Carter C. Stein, Managing Partner of McMath Woods, PA, was featured in the July 1 edition of the Arkansas Democrat Gazette for his dedication and active roles within Little Rock’s Junior Deputy Baseball program. The article, Volunteer Throws Support Behind Junior Deputy Ball, highlights Stein’s history with the program from his childhood to his involvement now as a board member, coach and parent. Junior Deputy Baseball serves more than 1,000 children, ranging in age from 4 to 15, and multiple leagues.

Stein’s litigation practice focuses on injury and wrongful death. Stein has been an active member of the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association since joining the bar. He has served on the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors since 2008 and was named the 2010 Outstanding Member of the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association Young Lawyers Division. Stein graduated from the University of Arkansas in 2000 with a B.A. in History. He earned his J.D. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law in 2003.

MidCon Gathering LLC, represented by McMath Woods PA’s John D. Coulter and Preston T. Kamin of Gray Reed & McGraw LLP, received a defense verdict in a suit after Stephen Carleson and his company, Producers Credit Protection Group, Inc., alleged he developed a credit facility for the company but wasn’t paid $1.6 million he was owed. U.S. District Judge Brian S. Miller, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Western Division ruled that he didn’t have the necessary insurance license to carry out the deal.

It was ruled that the “credit facility” Carleson and his company, helped develop acted as a “credit insurance policy” issued by a third party for MidCon’s benefit. However, Carleson does not have a license to sell insurance in Arkansas. This resulted in a fatal problem.

On Friday, June 15, 2018, approximately 200 children within the Little Rock community graduated from Safety Town, a fun five-day safety awareness program designed for rising kindergartners. Through the use of music, crafts, movies, books, community speakers and a child-sized town, the curriculum focuses on basic safety lessons that the children use for the rest of their lives.  McMath Woods P.A. was again a proud lead sponsor of this vital community program.  In addition to providing volunteers throughout the week, McMath Woods P.A. took an active role in adding a distracted driving component to the curriculum, and for each graduate, donated a CD of 22 safety songs written and produced by Brian Kinder.

“We are grateful to Mayor Wendy Saer for her dedication to this outstanding program and for creatively incorporating distracted driving into the week’s curriculum. Now with technology at everyone’s fingertips and the number of automobile catastrophes due to cell phone usage drastically increasing, it’s imperative that children understand the concept of distracted driving. Our hope is that if they are aware, then they can remind parents that a phone call or text isn’t more important than their safety. And, of course, one day when they are old enough to drive, we hope they remember the valuable lessons learned at Safety Town,” says Carter Stein, McMath Woods Managing Partner.

Safety Town has been an annual program in Central Arkansas and operated solely by volunteers since 1984.

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette opinion columnist John Brummett spoke to McMath Woods partner and Arkansas Senator Will Bond.  To see what Will said, click on John Brummett’s column here.

We take many calls concerning medical negligence cases, and we frequently get inquiries from people who claim their doctor delayed in diagnosing their cancer. These cases can be difficult to evaluate for the following reasons:

1) Proximate Cause – Did the delay cause any damage?

2) Burden of Proof – Is there actual proof the diagnosis was missed, such as a radiology study that required follow up?

3) Differing types of cancer have different cure rates, growth rates, etc.

Legally, the biggest issue in a delayed diagnosis cancer case is lost chance of survival. Let’s take a look at some case examples to better understand this concept.

I often receive phone calls about liability insurance carriers not wanting to pay for all of the debt associated with a motor vehicle that has been totaled.  According to Arkansas’s jury instructions, the liability insurance carrier must only pay the difference in fair market value immediately before and immediately after the wreck.  See AMI 2210.  Fair market value is defined as “the price the [motor vehicle] would bring on the open market in a sale between a seller who is willing to sell and a buyer who is willing and able to buy after a reasonable opportunity for negotiations.”  See AMI 2221.  The amount the vehicle owner owes is irrelevant to the market value of the vehicle.

If your vehicle is totaled, you owe $10,000 on the vehicle, and the fair market value of the vehicle is $8,000, then you are upside down $2,000.  Stated differently, there is a gap of $2,000.  This is where good gap insurance coverage comes in handy.  A well written gap insurance policy will cover the $2,000 you are upside down on the vehicle.  As with most types of insurance coverage, there are good policies and bad policies.  When purchasing gap insurance, you must read the fine print to determine whether you are paying for a policy that covers the outstanding debt on the vehicle or only the fair market value.  As discussed in the first paragraph, the liability insurance carrier is required to pay the fair market value of the vehicle so gap insurance that only covers the fair market value is of limited benefit to the consumer.  For more information on how gap insurance works and the type of policy you need, check out the following link from the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office: https://arkansasag.gov/programs/consumer-protection/my-vehicle/gap-insurance

A contingency fee is a fee charged by an attorney to a client contingent upon the outcome of the matter.  Contingent fees in personal injury and wrongful death cases are allowed in Arkansas if the agreement is in writing and states the method for computing the fee, including the percentage of the fee and how costs will be handled.  See Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct 1.5(c).

McMath Woods has served injured Arkansans since 1953.  Over the past sixty-three years, we’ve handled many personal injury and wrongful death cases on a contingent basis.  If you or a loved one has been injured and you need to hire an Arkansas lawyer on a contingency fee, please feel free to give us a call at McMath Woods.  

Recently there has been much talk and “traffic” about hours of service regulations for 18 Wheelers.

Hours of service (HOS) regulations define how much a driver can drive during certain periods of time and apply to commercial motor vehicles (CMVs).

An important first question is what qualifies as a CMV for purposes of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations Hour of Service Rules. 18 Wheelers typically do of course, but other vehicles qualify also.

States have vastly different law concerning wrongful death cases–cases where it is alleged that certain acts caused death. Arkansas wrongful death laws allow for the recovery of what is termed “loss of life” damages by the Estate of the person killed, commonly referred to as the decedent. Loss of Life damages have been defined by the Arkansas Supreme Court as the “value that the decedent would have placed on his or her own life.” Durham v. Mayberry, 356 Ark. 481, 156 S.W.3d 242 (2004). Other forms of damages are also allowed for the Estate, including any conscious pain and suffering experienced prior to death. Wrongful death beneficiaries of the decedent under Arkansas law can include any living children, spouse, siblings, mother and father. Each has a separate claim for mental anguish. Anyone who believes a loved one or family member has a wrongful death claim should consult an attorney. Folks with venue choices should at least consider Arkansas law before filing in other states.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced today that Aqua-Leisure Industries, Inc., of Avon, Mass., has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $650,000. The penalty agreement has been accepted provisionally by a 4-0 vote of the Commission.

The settlement resolves CPSC staff allegations that Aqua-Leisure knowingly failed to report a defect involving its inflatable baby boats to CPSC immediately, as required by federal law. The leg strap in the seat of baby boats manufactured from August 2002 to July 2008 can tear, causing children to unexpectedly fall into or under the water, posing a risk of drowning.