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POOL ACCIDENTS


Personal Injury Lawyer Reviewing Pool Injury Cases for injured plaintiffs Nationwide
Nationwide Success

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drowning accidents are the number one cause of unintentional death for children between the ages of 1 and 4.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that about 390 deaths (roughly ten a day) are linked to drowning in a swimming pool or a spa.

The majority of drowning deaths and submersion injuries in the United States are associated with pools. About half of reported pool-related injuries and deaths occur at home pools, apartment pools, hotel pools, or residential pools and spas.

Swimming Pool Accidents

An annual average of more than 5,000 pool or spa-related emergency department-treated submersion injuries are reported each year for children younger than 15. Serious injuries include:

•    Head Injuries
•    Bone Fractures
•    Spinal Cord Injuries
•    Drowning

Swimming Pool Injury Risk

•    Young children: Children younger than 5 represent nearly 75 percent of pool and spa deaths.
•    Minority Children: African-American and Hispanic children are at high risk—USA Swimming records show 70 percent of African American children and 62 percent of Hispanic children cannot swim, making them especially vulnerable.

Causes of Pool Accidents

•    Inadequate supervision
•    Entrapment Risk—a swimmer can be trapped by water or drain suction
•    Inability to swim
•    Removal or lack of safety barrier
•    Diving in shallow water
•    Slippery surface surrounding pool
•    Alcohol or drug use

Swimming Pool Safety Hazards

Up to 10 percent of cervical spinal cord injuries are caused by pool diving accidents. The victims are predominantly male.

Almost all of the accidents are caused by diving in water less than ten feet deep. When the entire weight of one’s body hits the bottom of a pool, the force transmitted to the cervical spine is likely to cause the vertebrae that encircle the spinal cord to collapse. If the spinal cord is damaged and is unable to transmit nerve impulses, paralysis occurs.

According to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, of an estimated 11,000 spinal cord injuries occur in the United States each year, diving into swimming pools is the fourth leading cause.

Defective Swimming Pools

Swimming pools present more safety hazards than most homeowners realize. The biggest fear is that an unaccompanied child may wander into a pool area, but that is only one risk of having a pool at home.

Swimming pools have even been subject to recalls and defective swimming pool lawsuits have been filed when a pool defect leads to an injury or death.

Pool drains can be dangerous, and defective pool drains have claimed the lives of children, teens and adults. Some drains have a dangerous suction that is far too strong and can trap people to the bottom of a pool.

If a pool is sold without a proper drain cover, the product can be considered defective and a pool accident lawsuit may be viable. Pool companies can be liable for damages. Pool drain covers are recalled each year when they discovered to be a consumer safety risk.

The same is often true with home spa drain covers and hot tub drains. Home spas and hot tubs can also prove dangerous when they overheat and injure consumers. Temperature gauges may be defective and malfunction, and spa temperature readings may be inaccurate.

Hotel Pool Accidents

Hotel pool accidents are just as common as other pool incidents. Hotels have a duty to properly maintain a pool area and to supervise hotel guests. Pool drownings have occurred in hotels in the past, and there are hundreds of slip and fall accidents each year.

Apartment Pool Accidents

Apartment complexes usually have pools without proper lifeguard oversight, and many apartment pools can be accessed by children with minimal security. An apartment can be liable for any drowning or injury if a pool is not maintained to a safety standard, or if children can access the pool area with ease.

Apartment pools require warning signs, stated pool rules, pool hours, and should be equipped with some security measures to keep children away from the water without adult supervision.

Hot Tub Accidents

Hot tubs might not seem dangerous, but thousands of people have been injured in hot tubs, spas or whirlpools. Around 75 percent of injuries occur at home.

About half of hot tub injuries are caused by slipping or falling, but heat overexposure and near-drowning are also concerns. Spas should not be set above 104 degrees. Children are particularly vulnerable around hot tubs.

Country Club Pool Accidents

Swimming Accidents can occur in a community pool or at a country club, and caution must be taken when children are near water.

If you have been involved in a pool accident, it is important that you know your rights. The Lyon Firm can determine liability and can offer a free case review.

Country clubs or aquatic center management can be held liable for a pool accident and injury in the following circumstances:

  • Poor pool maintenance, or pool chemical negligence
  • Improper lifeguard training or understaffing
  • Slippery pool areas & dangerous diving boards

Swimming Pool Safety

If you have a swimming pool at home it is prudent to observe basic pool safety measures including the following:

•    Install four-sided fencing at least four feet high
•    Consider additional barriers: automatic door locks and alarms
•    Clear the pool deck of toys—reduce temptation for the child
•    Clear pool deck of slippery surface water
•    Keep constant supervision when children are present
•    Keep pools and alcohol separate
•    Never dive in less than 10 feet of water
•    Establish and enforce clear pool rules

Swimming Pool Accident Lawsuits

The Lyon Firm is dedicated to representing plaintiffs following injuries and deaths that occur through no fault of their own. When property owners and management are negligent in protecting children, and swimming pool accidents result, they may be held liable in premises liability lawsuits.

CONTACT THE LYON FIRM TODAY

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ABOUT THE LYON FIRM

Joseph Lyon has 17 years of experience representing individuals in complex litigation matters. He has represented individuals in every state against many of the largest companies in the world.

The Firm focuses on single-event civil cases and class actions involving corporate neglect & fraud, toxic exposure, product defects & recalls, medical malpractice, and invasion of privacy.

NO COST UNLESS WE WIN

The Firm offers contingency fees, advancing all costs of the litigation, and accepting the full financial risk, allowing our clients full access to the legal system while reducing the financial stress while they focus on their healthcare and financial needs.

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A Voice for Those who have suffered

Why are these cases important?

Serious injuries and accidents often result through no fault of the injured party, yet the injured victim suffers from life altering physical, mental and financial losses. Such economic and human losses can have devastating financial consequences on individuals and families if not properly compensated. Tort law allows those individuals to seek just legal recourse through personal injury lawsuits.

CONTACT THE LYON FIRM TODAY

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Questions about Personal Injury Cases

What is a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Any kind of negligence by an individual or company that causes injury or harm can lead to filing a personal injury lawsuit. The amount a plaintiff is entitled to depends on several factors, particularly how egregious the act and how serious the injury.

Personal injury attorneys generally only will take cases on a confidential and contingency fee basis, which means your lawyer will only get paid if he or she is able to reach a settlement or positive verdict. The Lyon Firm will review your case for free and assess what compensation any plaintiff can expect through litigation.

Personal Injury cases can range from minor auto accidents to complex lawsuits filed against large corporations. The Lyon Firm has handled both with equal care. Severe injury requires legal action on occasion, no matter if the injury is the result of a vehicle accident, a dog bite, a boating accident, workplace injury, defective consumer products, medical malpractice, or toxic exposure.

What is the Process?

Pre-Suit Investigation and Negotiations: Personal injury lawsuits are unique and require a thorough investigation before a lawsuit is filed. An initial investigation involves gathering all relevant medical records, accident reports, and interviews with available witnesses.  Preservation letters are drafted to notify the defendant of the case. The duty to preserve electronic evidence is critical in most cases to prevent spoliation.

Filing a Lawsuit in Cincinnati: If pre-suit negotiations are unsuccessful, then a lawsuit must be filed to preserve the statute of limitations.  Filing a lawsuit early in the process is often necessary to begin gathering evidence while the witnesses memories are fresh and documents remain available.

Once suit is filed by your personal injury lawyer, the court will set a case management schedule and the parties will begin exchanging information in the formal process of discovery. Depositions will be taken to preserve testimony for trial and to understand what certain witnesses are likely to say at trial.

Proving Negligence, Causation and Damages: In addition to lay witness testimony and other documentary evidence, personal injury claims rely upon medical and scientific evidence to prove negligence, causation and damages. The chosen expert in a case must have a reliable and sound basis in science and in the facts of the case or his opinion may not be admissible under the rules of evidence.

In the areas of Toxic and Environmental Torts, the admission of expert testimony may be scrutinized harder than in other areas simply because the subject may not have been as widely tested and may rest on novel scientific theories.

Are there any limits to what I can recover?

Each state will vary. Under Ohio law, an injured party may recover damages related to medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, loss of enjoyment of life, past pain and suffering, future pain and suffering, and punitive damages. The numerical limits are as such:

  1. Non-Catastrophic Injury:   The non-economic award is limited to $250,000 per plaintiff, or three times the economic loss, up to $350,000 per plaintiff. A maximum of $500,000 for each “occurrence.”
  2. Catastrophic Injury: No limits.

The Lyon Firm may be able to file injury claims and recover rightful compensation for clients for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost earnings and long-term disability.

Why should I hire The Lyon Firm?

Our Firm will help you find the answers.  The Firm has the experience, resources and dedication to take on difficult and emotional cases and help our clients obtain the justice for the wrong they have suffered. 

Experience:  Joe Lyon is an experienced Cincinnati Personal Injury Lawyer. The Lyon Firm has 17 years of experience and success representing individuals and plaintiffs in all fifty states, and in a variety of complex civil litigation matters.   Personal Injury lawsuits can be complex and require industry experts to determine the root cause of an accident or injury.  Mr. Lyon has worked with experts nationwide to assist individuals understand why an injury occurred and what can be done to improve their lives in the future. Some cases may go to a jury trial, though many others can be settled out of court.

Resources/Dedication: Mr. Lyon has worked with experts in the fields of accident reconstruction, biomechanics, epidemiology, metallurgy, pharmacology, toxicology, human factors, workplace safety, life care planning, economics, and virtually every medical discipline in successfully representing Plaintiffs across numerous areas of law. The Lyon Firm is dedicated to building the strongest cases possible for clients and their critical interests.

Results:  Mr. Lyon has obtained numerous seven and six figure results in personal injury,  automotive product liability, medical Negligence, construction accidents, and auto dealership negligence casesThe cases have involved successfully litigating against some of  the largest companies in the world.

Our Victories

The Lyon Firm aggressively, professionally, and passionately advocates for injured individuals and families against negligent individuals or companies to obtain just compensation under the law. 

$1,000,000

WRONGFUL DEATH: DISTRACTED DRIVER

(Brown County, Kentucky):   The Lyon Firm was second chair a case involving a driver texting and driving when he crossed the median, killing a father of four. The case was resolved once discovery confirmed the cell phone records proved the texting-related incident. The settlement will pay for the surviving childrens’ education. The driver was likely facing additional criminal charges at the time of the settlement.

$495,000

MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT

(Cincinnati, Ohio):  The Lyon Firm was lead counsel in a $495,000 settlement. This case involved a motorcycle operator who sustained fractures of the calcaneus, talus, medial cuneiform, tarsal bones, and tarsometatarsal when a car ignored its driving lane and crossed into his right-of-way. Settlement provided repayment of medical bills of $20,000 and funds for future education to re-enter the work force in a less physically-demanding job.