When the weather turns warm, people are once again able to enjoy the outdoors on their bicycles. Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White and the Illinois Department of Transportation offer a number of tips designed to help bicyclists stay safe on our roads. If you or your loved ones will be bicycling this year, it […]
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Joshua L. Weisberg Attends ROI Conference
Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop Partner Joshua L. Weisberg attended the ROI Conference in Denver last week. ROI 2015 (#ROI2015) brought together trial attorneys from throughout the country who are dedicated to helping the community both inside and outside of the courtroom. The conference focused on using the legal expertise gained by trial attorneys through […]
Investigation into CTA Crash Concluded
The investigation into last year’s Chicago Transit Authority train crash at the O’Hare subway station concluded this week. The National Transportation Safety Board listed several factors as contributing to the March 2014 accident that injured 33 people. The failure of the rail operator to report to work properly rested and the failure of the CTA […]
Lawsuit Filed After Commercial Truck Causes Eight-Car Accident on Illinois Highway
A lawsuit has been filed in Cook County, Illinois, by a police officer who suffered permanent injuries after his family vehicle was crashed into by an 18-wheeler whose driver was traveling too fast in a construction zone. The lawsuit, filed by Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop alleges that the truck driver was driving too fast […]
Truck Tires and Speed Limits
From 1974 to 1995, the National Maximum Speed Law banned states from setting speed limits above a certain level. From 1974 to 1988, that meant the top speed limit was 55 miles per hour. From 1988 to 1995 it was 65 mph. After 1995, Congress once again allowed states to set their own speed limits. […]
The Reality of Distracted Driving
Distracted driving is widely acknowledged as a dangerous activity. According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, More than 95 percent of licensed drivers believe that drivers who text, email or use social media while driving are a “somewhat” or “very” serious threat to their personal safety. This belief has not put an end to distracted […]
Safe Driving in Wet Conditions
Driving too fast for road conditions is a common cause of accidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Roughly 1.4 million fatal crashes were attributed to weather conditions from 1975 to 2000. While people might think that driving during the winter is the most dangerous time that is not actually the case. Icy […]
Lawsuit Filed in DuPage County, Illinois for 38-Year-Old Man Seriously Injured in Auto Collision
A lawsuit has been filed in DuPage County, Illinois, on behalf of a 38-year-old man who sustained serious and permanent injuries after being rear-ended in an auto collision on August 27, 2013. At the time of the accident, the plaintiff’s vehicle was stopped in traffic in the westbound lanes of I-88 in York Township, when […]
A Look at Impaired Driving from the NHTSA
A 2014 survey of U.S. drivers shows that the issue of impaired driving has changed significantly over recent years. The Roadside Survey of Alcohol and Drug Use by Drivers is conducted periodically by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The survey was first conducted in 1973. Since its inception, the survey has shown a dramatic […]
A Campaign to Increase Seat Belt Use
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has launched a new campaign focusing on seat belt use. The campaign specifically targets parents and children aged 8 to 14. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adult seat belt use tops the list of ways to reduce injuries and fatalities in motor vehicle accidents. […]
New Chairman of the NTSB Confirmed
In a unanimous vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed Christopher Hart as the new chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. Mr. Hart has been acting chairman of the NTSB since April, when Deborah A.P. Hersman left to become the president and CEO of the National Safety Council. The confirmation allows Christopher Hart to officially begin […]
NHTSA Changes Crash Data Policy
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does not investigate every motor vehicle crash. There are far too many crashes to review each one. Instead, the NHTSA uses a sampling of crashes to analyze overall trends. More than 20 sites have been designated for this sampling, including Chicago and Los Angeles. Since 1988, the NHTSA has […]
Rapoport Law Offices, P.C., Attorneys Distinguished by Super Lawyers Again in 2015
Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop a personal injury law firm based in Chicago, Illinois, is proud to announce that partners David E. Rapoport and Joshua L. Weisberg have been selected by Thomson Reuters for inclusion in its 2015 Edition of Super Lawyers. Mr. Rapoport and Mr. Weisberg have consistently been recognized by Thomson Reuters in […]
Transportation Safety Data Released
The National Transportation Safety Board released its preliminary data concerning 2013 transportation fatalities. According to NTSB figures, 34,678 people were killed across all modes of transportation in 2013. That represents a slight decrease from 2012, during which 35,796 died in transportation accidents. The data groups all deaths from highway accidents, aviation accidents, marine, rail and […]
Industrial Accident Lawsuit Filed following Belvidere, Illinois, Factory Worker’s Death
March 2, 2015 This morning a lawsuit was filed in Rockford by the family of a 21-year-old man who was killed as a result of an industrial accident that occurred on June 10, 2014, at the Ventra Belvidere, LLC, plant. The victim, a graduate of Harlem High School class of 2010, was employed by Ventra […]
Rise in Large Verdicts in Defective Product Cases
For 10 years, there were no jury verdicts of $1 billion or more in cases involving defective products. In 2014, that trend stopped with several verdicts exceeding that total. Some have tied the absence of large verdicts from 2004 to last year to extensive lobbying efforts by “tort reform” groups. Others suggest that the gap […]
Final Tally of Auto Recalls Announced
By June of last year, it became clear that the total number of vehicles recalled in 2014 would be an all-time record. The final tally is in and just shy of 64 million vehicles were recalled for safety defects, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The number of vehicles recalled last year was […]
New Recommendations for the FAA
The more time that passes following an accident, the harder it is to determine the cause of that accident. The National Transportation Safety Board is asking the Federal Aviation Administration to make several changes it hopes will allow plane crashes to be found faster and will aid in investigating those crashes. The eight recommendations from […]
NBTA Mid-Winter Convention Report
Last weekend attorney David Rapoport attended the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) Mid-Winter Board Meeting in Houston, Texas. Mr. Rapoport is in his second year serving as President of the NBTA. The NBTA was the first American Bar Association (ABA) accredited attorney board certification program. NBTA’s Board of Directors, which Mr. Rapoport chairs, is […]
Rapoport Law Offices, P.C., Files Lawsuit After Baby Suffers Brain Damage During Birth
Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop has filed a lawsuit in Brown County, Wisconsin, after a baby boy suffered a brain injury during birth. The lawsuit alleges the baby’s mother arrived at the hospital for labor and delivery after an uncomplicated full-term pregnancy. Upon admission all signs indicated the baby was in good health, but during […]
