Jones Brown Law Blog

How Do I know If My FMLA Rights Have Been Violated? The Family and Medical Leave Act or FMLA is a federal law that gives eligible employees the right to take time off for caretaking responsibilities and health problems without risking possible termination by their employers. If an employer refuses to acknowledge and accept their FMLA leave and/or terminates them because of the FMLA submission, the employee may sue in violation of the FMLA Act. According to the U.S Department of Labor, “The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for... Read More →

Help! My boss just wrote me up! What are my rights? What can I do? Don’t worry, we got you covered. Here is an intensive Guide to all your Write-Ups questions and concerns. Before we start, let us review two types of disciplinary warnings: Verbal Warnings and Written Write-ups. All forms of disciplinary warnings are unpleasant for both the employee and employer. Verbal Warnings:  A verbal warning is given by employers, supervisors or upper management to an employee to show that the employee’s behavior in the office is inappropriate or that his or her work performance is poor. This also... Read More →

Victim Protective Orders As an American citizen, you deserve the right to protect yourself or your child against dangerous individuals. You should not have to live in fear of potential and former abusers and harassers. One step you can take to prevent a potentially dangerous situation is to file a protective order. A victim protective order is a court-issued document that legally prohibits your abuser or stalker from contacting you or engaging in the unwanted conduct. Types of Protective Orders There are three types of protective orders which vary in how long they take effect. A... Read More →

EEOC Enforces Harassment Laws With Seven Filings Across the Nation The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed seven lawsuits across the nation against various employers charging them with harassment. This multi-state action taken by the EEOC should send a clear signal to all employers nationwide that harassment- on all basis- is a violation of federal law. “As the nation has seen over the past nine months, harassment at work can affect individuals for years in their careers and livelihoods,” said EEOC Acting Chair Victoria A. Lipnic. “There are many consequences that... Read More →

Diagnosed Schizophrenic Garrit Vos was shot by Newport Police It was around 8:40 p.m. when the Newport police shot an agitated outside of a local 7-Eleven store. Witnesses claimed Vos shouted that he wanted to be killed and was cursing at others with a pair of scissors. Several police officers and a canine unit arrived at the scene and was informed by the witnesses that Vos did not have a gun but a pair of scissors. It appeared that Vos was either under the influence of some kind of drug or suffered from a psychiatric disorder. One of the officers had a 40-millimeter less-lethal... Read More →

Women Working in Male Prisons Settle With Federal Government for $20 Million When Taronica White first checked in to her brand new job as a correctional officer at a maximum -security federal prison in Coleman, Florida she was greeted by her supervisor, a huge oversized jacket was thrown at her and the words “in this facility, females cover-up.” Taronica soon came to understand why females were to “cover-up.” She was the recipient of catcalls, sexual threats as well as seeing the inmates exposing themselves and masturbating in front of her. Taronica wrote up ten... Read More →

Feds Confess Liability for Death of Ignored Inmate In Alabama Jail   His name is Phillip Anderson, a 49-year-old Army veteran and a father who died in agony from a perforated ulcer while incarcerated in a jail in Alabama. Why was he locked up? He was arrested for missing a child-support hearing in 2013. Anderson was driving with one of his children when he encountered a roadblock. There the local officers discovered he had a warrant because of his child support case and arrested him. When Anderson was moved to the Tuscaloosa jail, he immediately began to vomit after his meal and was... Read More →

Semi-Truck Accident Statistics Size, speed, and stopping distance may make semi-trucks the most dangerous vehicles on the road. These factors make accidents more frequent and more serious among large trucks than in crashes between passenger vehicles. 2016 saw 3,986 fatalities caused by semi-truck accidents. Top causes of semi-truck accidents include: Defective Brakes Overloaded trucks Tire blowouts Driver fatigue Following too closely Careless lane changes Semi-Truck Injuries Injury crashes involving large trucks totaled 119,000 in 2016, with a total of 180,000 persons injured. Injuries... Read More →

Michigan Civil Rights Commission Bars LGBT Discrimination   Though same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide in 2015, it appears LGBT citizens that reside in Michigan may face legal challenges. How? Why? Well, officials claim that discrimination due to sexual orientation and gender identity is not truly covered by state law. The reality is while USA government has anti-discrimination legislation, there is no clear legal protection for all LGBT citizens nationwide which forces us to question how far do these laws actually extend? Is LGBT equally protected like any other citizen... Read More →

‘Black Lives Don’t Matter’ Says Lawyer After Jury Awards $4 in Police Killing “Heartbroken” is the feeling that a Florida family reports feeling after a  jury awards $4 in damages for funeral expenses and pain and suffering in a case that involves the fatal shooting of a father of three through his garage door by a St. Lucie County deputy, the family’s attorney said Thursday. Sheriff’s deputy Christopher Newman killed 30-year-old Gregory Hill Jr., in 2014 after a mother picking up her child at a school across the street called in a noise... Read More →

Purdue Pharma Accused of Knowingly Contributing to Opioid Epidemic A report by the Justice Department details Purdue Pharma’s awareness of the abuse of OxyContin, the company’s opioid painkiller, early on after its release on the market in 1996. The drug company had previously claimed to be unaware of OxyContin’s appeal to abusers until the early 2000s and even used the claim that the drug was less addictive than other opioid painkillers as its main selling point. The Justice Department report found: Sales representatives had referenced OxyContin’s abuse in their notes when recording... Read More →

Dollar General Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit for $70,000 Dolgencorp, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the retail chain Dollar General Corporation, will pay the amount of $70,000 as well as other relief to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit that was filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC lawsuit, the store manager at the Red Banks, Mississippi location subjected a female sales associate to unwanted sexual laced comments, text messages, and gestures. Although other female sales associates had previously complained about the same manager, the... Read More →

NFL Announces Official Change in National Anthem Policy The NFL owners recently announced the adoption of a new national anthem policy that prohibits players and staff from kneeling. The 32 NFL teams are now able to fine players and personnel who refuse to stand during the anthem. The policy clearly states that all “shall stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem”. To put it simply, the NFL now has the legal power to fine any personnel associated with any franchise no matter if on the field or sidelines, who refused to stand during the national anthem. The NFL can fine a team if... Read More →

Disability Discrimination A disability can make daily activities, let alone finding a job, difficult if not impossible. How well do you know your employment rights? After violating those of a job applicant in South Dakota, this company is paying $45,000 to settle.     M.G. Oil M.G. Oil, a South Dakota Company affiliated with Happy Jack’s Casino, will pay $45,000 to settle a disability discrimination case filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The company was charged in 2016 of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by withdrawing an... Read More →

Tips to Help Speed Up Your Immigration Process Let’s face it: the citizenship process can take a while. However you received your green card, chances are that you will need to wait 3-5 years before becoming eligible to apply for American citizenship. Here are some important tips to ensure a smooth and quicker immigration process. Submit your complete application to USCIS and quickly do the necessarily fingerprinting and testing. If your immigration process is delayed, it may save you time to contact an immigration lawyer instead of waiting and fighting with USCIS customer support.... Read More →

Uber and its terms of service have come under fire during a recent CNN investigation. The rideshare company stated Tuesday that it will no longer force arbitration on passengers who allege that they have been sexually assaulted or harassed by drivers, something Uber says was previously required under its terms of service. As an alternative, Uber will now allow victims of sexual violence, including riders, employees, and drivers, to choose the venue in which they choose in order to pursue redress of their sexual harassment or assault claims, whether it be arbitration, mediation or in open... Read More →

When there is a trucking accident involving a semi-truck or tractor-trailer the end result is never a good thing.  The injuries and the loss of life for those involved in these trucking accidents are horrific but there is one type of crash that remains to be the most dangerous and potentially fatal, the side underride crash. These side underride crashes could be prevented with simply installed devices called side guards yet very few trucks in the United States have installed them. Why? Why are lawmakers and safety advocates not pushing to make these guards required thus preventing side... Read More →

In the last few years, ridesharing companies have brought innovation and change to the way that we get from here to there.  In the near future companies like Tesla may make it so A.I. will be driving us from point A to B, but for now, we have to rely on our fellow humans to do the driving, and with humans behind the wheel, you can count on there being Uber accidents and Lyft accidents. Whether you are a paying customer in an Uber or Lyft vehicle, an actual driver operating an Uber or Lyft, or even a pedestrian that has been struck by an Uber or Lfyt driver, you may be entitled t... Read More →

Dram Shop Rule Results in Jury Awarding $6.2 Million How many times have you been out for dinner or drinks and you notice that someone in the restaurant or bar has had too much alcohol? Think for a moment if that person were to leave and cause a motor vehicle accident that severely injures someone or even kills. Who is responsible? The Bartender? The restaurant? Let’s take a look at the idea of the “Dram Shop Rule”. Dram Shop Rule – n. a statute (Dram Shop Act) or case law in 38 states which makes a business which sells alcoholic drinks or a host who serves liquor... Read More →

A beautiful spring afternoon turns tragic for 16-year-old Kyle Plush when he was crushed inside his parent Honda Odyssey. Plush, a sophomore at Seven Hills School in Madisonville, Ohio was found by his father at 9:00 p.m. on April 10th. Investigators of Plush’s death noted that there were many moving parts to the circumstances leading to the death of Push, a series of events that went perfectly wrong. Hamilton County Coroner stated that Plush died of asphyxiation due to chest compression after the teen was pinned under a folding seat inside the Plush family’s Honda Odessey... Read More →

Can I Seal My Oklahoma Records? A young man called and expressed a concern he had about his Oklahoma arrest record and the possibility it could and would stop him from getting a new higher paying job that he had applied for. “Can you erase my record?”  he asked. “Do criminal records expire after a certain amount of time? Is there a statute of limitations or something?” The young man was excited to find out that yes, we could help him with his record in Oklahoma. The process is called expungement. If you have your Oklahoma record expunged, employers, landlords, and... Read More →

Raleigh, N. C. – PruittHealth – Raleigh, a Georgia corporation doing business as a nursing and rehabilitation center in Raleigh, violated federal law when it refused to accommodate the pregnancy-related work restriction of a certified nursing assistant and forced her to resign, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charged in a recently filed lawsuit. In the EEOC’s latest challenge, PruittHealth is accused of offering light duty or job modifications to injured CNA’s (Certified Nursing Assistant) but not to a pregnant worker limited to lifting 20 pounds. In... Read More →

Macy’s to Pay $75,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit CHICAGO – Macy’s will pay a former long-term employee the sum of $75,000 in order to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC, Letisha Moore had been working for Macy’s for nearly eight years but had to miss one day due to an asthma-related emergency.  Moore was treated in an emergency room and proceeded to call into work, then followed-up by providing Macy’s and her supervisor with proof of her ER visit.... Read More →

An issue that has been at the forefront of the national conversation is that of the LGBTQ community and all of the confusion that surrounds it. If asked, a lot of Oklahoman’s would tell you that this issue does not impact their state or the people in it when compared to people in California for instance. These people holding this belief would be wrong. The LGBTQ community is just as prevalent in Oklahoma as it is in California. People that are members of this community are being discriminated against and they are standing up and fighting for their rights under the law. In December... Read More →

Prisoners armed themselves with homemade knives during the early morning hours Monday and rioted for more than seven hours inside the Lee Correctional Institution located in Columbia, South Carolina. The riot left 17 inmates seriously injured and seven inmates dead. One of the inmates at Lee reported to the Associated Press that there were bodies “literally stacked on top of each other.” The madness and violence raged on for over seven hours as prisoners were uninterrupted until 3 a. m. Monday morning. Prison officials did not immediately disclose what specifically sparked the... Read More →

Cyclist Who Flipped Off Trump Sues Former Employer I am sure that we all remember the photo that was taken of a woman flipping the bird to POTUS Trump’s motorcade in Virginia. The photo went viral and as a result, the Virginia woman was forced to resign from her job over the incident. Now that bird flipping Virginia woman is taking her former employer to court and suing them on the grounds that they violated her right to free speech. Violating Social Media Policy At no point was it apparent that the woman in the photo was, in fact, Juli Briskman, but Juli did post the photo to both... Read More →

Florida Teen Asked To Put Band-Aids on Her Nipples After Not Wearing a Bra to School Bradenton, Florida – Last Monday started out like so many others for 17-year-old Florida native Lizzy Martinez. Out of bed, throw on some clothes, down a quick breakfast then out the door for school. Lizzy had decided on a long-sleeve Calvin Klein shirt and chose not to wear a bra underneath. Halfway through her fifth-period class, the administration at Braden River High School pulled Martinez from class and escorted her to the dean’s office. Lizzy was shocked when the staff of River High... Read More →

Rhonda Martin, 55 was vacationing in Sea Island City, N.J., and was riding her bicycle on the shoulder of a road. As she entered an intersection, city employee Jeffery Jones, who was driving a pickup truck for the city and heading in the same direction, began turning right into the intersection. The city truck struck Martin, knocking her to the pavement. The truck ran over her right nondominant arm. Martin was taken to the hospital emergency room, where doctors diagnosed an elbow fracture and performed a closed reduction. She also underwent a skin-graft procedure to close the wound. After... Read More →

EEOC Claims Sexual Harassment for Teen Workers Birmingham, Alabama – Beaver’s Inc. doing business as several Arby’s franchises in the south, violated federal law when it subjected several teenaged female employees at an Atmore, Alabama Arby’s to sexual harassment at its location, the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit  filed on March 30, 2018. According to the lawsuit filed by the EEOC, in May of 2016, Arby’s hired a team leader trainee with a known history of sexual harassment who repeatedly pressured young female... Read More →

Harris Lowry Manton LLP, Jeffrey R. Harris and associate Yvonne S. Godfrey, along with Owen C. Murphy of Owen Murphy, P.C. and W. Andrew Bowen of Bowen Painter, LLC – recently set a record with an $18 million verdict from a Chatham County jury on behalf of their client, Joan Simmons. “The jury in this case recognized that Joan Simmons was tragically, catastrophically injured and that she will be a paraplegic the rest of her life as a result of medical malpractice,” said Jeffrey R. Harris of Harris Lowry Manton LLP. “The jury’s verdict clearly reflected that understanding.” In 2014,... Read More →

The U.S. Census Bureau announced last week that the 2020 census will ask every American household to record which members of their family are U.S. citizens. Just a few hours after making the announcement, the Beaurea was facing a lawsuit over the decision. A group of 14 states, led by California, are trying to force the Federal Government to back down and leave the citizenship question off the census when it goes out to the American households two years from now. According to the Government, it’s reason for asking the citizenship question is a simpler one: Asking about citizenship... Read More →

Tired Trucker Causes Fatal Accident Atinderpal “Gavan” Singh, a commercial truck drive, was driving his semi-truck eastbound on I-80 in Nebraska. Also eastbound on I-80 that day was Freddie Galloway, a trucker for Ecklund Logistics Inc., Galloway was some distance ahead of Singh. Late summer in Nebraska meant grass fires, and the median was burning on the highway median. Local fire and police departments were on scene and were trying to both contain the fire and control traffic. Galloway heard about the fire on his CB radio while still several miles away and proceeded to slow his truck to... Read More →

Linda Brown 1942-2018 Linda Brown was just a schoolgirl when she found herself at the center of the landmark the United States Supreme Court case, that rejected the racial segregation in American schools died in Topeka, Kansas Sunday afternoon at the age of 76. The 1954 U.S. Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education, involved several families, all trying to dismantle decades of federal education laws that condoned segregated schools for black and white students. But it began with Brown’s father Oliver, who tried to enroll her at the Sumner School, an all-white elementary... Read More →

What Can a Tulsa Social Security Lawyer Do For Me? For those who do not know, the Social Security disability process can be exhausting and overwhelming. While hiring a Tulsa Social Security lawyer is not required when trying to get Social Security disability benefits, you may find that doing so will be very beneficial. A Tulsa Social Security lawyer will have the necessary experience needed when dealing with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and, as a result, making the process of navigating the SSA’s entire disability process much more manageable for you and your loved ones.... Read More →

Madison, Wisconsin – The state agreed this past Tuesday to pay $18.9 million to a former teen who was severely brain damaged after a failed suicide attempt at the state’s Copper Lake juvenile prison. Sydni Briggs of Janesville Wisconsin was just sixteen when she was held at  Copper Lake for breaking into a liquor store and stealing several bottles of liquor. Sydni turned on a call light that staff members were supposed to respond to immediately on November 9th, 2015. Guards could see into Brigg’s room from a video camera, but no one responded to the “call... Read More →

Signature Industrial Services Sued By EEOC For Disability Discrimination  Signature Industrial Services, LLC (SIS) unlawfully fired three of their labor team, all of whom were brothers, because of a blood disorder that is prevalent in their family’s history, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a recent lawsuit. According to the suit filed by the EEOC, Drew West and Anthony West had been working at the Exxon/Mobile refinery in Beaumont Texas when SIS took over a contract to perform mechanical services at the plant. Drew and Anthony West was then hired... Read More →

Plastipak Packing Will Pay $90,000 To Settle EEOC Retaliation Suit Baltimore- The EEOC has announced that Plastipak Packaging Inc. will pay $90,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to resolve a federal retaliatory discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).  The EEOC  charged that Plastipak fired a female employee, who had been placed by a temporary employment agency because she complained that one of its employees had sexually harassed her. Rather than investigating her complaint, The EEOC said the Plastipak terminated her assignment. Conduct... Read More →

In California, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced a lawsuit Feb. 13 against Maurizio’s Trattoria Italiana LLC, a San Diego restaurant, for allegations of firing a female employee because of her pregnancy. The EEOC Charges in their lawsuit that Maurizio’s Trattoria Italiana, LLC, a fine-dining Italian restaurant in Encinitas near San Diego, violated federal law when it discriminated and fired a female employee after learning of her pregnancy. According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, an employee who worked at Maurizio’s Trattoria Italiana notified the owner of her... Read More →

Silverado Care Center To Pay $80K To Settle EEOC Pregnancy Discrimination Suit Silverado Oak Village located in Menomonee Falls has agreed to pay the sum of $80,000 to a former employee that claimed in a lawsuit that she was unlawfully discriminated against when she was fired during her pregnancy. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court of Milwaukee in August, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claimed that the California-based company had violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act when it apparently fired Shaquena Burton, a caregiver at the assisted living facility in June of... Read More →

The operator of a Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) franchise located in Dublin, Georgia has settled a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia. The suit was filed in July of 2017 by the EEOC on behalf of the former manager, Cynthia Dunson, who alleged that the owner along with Hester Foods INC. (parent company of KFC) violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when they fired her in the summer of 2015 after finding out she was prescribed and taking medication for... Read More →

Volvo To Pay $70,000 To Settle Disability Discrimination Suit In Baltimore, Maryland, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that Volvo Group North America, LLC, will pay $70,000 as well as furnish significant equitable relief to settle a federal disability case. According to the suit filed by the EEOC, Volvo Group North America LLC, made a conditional job offer to a qualified applicant- who also happened to be a recovering drug addict that was enrolled in a supervised medication-assisted treatment program- for a position as a laborer at it’s Hagerstown,... Read More →

Busse Combat Knife Company Sued by EEOC For Disability Discrimination Busse Combat Knife Company, located in Wauseon, Ohio violated federal law by discharging one of their employees because of his disability, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit that was filed on Monday, January 22, 2018. The EEOC alleges in its lawsuit that Grant Boss, a CNC operator employed by the company, suffered an anxiety attack and left work due to said attack in June of 2016. When Busse Company learned that their employee Mr. Boss suffered from a generalized anxiety disorder,... Read More →

Iron-Workers are Awarded Millions Carl Perkins, 53,  and Alex Sackey-El, 52,  were working as they always do in Houston, Texas. The ironworkers were part of a crew that was tasked with the removal and installation of a large glass window at a local Houston Apple store. As the two workers prepared to guide the glass while they stood in a scissor lift that was approximately 25 feet above the ground, a Maxim Crane Works L.P. operator attempted to remove the panel of glass. While removing the glass load, which at this point had become stuck, the crane operator lost control of the glass panel... Read More →

DePuy Attune Knee Replacement Each year there is approximately 600,000 knee replacement performed in the United States alone. Unfortunately, thousands of knee replacement lawsuits alleging injuries from defective knee replacements are also filed across the country. Total knee replacements for a number of years has been one of the most successful and life-enhancing surgical procedures available, but for some, the process is not at all what they expected or signed up for. There are thousands of knee replacement lawsuits filed each year that allege injuries from defective knee replacements.... Read More →

Cipro (Ciprofloxacin) Lawsuits *Please note that in order to file a lawsuit against Bayer AG and their product Cipro, you or your loved ones must have been prescribed as well as taken the name brand form of the drug. If you took the generic form of the drug Cipro, unfortunately, you will not qualify.*    The antibiotic medication Cipro (ciprofloxacin) has been linked to a severe form of nerve damage called peripheral neuropathy, tendon ruptures, and aortic aneurysm. Fluoroquinolones are the most widely used antibiotics. About 33 million Americans take the extremely strong medicine to kill... Read More →

Taxotere Hair Loss Lawsuits For cancer patients, tempory hair loss is nothing new, neither is the vomiting and nausea, weakness, diarrhea, body aches and pains and a myriad of other side effects, all that can stem from chemotherapy. One of the first visible signs indicating that someone might be going through cancer treatment is the hair loss that is so often reported, however, hair usually returns or regenerates after the treatments have ended. But for many women who were diagnosed with breast cancer, prescribed and took the chemotherapy drug Taxotere (generic name Docetaxel), the... Read More →

  Noemi Bernal v. J.J. Little & Associates It is one thing when an employer refuses to pay overtime to an employee, it is another when that employer is a law firm the practices employment law. Such is the case of Los Angeles resident Noemi Bernal. Noemi Bernal was awarded $91,000, plus $30,000 in interest, against J.J. Little & Associates on her wage claims. With the additional attorney’s fees award, it was more than adding insult to injury. Bernal’s wanted and asked for $830,000 in fees but was declined by Judge Barbara Scheper. The judge stated that some of the... Read More →

Patients from across the nation are reporting serious side effects caused by the blood-thinning drug Xarelto (Rivaroxaban). Complications such as stroke, brain hemorrhage, rectal bleeding, wound complications following total hip or knee arthroplasty and even death are being reported. There are nearly 20,000 lawsuits pending in state and federal courts: more than 18,560 have been consolidated under a federal multi-district in Louisiana; another 1,300 are pending in Philadelphia’s Complex Litigation Center. Three federal trials ended in victories for the drug-makers. The first trial in the... Read More →

If you have been involved in an accident with another person then you should expect to be dealing with insurance adjusters. Not just one, but two. There will be an adjuster representing your insurance company and there will be a separate adjuster for the other person involved in the accident assuming that he or she has insurance. What does an insurance adjuster do? After you file your car insurance claim, you will need to work with an insurance adjuster who will research your accident, study your policy, and decide how much money you are entitled to. The best way to approach the car... Read More →

The food giant Tyson Foods recently went to battle with one of its own employees after an accident on the job that was caused due to the companies failure to “ensure safe lifting procedures” for its employees. Asa Ferrell worked for Tyson Foods where one of the duties of his job included the sorting of boxes of meat that were stacked on pallets. One day, Asa was lifting packages weighing up to 110 pounds, all of a sudden Asa began to experience severe pain in his lower back. Mr. Ferrell, age 55, was later diagnosed with herniated disks at L3-5. Epidural injections followed as... Read More →

Attorney Q & A with Eric Brown Today we received a question via our website pertaining to a Parent PLUS student loan. Attorney Eric Brown took the time to answer the question asked. “My child signed my name to a Parent PLUS Loan and I thought I was just a co-signer of “her” loan. Do I have to pay it?” Jones Brown Law:  “I am a widow and have been since the children were young. My husband died of a massive heart attack due to PSTD caused by surviving the WTC 9/11 attacks. I have had to work 4 jobs and did the very best I could. When I sent my daughter away... Read More →

Social Security Disability Q&A With Attorney Eric Brown Today we received a question via our website pertaining to Social Security Disability. Attorney Eric Brown took the time to answer the question asked. “Why is the Social Security Administration changing my son’s status and linking it to my status?” My son is very disabled. He has received SSI for many years and his medications run well over $1000.00 a month. My son lives at home and I am his Representative Payee. The social security people have recently decided that I am disabled. Now they are making me apply... Read More →

Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc. (Con Ed), the utility giant that provides all electrical and gas service for the resident and business owners of New York City and Westchester County, will resolve a disability discrimination suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to the tune of $800,000 and other relief the federal agency announced today. The EEOC’s complaint reads that Con Ed doctors refused to medically approve qualified applicants to begin employment because of disabilities, even though the applicant were able to perform the designated... Read More →

Star of television and the silver screen Chuck Norris and his wife Gena are suing seven pharmaceutical and medical diagnostic companies along with their subsidiaries for failing to warn Gena or her healthcare providers of the risk of gadolinium. Gadolinium Deposition Disease (GDD) occurs in patients that have received injections containing gadolinium-based contrast agents that assist medical professionals in reviewing MRI readings. Some patients that have received the gadolinium have reportedly developed persistent symptoms like headaches, bone and joint pain and clouded mental activity.... Read More →

Utah Nurse Reaches $500,000 Settlement For Her Detainment After Blocking Cop From Drawing Blood From Unconscious Patient The Jones Brown Team recently reported on a story that came out of Salt Lake City Utah, where a University Hospital nurse Alex Wubbles was handcuffed and detained by a Salt Lake City police Detective after she barred him from drawing blood from an unconscious patient. The hospital security camera footage and body cam video from the Salt Lake City Detective that showed Wubbles detainment went viral, and the outrage from across the nation was immediately evident.  Karra... Read More →

Changes in Oklahoma DUI Laws Now in Effect Back in June of 2017, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed State Bill 643, amending the DUI laws in the State of Oklahoma. The changes in the bill referred to as the “Impaired Driving Elimination Act 2” went into effect on November 1, 2017. There are many small changes to the Oklahoma DUI Law contained within the Act, but there are two changes of some significance that you should be made aware of. Requirement of Interlock Devices/ Creation  of the Department of Public Safety Impaired Driver Accountability Program  Criminalization of... Read More →

How Can I File A Lawsuit Against Social Security? Social Security Corner Q & A: We received the following question via our website, Jonesbrownlaw.com/contact-us/ from Wendy of Bakersfield Ca.: “Hi. my name is Wendy and back in 2013 I applied for social security disability. At that time I was under the care of an orthopedic doctor that filled out a “Residual Function Capacity” form for me, and as far as I know the Social Security Administration recieved my medical records from the hospital and clinic that I stayed in. At that time, and in that place, my doctor stated... Read More →

Interior Vena Cava Filter Lawsuits Design problems of certain inferior vena cava (IVC) filters have caused many individuals all throughout the nation to suffer severe complications and injuries when the small medical devices fractured or broke inside the body. Inferior Vena Cava (IVC) filters, or blood clot filters, are small devices designed to catch blood clots that may break free inside the deep veins of the body and travel toward the lungs. The spider-like filters are implanted in patients who are at risk for a pulmonary embolism, when they are unable to take anticoagulants or when... Read More →

Do You Meet The Social Security Administration’s Definition of Being Disabled? A disability can affect a person in many different ways. Quality of life, the ability to earn a living, families well being and financial security just to name a few. If you are indeed disabled and you are unable to work then you may be eligible for benefits through the Social Security Administration. Although you believe that you have a valid and legitimate claim to qualify for benefits, the SSA may not agree. If you are looking to secure this type of financial support through the SSA, it might be... Read More →

We are all aware of the problem that poses a threat in schools around the nation, the bullying of children. Teasing, name-calling, leaving kids out on purpose, attacking them verbally and physically and even electronically through texts, email and social media. This bullying can leave its victims feeling different, powerless, unpopular, alone and desperate. These victims tend to have a hard time standing up for themselves and often have problems with and in school. They feel sad, nervous and lonely and start to bully kids that are weaker than they are. Bullying is never ok. Those who... Read More →