|
Rich Ruohonen
Curling Champ
Pritzker | Ruohonen & Associates, P.A. attorney Rich Ruohonen and his teammates on Team Brown - Craig Brown, John Dunlop and Pete Annis - won the 2008 USA Curling National Championship at the Hibbing Curling Club in February. Team Brown then went on to compete in the World Championships in April in Grand Forks, North Dakota and represented the United States of America as Team USA. After an exciting 11-game round robin, Team Brown finished tied for 6th place, just out of the medal hunt. It was an up and down week for Team Brown as they beat three of the final four teams, including the bronze medal (Norway) and silver medal (Scotland) teams, but unfortunately lost to some teams they needed to beat to have a chance at the playoffs.
Next year is the most important year of Rich's 25-year curling career. You see, next year is the Olympics playdown year. If Rich's team repeats as National Champions again next February, they will not only represent the U.S. in the 2009 World Championships but will also be the 2010 Team USA Olympic team in Vancouver, British Columbia. Rich is excited about this possibility; "Obviously, it is going to be tough to repeat, but we can do it. It was great making the World Championships this year, but our ultimate and long term goal was to be the 2010 Olympic team. That would be a dream come true! We are going to play a tough schedule next year to get ready, and we have already begun training for next year, so we can be ready to make a run at this Olympic dream."
Rich would also like to extend a special thanks to all his clients, his co-workers at his firm, and especially Fred and Renee Pritzker for their support and understanding while he was and is away from his job as an attorney competing at this level. Rich would also like to thank all of his team's sponsors, the USOC and USCA for their financial support.
|
Therapist Abuse Settlement
 Elliot Olsen recently settled a claim on behalf of a victim of sexual abuse by her male psychologist. The victim is a young woman in her early 20's who began seeing the therapist to help her deal with the emotional aftermath of an amicable yet painful divorce. Almost immediately, the therapy sessions turned flirtatious, with the therapist quickly confessing his emotional and physical attraction to the woman. Over the ensuing months, the relationship became more involved. After several more months, the therapist terminated the counseling relationship but continued to see the woman outside of his office. Eventually, the therapist had sexual intercourse with her. The case was recently settled for a confidential, yet substantial sum. Commenting on these types of cases, Olsen said, "It is very common for a victim to avoid bringing a claim against a therapist, or even reporting the therapist, because of the victim's powerful belief that they were a willing participant in the relationship." Nothing could be further from the truth. Because of the vulnerability of the victim, according to Olsen, the law in almost every state protects the victim and makes such contact actionable in a court of law for money damages. Olsen hopes that cases such as this will help women realize that they are not willing participants in their sexual relationships with the church priest, psychiatrist, or therapist and that they have valid legal recourse.
| |
|
|
Pritzker | Ruohonen Newsletter
Summer 2008
|
Greetings!
We hope you enjoy the second online edition of our firm newsletter. If you have not signed up to receive our bi-monthly newsletter, please click below. |
 |
 Surveillance,
Privacy,
and the Internet |
|
The internet offers an unprecedented amount of easy-to-access information at little to no cost. As lawyers, we depend on it for legal, scientific, technical, and medical research. We also use it to find information about the insurance companies and the corporate wrongdoers against whom so many of our claims are brought.
But just as we are investigating "them," they are looking at you, our clients.
Before the internet, and continuing to this day, insurance companies were free to conduct surveillance on people claiming injury. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it usually consists of video surveillance. Insurance companies are hoping to capture on camera accident survivors doing something that shows they are not really injured or that they are capable of doing something that under oath they said they cannot do. Successfully done, this kind of undercover evidence has a powerful impact on juries. Our message to our clients: Be scrupulously honest. Do not say or do anything that you would be embarrassed to see in a video shown to jurors.
Far more frequent and far less expensive than clandestine surveillance is another tool increasingly used by insurers: examining sites like Facebook, My Space, Friendster, or Second Life to find anything that puts you in a negative light or shows you doing something you claim you no longer do because of your injuries.
In order to assist you, we need to be aware of electronic data or surveillance that could negatively impact your case. Therefore, here are some things to remember about surveillance and internet postings:
- Be honest. Don't do or say anything about the accident or your injuries that is inconsistent with the truth.
- Tell us about the bad stuff - don't try to hide it. In all likelihood it's not as bad as you think and with enough notice, we can minimize the negative consequences of whatever it is.
- Know that your social networking pages are going to be scrutinized. Do not post anything that will put you in a bad light or that will embarrass you in days, months, or years to come.
- If you have fears or concerns about these issues, let us know. It's much easier to deal with these issue before they are used against you.
|
|
|
|
Medical Malpractice
For a number of reasons, medical malpractice cases are time consuming, expensive and difficult to win. First, insurance companies representing doctors are good at screening cases and settle those that have merit. Second, the public perception of doctors remains very positive. Juries do not like to find against doctors unless fault is  clear and egregious. Third, the lawyers representing physicians are very skilled and experienced (and they have the advantage of representing smart people who have strong incentive to cooperate in their own defense).
For all of these reasons, lawyers like us who represent people injured by medical negligence carefully screen cases to make sure they are strong and have a good chance of success.
All of this is illustrated by a medical malpractice case we recently resolved on behalf of 21 year-old man who sustained severe and permanent injuries as a result of the failure of orthopedic surgeons to diagnose and treat a crippling joint condition, septic arthritis.
Our client presented to the hospital eight days following knee surgery with an acutely painful and swollen left knee. Within 24 hours of his admission, his temperature spiked to 38.5º C. This should have alerted his doctors to the presence of a knee joint infection. Once suspected, fluid from the joint should have been withdrawn and tested and if positive for infection, proper treatment consisting of surgery and antibiotics was required.
In this case, despite two separate hospitalizations to evaluate the patient's intense pain, the proper tests were not ordered and the correct diagnosis was not made. It was only when the patient's family insisted on a second opinion from another hospital that the correct diagnosis was finally made. By then, the damage to the knee joint was so severe that several reconstructive and cosmetic surgeries were necessary. The young man is left with a partially destroyed knee joint, a horribly disfigured leg, and the prospect of knee replacement at a young age.
The case was settled shortly before trial for $950,000. This represents one of the largest recoveries for a case involving failure to diagnose septic arthritis. P & R lawyers Fred Pritzker and Elliot Olsen represented the young man and his family.
|
|
BICYCLE SAFETY |
|
|
 Bicycles are considered vehicles. Bicyclists must obey the same laws as motorists. It is important to obtain and carefully review your state's drivers' handbook to safely operate your bicycle. You need to know how to signal your moves and keep a well-maintained bicycle.
Bicycling Statistics
-
In the United States, the "typical" bicyclist killed is a sober male, over 16 years of age, not wearing a helmet, biking on a major road, during the summer, between 5 and 9 p.m.
-
There are approximately 80 million bicyclists in the U.S.
-
Reportedly, 95% of bicyclists killed in 2006 were not wearing any protective headgear.
-
More than 500,000 bicyclists visit emergency rooms with injuries every year -70,000 with head injuries.
-
Nearly 800 bicyclists died on U.S. roads in 2006 - about 600 of those deaths were from traumatic brain injury.
-
Approximately one-third of the fatalities involved alcohol.
-
Direct costs of bicyclists' injuries, due to failure to wear a helmet, are estimated at $80 million per year; the indirect costs are estimated at more than $2 billion.
Safety Guidelines
-
Wear a helmet every time you ride your bicycle.
-
Obey traffic rules and laws. (eg. ride with the traffic, yield to pedestrians, and stop at stop signs/red lights)
-
Wear bright clothing during the daytime and reflective clothing at night.
-
Buy a quality helmet and wear it every time you ride.
-
Keep your hands on your handlebars.
-
Use extreme caution when bicycling past parked cars.
-
Protect your head. Wear a helmet.
-
Check your brakes and tires before riding. Take the time to make the required adjustments.
-
If you ride in considerable traffic, invest in a rear view mirror.
-
Be vigilant on wet or frosty surfaces.
-
WEAR A HELMET! |
|
|
Sincerely,
Fred Pritzker and Rich Ruohonen
Pritzker | Ruohonen & Associates, P.A.
| |
|
