Just about everyone knows or has heard about the infamous McDonald’s hot coffee lawsuit. What they do not know are the “real” facts about the case.

“I can say without any reservations that the McDonald’s hot coffee case that involved burns to Stella Leibeck was not frivolous. Any time a victim suffers third degree burns the way she did, and takes over a year to recover from catastrophic injuries like that, the case is not frivolous, it was not inconsequential nor should it be the butt of tasteless jokes from people that do not know the details of the case,” stated Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

To start with, McDonald’s knew they were serving coffee hot enough to burn the skin off a person. Stella Liebeck was not the only person to have suffered severe burns. Hundreds of other customers had suffered mild to severe burns from hot coffee prior to Ms. Liebeck’s incident. McDonalds was aware of those incidents because they had paid money to settle many of their claims. Ms. Liebeck’s burns peeled the skin off her legs just in the ankle area and her inner thighs.

The pain was excruciating, and she needed extensive medical care, thus incurring enormous medical costs. Anyone who has a chance to see the pictures of her injuries (just Google Stella Liebeck pictures) will never again laugh when they think about this case. While the concept of being burnt by hot coffee may seem funny, the third degree, deep and ugly burns that took over a year to heal were not.

“I don’t often suggest that someone watch a video or movie, but in this instance, I strongly recommend you take the time to watch the ‘true’ story about this case in the HBO documentary “Hot Coffee”. The movie premieres on HBO on June 27, 2011. See this website – http://hotcoffeethemovie.com/?tr=y&auid=8502273 Its message is loud and clear; that this personal injury case (along with the others in the short documentary) are not taken to court for the ‘fun’ of it. They are taken to a jury, because the victim has suffered untold agony, injury and loss and the party that caused the injuries has refused to accept full responsibility. While the website is a preview of the documentary, you should be able to find the episode online at HBO.com,” said Lee.

The Stella Liebeck case was wrongly labeled as a frivolous to make the public think lawyers take silly cases to court for no other reason than because they can. Many also think the lawyer is only motivated by the potential to make big bucks by going to court. That is not the reason these cases go to trial. Cases like Ms. Leibecks go to court because the victim deserves compensation for their pain, suffering, medical bills, lost wages, disfigurement, impairment, and the defendant refuses to accept full responsibility for their carelessness.

“Remember, the ‘jury’ in this case made the determination that McDonald’s knowingly served coffee hot enough to burn skin off someone, if it was spilled on them. The key word here is ‘knowingly’ and they did so even in spite of clear evidence that other customers had been burned,” Lee explained.

As a result of Ms. Leibeck’s lawsuit, McDonald’s lowered the temperature of their coffee to a safe level. They still serve it plenty hot, just not dangerously hot. This has prevented others from suffering similar horrible burn injuries like Ms. Leibeck. Making products safe is one of the greatest things a lawsuit can accomplish. Lawsuits have forced reluctant companies to make their products safe for consumers or stop selling them if they can’t make them safe.

Examples of products made safer, or taken off the market, as the result of lawsuits include: baby cribs, child toys, lead paint, asbestos, 4-wheeler ATVs, automobiles (air bags, seatbelts, roof strength, fuel systems), tires, the Ford Pinto, cigarettes, cigarette lighters, medications, medication bottles, flammable pajamas, child car seats, trampolines, swimming pools, spas & hot tubs, peanut butter, airplanes, electric fans, electric outlets, fireworks, Christmas tree lights, etc. The list goes on and on.

Was justice truly served in the McDonald’s hot coffee case? “I would say it was. Stella Leibeck suffered horribly, and not once, but twice; once, as a victim of scalding hot coffee that caused third degree burns, and for the second time, when people treated her pain and agony as something funny. It was anything but funny, and anything but frivolous,” Lee commented.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

The drunk driver in this case killed a toddler and seriously injured three others. Drinking and driving kills.

“This case never should have happened. But thanks to a drunk driver who thought he could handle driving his car while inebriated, this devastating wreck killed a little boy one week shy of his first birthday. Three others in this collision were also seriously injured,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

It is cases just like this one that make people wonder just how tough the DUI laws are where they live. All too often the driver manages to beat the system and is let loose to keep drinking and driving, despite what they state at their time of their arrest, processing, fine payment stage and perhaps even in jail. The plain and simple truth is that if the drunk driver does not get serious help for his or her addiction, accidents just like this one will happen again.

“In this reported case, a lone vehicle was heading south on the interstate when the driver lost control of the car, slamming into a guard rail. The police chalked this awful wreck up to alcohol, after they found the littlest passenger dead at the scene. Three other children were ejected on impact and none of them was wearing a seat belt or any type of restraint,” Lee said.

EMS crews rushed the three kids, in serious to critical condition, to the nearest children’s hospital. Two adults were also taken for medical care, as both of them were in serious condition. The drunk driver was taken to a different hospital. A 6-year-old boy was still in critical condition the day after the accident and two young girls, ages three and four, were listed in good condition. “DUI charges were pending against the driver when he got out of the hospital or recovered enough to understand the charges against him,” Lee said.

Unfortunately, in this instance, two adults made a decision to ride in a car with a drunk driver, and take their children along too. Typically, many juries do not view cases like this as favorably as two vehicle crashes, largely because there was an element of choice involved. “However, there were kids involved in this mess, and they will need compensation to pay for their medical bills, as will the other two adults in serious to critical condition,” Lee said.

This will likely be a tough case for the victims, largely because they may be related in some way to the drunk driver. Suing one’s own family is never easy, but with insurance money on the table, this would help the victims out. “Never settle a case like this by just dealing with insurance companies,” insisted Lee. “For this kind of a complex case, you will need the experience of a knowledgeable Austin personal injury lawyer. If you want fair compensation, it is my job to get it for you.”

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Construction sites can be dangerous places. This story about a woman, killed by falling equipment on a construction site, is an example of safety issues and their deadly consequences.

“In this instance, a 58-year-old woman was struck and killed by metal scaffolding that fell off a forklift. Although someone on site who saw the falling metal structure called out to warn her to move, she was unable to get out of the way fast enough. Although she was alive when she got to hospital, she died shortly after arriving,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

This reported case did not indicate if the woman was a construction worker or a passerby. The distinction would be that if she were a worker, she would likely not be able to sue her employer if she was receiving workers’ compensation, but may be able to sue a third party contractor. “If the woman was not an employee working at the location, her family would likely be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit,” Lee said.

As it turned out, the police report indicated that the woman was working for a subcontractor for a circus company, which was renting the arena where the accident took place. OSHA indicated it would be launching a workplace investigation to find out if safety precautions were followed and why the scaffolding fell off the forklift. The answers to those questions may well indicate what level of negligence there was present when this woman was killed.

“These are tough cases, and usually very complex, largely due to the potential number of people involved in such a suit. Those would range from insurance companies to contractors and from other workers to sub-contractors. Certainly, these are not cases that are quickly resolved, as there is an enormous amount of evidence to sift through and the degree of fault on whose part also needs to be sorted out,” Lee said.

Typically, accidents that happen on construction sites end up being devastating for the worker involved, largely because they may not be able to sue their employer. Take the case of a man so badly burnt on the job that he would never be able to live a normal life again, and would be dogged by pain every day from the burn scars. He could not sue his employer as he received compensation. His only recourse was to try and sue the maker of the valve that let go and sprayed him with scalding oil.

“If you have been in a situation like this, or injured on the job, don’t think that you have no options, because there are ways to help you. That is what I am here for and would be pleased to talk to you about your case. It’s my mission to help you get compensation that you deserve, and I am well known to go the extra mile for my clients. I look forward to talking to you,” Lee said.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Death by fire is a horrible way to die, and this story involves the death of a mother and her two children, horribly burnt in a massive inferno at their home.

“This is a bizarre story that may well involve murder, but there is still not enough evidence to proceed on. A deadly house fire engulfed the residence of a Texarkana woman, while she was home with her two children, an 8-year-old and an 11-year-old. By all reports, the oldest child was pulled out of the fire by grandparents, but the child died or was dead at the scene. The police and fire Marshal will be investigating the situation further,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

There are rumors swirling that the bodies found in the burnt out shell of the house were already dead prior to the fire, which may also suggest that the fire was set deliberately to obliterate evidence. This will be a tough investigation for authorities as most of the clues, if not all of them, will have gone up in smoke. The coroner will conduct autopsies to determine actual cause of death.

“This case demonstrates another real concern for all of us; home fires. There are far more than we might realize and many of them tend to involve kids and either badly burn them or snuff out their lives. Unfortunately, it’s the children who usually stand to lose the most in a house fire,” Lee said. The frightening thing is that a fire could break out at any time, without warning, and do deadly damage to those in its way. Fire plays no favorites.

“Typically, when there has been a fire like this one, the state fire marshal will be assigned to investigate the fire scene to determine if the fire may have been the result of arson. If the fire marshal rules out arson, their investigation ends. Due to budget constraints, they usually won’t spend tax dollars conducting further investigations to determine the exact cause of the fire. What that means is if the cause of a fire was a defective electrical device, such as a heater or fan, much like the Lasko fans that have been recalled recently, the fire marshal won’t make that determination. They only look for evidence of a crime such as arson,” Lee said.

What does that mean for a family who has lost loved ones? “It means they need to seek experienced legal counsel who can hire a private expert fire investigator to determine the cause and origin of the fire,” Lee said. While it does shock many fire survivors to know that the fire department will only pursue an investigation if they suspect arson, they still have an alternative route available to them by speaking to skilled legal counsel.

If a fire has destroyed a home, taken a life or lives, and a private fire investigator determines the fire was caused by a faulty product, the family has the right to file a personal injury product liability/wrongful death lawsuit. “If you’re in a situation like this, don’t hesitate to call my office. I have extensive experience handling fire cases and should you choose to hire me, you get effective and aggressive representation to protect you and your legal rights,” Lee said.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

This horrific accident showcases how seemingly harmless architectural embellishments have the potential to cause serious harm.

“This reported case is a real heartbreaker, largely because it involves a toddler and also because it was completely unexpected. The young lad slipped though a gap between the floor and a window, falling 13 feet to the ground,” explained Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

The 19-month-old was at a university with his dad and his two other siblings. They were taking a look at a local spectacular pond, famous for reflecting the buildings and scenery around it. The unthinkable happened, as the young boy slid through the open gap, left from a glass wall that did not meet the floor. Thirteen feet later, the toddler landed on the ground and sustained serious injuries, one of which was a fractured skull.

“The boy will also need several rounds of plastic surgery to repair damage to his face. Although the prognosis is good, he will have a long road to recovery. In the meantime, the university began an inspection of all of its buildings, with an eye open for any more dangerous locations, such as this one. They made the balcony where the family was standing when the accident happened safer by installing plexiglass over the gap,” Lee said.

An excellent response on the part of the university, however, the family will need to recover medical and other expenses in order to pay for the care for their young son. They would be best advised to speak to a qualified personal injury lawyer in order to find out what their rights are, what the next step would be, should they choose to file a lawsuit and what to expect when the case went to settlement or to court.

“This is my job. I help people who have been hurt as the result of negligence of others. In this instance, a jury may well consider the gap between the glass and the floor to be a negligent oversight. Adults are not the only ones who go to universities to sightsee and having a young child along is to be reasonably expected,” Lee said.

What could the family in this instance recover? “They would likely be able to recover compensation for the medical bills and therapy, plus any expenses for long-term care while the boy was recovering. The plastic surgery would also be an added expense, not to mention pain and suffering and possible issues with disfigurement,” Lee said.

For those who have been in a personal injury accident like this one, or if something else has happened to cause serious injuries, make the first phone call for legal advice to a seasoned Austin personal injury lawyer. Justice is their domain and they are able to help injured victims the compensation they deserve.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Head injuries are all too common in motorcycle accidents. A warning system would help.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas. “The possibility of a motorcycle warning system that has the potential to reduce the number of wrecks on the road today. This would be, without a doubt, a godsend to many bikers, as they are highly vulnerable to getting severe and catastrophic injuries affecting their spine and heads.”

The latest news is that Giuseppe Mileto has invented a device that could forever change the accident statistics involving bikers.

“It’s so simple, you’d wonder why it had not been thought of before,” Lee said. “The system, dubbed the Motorcycle Warning System, is an alarm that goes off the instant a motorcycle and car are too close to each other. There is also a warning light to alert the driver.”

While this device may sound too basic to be true, it is boasts some very complicated and highly developed technology. Once this system has been installed by a biker, car or even truck driver, it is capable of sensing if a rider moves into the driver’s danger zone. If that happens, the alarm goes off.

“This system makes a whole lot of sense,” Lee said, “as a large percentage of motorcycle wrecks happen because other vehicles don’t see or know or pay attention to who else is sharing the road with them. Since motorcycles can be obliterated from view by just holding up a finger in the right location, this alarm may serve to sound a warning early enough to prevent a crash.”

Fewer crashes mean fewer injuries, and not such a high body count, which can only be a good thing in the biking community.

“If this system works the way it is intended to work, the fatalities may well drop, as will the number of accidents. This isn’t to say that there still won’t be accidents involving a biker and their ride, because there likely will be. If you have been involved in an up close and personal confrontation with a car and lost, give my office a call. We understand where you are coming from and can help you secure the personal injury compensation you will need to get on with your life,” Lee said.

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

People like to think that when something bad happens to good people that there is justice at the end of the day. That is not always the case.

“In this disturbing case, justice is missing. It has taken a hike and gone someplace else. And the victim? The victim is the one who will suffer for the greed of others and they inclination to turn a blind eye to human suffering,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

This story is about a man in his late 40s who was a skilled contract pipefitter who knew what he was doing. He had worked in Texas refineries for over 20 years and earned a good living for his wife and child. Things were going well at work until one day when the man and a coworker were getting the crude unit ready for a chemical wash. They were both up on a scaffold when a nipple, measuring three-quarters of an inch by 17 inches, gave away. In breaking loose from the heat exchanger, it blew oil heated to 550 degrees over both men.

The man’s coworker made it off the scaffold with burns on his head, neck and back. The man himself was stuck in his safety harness and seared on his arms, hands and head. When he was finally cut down, he was taken to the nearest hospital for immediate medical attention.

Over the course of three years, the man needed 11 surgeries to rebuild his chin by taking skin from his thighs and chest. He can no longer close his right eye because of scar tissue, and he cannot regulate his body temperature. His life is virtually over, as he can no longer do what he used to do, including work.

“He is in pain every single day. And those are the physical ramifications of his accident. The financial ramifications are even more insulting and cut deeper than the unbearable pain he lives with constantly,” Lee said.

This man has been lost in the cracks of protections for workers injured on the job. He has over $200,000 in medical bills to deal with and his only income is a very small workers’ compensation check. He is about out of money and has nowhere else to turn, because the law in Texas says he cannot sue his employer at the time of the accident.

“He cannot sue because the company provided workers’ compensation coverage. This scenario is further complicated by a Texas court decision that a Texas property owner is considered to be his or her own ‘general contractor.’ This means they are protected from lawsuits if they provide worker’s compensation to their ‘subcontractors.’ In this case, the main employer at the time of the accident did provide workers’ comp,” Lee said.

The landscape of fairness and equity and justice for all radically changed for workers in 2007, when the Supreme Court decided unanimously that premises owners were shielded from liability. This decision sounds suspiciously close to the reasons why there are medical malpractice damage caps in some states to protect doctors who make medical errors.

“The nine judges who rendered their unanimous decision have received close to $1.2 million in the form of campaign contributions from the oil/gas industry,” Lee said. This information is available to anyone wanting to read more by finding the data compiled by the National Institute on Money in State Politics. “Also consider this: that virtually one-fifth of all refineries in the U.S. are in Texas,” he said.

If the law is not changed, there will be no justice for workers in situations like this man. They will bear the brunt of a ruined life due to a workplace accident they had no control over. They will be financially destitute because no one can sue the property owners. Where is justice for Texas workers?

To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Workplace accidents are usually the result of someone’s negligence. This case is no exception.

“It’s disheartening to hear of accident on the job that results in the premature death of someone who had their whole life ahead of them. This case was disturbing in that a 30-year-old man was ground into an auger when he was working on it,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

The man was working on the auger, an underground affair for grinding up pistachios, when somehow it started to run. He was shredded alive by the blades. When firefighters arrived, they had to remove his body parts from the equipment and try to determine how the auger started up when he was working on it.

Police on the scene wanted to know if the auger was defective, if someone did not follow safety procedures and turn the machine off while it was being worked on or if someone hit the on switch by mistake, without checking to see if someone was near it. “The incident will most definitely be investigated further to get to the bottom of this needless fatality,” Lee said.

The dead man’s family will have some difficult choices to make as they try and move forward with their lives. They lost the main breadwinner and the financial shock will be significant. How will the family cope economically, mentally and emotionally with this situation?

One solution for this family would be to contact a skilled and highly trained Austin personal injury attorney; one with a track record handling wrongful death cases and one who will aggressively represent the family in obtaining a fair settlement or court verdict.

“An Austin personal injury attorney that knows what the family is facing and how to help them through the process of grieving and obtaining financial compensation for the loss of their family member,” Lee said.

“My office has significant experience in this area and we would be honored to help assist a family needing to discuss a wrongful death case. We understand it is difficult and we offer you the dedication and loyalty you need at a terrible time in your life. It’s my job to help you get what you deserve, should you choose our firm to represent you,” Lee said.
To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Driving while drunk is illegal. It is just that simple. And yet, the number of drunk driving deaths continues to creep up every year.

“There are a number of states that have zero tolerance laws when it comes to drinking and driving. That may involve staggering fines, suspended licenses, jail and perhaps community time. And yet, people keep drinking and driving, largely because they think the law does not apply to them, that they don’t have a drinking problem and that they can handle whatever they do drink. Wrong,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.

Drunk driving deaths are not to be dismissed, as they are an aberration that do not need to happen. For those that survive a collision with a DUI driver, they typically face significant medical difficulties and financial hardship. While there is no real way to measure what a victim has lost, they may face life-altering injuries that will never heal and leave them they way they were prior to an accident.

“Victims may be paralyzed, suffer from traumatic brain injuries, skull fractures, crushed bones, multiple fractures, internal organ damage, amputations, severe air bag burns, severe whiplash and/or death. Hardly something that anyone would want to have happen to their life, but, people still insist on drinking and driving, and the damages and wrecked lives still continue to mount, each and every year,” Lee said.

For those who have been involved in a crash with a drunk driver, there is a way to ensure compensation: hire a competent Austin personal injury lawyer. “Most people who have been in a horrendous collision face long roads to recovery that may include months or years of therapy to regain even a modicum of normal movement. They may be on pain medications for the rest of their lives and for certain, they face grave financial difficulties as well. For instance, mounting medical and therapy bills, loss of future income and the potential to earn and lost wages,” Lee said.

For drunk driving cases that go to court, the defendant may find himself or herself facing punitive damages; damages handed out to punish the drunk responsible for the accident. Punitive damages, if they are awarded, are added on top of any compensatory damages the victim may recover.

“The bottom line is this: people still drink and drive and there is not much you can do to control that or avoid it if you happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. If you have been seriously hurt, call my office and we will review the circumstances of your accident. That’s what I do; help you get compensation to continue on with your life,” Lee said.
To learn more, visit http://www.rwleelaw.com.

Robert Lee was recently quoted in a front page article in the Austin American Statesman. Below is an excerpt of the story.

By Mary Ann Roser
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Liens often are much higher than what hospital would normally be paid for services, lawyers charge.

To this day, Jean Bogardus of Austin doesn’t know what hit her.

She was walking in the parking lot of the Onion Creek Country Club on Feb. 7, 2007, when she was run over by a vehicle, leaving her right leg broken in three places.

“I think it was an SUV,” Bogardus, 77, said recently, “but it all happened so fast.”

At University Medical Center Brackenridge, she had surgery and went home two days later in a wheelchair with rods and pins in her leg. The hospital said her care cost $31,115. Bogardus figured Medicare, her health insurer, would pay.

But instead of billing Medicare, the hospital filed a lien against Bogardus, staking a claim to part of any settlement she might seek from the driver’s insurance company. That meant, if Bogardus was awarded a settlement, the hospital would get paid first.

Personal injury lawyers and some patient advocates say hospital liens — which have been permitted by Texas law since the 1930s — by themselves are not bad. It makes sense for hospitals to try to get paid, they said. But they see hospitals abusing liens by seeking drastically higher payments from accident victims than they would otherwise get.

Read the full story at statesman.com: