burn injuries Blogs

The actual “justice” in the civil justice system is found in the opportunity for average people to have a fighting chance when they go up against wealthy and powerful corporations and industries. Unfortunately, for the last 25 years, the civil justice system has been under attack by the rich and powerful, claiming that frivolous lawsuits abound and the system needs reformation. This campaign convinced many people that those claims were true. But now, with documentary films like HOT COFFEE, the public is finally realizing who the real “bad guys” are.

McDonald’s Hot Coffee Case

One of the most publicized and notorious U.S. personal injury cases was the McDonald’s hot coffee case of 1994. Liebeck v. McDonald’s Restaurants was blasted by the media and stigmatized as a frivolous lawsuit from the start, but was it truly frivolous or is that what McDonald’s, a multi-billion-dollar company, wanted the public to believe?

What Happened?

Stella Liebeck, a 79-year-old woman, was a passenger in her nephew’s car when she ordered coffee from a McDonald’s drive-thru window in February 1992. Her nephew parked the car so that she could prepare her coffee. To do so, Liebeck held the coffee cup between her knees, but when she tried to remove the lid, every last drop of coffee spilled into her lap and caused burn injuries to her thighs, groin, and buttocks. Liebeck was admitted to a hospital where she remained for eight days for skin grafting procedures. Her injuries required two more years of medical treatment afterwards.

Attempts to Settle

Liebeck attempted to settle with McDonald’s for $20,000 to cover past and future medical expenses, and lost wages, but McDonald’s refused. After Liebeck retained an attorney, they offered a settlement of $90,000, which McDonald’s also refused. When the case went to trial in August 1994, Liebeck’s attorney claimed that McDonald’s coffee was heated to unsafe temperatures, supported by more than 700 previously reported burn injuries. The jury ruled in favor of Liebeck and she was awarded $2.86 million, which the judge decreased to $640,000. An appeal was filed but Liebeck and McDonald’s settled out of court.

When to Contact an Experienced Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawyer

The frivolity of this case was not in Liebeck’s pursuit of rightful compensation, but for McDonald’s stubborn and misguided refusal to settle. If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of negligence, be it by an individual or a corporation, you may be entitled to financial compensation. Contact the experienced Boston personal injury attorneys with Kiley Law group to learn more about obtaining the justice you deserve.

Call us today for a free legal consultation (888) 208-1695.

DISCLAIMER: The Kiley Law Group is not representing any of the parties mentioned in this article at the time the article was posted. Our information source is cited within the article. If you were involved in this accident or a similar incident and have questions about your rights and legal options, call us or another reputable law firm. Do not act solely upon the information provided herein. Get a legal evaluation. We provide a free, confidential consultation to all not-at-fault persons named in this article and to their family members as well.

A faulty electrical current blast injured two Nstar workers at an Everett substation yesterday, causing burns and smoke inhalation, and bringing in Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors to investigate what caused the explosion.

The OSHA, which investigates workplace accidents, the Boston Herald reports, sent an inspector to the substation at 173 Alford Street in Everett, after the “flash incident.” Typically, such flash incidents occur when a large electrical current is diverted from its insulated path, generating massive volumes of hot air, turning metal into vapor and generating tremendous pressure in a very brief time.

Nstar spokesperson said that the two injured workers were performing maintenance on a circuit yesterday afternoon about 1:30 pm when the blast occurred. One sustained burn injuries, while the other suffered smoke inhalation. Both men were taken to Mass. General Hospital.

No outages were caused by the incident. The Everett substation is a part of Nstar and connects to the Charlestown system which provides electricity to Greater Boston.

OSHA spokesperson told the Herald that the federal agency had never inspected the substation, since there have not been any complaints about it, “nor did it come up on a scheduled inspection list.”

To see the full story, please click here.

According to the Shriner’s Hospital, there are three types of burns parents should be aware of in evaluating whether their child needs to go to the hospital for treatment. They are first degree, or superficial burns; second degree or partial burns; and third degree or full-thickness burns. Each of these burns have different symptoms and treatments.

There are many practical prevention tips that will help parents keep their child safe from an accidental burn from either electrical accidents, or scalding liquids or foods, or burns from fires. Shriner’s Hospital and USA SafeKids offer burn prevention tips. For more information, go to:

National SAFE KIDS Campaign (NSKC).  Burn Injury Fact Sheet.  Washington (DC): NSKC, 2004.

Thousands of children suffer each year from burn-related injuries but there are ways parents can protect their children and prevent these injuries. Recent statistics show 92,500 children ages 14 and under were treated in hospital emergency rooms for burn-related injuries.  Of these, 58,100 were from fire burns, 22,600 were scald burns, 7,200 were chemical burns and 2,100 were electrical burns.

Most burn injuries occur with children under age 4, and being scalded by hot liquid or food is the most common type of injury in young children. Most fire injuries are caused by children playing with fire, especially with those children age 9 and younger. Shriner’s Hospital has advice for parents on evaluating burn injuries to see if they are first, second, or third degree injuries and whether they need to be taken to the hospital for treatment.  Shriner’s Hospital and USA SafeKids have burn injury prevention tips for parents.

For more information, go to:

Shriner’s Hospital

National SAFE KIDS Campaign (NSKC).  Burn Injury Fact Sheet.  Washington (DC): NSKC, 2004.

June 10, 2009 – Rochester – The baby girl from Rochester, N.H., who was seriously scaled in a bath three weeks ago has been released from the Boston hospital that was addressing her second-degree burn injuries.

Over 30% of the infant’s body suffered second-degree burns when her babysitter, 19-year-old Crystal Grant, attempted to give her a bath.

According to reports, Grant has been charged with first-degree assault with allegations that she acted recklessly in harming the child.

Learn more about child burn injuries.

Treating the pain of burn victims is a tricky situation. Not only does the burn patient experience pain simply from the burn, but often the cleaning and redressing of the wound will cause even more pain.

Current narcotics administered via IV may be woefully inadequate. Information on WebMd.com indicates that more research needs to be conducted on pain management in burn victims.

Other treatment methods may include placing the burn injury victim in a special burn recovery bed which can evenly distribute the patient’s body weight. This treatment can help prevent burn victims from suffering further injury due to painful pressure points or bed sores.

After seeking medical treatment, burn victims should immediately contact an experienced burn injury attorney to protect their rights. You may be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and other expenses.

Visit our library to learn more about burn injuries and burn pain management.

According to the Burn Survivor Resource Center, “In the United States, approximately 2.4 million burn injuries are reported per year.” They continue to state that 650,000 people are treated by medical professionals with 75,000 patients hospitalized each year.

If you only count the hospitalized burn victims, the following statistics apply:

• 6250 burn victims a month
• 1442 Burn victims a week
• 205 burn victims a day
• 8.5 burn victims are hospitalized an hour

All of these burn statistics pertain only to those victims that were hospitalized. Astounding!

Any burn survivor should immediately contact an experienced burn injury attorney to protect their rights.

Learn more about the types of burns and their treatments.