WARNING! USE A SIMPLE FIVE YEAR RULE BEFORE CHOOSING A CHINESE ACCIDENT LAWYER IN MARYLAND, WASHINGTON D.C. AND VIRGINIA

Portner & Shure has been doing personal injury work in Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia for approximately twenty years. Each year we recover approximately nine million dollars on behalf of Chinese speaking accident victims as well as accident victims who speak Spanish, Korean and Vietnamese. Recently, we have had countless Chinese speaking accident victims fire their current Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C. personal injury attorneys. I looked at these cases to figure out why, and hopefully give some guidance to Chinese speaking people seeking the best injury lawyer in Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia. My conclusion, as you will see below, is to use a simple five year rule.

I noticed that some Chinese speaking accident victims chose a firm that is new and/or does a lot of immigration work. Insurance companies are businesses, they are aware of law firms that have no track record. These firms have to prove themselves. Its best they are not trying to prove themselves with your Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia accident case. A rule of thumb is to look at the firm, and make sure the firm has been in business at least five years. Second, look at the firms website. If the firm does not have excellent results posted for at least a five year period, say no thank you. In addition, if the firm also does immigration it's a sign that they don't focus on personal injury work for Chinese speaking accident victims in Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia. You don't want a law firm that really can't focus on this area of law.

Next, make sure the law firm and the person handling your Chinese accident case has at least a five year track record of trying cases in court. Insurance companies are not afraid of law firms that don't go to court in Chinese accident cases in Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Look at the injury firms trial record over the last five years. If they don't post results you know what the insurance companies think about that firm.

Finally, make sure the person handling and overseeing your Chinese Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia is an attorney, not just a paralegal and has been in personal practice at least five years. All Chinese accident cases need to be overseen by an injury lawyer with at least five years experience. In conclusion, follow the five year rule regardless of what the law firm you are speaking with to tries to explain. You are not hiring an injury firm because they are your friends, you hire them for results. 

Follow the five year rule and you will not be one of those Chinese speaking clients who is now using Portner & Shure because they had a bad experience with another Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia personal injury law firm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MARYLAND, VIRGINIA, AND WASHINGTON D.C. EXPERIENCED BUS ACCIDENT ATTORNEYS RECOMMEND BUS ACCIDENT VICTIMS TAKE CERTAIN STEPS

Although there were no life-threatening injuries reported, the victims of the Bus Crash that occurred in Montgomery County, Maryland are lucky to be alive. Each year an average of 137 fatalities and 17,000 injuries result from school bus accidents across the United States. These figures do not include injuries arising from accidents involving public transportation busses. Contributing to these figures is the fact that only a handful of states have laws that require busses to be equipped with seatbelts. If you have been involved in a bus accident, experienced bus accident attorneys recommend that you take at least the following steps:

1. Seek medical attention. Even if you are unaware that you are injured, it is critical that you see a doctor as soon after the accident as possible to ensure that you are unharmed.

2. Take notes. As soon as you are safe and able, take notes of what you witnessed, including what led to the accident, who was involved, the driver's name, bus number, and any other witnesses at the scene.

3. Seek an experienced attorney. Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia each have laws requiring that a personal injury claim be filed within a certain amount of time. Therefore, it is critical that you seek an experienced bus accident lawyer as soon after the bus accident in order to determine if you are the victim of a personal injury. 

The cause of the Montgomery County Bus accident involving a public transportation bus that drove into a citizen's home remains under investigation. This accident is an example of many bus accidents that occur in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Bus accidents that occur in these localities too frequently involve the negligence of a bus company and an absence of seatbelts that can otherwise minimize the harm to bus passengers. If you, or someone you know has been injured as the result of a Bus Accident in Maryland, Virginia, or the District of Columbia, call the experienced Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. Bus Accident Attorneys at Portner & Shure, P.A. (301) 854-9000.

The Best Maryland Injury Lawyers Know Crosswalks: Do You?

Many Marylanders know that they are supposed to walk inside of a crosswalk when crossing an intersection. However, most do not know the potential consequences of failing to do so, and the many nuances in Maryland's laws, like the effect of contributory negligence on pedestrians and crosswalks. In fact, injury attorneys in Maryland are confronted with the harsh consequences of crosswalk accident cases every day. This piece addresses some tips on how to avoid being on the wrong side of Maryland's crosswalk laws.

In Maryland, a crosswalk exists where a sidewalk ends at the street. Therefore, there are two types of crosswalks. The first is a "marked crosswalk." The second, and less commonly known, is an "unmarked crosswalk." An unmarked crosswalk is defined under Maryland Law as: "that part of a roadway that is within the [continuation] or connection of the lateral lines of sidewalks at any place where 2 or more roadways of any kind meet or join, measured from the curbs or, in the absence of curbs, from the edges of the roadway." In other words, there does not have to be a marked path or a sidewalk on both sides of the street for a crosswalk to exist. If a sidewalk approaches a street and ends, even if there is no sidewalk on the opposite side of the street, an unmarked crosswalk exists where the sidewalk would have extended into the street. Therefore, in unmarked areas as these automobile accident victims have the right-of-way.

Pedestrians should also know that they may not cross an intersection diagonally, unless there is a crossing device that not only permits a pedestrian to cross the intersection diagonally but also signals the pedestrian to do so. Furthermore, a pedestrian is required by law to walk on the right half of a crosswalk. In the case of jay-walking pedestrians, Maryland places a high duty of care on the pedestrian. This means that a pedestrian who crosses a street without using a crosswalk has the responsibility of making sure that no car hits them. This is important because many people believe that the operators of vehicles have the responsibility not to hit pedestrians. Yet, it is pedestrians who have the responsibility of not being struck by a vehicle when crossing at a location other than a crosswalk. Therefore, pedestrian accidents that occur outside of a crosswalk often lead to no personal injury recovery for such automobile accident victims.

Maryland is one of the few states that requires its personal injury attorneys to confront the rule of contributory negligence. Under Maryland Contributory Negligence law, if a person injured by another is negligent leading up to the automobile accident that caused them harm, that person is completely prevented from recovering against the party that injured them in the collision. In the case of a pedestrian hit by a motor vehicle, this means that if a pedestrian fails to follow the proper rules of the road regarding pedestrian street-crossing, a pedestrian can be out of luck when he or she looks to the Maryland courts for justice in their personal injury claim.

Because of contributory negligence laws in Maryland, even the best and most experienced Maryland personal injury lawyers can do little to help a victim recover in an automobile accident case if he or she was negligent in crossing a street. Therefore, it is important to know that when crossing a street pedestrians should make sure to walk within crosswalks and obey traffic signals. By doing this, the right-of-way is on your side when you need an experienced Maryland Injury Attorney to fight for you.

If you or a family member has been injured or killed in an automobile accident, truck, bus or motorcycle accident, pedestrian accident, and would like a free legal consultation or if you would like more information on car accidents or personal injury, please feel free to contact our office or visit us on the web at www.portnerandshureaccidentlawyers.com.