Lawyers get around Minnesota’s seatbelt ‘gag rule’
Minneapolis attorneys James Schwebeland Bob Schmitz recently settled a personal injury lawsuit involving the misuse of a seatbelt for $3 million. The case involved a family that lives in Mondovi, Wis., who was traveling in Minnesota. The father had buckled his four children into the back seat of a Ford F150 pick-up truck provided by…
Lawyers find bike-accident cases can be a bumpy road
By the Numbers: 5,000 Minnesotans per year are hurt in bike accidents 500 of those injuries are from collisions with motor vehicles Source: Minnesota Department of Health Most everyone who’s spent much time on a bicycle knows the feeling of dread that comes with seeing a car come your way — and realizing the driver…
Three Million Dollar Recovery for Misuse of Child Seatbelt Restraints
On April 14, 2005 the plaintiffs departed their home in Wisconsin en route to Red Wing, Minnesota with the intention of purchasing all terrain vehicles. The plaintiff was driving a Ford F150 pick-up truck provided by his employer, BASF Corporation. His four minor children were all passengers in the rear seat of this vehicle. The…
Old Photographs Show Bent Plates on Bridge
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Old photographs of the Interstate 35W bridge show that two steel connecting plates were visibly bent as early as 2003 — four years before the span collapsed into the Mississippi River, killing 13 people. Minnesota Department of Transportation officials declined to say when the state first knew about the bending. Two photographs,…
Pic Show Bending Plates Years Before Collapse
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) ― Old photos of the Interstate 35W bridge show that two steel connecting plates were slightly bent as early as 2003 — four years before the span collapsed into the Mississippi River, killing 13 people. Now, attorneys representing victims of the collapse are questioning when state transportation officials knew of the deformations and…
Update on 35W Bridge Investigation Comes Today
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will offer an update on its investigation into the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis last summer, which killed 13 people. NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker will speak today at a 12:30 news conference. However, a final conclusion on what caused the bridge to fall is not…
State Establishes Fund for Bridge Collapse Injured and Survivors
The fund will pay 85% of gross income to a maximum of $250.00 per week through the period of disability up to $10,000.00 per claimant. We assume this also applies to replacement wage loss of a decedent. We are advised by Allied that this applies after your no-fault coverage has been exhausted. These payments are…
35W State Fund for Bridge Collapse Injured and Survivors Adjusted
We previously advised you about the fund set up by the State for the bridge collapse injured and survivors. The rules governing this fund have just been changed. The fund will now pay 85% of gross income through the period of disability up to $10,000.00 per claimant. We assume this also applies to replacement wage…
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Seven Schwebel Goetz & Sieben Attorneys Listed in 2008 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America
Minneapolis (December 2007) – Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben, P.A. announced today that seven attorneys have been listed in the 2008 edition of ‘The Best Lawyers in America’. “This prestigious recognition serves as a testament to the talent of Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben attorneys, their commitment to advancing the legal profession and more importantly, their constant…
MnDOT Parsimonious with Bridge-Collapse Info
In the three months since the Interstate 35W bridge collapse, the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s increasingly tight control on information has drawn the ire of lawyers for victims, legislators, contractors, union officials and a Ramsey County judge. While the agency had made public thousands of pages of material in response to an unprecedented number of…
Law Firm Sues MnDOT for Access to Bridge Info
A law firm representing victims of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse has sued the Minnesota Department of Transportation, claiming the agency is withholding key information and giving it only to a company hired by the state to investigate the tragedy. The lawsuit focuses on MnDOT’s relationship with Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, a Chicago firm that…
A Law Firm Sues Mn/DOT to Force Compliance with Minnesota Government Data Practices Act
Today the law firm of Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben representing several families of persons who died in the I35 bridge collapse, and numerous injured victims, filed a lawsuit against Mn/DOT in an attempt to force it to release documents relating to the I35 bridge collapse. Attorney Jim Schwebel stated that while Mn/DOT has made…
Firm Sues Over Bridge Collapse Access
MINNEAPOLIS – A law firm filed a freedom of information lawsuit against the Minnesota Department of Transportation on Thursday, seeking access to documents from an engineering firm the state hired to study the disaster. Attorney Jim Schwebel, whose firm Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben represents some of those injured in the Aug. 1 collapse and the…
Bridge Victims’ Lawyers Sue State
Victims of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse sued the Minnesota Department of Transportation on Thursday for its failure to turn over public information since the bridge fell Aug. 1. Filed in Hennepin County District Court, the suit seeks access to all records, studies, inspections, contracts and visual materials relating to the bridge and its collapse….
Lawyers Seek Cause in Preparing for Lawsuits
State and federal officials aren’t the only ones investigating the Interstate 35W bridge collapse. From their downtown Minneapolis offices, two major law firms have initiated far-reaching efforts to find a cause and assign blame for the Aug. 1 disaster. They are meticulously assembling photos, documents, experts and witnesses in preparation for the next battleground: the…
Law Firm Allowed Limited Access by State to Bridge Collapse Site
The Minneapolis law firm of Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben represents the families of several who were killed in the 35W Bridge Collapse, as well as many of the injured survivors. As a result of negotiations with the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office and Minnesota Department of Transportation, five bridge experts employed by the law firm were…
Law Firm for Some 35W Victims Allowed into Site
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A law firm representing some victims of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse site said Friday its investigators had been granted access to the site. A federal judge in mid-August had rejected a request by Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben to be allowed on site. At the time, a recovery operation was ongoing for…
Legal Team is Given Access to Bridge Site
Bridge experts hired by a Minneapolis law firm were granted access Thursday to limited portions of the collapsed Interstate 35W bridge. On Thursday morning, a team of internationally recognized experts whose previous projects include the World Trade Center Towers, the Tropicana Hotel & Casino parking ramp and other structural collapses, examined previously restricted portions of…
Nick Coleman: Protecting Dignity? It’s Really Dodging Responsibility
After the Twin Towers were destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001, and as the recovery of the victims stretched from days and weeks into months, New York City built four platforms to allow the public to see the site. The platforms, each of which could hold up to 400 people, were open for five months, and…
Law Firm Denied Petition For Access To Bridge Site
Minneapolis A law firm that asked a federal court to grant its experts immediate access to the Interstate 35W bridge collapse site so they can begin their own investigation into what could lead to wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits has been denied that access by a federal judge. The petition was filed in U.S….
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