440.895.1234

440.895.1234

Personal Injury

Cleveland's Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer

Personal injury law is a body of law that deals with just that - injuries to a person. Examples of personal injury cases include truck and car accidents, slip and fall and dog bites. The law allows you to recover your medical expenses, lost wages and compensation for pain and suffering. However, most cases are more complicated than simply collecting insurance money, and insurance companies are increasingly less likely to offer fair settlements without the threat of a lawsuit. When you are injured, you have a limited amount of time to file a claim and will almost never maximize your recovery without an attorney. Furthermore, you probably are not aware of many legal matters that must be tended to in pursuing your case, such as uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, medical payments coverage and subrogation issues.

When selecting An attorney to handle your case, you should be comfortable talking to your lawyer, not afraid to be a bother, feel free to ask any questions you might have, be able to clearly understand the contingency fee contract and know that you can call your attorney at any time to get updates.

Joseph T. Burke ensures your case is aggressively, professionally and thoroughly pursued with the insurance companies, and keep you updated throughout the process. If the case cannot be settled, Joseph T. Burke is able to file a lawsuit in any Ohio court and prepare your case for jury trial with the best experts and most advanced legal research available.

Motor Vehicle Accidents

man looking at a car accident

Hundreds of car, truck and/or motorcycle accidents occur in Ohio on a daily basis. Most of these accidents are caused by the carelessness or error of one or both drivers. A driver may be negligent if they are distracted or texting while driving, follow your car too closely, fail to yield the right of way, run a red light, and by various other actions. If another driver’s carelessness, negligence, or recklessness resulted in an injury to you, you may be entitled to recover compensation for your injuries.

Many times, when an accident occurs, the injured party must try to negotiate payment through large insurance companies. Without the assistance of an experienced attorney, the injured party may not ask for or receive all of the compensation to which he or she may be entitled. Furthermore, the process can be overwhelming for someone who is not experienced with dealing with these large insurance companies.

Don’t walk away from additional compensation to which you may be entitled. Contact Joseph T. Burke today.

Nursing Home Abuse/Negligence

nurse harshly treating a nursing home patient

Unfortunately, nursing home abuse and negligence is far too common. It can be extremely difficult to obtain answers when a loved one is injured while residing at a nursing home. Although generally preventable, injuries caused by negligence at assisted living or other nursing home facilities often occur due to staff shortages, inexperienced staff and/or by other failures to provide appropriate care to the residents.

Abuse can take many forms – it can arise out of physical assault, neglect, lack of supervision, or other ways. Unfortunately, may residents will not report abuse, either because their condition prevents them from doing so (i.e. Alzheimer’s, dementia or poor memory) or because they are afraid or embarrassed.

If you suspect negligence or abuse, contact Joseph T. Burke. Joseph T. Burke has represented numerous loved ones from many families to ensure that any abuse or negligence at a nursing home is stopped and that the person or persons committing the abuse are held accountable. Joseph T. Burke can help you recognize the warning signs of abuse, help you investigate what has occurred, and fight for the rights of your loved ones.

Injuries from Slips, Trips, and Falls

a fallen woman on the ice

Slips, trips, and falls, are the most common causes of “premises liability.” Generally, liability can arise where one who is lawfully on land belonging to another slips, trips or falls and sustains injury as a result of a hazardous or dangerous condition that the injured party was not aware existed. In order to be liable for such an injury, the landowner must have created the hazard or knew or should have known about the danger but failed to correct it or warn the injured party of the hazard. The hazard also cannot be something that was open and obvious or due solely to a natural occurring accumulation of snow, ice or water.

Navigating premises liability law can be quite challenging for a party to try to do on its own. Joseph T. Burke has significant experience in this area and can provide you with the proper guidance based upon the specific facts and circumstances of your situation.

Dog Bites

dog biting a leg

Ohio is a strict liability state when it comes to dog bites under the Ohio Revised Code. That means that an owner, harborer or keeper of a dog is responsible for the injuries the dog causes, even if they did not know in advance that the dog was dangerous. In Ohio, there is no such thing as “one free bite,” as is the case in some other states. Generally, unless the victim was trespassing, teasing, tormenting, or abusing the dog, the victim is entitled to compensation for their injuries from a dog bite. If you have been bitten by a dog, contact Joseph T. Burke today.

Mortuary Law

morgue

The loss of a loved one is a difficult time. It can be even more difficult when a cemetery or funeral home misplaces the remains/cremains of your loved one or incorrectly follows your instructions concerning burial/cremation. Unfortunately, these “mishaps” are occurring with more and more frequency due to the lack of regulation of the industry and the significant increase in the demand for bodies for other purposes in the medical field. This demand has unfortunately given rise to black market sales of body parts of the deceased. These body parts are being sold by less reputable morticians, funeral homes and crematories to legitimate health care businesses such as hospitals, medical programs, and drug companies. If you suspect that your loved one’s final wishes were not adhered to, or that your loved one is not in their final resting place, contact Joseph T. Burke today.

Sexual Abuse/Molestation

men sexually harassing a woman

Cases of sexual misconduct can be complicated. Victims often face a long struggle to recover from the abuses that they experienced. In many cases, the victims are afraid to report what happened and may even blame themselves. Emotional injuries as a result of the abuse can last a lifetime.

While a criminal complaint can be filed, some victims choose to also file a civil claim to hold their abuser personally accountable for his or her conduct. Joseph T. Burke can assist victims of sexual abuse to initiate legal action against their abusers. Joseph T. Burke has extensive experience in representing survivors of sexual abuse and handles the case with the sensitivity that is called for by the nature of the case and with the aggressive advocacy needed for the survivor to obtain justice.