What is personal injury?
 When you or someone you know is involved in an accident involving serious injuries or death at the hands of someone else, you or that person’s heirs or relatives may have a claim against the person who caused the accident. The Law Offices of Jeffrey M. Bloom handle serious Personal Injury litigation on behalf of individuals. Personal injury generally means injury to one’s person in the form of physical injuries including internal injuries and organ damage, broken bones, injured spines, brain damage, or other physical injuries. However, there are occasions when one can recover for emotional injuries not connected with physical injury to them. That can happen when a loved one and close relative actually witnesses an injury to their loved one. The extreme distress that occurs from witnessing such a horrific event can be the basis for a lawsuit by the person suffering only emotional distress. At the Law Offices of Jeffrey M. Bloom, initial consultation for Personal Injury claims are free. Additionally, nearly all cases are handled on a contigent fee basis and the firm typically advances the costs of the case.
What types of accidents constitute a personal injury?
Accidents can occur from all sorts of different causes. The obvious ones include automobile accidents or other vehicular accidents, slips, or falls at a business or someone else’s residence, injuries caused by defective products, injuries on construction sites, injuries occurring at care facilities such as nursing homes and many other types of accidents which result in physical injury. To learn more about the types of injuries in which the Law Offices of Jeffrey M. Bloom specializes see below:
AUTO ACCIDENTS
 Achieving just compensation for people involved in any type of automobile accident requires the highest degree of skill, knowledge and attention to detail that an attorney can muster.
These can be some of the most complex and difficult cases a lawyer can handle. Typically, they involve a wide variety of issues, including environmental conditions, equipment malfunction, human error, insurance coverage, medical repercussions and a maze of traffic laws. Inattentiveness to even one area can drastically alter the course of a client’s life forever.
If you are unfortunately involved in an accident, you should immediately do the following:
Obtain all information from any and every other party involved in the accident such as state of residence, state of driver’s license, driver’s license number, license plate number and state of issuance, make, model and year of car, number of occupants in each other vehicle, and the identities of all occupants of the other vehicles.
If you are seriously injured, ask someone else to do it and get immediate medical attention. Do not delay, and take no chances with your health.
If you are able, and have a camera available, take photographs of the damage of the vehicles and of the scene of the accident.
As soon as you can, report the accident to your insurance agent to discuss your policy coverage with your agent. You may have certain benefits available to you such as car rental, medical payments, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, or other similar coverage.
You should compile all necessary information concerning your personal injury and any damages you have sustained, as well as keep a diary of the progress of your recovery. You should document all lost wages, medical bills, and keep copies of any bills or receipts connected with the accident.
When you do get medical attention, describe for your doctor how the accident happened and what injuries you suffered as a result of it. Be very complete, but do not exaggerate your problems. Either overstatement or understatement is inappropriate.
Be accurate.
If you were at work or on your way to work, you should report the accident to your employer. If you will be missing work in the future, you should also report the accident to your employer.
Be sure to record the names, addresses, and telephone numbers as well as places of employment of all persons who did or may have witnessed the accident and are willing to provide their names. This may have to be done by the police if you are seriously injured.
Finally, if you have any suspicion that the accident was caused by some product defect such as a tire defect, a steering defect, a braking defect in your car or some other vehicle involved in the accident, you should immediately consult an attorney so that the evidence can be preserved and examined.
BAD OR DEFECTIVE PRODUCTS
 When a product is placed on the market for sale, it must be safe as a reasonable purchaser of such product would expect it to be. If it turns out that during the use of the product, the purchaser or anyone close to the user of the product is injured, the seller and the manufacturer may be liable to the injured persons for money damages. Personal injuries can be sustained from the use of all kinds of products. Many times, the injury is minor and heals quickly. On those occasions where the injury causes severe and permanent injury to the person using it, the law allows compensation for those injuries under what is termed “Strict Liability.”
Strict Liability is precisely what the term means. A manufacturer or seller who places a defective product in the stream of commerce is responsible for any injuries to the users or anyone close to the use of the product regardless of whether the seller or manufacturer was negligent. The product may be defective in the way it was designed, by the way it was manufactured, or because there are no warnings of its danger. If a person using the product cannot understand a warning, the product may be deemed defective as well.
Lawsuits involving injuries caused by defective products have alerted the manufacturers to the need for safety of their products. Many of the safety devices incorporated in products today, as well as owner’s manuals and warnings, are the result of successful lawsuits against manufacturers. Therefore, should you or anyone you know be involved in any personal injury using a product, an inquiry should be made to determine whether there is a reason to file a lawsuit.
BICYCLE ACCIDENTS
Unfortunately, although bicycle riding is fun, and can be challenging, serious injuries can occur as a result of bicycle accidents. These accidents can come about from a variety of causes. Some include defective equipment on the bicycle, (such as tires, brakes, frame, gears, or other components); improper or careless installation or replacement of components (such as tubes, tires, brake adjustment, or over-inflation or under-inflation of tires); lack of a proper or adequate safety helmet or other protective gear; the careless riding or maintenance by others of their vehicle which can come in contact with or otherwise cause you to be involved in a bicycle accident; your own careless maintenance or operation of your bicycle either alone or in combination with other factors.
If you sustain a serious personal injury in a bicycle accident, you should attempt to preserve all of the evidence, including the bicycle and all of its components; document and keep all bills and receipts for medical expenses, lost earnings, property damage, and any other losses; you should get immediate and necessary medical attention and describe to any and all medical providers how the accident happened and what injuries you suffered being as accurate as possible in your descriptions.
CONSTRUCTION ACCIDENTS OR INJURIES
 Serious personal injuries or death can occur on or near construction sites. Workers and bystanders can and too often are injured or killed on or near construction sites.
When a worker is injured or killed on a construction site while in the course and scope of employment, that worker or the workers’ heirs are likely entitled to benefits under our Workers’ Compensation system in New Jersey. See “Worker’s Compensation, “Page
In addition to a Workers’ Compensation claim, you may have a right to bring civil lawsuit against someone other than your employer. That right arises where your injury was caused in some major way by the wrongdoing or fault of someone beside your employer or a co-employee. That third-party may be subject to a civil lawsuit, called a third-party lawsuit. There, you can recover all lost wages, medical costs, future medicals, and any lost earnings capacity as well as damages for your pain, suffering, or change in quality of life.
You should consult an attorney immediately after a construction accident so that witnesses, valuable evidence, and other facts concerning the accident can be preserved. The Law Offices of Jeffrey M. Bloom has extensive experience in representing persons injured in construction accidents, to handling both 3 rd party claims as well as Worker’s Compensation claims.
DOG BITES
It is the law in this state that if a dog bites a human being, the owner of the dog is liable for all damages arising from the dog bite. This includes medical bills, loss of wages, and for pain and suffering. In some instances, a dog that is on the public street without being attended by its owner may be liable for other types of personal injuries. There have been cases where a loose dog interferes with a dog on a leash and during the dog fight the leash holder sustains personal injuries. There have also been cases where a dog may chase a motorcycle or bicyclist and cause the motorcycle or bicyclist to fall. Under those circumstances the owner of the dog will be responsible for the personal injuries sustained by those individuals.
 MEDICAL MISTAKES AND MALPRACTICE
Physicians, nurses, hospitals and medical personnel must conduct the treatment of a patient within a standard of care developed in the community and in accordance with good medical practice. Even though a doctor or a hospital may not intend to cause a bad medical result or an injury, they may be responsible to the patient for their medical negligence. Not every poor result from treatment gives rise to a lawsuit. However, if the result of the surgery or treatment related directly to something that a doctor or nurse should have done or did something that they shouldn’t have done, there is cause for a lawsuit.
MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS
If you are the unfortunate victim of a motorcycle accident and are seriously injured, you have rights against anyone who negligently and wrongfully caused your accident and injuries. As with any other accident, such as an auto accident, it is necessary to preserve all evidence and to document all damages and injuries.
SEXUAL DISCRIMINATION
Sexual discrimination in the workplace is against the law. When someone is subjected to sexual discrimination, the mental and emotional effects of such discrimination constitute personal injuries. A lawsuit for sexual discrimination allows for damages for medical expenses, other out-of-pocket expenses, loss of earnings, pain and suffering, and, in some instances, punitive damages to make an example of the employer.
Sexual discrimination can come in different forms. It is not limited to unconsented touching, but may include words and actions that have sexual connotations or harass the employee. If you, or anyone you know works in an environment charged with sexual overtones or innuendoes, you should contact The Law Office of Jeffrey Bloom to determine if you have a case.
 SLIP AND FALL
Although all of us are charged with watching where we are going, occasionally, there will be hidden dangers that cause us to trip or fall on someone else’s premises. If you are seriously injured as result of trip or slip and fall caused by a hazardous or dangerous condition on someone else’s premises, you may have a right to recover medical bills, lost earnings, and damages for pain and any changes in the quality of your life as a result of the accident.
As with any accident, it is important to record important information surrounding an accident so that evidence can be preserved and available for the later making of a claim or the filing of a lawsuit.
TRUCK ACCIDENTS
Because of the size and weight of trucks, far more serious injuries are likely to be involved for occupants in a car when that car is involved in a collision with a large truck. It is important to take down all information about the driver, the driver’s employer, and the errand or job the driver was in the process of doing at the time of the accident. Also, it is very important to obtain the name, address, and telephone number of the owner of the truck and the owner of the trailer, if a trailer is involved. Often times, trucks are rented or leased and the driver and employer are different from the owner of the tractor and trailer.
WRONGFUL DEATH
“Wrongful death” occurs when a person is killed due to the negligence or misconduct of another individual, company or entity.
Such wrongful acts include negligence like careless driving, an intentional attack such as assault and/or battery, a death in the course of crime, vehicular manslaughter, manslaughter or murder. Wrongful death is the basis for a lawsuit against the party or parties who caused the death filed on behalf of the members of the family who have lost the company and support of the deceased.
Thus, a parent might be entitled to compensation for the personal loss of a child as well as the amount of financial support and guidance the parent would have received from the now-dead child; a spouse would recover damages for loss of their love and companionship and a lifetime of expected support.
A lawsuit for wrongful death may be filed by the executor or administrator of the estate of the deceased or by the individual beneficiary’s family members.
PERSONAL INJURY LINKS
New Jersey Courts
Automobile Links
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Administration
Occupational Safety & Health Administration
How safe is your vehicle
Car Prices, safety & recall information
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration PERSONAL INJURY
Health and Medical Sites
American Medical Association
American Cancer Society
Centers for Disease Control
Food & Drug Administration
National Board of Medical Examiners
The Mayo Clinic Health Library
Medline
New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners: Has your NJ doctor been disciplined?
Doctors Guide
emedicine
Medscape
Lists hospitals on the Internet
New England Journal of Medicine
Health Finder
U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services - HIPAA information
Consumer Product Links
Consumer Products Safety Commission
Food & Drug Administration
National Safety Council
Faulty Products
Notice of Faulty Products
Child Product Recall
American Society for Testing and Materials
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