At Carmichael, Ellis and Brock, our personal injury attorneys specialize in high-profile, complex cases. From major personal injury proceedings to smaller cases, we offer personalized attention, striving to deliver the best outcomes for our clients. Our client-focused approach and dedication to exceptional service will help you work-up your claim with to evaluate how we can go about getting you fair and just compensation for your injuries.
Carmichael Ellis & Brock handle many types of personal injury cases including:
We take personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you are not required to pay any attorney fees unless we get results for you. Because of this, our personal injury lawyers focus on quality of cases rather than quantity of cases. We may engage a wide variety of professionals to help our case evaluation, including doctors, nurses, engineers and private investigators.
Car Accidents / Tractor Trailer Accidents
Car accidents are a leading cause of injuries and death in Virginia and around the Country. Trucking accidents are likely to cause life altering injuries for those involved although they occur with less frequency.
Whether you have been in a fender bender or a multi-car pileup, you need an attorney to help you. Whether your collision was caused by driver fatigue, speeding, distracted driving, driver error, equipment failure, or intoxicated (drunk/drugged) driving, you need an attorney to help you. Victims of car accidents may suffer severe injuries like broken bones, whiplash, traumatic brain injuries or death, and our personal injury lawyers can help you.
As your personal injury lawyers in Alexandria, VA, we can help you recover compensation for bodily injuries you suffered and their effect on your health, your medical expenses (past and future), lost wages (past and future), pain and suffering, disfigurement or deformity and any associated embarrassment. Our firm assists clients in understanding their rights under Virginia’s at-fault insurance system, where the negligent driver is responsible for compensating the injured party.
Under Virginia Code § 8.01-243, victims have two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit for personal injury claims. It is best to contact an attorney to help you soon after your collision.
Medical Malpractice
In Virginia, healthcare providers (doctors, hospitals, dentists, nurse practitioners, nurses, physical therapists, pharmacists) have a duty to use the degree of skill and diligence in the care and treatment of his/her/its patient that a reasonably prudent healthcare provider in the same field of practice or specialty would have used under the same circumstances. This is called the standard of care If the healthcare provider breaches the standard of care, and the patient suffers injury, then the patient might have a medical malpractice claim.
Like other types of personal injury cases, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims is two years from the date of the injury under Virginia Code § 8.01-243. There are some exceptions where the statute of limitations may be longer than two years depending on the circumstances. But it is always best to act with haste in contacting a medical malpractice lawyer to help you.
Unlike other kinds of personal injury actions, you must have a healthcare provider in the same or similar field, with an active clinical practice, review your medical records and certify that you have injuries that were caused by someone’s breach of the standard of care. This is mandated by the Virginia Medical Malpractice Act, which controls medical malpractice cases in Virginia, and Virginia Code Section 8.01-20.1. In other words, proving negligence in medical malpractice cases requires expert testimony to establish that the healthcare provider breached the standard of care and that you were injured from it. It is imperative that you retain good, competent experts that will help you and who will not just tell you what they think you want to hear.
It is important to keep in mind that the fact that a healthcare provider’s efforts on behalf of his patient were unsuccessful does not, by itself, establish negligence.
Our team of medical malpractice lawyers in Alexandria, VA, will guide you through this complex legal process, helping you collect the necessary medical records and testimony to build a strong case.
Product Liability and Defective Products
Under Virginia’s Product Liability Act, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers can be held responsible for injuries caused by defective products. A product may be defective due to design flaws, manufacturing errors, or insufficient warnings. Typically these cases come up in the context of a breach of warranty.
A warranty is a promise or guarantee by a manufacturer or seller that the product is of a certain quality or character. There are two main types, breach of implied warranty and breach of express warranty.
When a seller knows, or should know, that the product he is selling is to be used for a particular purpose and that the buyer is relying on the seller’s skill or judgment in selecting or furnishing a product suitable for that purpose, then the seller creates an implied warranty that the product will be fit for that particular purpose. In deciding whether the seller should have known that the buyer was relying on the seller’s skill or judgment, you should consider all the facts surrounding the sale, including:
(1) whether the buyer had any control over the selection of the product;
(2) whether the buyer insisted on a particular brand or product;
(3) whether the buyer gave detailed and complete specifications for the product; and
(4) any other relevant circumstances.
There is also an implied warranty by a seller that his product will be fit for the purposes for which it is ordinarily used. The seller or manufacturer has breached the implied warranty that the product is fit for the purposes for which it is ordinarily used if the product was unreasonably dangerous either for the use to which it would ordinarily be put or for some other reasonably foreseeable purpose, and that the unreasonably dangerous condition existed when the product left the seller’s or manufacturer’s hands. Unless the product’s unfitness is obvious to all who see it.
With respect to a product’s design/manufacture/construction, a manufacturer has a duty to use ordinary care to design/ manufacture/ construct a product that will be reasonably safe for its intended purpose and for any other reasonably foreseeable purpose. If a manufacturer fails to perform this duty, then it is negligent.
A Manufacturer’s and Seller’s have a Duty to Warn. When a manufacturer or seller knows, or by the use of ordinary care has a reason to know, that its product is potentially dangerous, and that this danger is not obvious or readily discoverable by the buyer, and that injury reasonably could be anticipated, the manufacturer or seller has a duty to give an adequate warning of this danger. In determining whether the warning given was adequate under the circumstances, we will investigate:
(1) whether the warning could be expected to catch the attention of a reasonable person;
(2) whether the warning could be understood by a reasonable person; and
(3) whether the warning gave a reasonable indication of the nature and extent of the potential danger.
If the manufacturer or seller had a duty to give a warning, and if it failed to give an adequate warning, then it was negligent.
A manufacturer has a duty to make inspections or tests that are reasonably necessary to see that his product is safe for its intended use and for any other reasonably foreseeable purpose. If a manufacturer fails to perform this duty, then it is negligent.
If the seller knows, or by using ordinary care has a reason to know, that a product is likely to be dangerous or defective, he has a duty to make inspections or tests that are reasonably necessary to see that the product is safe for its intended purpose, and for any other reasonably foreseeable use. If a seller fails to perform this duty, then he is negligent.
On the other hand, if a plaintiff uses a product in a manner which he knows, or by using ordinary care should know, is unsafe, then he is negligent. In Virginia, a plaintiff cannot recover if he uses the product in a manner which he knows, or by the use of ordinary care should know, is unsafe. Along those same lines, the plaintiff cannot recover if he misused the product or used it in a way not reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer. In other words, a buyer has a duty to use the product as it is intended to be used or in a way reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer. If a buyer fails to perform this duty, then he is negligent and cannot recover for his injuries in Virginia.
Take Action on Your Personal Injury Case
Virginia imposes strict deadlines for filing personal injury claims. For most cases, Virginia Code § 8.01-243 establishes a two-year statute of limitations. However, certain cases, like claims involving government entities, may have shorter deadlines. It is important to gather evidence, document your injuries, and consult with a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. At Carmichael Ellis & Brock, PLLC., we are committed to helping you take the necessary legal steps to protect your rights and secure full compensation for your injuries.
Contact us today for a consultation and let us help you pursue the justice you deserve. 703-684-7908.
Contactless video consultations available. Please note, if you are inquiring about an expungement, sealing, or pardon, please answer the questions on those pages to help us better assist you.
Descriptions and summaries about the attorneys’ prior cases and settlements found on this website are intended only to provide information about the activities and experience of our attorneys and should not be understood as a guarantee or assurance of future success in any matter. The results portrayed were dependent on a variety of facts and circumstances unique to the particular matters described. Past results are not a guarantee of future results, and the outcome of your particular case or matter cannot be predicted using a lawyer’s or law firm’s past results. Every case is unique and different and should be evaluated on its own merits, without comparison to other cases that may have had different facts and circumstances.
