In serious personal injury cases under North Carolina law, how is compensation calculated and how does contributory negligence effect the amount of damages? How does last clear chance affect the recovery available?

In serious personal injury cases in North Carolina, compensation is generally calculated based on the damages suffered by the injured party. Damages can include medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses resulting from the injury.

In North Carolina, the doctrine of contributory negligence can have a significant impact on the amount of damages that an injured party may be able to recover. Under this doctrine, if the injured party is found to have contributed in any way to the accident that caused their injuries, they may be barred from recovering any damages at all, even if the other party was primarily at fault.

This means that if a defendant can show that the injured party was even slightly negligent and that their negligence contributed to the accident, the injured party may not be able to recover any damages. This is a harsh rule that is not followed by most other states in the U.S., which generally use a comparative negligence system that allows an injured party to recover damages even if they were partially at fault for the accident. If the injured party is found to have contributed in any way to the accident that caused their injuries, they may be barred from recovering any damages at all, even if the other party was primarily at fault.

However, there is an exception to the doctrine of contributory negligence known as the “last clear chance” doctrine. Under this doctrine, if the defendant had the last clear chance to avoid the accident, but failed to do so, then the injured party may still be able to recover damages, even if they were partially at fault for the accident.

For example, if a pedestrian is jaywalking and is hit by a car, but the driver of the car had the last clear chance to avoid hitting the pedestrian, then the pedestrian may still be able to recover damages, even though they were jaywalking and therefore partially at fault for the accident.

The last clear chance doctrine is a narrow exception to the contributory negligence rule and requires a showing that the defendant had an opportunity to avoid the accident but failed to do so. It is often difficult to prove and requires a careful analysis of the facts and circumstances of the case.

It’s important to note that contributory negligence is a defense that the defendant must prove in court, and that the injured party can also try to prove that the defendant was negligent and that their negligence was the primary cause of the accident. In cases where both parties are found to have been negligent, the amount of damages that the injured party can recover may be reduced based on their degree of fault.

Overall, contributory negligence can have a significant impact on the outcome of serious personal injury cases in North Carolina, and it’s important for injured parties to consult with an experienced personal injury attorney to understand their rights and options under the law.

We hope it will not become necessary, but if you or a loved one find yourself in need of an attorney for a serious personal injury, or you get into trouble with a criminal matter, or receive a traffic ticket in New Hanover, Pender, or Brunswick County, please give our office a call at 910-793-9000 for a confidential consultation.

By Bryanna Gordon, Legal Assistant

2023 St. Patrick’s Day – Booze I & Lose It Campaign

On Saint Patrick’s Day, we are celebrating the beginning of Christianity in Ireland.

The holiday is named after Saint Patrick (AD 385–461), who is the most recognized patron saint of Ireland.

St. Patrick’s Day festivities involve parades and the wearing of green attire and shamrocks.  Also, on St. Patrick’s Day, the eating meat and drinking alcohol are permitted despite the prohibitions of the Lenten season.  Unfortunately, too many decide to drive after consuming alcoholic beverages.  Last year, about 225 motorists were injured due to impaired driving around St. Patrick’s Day, including 11 fatalities.

In an effort to deter those who have been drinking before getting behind the wheel, law enforcement officers statewide will be on patrol and set up DWI checkpoints.

If you find yourself questioning whether you had too many stouts, lagers, cream ales, ales, etc, do not risk getting arrested or worse, endangering your life or the lives of others. Play it safe and call a cab, UBER, or LYFT, or have a sober friend take you home.

However, should you or someone you know receive a traffic ticket, get into a fender bender, serious accident, or receive a DUI/DWI, call us at (910) 793-9000 for a confidential consultation.

Stay safe, Wilmington!

By Jana H. Collins, Office Manager

As the Wilmington area continues to grow, more drivers will be on the roads, ultimately increasing the likelihood of car accidents. WECT News compiled a list of some of the worst intersections for car accidents in the area that were reported from 2018-2021. It should be noted that the volume of traffic is what contributes to the number of accidents on these roads and these intersections are not more/less dangerous than other roads and intersections.  

The worst intersections for car accidents reported between 2018-2021 in New Hanover County are as follows:

1.            College Road & New Centre Drive

• 171 accidents were reported at this intersection and the most common type of accident at this intersection is angle accidents (includes T-bone collisions).

2.            Kerr Avenue & Market Street

• 124 accidents were reported here, and angle accidents were the most common accident type. However, NCDOT has made improvements to Kerr Avenue over the last few years and left turns are now prohibited at the intersection.

3.            College Road & Oleander Drive

• 108 accidents were reported at this intersection and the most common accident type was rear-end accidents.

4.            Market Street & New Center Drive

• 106 accidents were reported at this intersection and angle accidents were the most common accident type. Although New Center Drive is a short road, the volume of cars on that road is high, partially due to the several commercial businesses located there.

5.            College Road & MLK Parkway

• 101 accidents were reported here, and rear-end collisions are most common at this intersection. This roadway is heavily traveled, especially since vehicles coming from and heading to Interstate 40 end up at this intersection and onto College Road.

6.            College Road & Randall Parkway

• 99 accidents were reported here, and rear-end collisions are most common at this intersection. This heavily traveled intersection is near UNCW.

7.            Gordan Road & College Road

• 93 accidents were reported here and rear-end collisions are most common at this intersection.

8.            Gingerwood Drive & Market Street

• 89 accidents were reported here, and angle accidents are most common at this intersection.

9.            Fifth Street and Wooster Street

• 88 accidents were reported at this intersection over the three-year period.

10.          Third Street and Wooster Street

• 84 accidents reported here. Only two blocks away from Third & Wooster intersection, this is a common site for high traffic volume because it leads drivers across the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge.

Unfortunately, car accidents occur and are sometimes out of one’s control. However, if you are hurt in a motor vehicle collision, you may be able to recover from the “at fault” driver who caused the accident. In North Carolina, you can receive compensation for pain and suffering by filing a claim for personal injuries. If a person’s death resulted from a collision caused by another driver’s negligence, a wrongful death claim (type of personal injury) could be filed. We hope it will not become necessary, but if you or a loved one find yourself in need of an attorney for a serious personal injury, or you get into trouble with a criminal matter, or receive a traffic ticket in New Hanover, Pender, or Brunswick County, please give our office a call at 910-793-9000 for a confidential consultation.

By Bryanna Gordon, Legal Assistant

With the celebration of Halloween, the holiday season begins.  According to the Highway Safety Program, Halloween is among the most dangerous times a year for traffic accidents.  Halloween parties and trick-or-treat events invite individuals to come out, and the chances for drunk driving and pedestrian accidents increase. 

With the statewide Booze It & Lose It campaign which began on October 24, 2022, and will last through October 31, 2022, the Governor’s Highway Safety Program is aiming to discourage drivers from operating a car after consuming alcohol.   There will be increased law enforcement patrolling our roads, and sobriety checkpoints will be set up.

It is very dangerous to drive distracted or impaired.  But especially on Halloween with excited kids darting out in the middle of the street or simply crossing without looking, all drivers should be vigilant, keep their eyes on the road and be prepared to stop.

If you plan to go out and enjoy alcoholic beverages, please have a designated driver, use a taxi, Uber, or Lyft.  Please make sure not to turn a good time into a tragedy for yourself or others.

Also keep in mind, a charge of driving while impaired can be expensive. People charged with DWI can lose their license and may have to pay thousands of dollars in court fees and increased insurance premiums.

Have a good time this weekend and be safe!

By Jana H. Collins

Driving While Impaired (DWI) is not limited to just alcohol. Research suggests that in instances of driving while impaired due to the use of drugs, specifically marijuana appears to have an increased rate of involvement in motor vehicle accidents. Marijuana has been identified most frequently in the blood of drivers involved in accidents, including those that resulted in fatalities. However, it can be difficult to pinpoint whether marijuana impairment plays a direct role in car accidents because the drug can be detected in bodily fluids for days and sometimes as long as a few weeks, while the symptoms of intoxication typically only last a couple of hours.

Studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration suggest that during the early months of 2020 and the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, driving patterns and behaviors in the United States changed significantly. Among the drivers who remained on the roads, many engaged in riskier behavior, including failure to wear seatbelts, speeding, and driving while impaired by alcohol or other drugs. Another study on seriously or fatally injured car accident victims mentioned that five participating trauma centers reported almost two-thirds of drivers involved in an accident tested positive for at least one active drug, including alcohol, marijuana, and opioids between mid-March and mid-July of 2020.

Until recently, testing for drug impairment has been somewhat problematic due to limitations regarding drug-detecting technology and the lack of a consumption limit for the purposes of determining impairment. Now, a company by the name of “Gaize” has been in the process of developing a new technological device that can detect drug impairment among drivers in the United States. This new technology is the first roadside test for identifying marijuana impairment in drivers. The device consists of goggles, similar to those used in virtual reality, which detects involuntary micro-movements that transmit information about someone’s impairment or sobriety. Gaize conducts the same testing that is performed during a Standardized Field Sobriety Test and captures irrefutable video evidence of eye movement.

With marijuana use increasing dramatically in the United States, this new technology can decipher between heavy users, who may have a large amount of THC in their system but are sober, and infrequent users, who may have a very small amount of THC in their system but are extremely impaired.

If you choose to use impairing substances, be sure to do so responsibly by planning ahead for a sober driver, prevent your friends from getting behind the wheel if they are impaired.

Cheyenne M. Hensley, Legal Assistant

As of December 13, 2021, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol started their Booze It & Lose It campaign, and that will run through January 2, 2022.

Mark Ezzell, the director of the N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program (NCGHSP), says, “If you’re out celebrating this holiday season, make sure you have a sober ride home. If you drive under the influence, you have a lot to lose. Not only could you kill yourself or someone else, but you could face thousands of dollars in court costs and fines, jail time, or a revoked license.”

The “Booze It & Lose It” campaign is one of the largest that is operated by the NCGHSP – in 2020, officers wrote over 1,700 tickets for driving while intoxicated (DWI).

According to the State Highway Patrol, 326 people have died in North Carolina accidents so far in 2021, all due to impaired driving.

According to the NCGHSP, here are some tips to remember for road safety over the holidays (and year round):

•    Never drive impaired and always find a safe ride home;

•    Buckle your seatbelt when riding in any seat in the vehicle; and

•    Follow the speed limit.

However, if you are charged with any type of crime in Southeastern North Carolina, in or around Wilmington, NC, in New Hanover County, Brunswick County, or Pender County, call Collins Law Firm at 910-793-9000 for a confidential consultation about what we can do to help you.

By Karen M. Thompson, Paralegal

As the 2021 fall season for our high school athletes comes to an end, many teams made it to the playoffs and will hit the road to face opponents further away. 

While our area football and soccer teams still have two more weeks to compete locally before we will know for sure which of the teams will advance, the volleyball teams have already completed their regular season, and Mideastern Conference Tournament.  Congratulations to the Ashley High School Screaming Eagles for claiming the Mideastern Conference Tournament title!

All of the volleyball teams of the four public New Hanover County high schools (Ashley, Hoggard, Laney, and New Hanover) advanced and will be playing in the first round of playoffs this coming Saturday, October 23, 2021. 

This gives reason to remind our athletes, their parents, administrators, and other fans to be safe on the roads.

Based on data shown by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the use of seatbelts has improved over the past 30 years.  While in the 1980s only about 10% of American wore a seatbelt, 90.7% of American did in 2019.   Despite the improved used of seatbelts, nearly half (47%) of the 36,096 people who were fatally injured in serious motor vehicle accidents in 2019 did not wear a seat belt.  

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) has partnered up with the Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP) for their “Click It or Ticket” initiative, in order to promote highway safety awareness to reduce the number of traffic crashes and fatalities in the state of North Carolina.

It is the law in North Carolina to fasten your seatbelt regardless of where you sit in the vehicle. 

Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 20-135.2A seatbelt use is mandatory:  

(a) Except as otherwise provided in G.S. 20-137.1, each occupant of a motor vehicle manufactured with seat belts shall have a seatbelt properly fastened about his or her body at all times when the vehicle is in forward motion on a street or highway in this State.

Schools are encouraged to promote the use of seatbelts at their sports events by Public Service Announcements, such as:

“#1: The Governor’s Highway Safety Program wants you to buckle up before heading home from the game tonight. Every seat, every time. This message is brought to you by GHSP’s Click It or Ticket program and the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.

#2: Don’t forget to buckle up before heading home from the game tonight. Every seat, every time. This message is brought to you by GHSP’s Click It or Ticket program and the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.

#3: Before heading home tonight, make sure every person in every seat is buckled North Carolina High School Athletic Association.”

Schools are also asked to promote the online Seat Belt Pledge to their student body, teachers, parents, fans, or anyone within their school and local community. 

Let’s buckle up and enjoy the games!

By Jana H. Collins

With the uncertainty surrounding us from the COVID-19 pandemic still in full swing, the burden of serious injuries from an accident are the last thing that anyone wants to experience. An accident can happen in a split second and can have life altering consequences, no matter who is at fault.

Personal injury law deals with individuals who have been injured, physically or otherwise, resulting from the negligence or wrongdoing or another person. Personal injury attorneys generally have more experience and are more knowledgeable handling cases within the area of law involving torts. A tort (a French word for wrong) is a civil wrong in which a duty (such as the duty of reasonable care) to another is breached, and that breach causes damages to a person. When someone breaches their duty of care, such as causing an accident in traffic, the plaintiff is entitled to compensation for any injuries sustained in the accident.

In order to get the maximum amount of recovery for plaintiffs, personal injury attorneys should prepare the case in the beginning as if it were going to trial. This will protect the case if a trial proves to be necessary, and it will show the insurance company and/or the defense counsel what would be proven at trial.

We at Collins Law Firm regularly represent victims of car wrecks and help maximize monetary or money damage recoveries for our clients, while also minimizing the stress and uncertainty that is involved with these types of cases. We hope it is not necessary, but if you or someone you know and care about has been injured in a car wreck, please call Collins Law Firm at 910-793-9000 for a free consultation.

By Karen M. Thompson, Paralegal

According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), beginning around the first week of June, the 100 deadliest days of summer has begun. This period of 100 days, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, got this nickname due to the high number of crash fatalities involving teen drivers, compared to the rest of the year. Now that restrictions are being slowly lifted across the State, it is especially important to understand road safety. Distracted driving, speeding, drinking and driving, and reckless driving are all contributors to serious accidents, and they are all preventable. A careless mistake such as distracted driving is all it takes to cause an automobile accident, and in the blink of an eye, the lives of those involved could be changed forever. 

Everybody could potentially become a personal injury victim, but the risk to sustain serious injuries is especially high for children and elder people.

Some accidents unfortunately even result in fatalities causing unimaginable heartbreak to those left behind. 

Sadly, tragic results of automobile accidents cannot be undone.  However, monetary compensation can help to recover damages.  Treatments for personal injuries resulting from an automobile accident can become very expense, and there may be lasting effects. Because of this, in North Carolina, as in most states, drivers of automobiles are required to have liability insurance, providing protection against claims resulting from injuries and damage to people and/or property. 

Even if the driver of the vehicle who caused an accident resulting in injuries had no insurance, you still may be able to recover under your own policy as long as you have uninsured coverage. The laws and regulations related to insurance are complex and if you are injured in an accident involving an automobile or tractor trailer, you should contact a knowledgeable and experienced attorney immediately.

We at Collins Law Firm regularly represent victims of car wrecks and help maximize monetary recoveries for our clients. If you or someone you know and care about has been injured in a car wreck, or if you have lost a loved one in an automobile accident, please call Collins Law Firm at 910-793-9000 for a free consultation.

By Karen M. Thompson, Paralegal

As the summer season comes to a close this year, there are more cars on the road –schools are fully back in session, and New Hanover County has had a continuously increasing number of residents which is currently at 227,000+.  And, events such as the Wilmington Riverfest and the Cape Fear Fair and Expo attract tourists to add even more to our already crowded streets.

WECT reported this week that there have been three pedestrians hit and killed in a ten day period here in Wilmington, North Carolina.  Wilmington Police Department (WPD) was shocked at the high rate of occurrence of deadly hit and runs in our area recently, even considering the perpetual construction and awful traffic.  The WPD urges pedestrians to be extra cautious and mindful of the laws, especially considering that traffic has the right of way if a pedestrian is crossing the street mid-block.

Police say these pedestrian safety tips could save lives:

• Walk on sidewalks whenever they are available.
• If there is no sidewalk, walk facing traffic and as far from traffic as possible.
• When possible, cross the street at a designated crosswalk.
• Always look both ways before crossing the street.
• Look for cars in all directions, including those turning right or left.
• Never assume a driver sees you. Make eye contact with drivers as they approach you to make sure you are seen.
• Wear bright clothing during the day and wear reflective materials or use a flashlight at night.

Another common cause of car accidents is distracted driving, whether that is texting, eating, or simply not paying attention to their surroundings.  Only a partial second of distraction is needed for a potentially life-changing accident to occur.  Giving it a second thought before texting while driving could be what it takes to save your life, or someone else’s!  However, eliminating distractions while you’re driving is only half the battle when considering being a safe driver – you also have to be aware of other driver’s movements, and anticipate possible traffic violations, such as running a red light, or failure to reduce speed to avoid a collision.

If you or a loved one is seriously injured in an accident, as a result of someone else’s fault or negligence, we can help you get maximum compensation, meaning money damages, for your pain and suffering, medical bills, and lost wages.

If you are charged with any type of crime in Southeastern North Carolina, in or around Wilmington NC in New Hanover County, Brunswick County, or Pender County, call Collins Law Firm at 910-793-9000 for a confidential consultation about what we can do for you.

By Karen M. Thompson, Paralegal