Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial AttorneysFindLaw IM Template2026-09-23T18:51:48Zhttps://www.theverdict.com/feed/atom/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/sites/1100479/2018/10/cropped-site_icon-32x32.pngOn Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[How nursing home neglect can cause malnutrition and injury]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516972026-09-23T18:51:48Z2026-09-23T18:51:48ZWhy can malnutrition become a serious problem?
Your loved one may have difficulty eating because of health conditions, reduced appetite or physical changes. They may also need help eating or require a specific diet. Without appropriate nutritional support, ongoing problems can cause weight and muscle loss and declining health.
Severe malnutrition can cause weakness and slow the healing process, making it harder for your loved one to recover from illness or injury. Loss of strength can also leave an older adult more vulnerable to falls and other physical harm.
How can poor care contribute to malnutrition?
Malnutrition does not automatically mean a nursing home neglected your loved one. However, inadequate care can contribute when staff fail to provide needed food or drink or do not respond to your loved one's nutritional needs.
Ask whether the staff is monitoring weight, responding to eating difficulties and providing nutritional support. If you are authorized to participate in your loved one's care, ask to review the care plan and discuss whether it addresses any nutritional concerns. Under federal and Indiana law, nursing home residents have the right to participate in developing their care plan and receive the services included in it.
What signs should families watch for?
Nutritional decline can be gradual and hard to notice. During visits, watch for:
What can families do if poor care may have caused harm?
Keep a dated record of changes in weight, eating habits and physical condition. Ask the facility how staff is addressing those changes. Keep copies of relevant medical records and document any conversations with facility personnel.
When inadequate care may have contributed to malnutrition, weakness, a fall or another physical injury, a nursing home neglect attorney can review the circumstances and explain your legal options.]]>by Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Property owner liability for visitor injuries in Indiana]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516952026-09-11T18:42:37Z2026-09-11T18:42:37ZWhat duty do property owners owe visitors
Property owners owe different duties based on a visitor’s legal status. Business invitees receive the highest protection, so owners must take reasonable care by inspecting for hazards, making repairs and giving warnings. Indiana law generally does not require warnings for dangers a reasonable person would notice. The duty also depends on why the person entered the property.
How does visitor status affect responsibility
Indiana law places visitors into different categories. Each category affects the property owner's legal duty:
Invitees: Customers, business visitors and others who enter for a commercial purpose are generally invitees. They receive the highest level of protection.
Licensees: Social guests are generally licensees. Owners must warn them about known hazards they are unlikely to find. Owners do not have to inspect for unknown dangers.
Trespassers: Trespassers receive the least protection. Owners still cannot intentionally harm them or create hidden traps.
Child trespassers: Children may receive greater protection when an attractive nuisance, such as a pool, draws them onto the property.
A visitor's legal status helps determine the duty the property owner owes under Indiana law.
What must injured visitors prove
To support a premises liability claim, an injured visitor generally must show:
A dangerous condition existed: A hazard on the property created a risk of injury.
The owner knew or should have known: The owner knew about the hazard or should have found it.
The owner failed to act: The owner did not fix the hazard or give proper warning.
The hazard caused the injury: The unsafe condition played a direct role in causing the injury.
The visitor's fault is considered: Indiana uses a modified comparative fault rule. When an injured person shares some responsibility for an accident, the court may reduce the damages by that percentage. If the person is 51% or more at fault, however, Indiana law may bar recovery altogether.
Incident reports, photos, witness statements and medical records can help link the unsafe condition to the injury. Courts may also consider whether proper care could have prevented the accident.
Taking the next step after an injury
Indiana premises liability cases turn on the specific facts, including the type of visitor, whether the property owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition and how fault is divided between the parties. If someone was injured on another person’s property, an attorney can help assess whether the circumstances support a claim and what damages may be available.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Who is liable when a pothole wrecks a bike?]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516932026-08-24T08:57:59Z2026-08-24T08:57:59ZA pothole can turn a routine bike ride through South Bend into a serious crash. One deep hole in the pavement may cause you to lose control, fall into traffic or suffer injuries. If poor road conditions caused the crash, you may wonder who should pay for your medical bills, bike repairs and other losses.
Liability can depend on where the pothole appeared and who had a duty to maintain that area. Indiana law also sets rules for bringing claims against government entities, which may apply when a pothole sits on a public road.
Who may be responsible for the pothole?
Determining who controls the road can help identify the party that may bear responsibility. For example, a pothole on a city street may involve the City of South Bend. Meanwhile, a defect on another road could involve a different government agency or property owner.Several factors may affect whether you have a valid claim, including:
Where the pothole appeared and who maintained the road
Whether the responsible party knew or should have known about the pothole
Whether the pothole existed long enough for the responsible party to know about it
Whether the pothole directly contributed to your fall and injuries
Whether Indiana's rules for claims against government entities apply
Gathering photos of the pothole, road conditions and damaged bicycle can help document what happened. Legal assistance can also help you identify the responsible party and assess whether notice and other legal requirements affect your claim.
What if you share some fault?
Indiana follows a modified comparative fault rule. This means that if you are 50% or less responsible, you may still recover damages. However, your award is reduced based on your share of fault. For example, 20% fault on $20,000 in damages would reduce the potential recovery to $16,000.However, if you are more than 50% at fault, you cannot recover damages. Factors such as your speed, traffic behavior or use of safety equipment may also affect how fault gets assigned.
When a pothole changes everything
A bike crash caused by a pothole can affect far more than the ride itself. Medical treatment, missed work and a damaged bicycle can disrupt daily life, while the cause of the crash may not always be clear. In South Bend, the party responsible for a road defect can depend on where the pothole appeared and who had control over that area. Knowing how these factors connect can put the accident and its financial impact into clearer perspective.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Driver or company? Who is Liable in Indiana trucking accidents]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516912026-08-17T10:23:10Z2026-08-17T10:23:10ZHow fault works under Indiana law
An injured person must prove that another party failed to use reasonable care and caused harm. Indiana follows a modified comparative fault rule, which means sharing partial responsibility for a crash can reduce a claimant's compensation. Anyone determined to be more than 50 percent at fault loses the right to recover damages entirely.
When the driver may be responsible
Speeding, texting, fatigue, impairment or unsafe lane changes can expose a driver to liability in a truck accident. The operator could also cause a collision by following too closely or by failing to adjust speed for rain, snow or low visibility. If the facts show negligent driving, a claim can proceed against that person.
When the trucking company may be responsible
A truck carrier may face liability for its own conduct and be held answerable for the acts of an employee acting within the scope of their job duties. Common issues include:
Hiring an unsafe operator
Failing to train or supervise staff
Pressuring workers to break hours-of-service rules
Skipping inspections or needed repairs
Violating federal motor carrier safety rules
Trucking companies often try to blame their drivers, yet their own negligence frequently occurs behind closed doors.
When other parties may also be liable
A severe collision could involve other liable parties beyond the driver and the carrier. A cargo-loading company might secure freight in an unsafe manner, a maintenance provider might fail to identify a brake defect, or a manufacturer could place a defective tire or steering component into the stream of commerce. In some cases, another motorist might also contribute to the sequence of events leading to the wreck.
Why a prompt investigation matters
Trucking cases differ from other accident claims in part because the evidence is time-sensitive and spread across multiple sources. Electronic logging data, onboard recorder data, dispatch records, inspection files and camera footage could be overwritten or discarded within days of a crash. Timely legal review can help preserve evidence and identify each responsible party.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[When memory care security fails your family]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516852026-08-10T17:10:01Z2026-08-10T17:09:34ZThe scope of the problem
Dementia affects over 121,000 Indiana residents, and many live in specialized care units. These units are supposed to be safe, secure facilities designed to reduce wandering and unsupervised exits. Without proper supervision, these incidents frequently lead to dangerous outcomes, including:
Exposure to extreme weather and hypothermia
Dehydration or lack of medication
Traffic accidents or falls in unfamiliar areas
As Indiana’s aging population grows, ensuring these facilities are secure is more critical than ever.
The legal duty of memory care facilities
Memory care units must provide a high standard of care because they serve vulnerable residents. State and federal regulations require these facilities to assess each resident’s risk of leaving and create a plan to prevent it. This can include maintaining functional alarm systems and keeping adequate staff levels to monitor exits.
Facilities must balance a resident’s rights with the need for safety. They are responsible for ensuring that freedom of movement does not become a life-threatening lack of supervision.
Red flags of inadequate security
Families should stay alert for signs that a facility is cutting corners on safety. Certain physical and operational lapses can indicate that a resident is at high risk for elopement. Families should watch for:
Alarms that are muted, broken or ignored
Visible gaps in perimeter fencing or unlocked gates
Low staffing during late-night or early-morning shifts
If a facility has a history of residents getting lost, it may suggest a systemic failure in their safety protocols.
When a facility markets itself as a secure memory care unit, it takes on a legal and moral obligation. You deserve to know that your loved one is protected behind those doors. If a care provider falls short of its legal duties to your loved one, there may be legal avenues to hold them accountable for any damages suffered as a result of that negligence.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Can astigmatism make car accidents more likely?]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516822026-07-29T15:36:16Z2026-07-29T15:36:16Zuncorrected astigmatism can lead to streaky or blurry lights, and people may see circles or halos.
These make it more difficult for them to see at night. A driver with astigmatism may see significant streaks around taillights ahead of them, headlights coming in their direction or streetlights along the side of the road.
This can often make car accidents more likely because it is harder for the driver to process the visual information outside of the vehicle. If there is a pedestrian crossing the road, for example, the driver may not see them because they are seeing streaks of light from nearby streetlights. Oncoming cars may make the driver feel like they are temporarily blinded until the vehicle passes them.
Weather conditions can make it worse
In some situations, the weather conditions a person is driving in can make astigmatism issues even more significant. For instance, if it starts raining, this can cause even greater streaking and blurring as the light passes through a wet windshield.
For a driver with astigmatism, driving at night (and especially in the rain) can be very difficult. They may feel like their range of vision is significantly limited, and they have to focus intently to see things that would stand out easily in clear, daylight driving conditions.
Seeking financial compensation
Even if you do not have these visual issues yourself, the drivers around you might. They could make significant mistakes and cause a serious car accident. Having a medical condition does not relieve them of responsibility for the crash.
If you have suffered injuries in a crash caused by another driver, having experienced legal guidance can help you consider your options for seeking financial compensation.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Where should you report nursing home abuse?]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516792026-07-22T02:25:54Z2026-07-22T02:25:54Zprotecting your loved one and helping ensure that the situation receives the attention it deserves.
Take swift, informed action
The appropriate reporting channel will depend on the specific circumstances involved. It could be the agency responsible for investigating abuse allegations, protecting vulnerable adults or regulating long-term care facilities. Indiana has a Long-term Care Ombudsman Program.
These organizations can review complaints, conduct investigations and take action when resident safety is at risk. In situations involving physical violence, sexual misconduct, theft or other potentially criminal behavior, contacting law enforcement may also be appropriate.
Gather and preserve evidence
Evidence can become more difficult to obtain as time passes. Memories fade, records may be lost and physical signs of abuse can heal. Taking steps to preserve information early may strengthen efforts to hold responsible parties accountable.
If possible, keep records of injuries, changes in behavior, medical treatment and conversations with nursing home staff. Photographs, medical records and witness statements may also help establish what happened.
Addressing the harm done
Nursing home abuse can lead to significant physical injuries, emotional trauma, additional medical expenses and a diminished quality of life, and the outcome of an investigation may not necessarily compensate a resident for the harm they have suffered.
As such, it may be necessary to explore other legal options in addition to filing a report. Seeking experienced legal guidance can help you understand your rights, protect your loved one and pursue accountability from the negligent parties.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[How can you avoid a wrong-way driver?]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516762026-07-06T13:45:41Z2026-07-06T13:45:41ZWrong-way drivers can lead to devastating car accidents. Often, these are high-speed, head-on collisions, two factors that make severe injuries more likely.
One way to avoid a wrong-way driver is to focus on staying to your right. Remember that the wrong-way driver may not even realize they are heading the wrong direction, so they believe that your left lane is actually their right-hand lane—such as when two cars are approaching each other on the interstate. If you stay to the right, they may naturally miss your vehicle as they go by.If you can spot the wrong-way driver before a collision occurs, try to get their attention. Honk your horn. Flash your lights. Do not try to stop the car on your own, but try to alert the driver so they become aware of the mistake they have made.
Why do these accidents happen?
The thing about wrong-way accidents is that many of these drivers are intoxicated. They have consumed too much alcohol, and their impairment is the reason they are traveling the wrong way. They would not make the same mistake if they were sober.It is important to understand this because it also explains why the wrong-way driver may not even realize they have made a mistake in the first place. They are not driving in the wrong direction maliciously or even intentionally. They are simply under the influence, and they are putting everyone else in danger.Trying to avoid these crashes is important, but it is not always possible. If you have suffered serious injuries due to another driver's negligent actions, you need to know what legal options you have.
]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Even at low speeds, pedestrian crashes can cause major injuries]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516742026-06-21T10:50:58Z2026-06-21T10:50:58ZSpeed is one of the most important factors when assessing the severity of a pedestrian crash. As vehicle speeds increase, the likelihood of severe or fatal injuries increases as well. At 23 miles per hour (mph), a vehiclehas a 25% chance of causing severe injuries to a pedestrian and a 10% risk of causing fatal injuries. At 31 mph, the risk of injury increases to 50%, while the risk of death reaches 25% at 32 mph.The speeds and residential neighborhoods are typically low enough to minimize the risk of severe injury or death. However, those struck at low speeds, including in parking lots and at the ends of driveways, can still sustain significant injuries that leave them struggling to cover collision costs.
Knock-down incidents cause major injuries and costs
The speed of a vehicle is only one factor that influences the severity of pedestrian injuries. The size of the vehicle is another important consideration. Bigger vehicles can easily cause serious injuries by knocking pedestrians to the ground.Taller vehicles with vertical front ends can easily cause a knock-down incident. Even at low speeds, pedestrians knocked to the ground by a vehicle are at risk of broken bones, brain injuries and other severe medical consequences. If the pedestrian involved in the incident is a minor, an older adult or someone with underlying medical challenges, the risk of severe injuries increases.Anyone affected by a pedestrian crash may have medical expenses and lost wages to address. Reviewing insurance coverage and crash details with a lawyer can help injured pedestrians and their family members hold drivers accountable afterserious pedestrian collisions.]]>On Behalf of Sweeney Julian Personal Injury Trial Attorneys<![CDATA[Can you sue a nursing home for negligence?]]>https://www.theverdict.com/?p=516722026-06-19T14:57:22Z2026-06-19T14:57:22ZWhen a nursing home may face legal responsibility
You can generally pursue a claim against a nursing home when a failure in care directly leads to injury, illness or death. To succeed, the evidence often must show that the facility owed a duty of care, failed to meet that duty, caused the harm and left the resident with measurable losses.
Some conditions may point to a serious breakdown in care. A closer look may be necessary if:
Your parent develops serious bedsores that staff failed to prevent or treat
Unexplained weight loss points to dehydration or malnutrition
A preventable fall causes broken bones or another significant injury
Medication mistakes lead to medical complications
Poor supervision allows a health condition to worsen unnecessarily
Establishing these elements is only one part of pursuing a claim. In Indiana, some nursing home neglect cases follow special procedures when the claim involves health care or professional services covered by the Medical Malpractice Act. Under this law, a medical review panel typically examines the evidence. It then issues an opinion on whether the facility met the applicable standard of care.
Additionally, state law places time limits on legal action. In Indiana, you generally must file a personal injury action within two years after the claim arises, making prompt review important.
Understanding your options after suspected neglect
Suspecting that your parent suffered mistreatment in a care facility can leave you searching for answers. Photographs, medical records and notes about changes in your loved one's condition often help clarify what occurred.
Since these matters may involve medical evidence, regulatory requirements and procedural deadlines, legal guidance is often important. A qualified attorney can evaluate the circumstances, explain the available options and determine whether the facts support a nursing home neglect claim.]]>