Tom was honored in the following categories:

• Insurance Coverage
• Personal Injury Plaintiff – General
• Personal Injury Plaintiff – Medical Malpractice
  

Source: Daily Record
View Complete list here: http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=531781

 A 60,000-pound semi tractor-trailer inexplicably swerved out of its lane, careening off the road while it was hooked to Edwards & Ragatz’s client’s vehicle.

 The tractor-trailer knifed through the plaintiff’s vehicle like a can opener and dragged it for approximately 300 yards before the two vehicles separated. The tractor-trailer careened through the median, nearly killed two Florida Highway Patrol officers, and crashed into one of their parked vehicles. The nearly deadly crash occurred on a Saturday morning (Feb. 27, 2007).

 Two days after the bizarre collision which was caused by the tractor-trailer driver, the driver failed a post-accident drug test required by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and tested positive for cocaine. The truck driver eventually testified that it was his habit to snort cocaine on the weekends which is when the crash occurred.

 A 45-year-old Jacksonville woman and her 28-year-old son obtained the settlement from the insurer of the Jacksonville-based crane rental service company that owned the truck.

 Both plaintiffs suffered injuries. The woman underwent a spinal fusion as a result of the collision and will have life-long pain and suffering. 

 Edwards & Ragatz, P.A., is a law firm located in Jacksonville, Florida, that represents the injured, victims and consumers in all courts. The firm’s attorneys are experienced in handling all types of personal injury and death cases, as well as complex commercial litigation. The firm’s attorneys are recognized nationally as trial experts. The attorneys serve in prominent positions in local and state trial lawyers’ associations and have testified before the legislature on issues of importance to the justice system.

Jacksonville.com: The Gavel Blog- Jacksonville woman, son win $1 million settlement for injuries in crash with cocaine-impaired driver

 Jean Law knew her symptoms were serious – she had been a nurse with Baptist Hospitals for 17 years and on duty at Baptist South for the past five years.  Her temperature, was at the dangerously high level of 104.6. This and her other symptoms are consistent with serious bacterial infection.  Although the ER treating Doctor ordered blood and urine tests, after approximately five hours, he diagnosed a viral flu, prescribed Motrin and discharged Law to go home.  Doctor’s notes from this interaction state, “…serious causes have been ruled out, and there is no indication that she needs antibiotics.” Because of his diagnosis, Law was neither admitted to the hospital nor treated with any type of antibiotic treatment.

Law and her husband Jonathan were surprised and confused.  As a nurse, she had expected to be admitted to Baptist South.  However, the Laws returned home to a prescribed regimen of rest and Motrin.  Within hours, Law’s condition had deteriorated to an alarming level. Her original symptoms had worsened; they were now coupled with burning in her feet, discoloration of her lips and fingernails.  She was extremely lethargic and could not walk; her husband had to carry her to the car for a return visit to the ER at Baptist South.

Lab cultures taken earlier that day revealed that Law was suffering from a strep infection and that her blood was septic — an extremely serious condition in which the bloodstream is overwhelmed by bacteria.  Left untreated, sepsis leads to catastrophic injury and death.

Upon her second presentation at the ER, it was found that Law’s liver function was shutting down and that her blood pressure had dropped to dangerously low levels. Law was admitted to the hospital and within a week, her extremities turned black and became necrotic.  The administration of an antibiotic during her first ER visit would have prevented the sepsis and its dire results. For complete video coverage visit the EdwardsRagatzPA YouTube channel.

Jacksonville.com Article: Baptist-South nurse blames hospital after legs, fingers amputated
WOKV Article: Former Nurse Suing Hospital After Infection (PICS)
News4Jax Article: Nurse Blames Own Hospital for Illness
First Coast News Article: Jacksonville Mother Suing Baptist Hospital South for ‘Catastrophic’ Misdiagnosis
Fox News: Nurse Sues Hospital After Losing Legs, Fingers to Infection
NursingJobs.org Blog:  Nurse Loses Legs, Fingers to Infection as Result to Misdiagnosis

Action News Jax Video

Martindale-Hubbell has maintained Ratings for lawyers for more than a century. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of bar members and the judiciary, and attest to the individual lawyer’s legal ability and adherence to accepted professional standards of ethics. Exclusively developed and assigned by the Martindale-Hubbell ® Law Directory, ratings are considered valuable benchmarks intended for use by members of the profession. 

Edwards & Ragatz, P.A., is a law firm located in Jacksonville, Florida, that represents the injured, victims and consumers in all courts. The firm’s attorneys are experienced in handling all types of personal injury and death cases, as well as complex commercial litigation. They also serve in prominent positions in local and state trial lawyers’ associations and have testified before the legislature on issues of importance to the justice system.

 Martindale-Hubbell is a service mark and a registered trademark and CV, BV and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties, Inc., used under license.

Article on Jacksonville.com

Edwards previously served as president of the Florida Justice Association/Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers (2008-2009), president of the Jacksonville Bar Association (1998-1999), president of American Board of Trial Advocates – Jacksonville Chapter (2006), and president of the Jacksonville Justice Association/Jacksonville Trial Lawyers Association (2000). Edwards also is currently a member of the Florida Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions – Civil.

 The Trial Lawyers Section of the Florida Bar provides a forum for discussion and exchange of ideas leading to the improvement of individual trail abilities. The three essential purposes of the Trial Lawyers Section are: to assist the courts in establishing methods for the more certain and expeditious administration of justice; to advise the various committees on rules regarding desirable amendments to improve and standardize judicial procedures; to instill in members of the Florida Bar generally a desire to increase their effectiveness in the courtroom and in chambers to better serve their clients and the cause of justice; and to preserve and protect the jury system.

 The Trial Lawyers Section includes plaintiff and defense civil trial attorneys, as well as commercial litigators.

 Edwards & Ragatz, P.A., is a law firm located in Jacksonville, Florida, that represents the injured, victims and consumers in all courts. The firm’s attorneys are experienced in handling all types of personal injury and death cases, as well as complex commercial litigation. The firm’s attorneys are recognized nationally as trial experts. The attorneys serve in prominent positions in local and state trial lawyers’ associations and have testified before the legislature on issues of importance to the justice system.

View Press Release on Jacksonville.com

How is the construction progressing?
Very well – on schedule and within budget. The structure was topped out Tuesday, June 8, 2010 and there is much work going on inside.

What will the address be?
501 W. Monroe St.  

Duval County Courthouse Under Construction

How much of the structure is completed?
37 percent as of May 31, 2010

What is the projected completion date?
May 14, 2012

What is the square footage?
800,000 square feet

What is the length and width of the courthouse?
The ground floor is roughly 680 feet by 310 feet. The length is over two football fields long. The surface area of the first floor is equivalent to 4 1/2 football fields!

How tall is the building?
Seven stories.

Where will people park?
The parking garage is across the street located at Clay and Adams streets. It contains 1,200 spaces.

Will it be the largest building in Jacksonville when complete?
Probably, but I do not know and have no easy way to check. I’m told the current largest building downtown (in terms of square feet) is the Pre-Trial Detention Center.

  June 28, 2010: View the Jacksonville.com Article:  Duval County Courthouse rising after years of struggles

Edwards & Ragatz, P.A., is a law firm located in Jacksonville, Florida, that represents the injured, victims and consumers in all courts. The firm’s attorneys are experienced in handling all types of personal injury and death cases, as well as complex commercial litigation. The firm’s attorneys are recognized nationally as trial experts. The attorneys serve in prominent positions in local and state trial lawyers’ associations and have testified before the legislature on issues of importance to the justice system.

Click Here to view this release on Jacksonville.com

For 2010, Florida drivers rank No. 41 with an average score of 75.2, compared with the drivers in Kansas, the best at 82.3, and in New York, the worst at 70.

Florida drivers don’t appear to be improving much.

Florida drivers rose from No. 43 in 2009 but fell from No. 28 in 2008. The average grade for drivers in the Sunshine State rose from 74.1 in 2009 but dropped from 78.6 in 2008

GMAC reported that its sixth annual test indicates that about 38 million licensed drivers in the country lack basic driving knowledge. It surveyed 5,202 drivers representative of the 50 states and D.C. who completed 20 questions from Department of Motor Vehicle tests.

GMAC found two primary trouble spots: Following too closely and not knowing what to do at a traffic light displaying a steady yellow signal (which GMAC says is to stop if it is safe to do so). The survey also found that drivers are distracted.

In addition to the 20-question exam, GMAC asked about habits and found:

• 52 percent of drivers talk with passengers while driving. 
• About 25 percent of drivers admitted to talking on a cell phone, selecting songs on an iPod or CD, adjusting the radio or eating while driving.
• 5 percent reported they text while driving.

Overall, a significantly higher percentage of females than males reported engaging in the following distracting situations: conversation with passengers, selecting songs on an iPod or CD/adjusting the radio, talking on a cell phone, eating, applying makeup and reading.  Test Your Knowledge and take the quiz today.

Click Here to see the whole Daily Record Article

Florida Driver’s Education Facts

Q. What do red traffic light arrows mean?
A. Treat red directional arrows the same as you would a regular red light. According to Lt. William Leeper of the Florida Highway Patrol, “You are prohibited from making a turn from a lane with either a red directional arrow or a sign stating No right (left) turn on red. You must wait for a green light.”
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