be cancelled (like when the storms struck in September !), continued, postponed, settled, re-scheduled for mediation or arbitration.  So, always call our office the day before you want to come and watch to make sure the insurance company has not paid for the losses caused by the negligent defendant or unsafe employer at “the 24th hour.”  Your time is valuable.  We do not want any client, family member, friend or neighbor to make a wasted trip.  Doug Landau has even encouraged people to observe other cases that are not from the Herndon Reston law firm ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., when there is little time before a client’s own Hearing or trial.

Recently, several disabled clients with Workers Compensation, Personal Injury and Social Security Disability cases from Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William Counties, Virginia came to see a contested case where the defense relied upon weeks of surveillance videotaping of lawyer Landau’s disabled client.  These courageous clients were able to learn many things that will help them focus on their own cases when their turn comes to go to court.  All agreed that the experience was invaluable.  More than just a “Court house tour,” these meetings with Doug Landau AT THE COURT after an actual trial enable for a “Question and Answer” session while the case is still fresh in everyone’s minds.  Doug Landau wishes that all personal injury, workers compensation and Social Security Disability lawyers would encourage their clients to attend hearings and trials well in advance of their own “day in court.”  To that end, here are some upcoming dates:

Date               Place    Case, Race &/or Program

12/8/2011     Washington, D.C. Social Security Administration Disability program computer training for claimants’ counsel
Trial Lawyers of Washington, D.C. (“TLA-DC”) Annual Charity Fundraiser, the University Club, N.W.
12/9/2011    Loudoun County Circuit Court, Leesburg, Virginia, monitor Appeal by motorist convicted of attacking cyclists
12/11/2011    Washington, D.C., Freedom Plaza Jingle Bell 8km race, team competition, for Habitat for Humanity
12/15/2011    Fairfax Courthouse, monitor Traffic Court trial for several clients permanently injured in Northern Virginia car crash
1/09/2012    Virginia Workers Compensation Commission, no cost Mediation in Manassas for permanently disabled auto mechanic
1/17/2012    Fairfax, Virginia, Workers Compensation Commission evidentiary Hearing, Prosperity Plaza on Hamaker Court
2/9-15/2012    American Association for Justice, (formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America) Winter Convention, Phoenix, AZ
3/30-4/2/2012    Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Annual Convention, The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia
4/16/2012    Spotsylvania, Virginia Hearing before senior Deputy Commissioner (RSD or CRPS as a “compensable consequence”)

Underage drinking and driving has caused harm to Herndon lawyer Doug Landau's injured clients These innocent victims are sometimes frustrated by the fact that evidence of alcohol impairment is not allowed to go to the jury by a Virginia judge

How we talk at a barber shop and how we are allowed to talk in court are, at times, completely different.  When we argue with friends, almost anything can come in to the discussion.  However, in court, there are rules that control what evidence is allowed and what information is not permitted.  Sometimes negligence law—the law that typically applies when you sue someone after a car crash—can seem a bit unfair. Take, for example, the case of someone who was hit by a driver under the age of 21 who had been drinking. Even the police accident report includes details about the under-age drinker’s admissions about having a beer. Maybe they had more than one or two, but there was no breathalyzer, blood or field sobriety testing because the victim’s massive injuries required all of the law enforcement personnel’s attention.  But now you are at trial and the judge will not let those facts into evidence. Why not??

There are actually two reasons, and they are related to one another.

First, when you sue someone (more…)

With our last several cases involving unsafe drivers with limited insurance and assets, I am reaching out to all of our clients to review their personal insurance coverages and to make sure that they, and their loved ones, are protected this holiday season.  In several cases, the harms were many hundreds of thousands of dollars, but the cases had to settle for $50-100,000, because that’s all the insurance available, an there was no ability to collect any additional money to pay for the losses caused by the unsafe drivers.  And it’s not just car crash cases.  In slip and fall, dog bite, bicycle accident and animal attack cases has all resulted in reduced compensation because the Defendants (and sometimes the innocent victims themselves) have minimal insurance coverage.  Unlike shopping for presents, shopping for and purchasing insurance can be a daunting task. Insurance by its very definition is intended to provide you security when the unknown and unexpected happens. So when you are purchasing insurance, it is often very difficult to know what type of coverage, and how much coverage you need. In the midst of the confusion surround insurance, one type of insurance that often gets thrown around is “umbrella insurance”. What exactly is it? And who needs it?

Umbrella insurance is (more…)

Pay for plenty of parking BEFORE going upstairs to your Social Security Disability Hearing in Washington, D.C. advises Herndon disability lawyer Doug Landau. You can do this online or at the underground lot to the right

Injured, disabled, rejected by the Federal Government – these conditions do not make for a happy person.  An unhappy client is not a good thing.  So, when a woman disabled by spinal stenosis after a terrible car crash came to the Landau Law Shop to help with her Social Security Disability claim, we had our work cut out for us.

This widowed mother of 2 was unhappy because the lawyer she had hoped would help her with her car crash case settled the case for an amount that did not come close to compensating her for all the harms and losses she sustained.  This lawyer, who advertises heavily, did not take the case to trial, (more…)