PDI ANNUAL CONFERENCE - BEDFORD SPRINGS - JULY 19-20

THE PENNSYLVANIA DEFENSE INSTITUTE'S

44th ANNUAL CONFERENCE

July 19-20, 2012

Bedford Springs Resort & Spa

Bedford, Pennsylvania

· Agenda highlights include presentations by Pennsylvania Governor Thomas Corbett and Insurance Commissioner Michael Consedine! There are also presentations on “Post-Koken Auto and Bad Faith Practice” and on “Insurance Fraud and Medical Billing Fraud”. There is also an ethics update for that elusive one hour of ethics CLE credit we all need.


· The 2012 Conference also provides for substantive law committee meetings. So, plan to attend the committee meeting of your choice and network with other PDI members in your area of practice. CLE credit is offered for participation in these meetings. To date, the Motor Vehicle, Employment Law & Civil Rights, and the Products Liability Committees plan to conduct meetings.

· As you know, PDI’s Annual Conference is not all work! We will have our traditional Presidents Reception on Thursday evening. We are also arranging with Bedford Springs activities for the whole family, including golf, hiking, biking, a cooking demonstration and a scavenger hunt. We have not even mentioned the spa and pool that Bedford Springs is famous for! And, there are off-site activities including antique shops, Old Bedford Village, covered bridges tours, Fort Bedford Museum, Gravity Hill and more. So, plan to bring the whole family this year!

· Registration material is being mailed to all PDI members. The charge for lawyers will again be $325 for all events this year. And, again this year there is no charge for insurance claim representatives to attend. We have also again negotiated a reduced rate for golfers of $100 (including cart and greens fee). In the meantime, please make your room reservations with Bedford Springs by June 25 to receive the reduced PDI room rate by e-mailing Bedford Springs at:

http://www.omnihotels.com/findahotel/bedfordsprings/meetingfacilities/padefenseinstitutemeeting7.aspx

or by calling 814-623-8100 and mentioning you are attending the PDI Conference to secure the PDI room rate.




Here is a link to the Registration Form:

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B83Pxa3TYcXMYzNUeVg2bHFWMTg

Massachusetts Teen Guilty in Deadly Texting-While-Driving Car Accident

Here's a link to an article from the June 7, 2012 USA Today (Associated Press) regarding a teenager who was found guilty in a Massachusetts criminal court for vehicular homicide and negligent operation while texting in terms of a February, 2011 motor vehicle accident:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-06-06/massachusetts-texting-driving-sentence/55431460/1

Some commentators are noting that this is the first conviction in the nation of this kind.

For other texting-while-driving or cell phone use blog posts here on Tort Talk, click here.

Upcoming PDI CLE Seminar - June 29 - Pittsburgh

PENNSYLVANIA DEFENSE INSTITUTE

YOUNG LAWYERS CLE PROGRAM

“General Principles of Insurance Claims Handling, Considerations in

Handling Non-Litigation Claims, and Insurance Bad Faith in Pennsylvania”

at

Pietragallo, Gordon, Alfano, Bosick & Raspanti

Pittsburgh, PA

Friday, June 29, 2012

8:30 – 9:00 AM Registration

“General Principles of Insurance Claims Handling”

9:00 – 9:30 AM -Insurance Company Operations

 

Sharon Jones

Erie Insurance

9:30 – 10:30 AM -The Liability Insurance Policy

Mark Eck, Esquire

Meyer, Darragh, Buckler, Bebenek & Eck

10:30 – 10:45 AM Break

10:45 – 11:45 -The Claim Handling Process

Stuart Setcavage

State Farm Insurance

 

11:45 AM – 12:15 PM “Considerations in Handling Non-Litigation Claims – Part 1”

Scott Millhouse, Esquire

Meyer, Darragh, Buckler, Bebenek & Eck

12:15 – 12:45 PM Lunch

 

12:45 – 1:45 PM “Considerations in Handling Non-Litigation Claims – Part II”

Louis Long, Esquire

Pietragallo, Gordon, Alfano, Bosick & Raspanti

 

1:45 – 2:00 PM Break

2:00 – 4:00 PM “Insurance Bad Faith in Pennsylvania”

Christopher Jacobs, Esquire

Dapper, Baldasare, Benson, Behling & Kane

David Cole, Esquire

Litigation Consultant

THE COST:

$150 payable to “PDI”

Name(s): ____________________________________________________

Firm/Company: ________________________________________________

Judge Minora Again Addresses Medical Malpractice Emotional Distress Claims

In his recent decision in the case of Yadogua v. Dennis, No. 2009-CIV-53 (C.P. Lacka. Co. April 12, 2012 Minora, J.), Judge Carmen D. Minora of the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas addressed a variety of issues raised in the Defendants’ Motions for Summary Judgment filed in this medical malpractice action.

The Yadogua decision represents another decision in which a relative was allowed to proceed beyond the summary judgment stage on a negligent infliction of emotional distress claim in the medical malpractice context under the bystander theory.  To view prior Tort Talk posts on this topic click here.

Although the court allowed the negligent infliction of emotional distress claim to proceed, it did grant the Defendants’ Motion in relation to the Plaintiff’s fraud count. The Court found that the Plaintiff failed to show an essential element of the fraud cause of action, that being any representation by the Defendants with the intent to mislead the Plaintiff as to the ability of the medical providers to provide appropriate care.

In this decision, Judge Minora also granted summary judgment on the Plaintiff’s claim for punitive damages as the record revealed that the Plaintiff’s allegations amounted to negligence-type claims and did not rise to the level of reckless indifference, willful, wanton, or reckless conduct required to support a claim for punitive damages.

Anyone desiring a copy of this decision may contact me at dancummins@comcast.net.

Summary Judgment Granted in Lehigh County Slip and Fall on Slushy Ice Case

Judge Carol McGinley of the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas recently entered summary judgment in favor of a Defendant in the case of Havir v. Fountain Hill Dev’t Associates, PICS Case No. 12-1003 (C.P. Lehigh Co. May 2, 2012 McGinley, J.).

The Court relied, in part, on the assumption of risk doctrine and found that the defendant was entitled to summary judgment where a Plaintiff voluntarily proceeded in the face of an obvious and dangerous condition when she chose to walk over a “slushy ice” in the parking lot of her apartment complex in an attempt to reach her car and slipped and fell.

According to reports on the opinion, the Plaintiff’s deposition testimony established that she knew that she was facing an obvious and dangerous condition. However, the Plaintiff attempted to argue that her decision to walk through the slush and ice was not voluntary because she did not have a reasonable alternative to get to her car.

The Court disagreed and found that the Plaintiff did not establish that she was compelled to get to her car or that she was precluded from safely returning to her apartment while she waited for the slush to be removed from the parking lot.

Accordingly, the Court found that the Defendants did not owe the Plaintiff a duty of care where the Plaintiff voluntarily proceeded in the face of an obvious and dangerous condition when she attempted to walk across the parking lot. As such, the Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment was granted.

A copy of this case can be secured from the Pennsylvania Law Weekly Instant Case Service by calling       1-800-276-7427 and providing the PICS Case number noted above.

Source: “Digest of Recent Opinions” Pennsylvania Law Weekly (May 29, 2012).

Pennsylvania Supreme Court to Address Validity of "Error in Judgment" Defense in Med Mal Cases

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to address an appeal on whether medical malpractice Defendants may rely upon an “error in judgment” defense at trial. In the case of Passarello v. Grumbine, the court issued two orders on May 23, 2012 granting petitions for allowing to appeal the issue.

Tort talkers may recall that, in the Superior Court decision of Passarello v. Grumbine, that court granted a new trial to the Plaintiffs and retroactively applied it to a 2009 ruling in Pringle v. Rapaport, which banned the “error in judgment defense in medical malpractice cases.” Here is a LINK to the prior tort talk post on the Superior Court’s decision.

Source: Article: “Pa. Justices to Consider ‘Error in Judgment’ Med Mal Defense” by Zack Needles of  The Legal Intelligencer (May 29, 2012).

Source of Photo: 


Free images from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Summary Judgment Granted in Monroe County Sidewalk Trip and Fall Case

Summary Judgment was granted in favor of the Defendants in the recent trip and fall case of Pietrowski v. Gallagher, PICS Case No. 12-0994 (C.P. Monroe Co. March 7, 2012 Zulick, J.).

Judge Arthur L. Zulick
Monroe County Cour of Common Pleas

In Pietrowski, Judge Arthur L. Zulick of the Monroe County Court of Common Pleas ruled that the rise or gap in a sidewalk surface was not significant enough to put the owner on notice of an allegedly dangerous condition. Given the law that a pedestrian bears the responsibility to avoid slight imperfections in the surface of a walkway, the court granted summary judgment in favor of the Defendants.

According to reports on the opinion, the Plaintiff fell in daylight conditions.  Both parties submitted photographs of the area in question. The photographs show that the gap was slightly irregular and that one slab of the sidewalk was raised about1/2 inch above the other. The court noted that Pennsylvania case law has held that up to a 2-inch gap is even not enough of a defect to impose liability on a property owner for failure to remedy or repair the alleged defect.

For other Tort Talk posts on other cases reviewing the Trivial Defect Doctrine, click here.

A copy of this case can be secured from the Pennsylvania Law Weekly Instant Case Service by calling 1-800-276-7427 and providing the PICS Case number noted above.

Source: “Digest of Recent Opinions” Pennsylvania Law Weekly (May 29, 2012).