Oklahoma dog bite law is relatively straightforward. The dog’s owner is liable for damages if:

1. The attack was without provocation; and
2. The victim had a lawful right to be there

Oklahoma’s statute on dog bite law is accessible here. As a frame of reference, the national dog bite claim currently exceeds $24,000. Of course, there’s no telling how many dog bite injuries there are without an insurance company actually getting involved.

The person that hit me is really nice, but her insurance company won’t even pay all of my medical bills. I don’t want to sue her, but what else can I do?

I see this all the time. People that get into a car accident that is no fault of their own rarely want to get involved with a lawsuit. They simply want to be reimbursed for what is fair. Unfortunately, insurance companies often force people to file a lawsuit to get anything done. It saves them money by “denying and delaying.”

If you want to get reimbursed for your medical bills, lost income, and pain & suffering, you’ll likely need to file a lawsuit. Even then, the insurance company may not offer anything reasonable. That’s why we have car accident jury trials.

Related articles

• Car Accident Lawsuits and Common Misconceptions (oklahomalawyer.com)
• Waiting to file a car accident lawsuit – how long? (oklahomacaraccidentlawyer.com)

The American Association for Justice recently released a report title Driven to Safety: How Litigation Spurred Auto Safety Innovation (click to download the full report).

Here’s a quick summary:

1. Gas Tanks – gas tanks are now universally located within rigid frames. Before, minor collisions could cause fires and explosions
2. Door Latches – Ford’s engineers noticed defective handles would accidentally open car doors (but nothing was done before litigation)
3. Electronic Stability Control – Some SUVs had rollover rates more than twice that of other SUVs
4. Air Bags – 2% of new cars came equipped with airbags in 1988 (even though they were developed in the ’50s). Now manufacturers are forced to install them in all cars
5. Illusory Park – Ford and Chrysler both had cars that would slip out of park and roll away. Chrysler ignored the problem (and its engineers) until litigation forced them to recall over a million vehicles
6. Tires – Various tire manufactures have covered up problems with their defective tires
7. Side Impact Protection – All cars are now designed with rigid side-impact protection
8. Seats – weak seats can collapse in even low speed impacts
9. Seat Belts
10. Power Windows
11. Roof Crush – Manufacturers have long known roof strength was a weakness during rollovers

The Tulsa World published an article today about the new “Deadbeat ‘wanted’ list to help DHS find parents.” Gov. Fallin signed into law a bill last Friday that gives DHS the ability to publish a list of missing parents that owe child support. The list can show the deadbeat’s photo, name, amount of child support owed and the last know address.

So, what happens if you have a personal injury lawsuit and you owe back child support?

The back payments will come out of any settlement or judgment. Obviously it can be hard to pay child support if you’re hurt and can’t work due to the injuries, so not all people behind on child support are deadbeats.

The statute on point is 56 OS 237B:

F. The child support lien shall be inferior to any lien or claim for:

1. Services and expenses documented and related to the claim, such as attorney fees or health care expenses;

2. Damage to or a loss of real property; or

3. Damage to or a loss of a motor vehicle to the extent that it would be exempt from claims of general creditors pursuant to Section 1 of Title 31 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

So, this means that medical bills and attorney’s fees will be paid off before the child support lien.

Most medical providers end up filing a lien on their patients that are involved in a personal injury claim (or lawsuit). They do this for the simple fact that they want to protect their claim.

Most of the time, they will send you a notice of the lien. You can also search the Oklahoma County Registrar of Deeds at: http://landrecords.oklahomacounty.org/landrecords/deeds/default.asp

You will want to click on “Grantor/Grantee or Unplatted” (on the right hand side). Next, type in your last name, then first in the “Grantee” section and scroll down and click search.

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The FDA recently sent out a letter to denture cream manufacturers suggesting that they:

1. Performing a risk analysis of your labeling to assess how risks can be mitigated;
2. Conducting a human factors study to assess consumer understanding of labeling and
   the potential for misuse of your product;
3. Modifying your labeling to include a statement that the product contains zinc if appropriate and define maximum safe usage in easily understood terms, and
4. Replacing zinc with an ingredient that presents less health risks in situations of overuse, and if it is a new formulation, submitting a new 510(k).

The full letter can be accessed on the fda.gov’s website.

Related articles

• Zinc Poisoning Linked to Popular Denture Creams (webmd.com)
• Denture glue makers sued over ‘nerve damage’ (dailymail.co.uk)
• Fixodent: Can Excessive Use Cause Nerve Damage? (abcnews.go.com)

Settlement offers are almost always a part of the litigation process. Sometimes settlement talks will fall through though. If this happens, can one party use the opposing party’s settlement offer as evidence to show that the party was at fault or did something wrong?

No. The Oklahoma Evidence Code clearly states that this is inadmissible. Check out the statute for the exact language: 12 O.S. § 2408. Note that the rule does not require the exclusion of evidence that would otherwise be discoverable simply because it occurred during settlement negotiations.

One of the main reasons for this rule is that it encourages settlement.

Generally, yes.

The Oklahoma law on the issue (42 OS 43) states:

The Hospital Lien applies to the amount recovered “whether by judgment or by settlement or compromise.” The amount is limited to the “reasonable and necessary” charges.

The lien can’t be enforced on Uninsured Motorists benefits however. See Kratz v. Kratz, 1995 OK 63. The Court noted 42 OS 43 “Hospital Liens in Personal Injury Cases” and reasoned that a “personal injury” means a claim against a third part or their insurer.

42 OS 44 requires a notice of the lien to be filed in the office of the county clerk in the county in which the hospital is located. The notice must include:

• Itemized statement of amount
• Name and address of injured patient
• Date of accident
• Name and location of hospital
• Name of alleged liable party

Nearly all of the car accident cases we handle are on a “contingency fee” basis. This means that you, the client, do not owe any legal fees up front. We only get paid if we recover a settlement or damages at trial. Our attorney’s fee is contingent on winning something.

The contingency fee is typically a percentage of the total amount awarded. Thus, the higher the settlement or trial verdict, the higher the attorney’s fee.

It is important to note that all expenses associated with pursing your legal claim are typically paid up front by our firm. If we can’t get a settlement or trial verdict in your favor, you still owe us nothing.