Newsletter Navigation
- Limits on Suffering -- The Price Victims Pay
- Hill Boren Attorneys Play Key Role At TTLA Annual Convention
- Shannon Toon Joins the Memphis Office
- Hill Boren Welcomes Several New Employees
- Stay Up-To-Date With Newsbuddy From WMC-TV
- Hill Boren Feeds East Jackson Following The Storms
- Attorney/Firefighter Gets Donated Fire Equipment For Area
- Hill Boren Attorney Leads Effort to Organize Free Legal Assistance For Storm Victims
Limits on Suffering -- The Price Victims Pay
The U.S. Senate's recent failure to put a cap of $250,000 on Medical Malpractice cases is a victory for working people across the country.
But the issue is far from over. The insurance industry, health care practitioners and Republicans continue to fight to impose limits on non-economic and punitive damages, including pain and suffering awards for injured patients in health care related law suits.
At what limit would you cap your child's ability to see or walk? What price would you say is adequate for your mother's death?
Here are some examples of how caps would drastically limit the rights of injured patients and families:
- A middle aged man is confined to a nursing home because of dementia. After only 6 months, he is dead from infected bed sores. Because he was unable to work prior to entering the nursing home, he has no economic value. Under the cap, his family could receive no more than $250,000, despite the medical negligence.
- A young girl died after doctors transplanted organs of the wrong blood type into her body. Like most children, she did not work. Aside from medical bills, all of her family's damages would be non-economic and they would only be entitled to $250,000.
- The father of a six-year old girl died because doctors failed to diagnose pneumonia which led to an infection and septic shock. The daughter now has to grow up without her father.
- A former pilot and Lt. Colonel in the U.S. Air Force was left a paraplegic because of an error by an anesthesiologist. The insurance company offered $125,000. If this case went to trial under the proposed caps, his award would be almost entirely non-economic and damages and would be limited to $250,000.
These victims deserve more than a one-size fits all cap designed to protect the insurance industry and negligent doctors. That is why Hill Boren has fought for the rights of injured people for over thirty years and will continue to do so.
Hill Boren Attorneys Play Key Role At TTLA Annual Convention
Hill Boren attorneys recently played a key role at the 40th annual Tennessee Association for Justice (TTLA) convention in Nashville.
Robert Hill served as program chair for the convention. He was in charge of choosing topics, selecting speakers, moderating sessions and overseeing convention administration. Speakers included judges from around the nation and Jim Vititoe, an attorney made famous by the movie Erin Brockovich.
During the convention, TTLA members elected this year's officers. Ricky Boren was chosen as president-elect and will serve as next year's president; making him the second Hill Boren attorney to serve as TTLA PresidenT. Robert Hill served as TTLA President in 1978-1979.
A native of Jackson, Ricky joined Hill Boren P.C. in 1979 and was made a shareholder in 1982. In addition to his involvement with TTLA, he is a member of the American Association for Justice, the Tennessee Bar Association and the Jackson-Madison County Bar Association and is a graduate of the National College of Trial Advocacy. He has lectured extensively in the fields of personal injury and workers' compensation.
"Ricky has been an active member in our association by attending national conventions and planning sessions, hosting local membership receptions and promoting our legislative agendas," stated Suzanne Keith, TTLA Executive Director.
Christopher L. Taylor, who has been with Hill Boren P.C. since 1996 and became a shareholder in 2002 was named to the TTLA executive committee. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law and for the past five years has primarily handled cases in the firm's Memphis office.
Randall J. Phillips was named to the Board of Governors and as chairman of the technology committee. He has been with the Hill Boren for seven years and focuses much of his practice on medical malpractice and nursing home litigation.
"It speaks well of our firm to have so many of our lawyers serving as officers of TTLA," stressed Ricky Boren. "We are truly committed to protecting the rights of injured people through the work of our firm and through our membership in TTLA."
The Tennessee Association for Justice is dedicated to protecting the health and safety of families and working people, to enhancing consumer protection and to preserving citizens' right to trial by jury. The association of over 1,000 members is committed to improving the quality of legal representation through legal education.
Shannon Toon Joins the Memphis Office
Shannon Toon, a native of Union City, TN has recently joined Hill Boren. He will be located at Hill Boren's Memphis office at 191 Jefferson Street.
Mr. Toon graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and received his law degree from Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at the University of Memphis where he was a member of the Student Bar Association.
Presently, Mr. Toon is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Association for Justice and the American Association for Justice. He is active in the Memphis Bar Association, where he currently serves as the District Coordinator of the Tennessee High School Mock Trial Competition for Shelby County. He is also on the Board of Directors of Young Lawyers Division of the Memphis Bar Association.
Before joining Hill Boren in June of 2003, he worked for Spicer, Flynn, and Rudstrom Law Firm in Memphis where his practice was concentrated in the area of workers' compensation and personal injury.
"Because of his experience, Shannon brings great insight into how insurance companies and employers avoid paying injured people. He will be a great asset to his clients and our firm," stated Chris Taylor who will be working with Shannon in the Memphis office. "I am excited to have him working with me in Memphis."
Mr. Toon graduated from Union City High School where he was a member of the track team and a trainer for the football team. He is the son of Carl and Charlotte Toon and has a brother, Kevin. Mr. Toon currently resides in Memphis and enjoys playing golf and watching sports especially Notre Dame Football and Kentucky Wildcat basketball.
Hill Boren Welcomes Several New Employees
Please give a warm welcome to the latest additions to our professional staff at Hill Boren.
- Tammy Hurst, legal assistant to Greg Petrinjak.
- Jessica "Niki" Myles, receptionist at Memphis Office.
- Margaret "Maggie" Saint, legal assistant to James
Krenis.
- Shannon L. Toon, attorney in the Memphis Office.
Audrey Herrin and Francis Wright have moved to new positions within our firm. Formerly the receptionist in the Memphis Office, Audrey is now legal assistant to Shannon Toon. Francis Wright has begun training as a legal assistant.
Stay Up-To-Date With Newsbuddy From WMC-TV
Get the latest news instantly with WMC-TV's Newsbuddy. Hill Boren and WMC-TV Channel 5 are offering a free internet news and weather service. If you haven't downloaded NewsBuddy, it's easy. Go to www.wmctv.com and you will be instantly connected to the latest news and weather information.
Hill Boren Feeds East Jackson Following The Storms
Hill Boren attorneys and staff recently answered the call of service following the May tornadoes that devastated Jackson and West Tennessee. Robert Hill, Frankie Wade, Ricky Boren, Randall Phillips, Jeff Boyd, Greg Petrinjak and John Hamilton along with their staff served over 1800 hot dogs, chips, cookies and drinks to East Jackson residents. The Hill Boren cooker was set up at Washington Douglas School. Shirlene Mercer, Mayor Charles Farmer, Councilman Johnny Dodd, Senator Don McLeary and Councilman Harvey Buchanan stopped by to help.
Attorney/Firefighter Gets Donated Fire Equipment For Area
Firefighting is a brotherhood that spans limitless miles. To prove this, several fire departments from New Jersey recently donated equipment to their fellow firefighters in Tennessee thanks to a call from Hill Boren attorney James Krenis.
James Krenis was a volunteer firefighter and assistant fire chief in New Jersey before coming to Tennessee. Upon moving to Jackson, he became a volunteer firefighter for Madison County.
Following the recent storms, James contacted his former co-workers. Several departments responded to his request and drove down to meet him with a trailer full of equipment.
The townships of Plainsboro, Springfield, Cranbury and East Windsor in central New Jersey all donated items like turnout coats, boots, radios, helmets, hose and air packs to be distributed to West Tennessee fire departments.
Hill Boren Attorney Leads Effort to Organize Free Legal Assistance For Storm Victims
Frankie Wade of Hill Boren has recently been named statewide chair of "Tennessee Lawyers Care," a joint effort with the Tennessee Association for Justice, the Tennessee legal service community and the Retired Judges Association of Tennessee to develop a statewide program that will provide free legal assistance to all victims of natural disasters.
This program is enlisting a statewide network of lawyers and retired judges who can help victims of natural disasters deal with issues including insurance disputes, faulty construction, property disputes and negligent landlords. These volunteers will also set up workshops and provide valuable information and legal services to residents in affected communities regardless of income level.
West Tennessee Legal Services and area lawyers have already stepped in locally to provide legal aid to residents who were affected by the May storms in West Tennessee. Three clinics were held throughout Jackson to address storm related legal issues.
"Our goal is to learn from the recent disasters and to develop a system that can mobilize quickly and provide legal services to the areas and people that need it the most," stated Frankie Wade. As chairman of this effort, she is working to organize this program across the state and to establish a permanent volunteer base that can be called on when needed.
Residents who still need legal help in West Tennessee are asked to call West Tennessee Legal Services, 731 668-7294. Cases will then be assigned to a pro bono attorney of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Care network.
