Maryland Injury Lawyers Blog

If you or someone you love has been seriously injured or killed in a Toyota vehicle in the past 5 years, then the lawyers at Goldberg, Finnegan & Mester are interested in talking to you about whether it is possible the injury or death was due to the accelerator getting stuck on the floor mat. We are investigating claims relating to a problem in which the accelerator pedal in certain Toyota vehicles and Lexus vehicles becomes entrapped in the floor mat causing a sudden acceleration. Toyota has recalled 9 million vehicles worldwide as a result of this problem. The vehicles that Toyota admits are affected by the problem are the following: Toyota Camry 2007-2010, Toyota Avalon 25-2010, Toyota Prius 2004-2009, Toyota Tacoma 2005-2010 modelsToyota Tundra 2007-2010, Lexus ES 350 2007-2010, Lexus IS 250 2006-2010, and Lecus IS 350 2006-2010 model. Toyota has stopped selling the affected vehicles, but there are thousands of the vehicles still on the road. The customer service number that Toyota has provided is 800-331-4331. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration alerted Toyota and Lexus owners about the issue on September 29, 2009 in a press release, and recommended that the floor mat be removed from the Toyota and Lexus vehicles. Our Maryland car accident lawyers and Virginia car accident lawyers are investigating product liability claims against Toyota, Lexus and the manufacturer of the faulty gas pedal and floor mats (CTS). Claims will include negligence, strict liability, breach of warranty, wrongful death, and survival. If you are involved in a car accident and you suspect that it is due to sudden acceleration (or any product defect for that matter), it is crucial that the vehicle and its components (floor mat, accelerator, etc.) be preserved. Without this evidence it can be difficult or impossible to prove the case.

Goldberg Finnegan & Mester Advice to Consumers: If you own a Toyota or Lexus vehicle you may want remove the driver side floor mat.

The lawyers at Goldberg, Finnegan & Mester, LLC are investigating potential lawsuits relating to individuals who received a heart stent at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Towson, Maryland. Many of the patients who received heart stents at St. Joseph's Hospital may not have actually needed them. Starting in December, 2009 a number of patients received letters about their cardiac catheterization procedures in which they received heart stents. The biggest concern is over surgeries performed by Dr. Mark Midei. The letters sent to patients reportedly indicate that post surgical clinical review procedures revealed that the results of the cath tests were in fact different than indicated on the original heart catheterization report. Some of these patients may have received unnecessary stents in their heart valves, and thus have been subjected to substantial health risks. The doctor who is believed to have performed the unnecessary procedures is Dr. Mark Midei. He was a prominent heart surgeon who has recently stopped practicing medicine and has lost his privileges at St. Joseph's hospital. What transpired is that some patients were told that they had blockage of 80-95% when in fact they only had a very small amount of blockage--even as low as 10%. Medical Guidelines reveal that in order for a stent procedure to be necessary, there should be blockage of at least 70%. Once a stent procedure is performed on a cardiac patient, patients face long term risks including the risk of blood clots in the stent (which can cause a heart attack), and/or other life threatening injuries. To reduce the risk of clotting in stent patients, many are prescribed a blood thinner such as Plavix (expensive--and has its own risks/side effects). Our legal team believes that anyone who had an unnecessary cardiac stent procedure performed at St. Josephs has potential legal claims against Dr. Midei, St. Josephs, and possibly others. Claims would include medical negligence, battery, violation of Maryland's Consumer Protection Act, and possibly even fraud. Whereas punitive damages are not available in most negligence cases in Maryland, because the cases involving unnecessary stent procedures at St. Josephs involved intentional conduct and was possibly even deceptive and deceiptful, it is quite possible that punitive damages will be available as well. In December 2005 a Baltimore Jury returned a $5 Million dollar verdict against Dr. Mark G. Midei and Midatlantic Cardiovascular Association. The jury found that the doctor improperly steered a patient to a surgeon employed by the practice rather than to his own surgeon who belonged to a rival group. After the verdict, it is reported that Dr. Midei said "I've done close to 30,000 procedures on patients and have never been sued until now." If you or someone you love had a cardiac stent procedure performed at St. Josephs Hospital and/or done by Dr. Midei, call us at 301-589-2999 so that we can evaluate your claim.