Call Us 919-240-4054Court of Appeals Rules Jury Must Decide Gross Negligence in Police Chase Case: Implications of Higgins v. Mendoza In a significant legal development, the North Carolina Court of Appeals recently ruled in Higgins v. Mendoza that questions of negligence–particularly whether an officer’s conduct rises to the level of gross negligence–should be left to a jury […]
Car Accident
Most Common Accidents That Lead to Death & Wrongful Death Claims
If you lost a loved one in an accident that wasn’t their fault, you could be entitled to compensation through a wrongful death claim. The purpose of a wrongful death claim is to lessen the financial burden on your household due to your loved one’s untimely passing. While a wrongful death claim can never […]
Keyless Cars Are Causing Carbon Monoxide Deaths
Keyless ignitions are now standard in most new vehicles. Drivers do not use a physical key but instead carry a fob that transmits a signal allowing the car to be started simply by pushing a button. Although the feature is convenient, the driver of the car must remember to push the button to turn the […]
Why Can’t the Jury Know If the Defendant Has Car Insurance?
If you have ever served on a North Carolina jury in a car wreck case, you almost certainly sat through the entire trial never knowing if the defendant had any insurance to pay the verdict. Surely no one in the courtroom – not the lawyers, the witnesses or the judge, ever mentioned it. Maybe someone mentioned […]
Another Driver Rear-Ended Me. Do I Need to Get a Lawyer?
Maybe yes, but maybe not. We get a lot of calls from people who have been in car wrecks, but who don’t necessarily need a lawyer. What they need is some guidance about what they should do next, how their medical bills should get paid, and how they should go about deciding whether to get a lawyer. We […]
Graduated risks: talk to your teen about drunk driving
Summer can be a dangerous time for teenage drivers. In 2012 the number of teen drivers killed rose 20% during the months of June and July, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. This high school graduation season, the partners of CJG Law Firm would like to remind you and the teenage drivers in your home that […]
Study: teens more likely to be distracted drivers
While it may come as no surprise to anyone who has a smart phone-fixated teen at home, a new study from Virginia Tech’s Transportation Institute shows that young drivers are far more likely to be distracted while driving than more experienced motorists. Although the research shows teenagers behind the wheel are more focused on the […]
Texting teen driver to pay punitive damages to victim
The Forest City victim of a car wreck caused by a texting teen received a $120,000 settlement, according to NC Lawyers Weekly. The amount of the settlement is notable because the plaintiff’s medical bills only amounted to $21,000, which indicates that a good part of the settlement was for punitive damages that are intended to punish […]
Distracted driving fatalities on the rise
Deaths as the result of distracted driving are on the rise, according to a new study published in Public Health Reports. Distracted drivers are about 1.6 times more likely as non-distracted drivers to mortally hit a pedestrian at marked crosswalk and about three times as likely to hit a pedestrian walking on the shoulder of […]
Charlotte cyclist killed in CA
A Charlotte man was killed while cycling in Azusa, CA, according to reports. Andrew Edward Page, a missionary with the Church of Latter-Day Saints, was cycling around 4 pm on Thursday when he was struck and severely injured by a vehicle. He died of his injuries later that evening. Police have not determined who was […]