Landau Injury Law

Sometimes lawyers take on cases that they are not equipped, staffed or experienced to take.  We represent a cyclist who was struck by a car.  He originally retained a Loudoun County lawyer for his personal injury case.  That lawyer, David Young of the Leesburg law firm Ault & Young, was given records, bills, exhibits and other evidence in order to submit the claim and settle the crash injury claim with the defendant driver’s car insurance company.  However, as we see all too often, the Leesburg lawyer did not have the ability to properly bring the case forward; he and his staff did not return the injured cyclist’s telephone calls, and the two year time limit for such a personal injury case in Virginia was soon to run.

The cyclist called our Herndon Virginia law firm, and we tried to call, e-mail, write and fax this lawyer and law firm.  As we tell all similar callers, we told the injured victim we could not represent him while already had counsel for the case.  Yet with the time limit (“statute of limitations”) running and no word or proof of any work or investment by the so-called Loudoun County personal injury lawyer, the cyclist fired his original counsel and cyclist lawyer Doug Landau stepped in, filed the lawsuit to save (more…)

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…)

Herndon Virginia car crash lawyer Doug Landau recommends that you consult a lawyer BEFORE giving insurance adjusters, investigators or other non-law enforcement personnel any taped or written statements

The warning, “Anything you say, can be used against you in court…” seems forgotten by most people who call the Landau Law Shop after a car or bicycle crash. While assisting the police in their law enforcement duties is laudable, helping an insurance company gather statements that they can use to deny your claim seems counterproductive. In the days and weeks following an injury-producing car accident, you will likely be in frequent communication with your insurance company (more…)

A good trial lawyer for bike crash cases actually tries injury cases, supports trial lawyer associations, has published results and also rides a bicycle regularly, even one with a basket !

Just as being a good trial lawyer does not make me a good cyclist, being a strong cyclist does not automatically make one a terrific trial lawyer for injured bikers’ crash cases.  I was sent information about a local lawyer who is supposedly a plaintiff’s personal injury trial lawyer and a Washington DC area bicycle accident victims’ advocate.  Yet, when I did not recognize the name, I looked to find his number in the Virginia Trial Lawyers directory, as VTLA is the group that lobbies for injured victims in Richmond, educates lawyers and the public, and helped me to distribute free helmets to school children.  This lawyer was not listed as a member.  So I looked in the Trial Lawyers Association of DC directory, as Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax County are near the District of Columbia, and many good trial lawyers belong to both Virginia AND the DC trial lawyers associations in order to promote, and give voice to, their disabled clients’ stories.  Again, not listed.  So I (more…)

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…)

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.

With no referee in sight, cowardly DC, Virginia & Maryland truck & car drivers feel they can injure bikers with impunity

Road rage, rude drivers, people in a hurry in the DC metro area have exposed all of us to unsafe actions on local roads and Interstate Highways in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.  The helmet camera recording of a truck driver riding a biker off the road and then driving off should give everyone pause.  The actual crash video can be seen on YouTube (Caution: harsh language).

What the driver did was dangerous.  No one can seriously argue otherwise, since he saw the bicycle commuter, who was riding to the motorist’s left at a speed slower that the cars around him, in broad daylight, yelled at him and then pushed him over into the asphalt.  But Herndon bike injury lawyer Doug Landau also adds, “what the driver behind the wheel, and in the safety of his truck, demonstrated, is that he is not any an unsafe driver, but a coward as well. A truck is essentially a small tank.  Against a small tank, a bicycle has no chance in any impact at speed.  Any driver who uses his truck, car or motorcycle as a weapon, should lose their license to operate any motorized vehicle for a very long time.”   If you or someone you know or care for has been injured as the result of a bike crash (or “near miss”) with a truck, car or motorcycle and there are questions about what laws apply, e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555) at once, as Virginia, Maryland and DC have legal time limits for these cases.

Weehoo iGo Bicycle Pedal Trailers

On September 13 Weehoo announced a recall of one of its products, an attachable children’s seat for a bicycle called the “Weehoo iGo Bicycle Pedal Trailers”.  Fortunately, there have been no major injures and any owner of the product can contact the manufacture (800-538-6950 or Weehoo’s Website)for the repair piece, but please discontinue use immediately.  Also, report any injuries sustained if you have experienced a failure in the product as described in the recall report.  This decision was voluntarily made by the company after it was discovered that one of the connecting pieces could crack and break from the bicycle which could result in harm to the child.

For more information regarding this recall please consult the following article.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding injures of any kind and would like legal advice please don’t hesitate to contact us at The Herndon Law Shop or call at 703-796-9555