BERGEN COUNTY ACCIDENT ATTORNEY SPECIALIST 201-646-3333

NEED AN EXPERT ATTORNEY TO WIN YOUR ACCIDENT CASE?

When you get hurt due to the negligence of other people, the next step you take can be one of the most important steps in the rest of your life. You may feel lost when an accident occurs. Nobody plans to be a victim of personal injury. Attorney Rafael Gomez's goal is to protect and fight for the rights of accident and injury victims in Bergen County, Hudson County, Passaic County, and Essex County and other surrounding counties.

Personal injury laws apply to any type of physical injury your body suffers from being involved in an accident, as well as other injuries such as loss of quality of life or financial loss. Attorney Rafael Gomez represents injured clients to help them find peace of mind after a traumatic event in their lives.

For Rafael Gómez, you are more than a hurt person, he sees you as a person who put his life "on hold" to face the consequences of being hurt. He is here to make the law work for you, to make you feel whole again, to help you recover and move on with your life. A personal injury claim is your opportunity to seek compensation for all of your injuries. The Law Firm of Rafael Gomez handles all personal injury claims.

Contact Attorney Rafael Gomez today for a consultation and he will review his case for you. Come to our office to help you determine if you are entitled to compensation for your injuries. Attorney Rafael Gomez is proud to serve Bergen County, Hudson County, Passaic Cunty, and Essex County.

OUR LAWYER RAFAEL GOMEZ CAN HELP YOU IN THE FOLLOWING ADDRESSES, IF YOUR CITY IS NOT ON THE LIST, PLEASE CONTACT 201-646-3333:

BERGEN COUNTY - HUDSON COUNTY - ESSEX COUNTY - PASSAIC COUNTY

Bloomingdale (07403) Clifton (07011) 

Green Pond (07435) Greenwood Lake (07421)

Haledon (07538) Haskell (07420) 

Hawthorne (07506) Hawthorne (07507) 

Hewitt (07421) Hillcrest (07502) 

Jefferson Township (07438) 

Jefferson Twp ( 07438) Little Falls (07424)

Midvale (07465) Mountain View (07470) 

North Haledon (07508) North Haledon (07538)

Oak Ridge (07438) Pompton Lakes (07442)

Preakness (07470) Prospect Park (07508)

Prospect Pk (07508) Ringwood (07456) 

Shady Lake (07480) Totowa (07502) 

Totowa (07511) Totowa Boro (07512) 

Upper Greenwood Lake (07421) 

W Paterson (07424) Wanaque (07465) 

Wayne (07470) Wayne (07474) 

West Milford (07480) 

West Milford Lakes (07480) 

West Paterson (07424) Woodland Park (07424)

Allendale (07401) Alpine (07620) 

Bergenfield (07621) Bogota (07603) 

Carlstadt (07072) Cliff Park (07010) 

Cliffside Park (07010) Cliffside Pk (07010)

Closter (07624) Cresskill (07626) 

Darlington (07446) Demarest (07627) 

Dumont (07628) E Rutherford (07073) 

East Rutherford (07073) Edgewater (07020)

Elmwood Park (07407) Emerson (07630)

Englewd Clfs (07632 ) Englewood (07631)

Englewood (07632) Englewood Cliffs (07632)

Fair Lawn (07410) Fairlawn (07410) 

Fairview (07022) Fort Lee (07024) 

Franklin Lakes (07417) Franklin Lks (07417)

Garfield (07026) Glen Rock (07452 ) 

Hack (07601) Hackensack (07601) 

Harrington Pk (07640) 

Hasbrouck Heights (07604) 

Hasbrouck Hts (07604) 

Haworth (07641) Hillsdale (07642) 

Hillsdale (07676) Ho Ho Kus (07423) 

Leonia (07605) Little Ferry (07643 ) 

Lodi (07644) Lyndhurst (07071) 

Mahwah (07430) Mahwah (07495) 

Maywood (07607) Midland Park (07432) 

Midland Pk (07432) Montvale (07645)

Moonachie (07074) Morsemere (07657) 

N Arlington (07031) N Milford (07646) 

New Milford (07646) North Arlington (07031)

Palisades Park (07650) Palisades Pk (07650)

Paramus (07652) Paramus (07653) 

Park Ridge (07656) Radburn (07410) 

Ramsey (07446) Ridgefield (07657) 

Ridgefield Park (07660) Ridgefield Pk (07660)

River Edge (07661) Rochelle Park (07662)

Rockleigh (07647) Rutherford (07070) 

S Hackensack (07606) Saddle Brook (07663)

Saddle River (07458) South Hackensack (07606)

Teaneck (07666) Tenafly (07670) 

Teterboro (07608) Teterboro (07699)

Wallington (07057) Westwood (07677) 

Wood Ridge (07075) Wood-Ridge (07075)

Wyckoff (07481) Arlington (07032) 

Bayonne (07002) Bergenline (07087) 

East Newark (07029) Guttenberg (07093)

Harrison (07029) Hoboken (07030) 

Jersey City (07097) Kearny (07032) 

North Bergen (07047) Union City (07087)

Washington Street (07030) Weehawken (07087)

West Arlington (07032) West New York (07093 )

Woodcliff (07047) Montclair (07043) 

N Caldwell (07006) Newark (07106) 

Newark (07107) Newark (07108) 

Newark (07114) Newark (07175) 

Bloomfield Belleville Irvington (07111)

HAD AN ACCIDENT IN THE BERGEN COUNTY REGION? CALL THE ACCIDENT ATTORNEY RAFAEL GOMEZ 201-646-3333

 

Have you been involved in an accident in the Bergen County area where you were unable to work or had financial losses that were not your fault? Call now the accident lawyer Rafael Gomez, he is an expert in several accident cases and is ready to help you:

201-646-3333

CAR ACCIDENT LAWYER IN BERGEN COUNTY NJ 201-646-3333

THIS IS A SAMPLE OF HOW SOME ACCIDENT CASES ARE DECIDED BY THE NJ COURTS. OUR FIRM DID NOT PARTICIPATE AS COUNSEL IN THIS CASE. THIS IS MERELY A SAMPLE SUMMARY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES

KENNETH FRANCO, ET AL. VS. FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON UNIVERSITY, ET AL. (L-5362-16, BERGEN COUNTY AND STATEWIDE)

This appeal raises novel questions concerning the scope of the duty owed to an adult who is not old enough to drink legally but who nonetheless drinks alcohol to excess and injures himself in a motor-vehicle accident. Plaintiff, when he was a twenty-year-old college student, attended a social gathering in a suite in a university's residential hall. He had planned to spend the night in the suite and fell asleep after becoming visibly intoxicated. He later awoke, left the suite, and was injured when a car he was driving went off the road. No one saw plaintiff leave the suite

Plaintiff and his parents appeal from a series of orders that granted summary judgment to the University, four student residential assistants (RAs), four student suitemates (the Suitemates), and three other students who attended the gathering as guests. Plaintiff contends that the University and the students had a duty to take action that would have prevented him from driving while drunk. The court holds that certain defendants had no duty, while the duty of other defendants, and a related causation issue, present questions of fact for a jury to resolve.

The three student guests had no duty to monitor the actions of plaintiff. Any duty of the Suitemates ended when plaintiff fell asleep with the plan to spend the night in the suite. The University and its student RAs are protected by the Charitable Immunity Act (CI Act), N.J.S.A. 2A:53A-7 to -11, which shields them from claims based on simple negligence. There are disputed issues of material fact concerning whether the RAs were grossly negligent or acted with willful or wanton indifference in failing to enforce the University's policies prohibiting underage drinking. There is also a related disputed issue of material fact concerning whether any breach by the RAs caused plaintiff's injuries. Accordingly, the court affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for further proceedings.

BERGEN COUNTY ACCIDENT LAWYER - (201) 646-3333 CALL NOW IF YOU NEED HELP

THIS IS A SAMPLE OF HOW SOME AUTO ACCIDENT CASES ARE DECIDED BY THE NJ COURTS. OUR FIRM DID NOT PARTICIPATE AS COUNSEL IN THIS CASE. THIS IS MERELY A SAMPLE SUMMARY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES

TITLE 11. INSURANCE

CHAPTER 3. AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE

SUBCHAPTER 4. PERSONAL INJURY PROTECTION BENEFITS; MEDICAL PROTOCOLS;

DIAGNOSTIC TESTS

11:3-4.1 Scope and purpose

(a) This subchapter implements the provisions of N.J.S.A. 39:6A-3.1, 39:6A-4 and 39:6A-4.3 by identifying the personal injury protection medical expense benefits and emergency personal injury protection coverage for which reimbursement of eligible charges will be made by automobile insurers under basic, standard and special automobile insurance policies and by motor bus insurers under medical expense benefits coverage.

(b) This subchapter applies to all insurers that issue policies of automobile insurance containing PIP coverage, emergency personal injury protection coverage and policies of motor bus insurance containing medical expense benefits coverage.

(c) This subchapter shall apply to those policies that are issued or renewed on or after March 22, 1999.

11:3-4.2 Definitions

The following words, phrases and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

"Ambulatory surgery facility" or "ambulatory surgical center" (ASC) means:

1. A surgical facility, licensed as an ambulatory surgery facility in New Jersey in accordance with N.J.A.C. 8:43A, in which ambulatory surgical cases are performed and which is separate and apart from any other facility license. (The ambulatory surgery facility may be physically connected to another licensed facility, such as a hospital, but is corporately, financially and administratively distinct, for example, it uses a separate tax-id number); or

2. A physician-owned single operating room in an office setting that is certified by Medicare.

"Basic automobile insurance policy" or "basic policy" means those private passenger automobile insurance policies issued in accordance with N.J.S.A. 39:6A-3.1 and N.J.A.C. 11:3-3. "Clinically supported" means that a health care provider prior to selecting, performing or ordering the administration of a treatment or diagnostic test has:

1. Personally examined the patient to ensure that the proper medical indications exist to justify ordering the treatment or test; 

2. Physically examined the patient including making an assessment of any current and/or historical subjective complaints, observations, objective findings, neurologic indications, and physical tests;

3. Considered any and all previously performed tests that relate to the injury and the results and which are relevant to the proposed treatment or test; and

4. Recorded and documented these observations, positive and negative findings and conclusions on the patient's medical records.

"Decision point" means those junctures in the treatment of identified injuries indicated by hexagonal boxes on the Care Paths where a decision must be made about the continuation or choice of further treatment. The determination whether to administer one of the tests listed in N.J.A.C. 11:3- 4.5(b) is also a decision point for both identified and all other injuries.

"Decision point review" means the procedures in an insurer's approved decision point review plan for the insurer to receive notice and respond to requests for proposed treatment or testing at decision points. 

 "Diagnostic test" means a medical service or procedure utilizing biomechanical, neurological, neurodiagnostic, radiological, vascular or any means, other than bioanalysis, intended to assist in establishing a medical, dental, physical therapy, chiropractic or psychological diagnosis, for the purpose of recommending or developing a course of treatment for the tested patient to be implemented by the treating practitioner or by the consultant. 

"Eligible charge" means the treating health care provider's usual, customary and reasonable charge or the upper limit of the medical fee schedule as found in N.J.A.C. 11:3-29.6, whichever is lower. 

 "Emergency care" means all medically necessary treatment of a traumatic injury or a medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity such that absence of immediate attention could reasonably be expected to result in: death; serious impairment to bodily functions; or serious dysfunction of a bodily organ or part. Such emergency care shall include all medically necessary care immediately following an automobile accident, including, but not limited to, immediate pre-hospitalization care, transportation to a hospital or trauma center, emergency room care, surgery, critical and acute care. Emergency care extends during the period of initial hospitalization until the patient is discharged from acute care by the attending physician. Emergency care shall be presumed when medical care is initiated at a hospital within 120 hours of the accident.

"Emergency personal injury protection coverage" means the coverage provided by a Special Automobile Insurance Policy pursuant to section 45 of P.L. 2003, c.89.

"Health care provider" or "provider" means those persons licensed or certified to perform health care treatment or services compensable as medical expenses and shall include, but not be limited to:

1. A hospital or health care facility that is maintained by State or any political subdivision;

2. A hospital or health care facility licensed by the Department of Health and Senior Services;

3. Other hospitals or health care facilities designated by the Department of Health and Senior Services to provide health care services, or other facilities, including facilities for radiological and diagnostic testing, free-standing emergency clinics or offices, and private treatment centers;

4. A nonprofit voluntary visiting nurse organization providing health care services other than a hospital; 

5. Hospitals or other health care facilities or treatment centers located in other States or nations;

6. Physicians licensed to practice medicine and surgery;

7. Licensed chiropractors;

8. Licensed dentists;

9. Licensed optometrists;

10. Licensed pharmacists;

11. Licensed chiropodists (podiatrists);

12. Registered bioanalytical laboratories;

13. Licensed psychologists;

14. Licensed physical therapists;

15. Certified nurse mid-wives;

16. Certified nurse practitioners/clinical nurse-specialist;

17. Licensed health maintenance organizations;

18. Licensed orthotists and prosthetists;

19. Licensed professional nurses;

20. Licensed occupational therapists;

21. Licensed speech-language pathologists;

22. Licensed audiologists;

23. Licensed physicians assistants;

24. Licensed physical therapy assistants;

25. Licensed occupational therapy assistants; and 

26. Providers of other health care services or supplies, including durable medical goods. "Identified injury" means those injuries identified by the Department in the subchapter Appendix as being suitable for medical treatment protocols in accordance with N.J.S.A. 39:6A-3.1a and 39:6A-4a.

BERGEN COUNTY CAR ACCIDENT ATTORNEY - HACKENSACK - NEW JERSEY (201) 646-3333

 

Treatment of Accidental Injury to the Spine and Back Care Paths

Exhibit 1

Glossary of Terms

Acute Disease - a disease with rapid onset and short course to recovery. Not chronic.

Care Path - a recommended extensive course of care based on professionally recognized standards.

Case Management - a method of coordinating the provision of healthcare to persons injured in automobile accidents, with the goal of ensuring continuity and quality of care and cost effective outcomes. The Case Manager may be a nurse, social worker, psychologist, or physician, preferably with certification in case management.

Cauda Equina - a collection of spinal roots that descend from the lower part of the spinal cord. They exist in the lower part of the vertebral canal.

Chronic Disease - a disease with long duration that changes little and progresses slowly. The apposite of acute.

Clinical Evaluation - the evaluation of the symptoms and signs of an injured person by a treating practitioner.

Conservative Therapy - treatment which is not considered aggressive; avoiding the administration of medicine or utilization of invasive procedures until such procedures are clearly indicated.

Contusion - an injury to underlying soft tissues where the skin is not broken. A bruise.

Diagnostic Evaluation - the process of differentiating between two or more diseases with similar signs and symptoms through the use of evaluative procedures such as imaging, laboratory, and physical tests.

Herniation - the protrusion or projection of an organ or other body structure through a defect or natural opening in a covering membrane, muscle, or bone.

Independent Consultative Opinion - physical examination by a physician of similar specialty to the injured person's treating practitioner to provide a second medical opinion. The independent physician may support, refute, or provide alternatives to the current diagnosis and treatment plans.

Non-Compliant - a patient who willfully chooses not to participate in the treatment plan agreed upon by the patient and his/her healthcare provider and does not have secondary issues such as lack of transportation, pre-existing conditions or comorbidities.

PT - Physical Therapy - the evaluation, assessment, and treatment of dysfunction caused by injuries to the soft tissue and muscles/skeleton . Treatment shall consist of therapeutic exercises, education and other modalities, such as the therapeutic use of heat, light, water, electricity, massage and non-ionizing radiation, and procedures that focus on improving posture, locomotion, strength, endurance, balance coordination, joint mobility, flexibility and an individual's ability to go through the functional activities of daily living (ADLS) and on alleviating pain. PT rendered to persons injured in automobile accidents must be provided by a person whose scope of licensure includes physical therapy.

Radicular - pertaining to a root (such as a nerve root) disorder.

Radiculopathy - a disorder of a nerve root.

Sign - an objective manifestation, usually indicative of a disease or disorder. Signs can be observed by the clinician, as opposed to symptoms which are perceived only by the affected individual.

Soft Tissue Injury - injuries sustained to the muscle, skin, connective tissue.

Spine - the vertebral column.

Spinal Shock - an acute condition resulting from spinal cord severance. Characterized by a total sensory loss and loss of reflexes below the level of injury and flaccid paralysis.

Sprain - an injury at a joint where a ligament is stretched or torn.

Strain - an injury caused by the over-stretching or tearing of a muscle or tendon. In its most severe form, the muscle ruptures.

Symptom - a subjective manifestation, usually indicative of a disease or disorder. Symptoms are experienced only by the affected individual, as opposed to signs which can be observed by others.

Treatment Plan - specific medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, or psychiatric and psychological procedures used to improve the signs or symptoms associated with injuries sustained in automobile accidents, e.g., physical therapy, surgery, administration of medications, etc.