December 23rd, 2010

Two Juries Rule Against Doctors in Medical Malpractice Actions

Two Lancaster County, Pennsylvania juries recently ruled against two local doctors accused of making surgical mistakes.
Dr. John Schantz and Plastic Surgery Associates of Lancaster were ordered to pay $2.7 million in a verdict handed down following a trial last week.
In a separate trial, Dr. Carl Becker II was ordered to pay $345,000 by another jury.
In the first case, involving Schantz, Conde Santiago, then 26,

December 16th, 2010

Group, Mother Sue McDonald’s Over Happy Meals

A Sacramento, California mother and the Center for Science in the Public Interest filed a lawsuit Wednesday against McDonald’s Corp. alleging that its practice of giving toys with children’s meals is deceptive to children and harms their health by encouraging unhealthy eating. 
Hovde Dassow & Deets is an Indianapolis, Indiana law firm that specializes in plaintiff’s personal injury, medical malpractice, and product liability claims throughout

December 16th, 2010

Indiana Court Enters Judgement Ordering Defendant To Pay Five Million Dollar ($5,000,000) Wrongful Death Verdict

A judge has ordered Shawn Devine to pay the family of Mishawaka Police Officer $5,000,000 in damages for his wrongful death.  The Estate of James Szuba filed the wrongful death suit against Devine in May of 2010.  The suit sought damages for the losses suffered by Officer Szuba’s surviving wife and dependent daughter.  His 22 year old son was not a dependent and is not

December 4th, 2010

Nick Deets of Hovde Dassow & Deets Becomes President of the Indiana Chapter of American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)

On December 3, 2010, Nick Deets, an attorney with Hovde Dassow & Deets in Indianapolis, Indiana, became the President of the Indiana Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates  (ABOTA). 
ABOTA’s purpose is to foster improvement in the ethical and technical standards of practice in the field of advocacy to the end that individual litigants may receive more effective representation and the general public be benefited

December 1st, 2010

Nick Deets Interviewed By “America’s Premier Lawyers Series” Regarding The Indiana Medical Malpractice Verdict In Stacey Riley v. Paul Kwo M.D.

Attorney Nick Deets of Hovde Dassow & Deets was interviewed for the Radio Series “America’s Premier Lawyers” regarding the medical malpractice verdict he received in the trial of Stacey Riley v. Paul Kwo M.D.  The interview can be accessed by using this link:  http://lbishow.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=293:qame.  The article below accompanied Nick’s interview on the Series’ website. 
Nicholas D. Deets is highly distinguished lawyer and a principal with Hovde Dassow

November 28th, 2010

Indiana Court of Appeals Holds That Insured Waived Undersinsured Motorist Claim By Settling With At Fault Driver Without Consent

In Cincinnati Insurance Co. v. Adkins, 935 N.E.2d 190 (Ind.Ct.App. 2010), the Indiana Court of Appeals held that an insured had waived her underinsured motorist claim by settling without the at-fault driver without the consent of the UIM insurer.  Underinsured motorist claims in Indiana are governed by Ind. Code 27-7-5-et seq.  which requires an insured to give notice to the UIM carrier of a proposed settlement

November 28th, 2010

Man Killed By Wrong-Way Drunk Driver

A New Jersey school custodian and father of three was killed on November 28, 201o by a drunken wrong-way driver.  The driver of the wrong-way car was in stable condition.  He was charged with vehicular manslaughter and driving while intoxicated. 
Hovde Dassow & Deets is an Indianapolis, Indiana law firm that specializes in plaintiff’s personal injury, medical malpractice, and product liability claims throughout the State

November 18th, 2010

Indiana Emotional Distress Law Clarified As To Loss Of Stillborn Child In Indiana Medical Malpractice Actions

The Indiana Court of Appeals recently held that parents who suffer a stillborn child as a result of medical malpractice can maintain a medical malpractice claim for the resulting emotional distress.  Spangler v. Bechtel, 931 N.E.2d 387 (Ind.Ct.App. 2010).  The decision overturned the decision of the trial court which had held that the parents could not maintain a medical malpractice claim for the wrongful death

October 31st, 2010

Doctors With Questionable Records Hired As Drug Firm Speakers

Doctors with questionable records earn large sums of money as speakers on behalf of drug firms.  Although drug firms say they hire the most respected doctors in their fields for the critical task of teaching about the benefits and risks of their drugs, and investigation by ProPublica uncovered hundreds of doctors on company payrolls who had been accused of professional misconduct, were disciplined by state

October 31st, 2010

Indiana Supreme Court Amends Rules For Attorney Solicitation of Personal Injury Clients

The Indiana Supreme Court recently amended the rules for attorneys regarding solicitation of clients for potential personal injury or wrongful death cases.  Under the new rules, attorneys must wait 30 days before they can send direct mail advertising to people who have been injured or lost a loved one in a motor vehicle collision or by reason of other negligent conduct.   This rule was supported

Hovde Dassow + Deets is an Indianapolis-based law firm specializing in Personal Injury Law. Our attorneys practice in the following areas of personal injury law: Truck + car accidents, Medical malpractice, Drug liability, Wrongful death claims, Construction accidents, Nursing home injuries, Injuries to children, Pharmacy + prescription errors, ATV injuries, Defective product claims, Consumer class action, Aviation incidents, Train-crossing accidents. Hovde Dassow + Deets is based in Indianapolis, IN and serves clients and potential clients in the following areas and beyond:

  • Adams County
  • Allen County
  • Anderson, IN
  • Bartholomew County
  • Benton County
  • Blackford County
  • Bloomington, IN
  • Boone County
  • Brown County
  • Carmel, IN
  • Carroll County
  • Cass County
  • Clark County
  • Clay County
  • Clinton County
  • Columbus, IN
  • Crawford County
  • Crawfordsville, IN
  • Crown Point, IN
  • Daviess County
  • DeKalb County
  • Dearborn County
  • Decatur County
  • Delaware County
  • Dubois County
  • East Chicago, IN
  • Elkhart, IN
  • Elkhart County
  • Evansville, IN
  • Fayette County
  • Floyd County
  • Fort Wayne, IN
  • Fountain County
  • Frankfort, IN
  • Franklin, IN
  • Franklin County
  • Fulton County
  • Gary, IN
  • Gibson County
  • Goshen, IN
  • Grant County
  • Greene County
  • Greenfield, IN
  • Greenwood, IN
  • Hamilton County
  • Jennings County
  • Johnson County
  • Knox County
  • Kokomo, IN
  • Kosciusko County
  • LaGrange County
  • La Porte, IN
  • LaPorte County
  • Lafayette, IN
  • Lake County
  • Lawrence, IN
  • Lawrence County
  • Lebanon, IN
  • Logansport, IN
  • Madison County
  • Noblesville, IN
  • Ohio County
  • Orange County
  • Owen County
  • Parke County
  • Perry County
  • Pike County
  • Portage, IN
  • Porter County
  • Posey County
  • Pulaski County
  • Putnam County
  • Randolph County
  • Richmond, IN
  • Ripley County
  • Rush County
  • Scott County
  • Seymour, IN
  • Shelby County
  • Shelbyville, IN
  • South Bend, IN
  • Spencer County
  • St. Joseph County
  • Starke County
  • Steuben County
  • Sullivan County
  • Switzerland County
  • Terre Haute, IN
  • Tippecanoe County
  • Tipton County