Archive for the ‘Legal Issues’ Category

Houston Private Detective Services

Wednesday, March 9th, 2011

You see private detectives in movies and on the television regularly, and the reality of their vocation is never what they portray in those entertainment mediums. The majority of the time a Houston private detective is hired to do forensic research on a variety of subjects in the pre-trial stages of a civil lawsuit. The investigators are tasked with procuring evidence to prove anything from embezzlement, wrongful death, to corporate espionage. Attorneys in the Bayou City call upon their services for many commercial investigations where a large company might not be providing a safe work environment, and the proof must be retrieved before going forth in a trial, or before a mediator.

Many times an embezzler will go into hiding with his or her ill-gotten gains in tow, and they must be found to go forward with criminal charges, and civil litigation. This was once called “Skip Tracing”, but today it has been re-titled to “Criminal or Civil Background Checks”, and is a process of following the money back to the individual that is trying to be apprehended. Using technology to track these individuals down has not necessarily made it easier for a private investigator Houston TX to do their job, but it certainly has cut down on the extended hours of driving from city to city, or out of state following up on leads physically.

Corporations will retain investigators on a case-by-case basis to research fraudulent slip, and fall claims from not only customers, but employees as well. It may be as simple as having to track a person while claiming to have a neck or back injury, and covertly video taping that same individual unloading twenty large bags of potting soil from the back of their pickup truck.

As the law catches up with technology on the many platforms of business, investigators are called out by corporate management to prove theft in many varieties. Some examples are outright theft of company supplies, or produced products, and of course the ever-rising area of embezzling from their employer. New areas of civil and criminal cases are starting to be realized such as “Time Theft”, where an employee clocks in and leaves, or simply does not perform their specified tasks in their job description.

Then there is the basic cheating spouse situation, where a detective agency is hired to prove infidelity in a divorce case, especially when child custody issues are at hand. This is also used in enforcing the breaking of prenuptial agreements before going to court for a monetary divorce settlement.

Call ASI Today @ Office: 281-256-6349

Speeding 18 Wheeler Truck Accident On Highway 290 In Houston

Monday, February 21st, 2011

Everyday one of the major freeways or highway running through the Houston Metropolitan area is subjected to an 18-wheeler involved accident of some kind. Just a few days ago, a big rig collided with a passenger vehicle on Highway 290 North in Houston, and caused five injuries. Anyone who has driven in rush hour traffic in the Bayou City knows that they must keep constant watch for other vehicles, as many people try to go too fast, and approach traffic ahead without any caution. 18 Wheelers cannot even come close to reacting as quickly as say a Toyota Corolla, or a Cadillac STS SUV, and they must keep their speed in check, and constantly scan the horizon in front of them for upcoming traffic snags.

Big rigs have an advantage in that that they can survey the upcoming road from a much higher vantage point, but this is a useless tool if commercial driver is busy playing with the knobs on their CB Radio, or sending a text to their spouse while trying maintain a safe distance in between vehicles. The average car weighs between three and four thousand pounds currently, and a tractor-trailer fully loaded weighs in at tens times the weight. Therefore, they are much like a battle ship or a cruise liner, and need plenty of time for reaction, and a much larger area for a turning radius than a sedan, or compact car.

Commercial truck drivers are always taught in driving school and by the safety manager of the trucking company they work for, that they should pull over on the side of the road when trying to do anything except drive. This is widely ignored by all, and this, and going over the speed limit causes more fatalities, and injuries than any other type of trucking accident in the United States.

Prevention of these accidents may never be obtainable until some type of technology catches up to control driver habits. If the occasion occurs that you are involved in such a horrific episode on the road, call a Texas 18 wheeler accident lawyer as soon as humanly possible. If you are able to use the phone, once free and clear from the wreckage call the Baumgartner Law Firm in Houston at 281-587-1111 to find out how you should proceed. Only speak to law enforcement when spoken to, and do not give opinions, or theories on what just happened, as that could be used against you in a future civil litigation.

Mesothelioma Litigation

Thursday, June 10th, 2010

Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos, which used to be an acceptable building substance in the past. It is a type of cancer and it is predicted that around 200,000 people a year die from this disease. Usually someone who has been in the construction industry in the past will be the most likely to get this type of cancer and therefore it is no surprise that we predominantly see large building business being sued by former workers, via a mesothelioma litigation.

People who have or even survived this cancer often file lawsuits against the construction companies they worked for or other businesses where they believe they were exposed to asbestos. They can sue for medical bills, pain caused by having this disease, psychological pain and even future damage.

Due to the popularity of these ads on television, internet, and radio many people who didn’t know where to turn once they received the bad news that they have mesothelioma have begun filing lawsuits against past employers. This has caused the mesothelioma litigation industry to become a multi-billion dollar one. The industry, however, has been around since the 1960’s where the first successful trial took place for a victim of mesothelioma.

It is a good idea, when seeking to file a lawsuit, to hire a respected lawyer who has dealt with mesothelioma lawsuits in the past. The lawsuit officially begins when either the lawyer for the victim files a complaint to the courts or the victim himself does this, although this is not advised and is frowned upon. Usually the complaint will deal with product liability, professional malpractice, worker compensation and even wrongful death. Cases, however, can go on for a long time, usually a year.

Mesothelioma Litigation

Mesothelioma Litigation

Creative Commons License photo credit: cliff1066™

Overall, mesothelioma litigation is the correct way of doing things nowadays. For more information you could check the internet, talk with your doctor to see if you might be in trouble from working in the construction industry in the past, rent some books from your local library or even buy one of the many books that are available online today.