Some things just make my blood boil. The trial lawyer wisdom nowadays says you're not supposed to show your emotion: be the messenger and let the judge and jury get mad, don't do it yourself. Well, yesterday I filed a lawsuit and I'm angry on behalf of my client. I hope it … [Read more...] about What I Did When the Insurance Company Refused DuBray Payments
Waivers In Montana
I come from a long line of worriers. Both my grandmothers were champions at it, and I began to worry young. I love my job, but it does very little to help my tendency to fret. Professionally, I witness firsthand the fallout from the times things that "usually" don't hurt people, do hurt them and … [Read more...] about Waivers In Montana
Divorce-Cleaning Out the Bank Accounts
Back in the good ol’ days. . .a party who decided to leave his or her spouse typically cleaned out the house, the cookie jar stash, and all the bank accounts and changed the names on all the property and accounts to ace the other party out. Is that a good idea nowadays? NOT!! And especially where … [Read more...] about Divorce-Cleaning Out the Bank Accounts
Anatomy of an Injury Lawsuit
One thing I love about this line of work is the variety. There are many different kinds of injury lawsuits. They range from auto accidents to building code violations to professional malpractice. Each client is different. Witnesses to a case are varied in both their knowledge and … [Read more...] about Anatomy of an Injury Lawsuit
Dubray-Montana Law on Advance-Payments
In my previous post, I discussed the Ridley decision of the Montana Supreme Court. This is the case that requires insurance companies to pay for an injured party's medical expenses where liability is "reasonably clear" and the medical expenses are "causally related" to the accident. As anyone who … [Read more...] about Dubray-Montana Law on Advance-Payments
Ridley-Montana Law on Advance-Payments
Back when I was first out of law school, I took a job with a firm that does some insurance defense. One of my first interactions with an insurance company was a conversation I had with an adjuster who was wondering whether she actually had to pay for an injured person's medical expenses -- before … [Read more...] about Ridley-Montana Law on Advance-Payments
Subrogation and the Made Whole Doctrine
In this post, I discussed what subrogation is. I also explained, in my practice, that because of this right (and usually, language in the contract) health insurance companies today now claim a lien on settlements to the extent of the health insurance company’s payments. At first blush, it makes … [Read more...] about Subrogation and the Made Whole Doctrine
Subrogation and Health Insurance Liens. What are they and why do they matter?
An ordinary dictionary will define subrogation as the substitution of one party for another. And, that’s what it is; with a few technicalities, in the legal world. As I understand it, for our purposes, the idea of substituting one party for another in the legal world began in England, not long … [Read more...] about Subrogation and Health Insurance Liens. What are they and why do they matter?