Personal Injury

Missouri Personal Injury

When a person is injured in an accident someone is often legally responsible. Personal injury is a branch of law that is designed to protect persons harmed by the careless or intentional actions of others. The personal injury legal system sets out the guidelines for compensating victims who have been injured by such careless actions.

Personal injury law encompasses a broad range of claims, including wrongful death, motor vehicle accidents, slip and fall, defective products, work injuries, animal bites, and numerous others. To establish a personal injury claim the injured person must be able to demonstrate that another party has the legal responsibility for the injuries. To establish responsibility for the personal injuries, two factors must be proven: 1) liability (culpability), and 2) damages (losses).

Liability: Liability in personal injury law is largely divided into three categories: intentional wrongs, negligence, and strict liability.

Damages: Depending on the circumstances of the case, an injured person can seek damages for physical injury, lost earnings, impairment of future earnings, lifestyle changes, loss of support to loved ones, property damage, and past, present and future medical care and expenses.

If you have been injured you should recognize that a personal injury action can be a complicated endeavor. It would be wise to call Walkenhorst Law for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible after any accident that causes injury to you or a loved one.

If you have reason to believe that you believe that you may have a personal injury case, contact us. At Walkenhorst Law, we have knowledge and experience to assist you in making your claim. Call Walkenhorst Law today at (314) 241-0055
so we can discuss your rights and make sure you get the settlement you deserve.

Motor Vehicle Accidents

Have you been injured in a car accident, motorcycle accident or truck accident? Although all of these accidents are motor vehicle accidents, each one of them have important differences in Missouri law.

It is important to consult an experienced Missouri Personal Injury lawyer if you or someone you love has been in a motor vehicle accident and sustained serious injuries. I understand how traumatic this can be, and calls from the insurance companies trying to convince you to settle only makes the situation worse. If you are worried about the severity of your injuries, when or if you will be able to go back to work, the medical bills and how you and your family will survive financially you will need someone on your side to fight for your rights.

You deserve to be compensated for your loses so before you agree to a settlement or answer questions from an insurance adjuster make sure that you have gotten advice from a lawyer with the experience and determination to fight for your best interests. Call me for a free consultation at (314) 241-0055.

Motor vehicle accidents can occur because of negligence, carelessness, recklessness, adverse weather conditions or manufacturing defects and even if the cause of the accident seems clear cut to you proving fault in a court of law can be complicated. Some of the various causes of motor vehicle accidents are:

Failure to obey traffic signs
Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
Lack of caution during bad weather
Failure to use turn signals
Talking on cellphones

Some of the most devastating motor vehicle accidents in Missouri occur on the three interstates, I-64, I-70, and I-270, and involve trucks. These accidents frequently involve large trucks known as big rigs, semis, 18 wheelers and tractor trailers. THESE motor vehicle accidents involve multiple parties, multiple insurance companies, the truck driver, the truck owner, the tire company, the maintenance company and possibly multiple victims.

Motorcycle accidents have significant differences from truck accidents and car accidents and can involve serious and traumatic injuries. Motorcycle accident claims can involve helmut laws and regulations, insurance requirements, determining right of way and other critical factors that an experienced personal injury lawyer with expertise in motor vehicle accidents can make all the difference in fighting for the compensation that you deserve.

Call the Walkenhorst Law firm at (314) 241-0055
to set up a free consultation.

Premises Liability

If you or someone in your family has been injured on someone else’s property due to negligence or a failure on their part to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe manner please give me a call at (314) 241-0055 for a free consultation about your injuries.

Some of the most common premises liability terms are:

Slip & Fall

Slip and Fall refers to premises liability under Missouri Personal Injury Law. Property owners have a duty to provide reasonably safe conditions for any of the three types of injured parties under Missouri law: An invitee, a licensee and a trespasser.

If you visit a retail establishment such as a grocery store or a department store you are considered an invitee. If you are invited to a friend’s home under Missouri law you are considered a licensee. If you are on someone else’s property and you have not been invited you could be classified as a trespasser.

Slip & falls happen all too often and can have long term devastating consequences. You are entitled to recover damages under Missouri Personal Injury Law even if you were technically not invited onto the property, i.e. a trespasser under certain conditions.

If you or someone you love has fallen on someone else’s property because of a failure to clear aisles or clean up spills at a retail store or a failure to clear ice and snow from walkways you deserve to be compensated for your injuries. Call me at (314) 241-0055 to set up a free consultation to discuss your injuries from slip and fall.

An experienced Missouri Personal Injury attorney like myself can help you navigate the often complex issues of fault (Missouri is a pure comparative fault state which means that if you were at fault for a percentage of your injury, you can still recover damages for the liability of the other individual or business) and damages, i.e. your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering and the amount of insurance coverage that existed.

Before you agree to a settlement, give me a call to discuss your case. There is no cost for the consultation and I will give you an honest and straightforward assessment of your situation.

Railroad & Train Accidents

If you or someone you love has been injured in a train accident or an accident at a railroad crossing, give me a call at (314) 241-0055 to set up an appoint for a free consultation.

If you or a loved one have been injured or if you have lost a loved on in an accident on an around a train, the rules governing a railroad’s legal responsibility depend upon the relationship of the injured person to the railroad. The duty or degree of care the railroad owes the injured person or the family of the injured person is dependent upon if he or she is an employee, passenger or unrelated third party, like a motorist or pedestrian.

Trains are considered common carriers and s such have a great deal of responsibility for the safety of their passengers whether or not they were the direct cause of the accident. Call an experienced train accident attorney to determine the best course of action to recover damages in this kind of personal injury case.

FELA, the FEDERAL EMPLOYER LIABILITY ACT, covers a railroads responsibilities to its employees for work-related injuries and diseases due to railroad fault.FELA claims are federal lawsuits that require the worker to prove that the injury was caused, partly or entirely, by the employer. FELA allows much great damages in comparison to workers compensation which is a no-fault, state-based system that allows an injured worker to collect reduced wages and pay medical bills relatively soon after an accident, without having to prove that someone else was at fault .

To win a FELA lawsuit, you must be able to prove that your injury was caused by the negligence (carelessness) of your employer or its other employees. Examples of negligence include:

Unsafe policies;
Defective equipment;
Poor maintenance
Poor decisions by other employees, both supervisors and colleagues;
Inattention from other employees;
Unsafe working conditions;

Additionally, another basis for railroad liability under FELA occurs when the railroad violates either of two federal acts regulating equipment safety and maintenance, even if there is not necessarily direct fault by the railroad for the injury.

FELA claims have a big advantage over workers’ compensation: They provide far more compensation for injured people. Under the law, injured employees are entitled to ask for the wages they lost while they were injured, payment of their medical bills and or any other expenses they incurred as a result of the accident, compensation for pain and suffering, and compensation for any permanent, lifelong disability.

With all of this at stake, the railroads defend vigorously against FELA cases. Make sure you have someone with the experience, expertise and determination to fight for your rights. Call me, I can help you win what you deserve.