Whiplash Is a Genuine Personal Injury

Back in the early 1950s whiplash was not recognized as a medical condition. In the 21st century it most definitely is a well-known consequence of car accidents and other mishaps.

It wasn’t until attorneys handling the results of car crashes began to ask questions about the nature of the injuries sustained to the head and neck that the medical profession began to take a closer look at what consequences whiplash really had. On the other side of the fence were the insurance companies whose stated preference was to not compensate for whiplash because it would save millions of dollars. And so it did, until the furor over whiplash injuries became great enough that they had to sit up and take action.
Insurance companies just didn’t “get” that whiplash had the potential to cause disabling pain and because it could not be “seen” then it must not be that bad. Based on that premise the insurance gurus came up with something called Minor Injury Soft Tissue Injury or MIST. The theory behind MIST was that whiplash was merely a psychosocial incident.

In reality of course whiplash is better known as cervical acceleration-deceleration injury and it is incredibly painful. Whiplash doesn’t just affect the neck; it may also damage ligaments, cervical discs, cervical facets and muscles. Recovery is a long and painful process.

Anyone who has suffered whiplash knows the worst manifestation is headaches. At one time insurance companies offered the attitude that headaches were caused by other things. The scientific evidence shows otherwise when dealing with cases of whiplash. The problem in the courtroom, even today, is that there are experts for hire who still claim whiplash victims are suffering because of “other” conditions. It then boils down to a he says/she says proposition that a judge or jury has to sort out in the final analysis.

Thankfully, it appears that recent research demonstrating the obvious connection between whiplash and headaches is beginning to make a dent in the insurance companies dogged insistence that they are not related. Although even the latest research is still being closely questioned in order to find a loophole for the insurance industry to deny claims and save money. Never assume that a person who has sustained a whiplash is “faking” the symptoms. Anyone who has been in an accident that resulted in neck trauma needs to consult with a skilled personal injury attorney to have their case assessed.

Living with constant pain and not being able to work or carry out daily activities, as a result of severe whiplash sustained in a car accident or other mishap, may mean recovering damages in court as a direct result of someone else’s negligence.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Construction Work Potentially Deadly

One of the most dangerous industries that reports high personal injury statistics is the construction industry.

Many construction sites have their fair share of minor accidents, as that seems to be the nature of the job. Unfortunately for the workers on site, deadlier accidents also take place like the collapse of scaffolding, electrocution, burns, amputations and crush injuries. The fact of the matter is that the construction industry ranks as number one when it comes to the number of on the job injuries sustained each year.

Across the United States there are approximately 250,000 construction sites at any one given time, with close to 6 million construction workers plying their trade. For every 100,000 construction workers on the job, at least 23 will die in a work-related accident. On many, if not all of the sites, there is scaffolding that poses a real hazard to people’s safety and lives in more than one way.

Not only can the scaffolding collapse, tip or disintegrate, there is the very real danger of falling material and tools striking people on the ground. Workers who are dealing with laying electrical wire and other potentially dangerous utilities, such as running gas lines, also face significant personal injury risks on the job site.

The US Department of Labor is predicting that over 1,000 workers will die this year as a result of sustaining a construction site injury. Those who do not die from their wounds may be permanently disabled and unable to work again. Interestingly enough, the second leading industry in terms of high numbers of personal injuries and deaths was the trucking business, reporting over 500 deaths. Some of those deaths involved crane accidents, something that has been in the news quite frequently as of late.

Turning to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for further statistics in this area, they show there were ten top factors in construction worker injuries and death. These factors included the number one spot going to scaffolding, hazard communication, fall protection, respiratory protection, lockout/tagout (LOTO), powered industrial trucks, electrical wiring, machine guarding, general electrical maintenance and ladders. Lockout/tagout refers to a safety procedure of shutting down dangerous machinery and not starting it again until maintenance and servicing has been completed.

Workers that have survived a workplace injury or those that are grieving a wrongful death need to consult with a highly skilled personal injury attorney in order to ensure justice is done. The attorney will be able to guide claimants through the difficult process of securing damages for severe injuries or to obtain just damages for a negligent wrongful death.

To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Entertainment Law

Entertainment law is a highly volatile area that is constantly changing. If you’re in this industry, be smart and have entertainment savvy legal representation.

Entertainment law is an area that is a mystery to many folks and they don’t understand what this kind of attorney actually does. Given the nature of the specialized knowledge these attorneys deal with, it goes without saying that their expertise will protect your rights. Entertainment attorneys handle all the legal aspects of film and TV productions, set up music and film production companies, deal with talent agreements (including modeling, singers, actors and musicians) and ride herd on the details for film financing and production issues.

Along with all those issues, entertainment attorneys also draft producer agreements for both film and music, put together music licensing agreements and writer option agreements plus tend to copywrite law and all appropriate registrations. Mixed in with all these tasks, the attorney will also take care of trademark applications, distribution matters, draft solid non-disclosure agreements and confidentiality agreements and take care of prepping releases.

Hiring a lawyer like this is a guarantee that your legal rights will be protected in an industry known for its particularly fierce competition. Unfortunately there are also stories of abuse of power and control when it comes to the various agreements needed to make it in the entertainment business. Having an expert entertainment lawyer on board will also ensure your co-production agreements are handled correctly, that artist/management agreements protect the artist and management equally, that artist recording agreements reflect the needs of the artist and that director agreements accurately spell out what the director is required to do and receive in return for his or her services.

Generally speaking a great deal of the work an entertainment lawyer does is transactional in nature – meaning they draft a lot of contracts. However this isn’t to say that they don’t handle cases that need litigation or arbitration. Entertainment law is an eclectic mix of subcategories and is also referred to as media law. It has a great deal in common with the field of intellectual property law.

If you were to ask an entertainment lawyer what they do, their answer would likely be that they deal with such diverse areas of law as immigration, securities law, agency, bankruptcy law, labor law, international law, insurance law and employment law. Even these particular categories have further areas within them that have their own unique trade unions, rules, case law, production techniques and negotiation strategies.
For example if you hire an entertainment lawyer to deal with agreements, contracts and options, etc. in film, they would also need to be well aware of chain of title, finance; and what screen writers, film directors, composers, designers and actors do. This would also include post production, trade union issues and distribution issues, and motion picture industry negotiations distribution. As you can see, having a highly skilled entertainment lawyer on board will make all the difference in the world to how smoothly your operation runs.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.

Musically Inclined? Get a Lawyer.

While the music industry may be exciting and fulfilling, for fledgling entrepreneurs there are pitfalls you need a lawyer to handle.

Making music may be fun, getting recognized isn’t always easy, but when that happens, it’s definitely time to bring a lawyer onboard to make sure you are protected as your career takes shape. It doesn’t matter if you’re a band or solo, the fact is if you are the new kid on the block, you are fresh fodder to be taken advantage of in the entertainment business.

If you’re thinking right about now that it couldn’t possibly be “that” complicated to have a contract written, signed and be on your way, then it’s time to do your homework about what really happens in this business. It’s not unusual to see music contracts that are 30 pages or more, and most of them are so complicated only an entertainment lawyer is able to make heads or tails of them. Unfortunately, most of them are also couched in terms that are so circuitous that many artists take one look at the legal document and beg to see the places where they have to sign.

Obviously signing something without reading it isn’t a good idea, especially in the music industry, as there are a lot of contracts that musicians have to sign. One mistake by signing a contract you didn’t really pay much attention to could mean being stuck with a lousy record company, a bad distribution deal, or a shady manager, agent or promoter. If that happens, your career could be over before it even got started. Like the old saying, “Buyer beware,” make sure you know precisely what is in any contract you sign.

It’s not just dealing with contracts for agents and recording companies it’s also managing issues like copyrighting your music, ensuring you have a trademark for your band name, and having a logo designed. This can be done for an individual as well, and it’s called branding, or brand name recognition. Think Shania Twain or Mariah Carey.

This still isn’t the limit to the issues you will face when it comes to what is contained in the various agreements you need to sign; they may also include licensing contracts, festival and concert contracts, promotion deals and publishing contracts. Each contract you sign has even more convoluted clauses and provisions within it as well. Being a musician isn’t for sissies or total novices when it comes to legal issues. Always consult with experienced legal counsel when it comes to getting a contract that protects your rights.
Your entertainment lawyer will have highly specialized knowledge of things like advertising law, employment law, immigration, negotiation, ring tones, mechanical licenses, peer-to-peer file swapping, synchronization rights, digital rights and a superb knowledge of how music is created from start to finish – the mixing to the mastering. They will also have a good working understanding of the roles of a producer, promoter and manager.

The best advice to give someone just starting out in the music industry is to seek legal representation for everything because it is essential. No one wants to get saddled with a lousy one-sided contract.

Deborah Barron is a Sacramento business lawyer, Sacramento employment lawyer, and Sacramento winery lawyer in California. To learn more, visit Lawbarron.com.