Washington Personal Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Regan Zambri & Long Law Firm : DC Metro Area Personal Injury Law Blog

By Catherine Bertram

According to an article in the Los Angles Times, by Mark Lifsher,  Quest Laboratories agreed to pay the State of California $241million to resolve a lawsuit that was pending against them.  The lawsuit alleged that Quest Diagnostics paid illegal kickbacks to doctors, hospitals and clinics for steering patients their way.  Quest denied any wrong doing. 

California has a law, similar to the federal law, called the California False Claims Act, which provides a cause of action that that can be filed when citizens believe a company is defrauding the state.  Here, the lawsuit alleged that Medi-Cal, California's program for the poor and disabled,  was overcharged by Quest Laboratories. This is reported to be the largest such settlement in California's history. 

This is a great example of ordinary citizens working with the government to identify alleged fraud and to seek and obtain settlements that reimburse states for funds.   There is a similar statute called the False Claims Act that is applicable for fraud in the federal setting. In health care it can involve claims of false billing for medicaid or medicare patients. It can involve drug companies and hospitals or medical device companies who overcharge the federal government.

About the author:

Catherine Bertram is board certified in civil trials and was recently nominated as a 2011 Best Lawyer in DC  and 2011 Super Lawyer for personal injury law in Washington, D.C.  Ms. Bertram has 20 + years of trial experience and is unique in that she was formerly the Director of Risk Management in Washington, D.C.  Ms. Bertram is a member of the bar for the U.S. Supreme Court.  She is a partner with the firm and lectures regularly to lawyers, nationally and locally, regarding trial strategy,  complex medical issues and other related consumer safety issues. She has also recently published a chapter in a surgical textbook.   She can be reached by email at cbertram@reganfirm.com or by phone 202-822-1875 in her office in Washington, D.C.

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Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, founding partner

In a column in the Baltimore Sun (8/1), Eileen Ambrose wrote, "Maryland lawmakers considered - and failed this year - to pass legislation making arbitration more transparent, and problems with the process have caught the attention of federal officials, who are taking a hard look at making consumers agree in advance to arbitration and ways to give them a fairer shake." Bills "pending in Congress also seek to bar such clauses in consumer products and services as well as in nursing home contracts." But "until Congress or the new consumer protection bureau acts, most consumers will have few options if they don't want to give up their right to settle a dispute in court."

As it stands, many corporations bury mandatory arbitration clauses in contracts in an effort to keep victims of corporate wrongdoing from access justice in the court system.  I have seen some arbitration clauses that even dictates who the arbitrator will be.  Do you think the company who drafted the document would  pick a fair arbitrator?  These clauses should be barred.  If a consumer and a company wish to utilize arbitration after a claim arises, then fine.  Stripping innocent Americans of their rights is not. 

I hope Congress gets this job done and eliminates forced arbitration.

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About the author:

Mr. Zambri is a board-certified civil trial attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocates and a Past-President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. He has been rated by Washingtonian magazine as a "Big Gun" and among the "top 1%" of all lawyers in the Washington metropolitan area. The magazine also describes him as "one of Washington's best--most honest and effective lawyers" who specializes in personal injury matters, including automobile accident claims, premises liability, product liability, medical malpractice, and work-accident claims. He has successfully litigated multiple cases against truck and bus companies, the Washington Metropolitan Area transit Authority, and other automobile owners.  His law firm, in fact, has obtained the largest settlement ever in a personal injury case involving WMATA.  Mr. Zambri has also been named a "Super Lawyer" by Super Lawyer magazine (March/April 2010)--a national publication that honors the top lawyers in America.

If you have any questions about your legal rights, please email Mr. Zambri at szambri@reganfirm.com or call him at 202-822-1899.

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Posted by Salvatore J. Zambri, founding partner

Democrats in Congress are fighting to push legislation to improve regulation and oversight of auto safety.  This important legislation should pass into law.

The New York Times agrees. The Times (7/31) editorializes, "The United States has done a fairly good job so far of policing the safety of cars and trucks. The number of deaths in traffic accidents dropped to an estimated 34,000 last year - the least since the 1950s.  But that is still too many deaths. ... The Motor Vehicle Safety Act requires all vehicles to have a brake override system to ensure that a vehicle can be stopped even if the throttle is open. Pedals must exceed a minimum clearance from the floor to avoid snagging car mats. Electronic control systems must meet minimum performance standards, to be set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. And all vehicles must come fitted with recorders that log operational data and help determine the causes of accidents. But perhaps more important, the bill would broadly change the system of overseeing and enforcing safety rules."

By overseeing and enforcing safety rules, auto manufacturers will be forced to put safety over profits.  With all that is being revealed surrounding the Toyota crisis, coupled with the many auto recalls we have learned of over the past few years, now is the time to create and enforce laws that protect consumers.

I encourage you to contact your local and federal representatives to urge them to support laws that promote auto safety.

Do you have any questions about this post?

About the author:

Mr. Zambri is a board-certified civil trial attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocates and a Past-President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. He has been rated by Washingtonian magazine as a "Big Gun" and among the "top 1%" of all lawyers in the Washington metropolitan area. The magazine also describes him as "one of Washington's best--most honest and effective lawyers" who specializes in personal injury matters, including automobile accident claims, premises liability, product liability, medical malpractice, and work-accident claims. He has successfully litigated multiple cases against truck and bus companies, the Washington Metropolitan Area transit Authority, and other automobile owners.  His law firm, in fact, has obtained the largest settlement ever in a personal injury case involving WMATA.  Mr. Zambri has also been named a "Super Lawyer" by Super Lawyer magazine (March/April 2010)--a national publication that honors the top lawyers in America.

If you have any questions about your legal rights, please email Mr. Zambri at szambri@reganfirm.com or call him at 202-822-1899. 

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Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, founding partner

Following the crisis created by Toyota's issues with sudden acceleration, lawmakers proposed sweeping safety requirements in the ambitious Vehicle Safety Improvements Act of 2010 that would have allowed federal officials unlimited fine power against automakers for safety violations as well as set safety standards for vehicle electronics.  However, according to a recent Los Angeles Times article, pressures from the auto industry have caused the subsequent bills proposed by both the House and Senate versions to be weakened, delayed or eliminated key safety provisions considerably. 

Auto safety advocates, while not surprised by the weakening of the original bill, are disappointed.  "The auto industry has had undue influence on this legislation," said Joan Claybrook, former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, who testified at several congressional hearings. "The industry wanted to change a lot of little words that had a major impact."

According to Rep. Henry A. Waxman, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, "the new bill would give NHTSA significant new powers, create large fines for violation of safety rules, double the agency's auto safety research budget and require it to create a number of new standards involving vehicle electronics."  He acknowledges that changes were made, but states, "The legislation . . . will dramatically improve the safety of motor vehicles. Through this process, we were able to earn broad support from our membership."

Initially, the auto safety bill focused on sudden acceleration; through compromises with the auto industry other issues became more important.  One change that provoked strong protests by several key safety groups was the efforts by MADD to obtain as much as $60 million over five years for research into unproven technology to prevent drunk drivers from starting their vehicles.  Funding for this initiative would  come out of the $140 million currently allocated to vehicle safety standards and research.  According to Public Citizen President Robert Weissman, "funds for drunk driving technology 'far outstrip' the government's budget for crash avoidance, occupant protection and vehicle safety research."

The delays and setbacks in the auto safety standards would cause a more immediate loss of life, said Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety.  "If the purpose of the standards is to save lives and prevent injuries, delaying the implementation is not going to achieve that goal," Ditlow said. "The one certainty is that there will be deaths and injuries caused by the delay. What we don't know is how many."

The auto industry should embrace the new standards.  The American people want safety to be the primary concern for all auto makers.  Those that fail to put safety over profits should be subject to meaningful repercussions.

Any questions about this post?

About the author:

Mr. Zambri is a board-certified civil trial attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocates and a Past-President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. He has been rated by Washingtonian magazine as a "Big Gun" and among the "top 1%" of all lawyers in the Washington metropolitan area. The magazine also describes him as "one of Washington's best--most honest and effective lawyers" who specializes in personal injury matters, including automobile collisions, medical malpractice, premises liability, product liability, and work-accident claims. Mr. Zambri has also been named a "Super Lawyer" by Super Lawyer magazine (March/April 2010)--a national publication that honors the top lawyers in America.

If you have any questions about your legal rights, please email Mr. Zambri at szambri@reganfirm.com or call him at 202-822-1899.

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