The Lawyer Handling the STOP Plaintiff's Case at SFKK

[The Interpreter]

Cited without comment:

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.d...EWS01/712300510

....Yet before he was hired to handle what may be his most sensational case -- representing the family of Kaitlyn Lasitter, the 13-year-old whose legs were severed on a ride at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom -- Franklin's name was not widely known to the public.....

[WooferBearATL]

He's been elected to the Inner Circle of Advocates, an elite bastion of the nation's top 100 plaintiff's lawyers -- and he's got the Ferrari, Maserati, yacht, condos and mansions to prove his success.

I think their logo is a man in a suit, holding a brief case and chasing an ambulance.

[Browntggrr]

Ambulance chaser or not, I would not think that you would hire an attorney like this unless the other side is fighting the accusations, SF and their insurer in this case.

[WooferBearATL]

Ambulance chaser or not, I would not think that you would hire an attorney like this unless the other side is fighting the accusations, SF and their insurer in this case.

Think Again.

The park and the insurance company are of course attempting to limit whatever the amount of any award would be. What are they supposed to say? Here take ever dime and we'll just go out of business?

[The Interpreter]

In a case like this one, they could have scored a great deal of goodwill and done the right thing by at the very least paying the medical bills. It is clear that someone here other than the plaintiff is responsible for her injuries. Fighting every dime makes them look JUST AS BAD, if not worse, than the so called money grubbing trial lawyers.

[WooferBearATL]

In a case like this one, they could have scored a great deal of goodwill and done the right thing by at the very least paying the medical bills. It is clear that someone here other than the plaintiff is responsible for her injuries. Fighting every dime makes them look JUST AS BAD, if not worse, than the so called money grubbing trial lawyers.

I've handled many claims.

I can only remember one situation that meds were paid up front. Most Plaintiff Council does not want an insurer to pay meds directly as it takes away their ability to negotiate the meds with the medical providers. Most attorney's will negotiate medical billing to 75% of what the original bills are. That puts more money in the pockets.

I have many friends that work commercial and industrial claims and I can think of no time that they may have had an incident that paid claims up front.

The simple fact is that payment is made upon resolution of the loss.

It's no surprise to anyone involved in the process.

The simple fact is that there was no way that Six Flags or their insurer would be on the hook for reasonable medical billing.

[Browntggrr]

Ambulance chaser or not, I would not think that you would hire an attorney like this unless the other side is fighting the accusations, SF and their insurer in this case.

Think Again.

The park and the insurance company are of course attempting to limit whatever the amount of any award would be. What are they supposed to say? Here take ever dime and we'll just go out of business?

Obviously giving away every dime would be plain stupid.

As of right now, this has nothing to do with awards, just take care of the families current medical bills. And since there was at least one benefit to help the family out, it is quite obvious what SF intentions are. Why would there have to be any negotiations when it comes down to her medical care? If she recieved treatment, the provider deserves to be paid.

Now combine that with the cable inspection fiasco, the writing is on the wall. I really would not feel this way if SF would just have agreed to have anyone inspect the cable. What are they trying to hide?

[WooferBearATL]

Obviously giving away every dime would be plain stupid.

As of right now, this has nothing to do with awards, just take care of the families current medical bills. And since there was at least one benefit to help the family out, it is quite obvious what SF intentions are. Why would there have to be any negotiations when it comes down to her medical care? If she recieved treatment, the provider deserves to be paid.

Now combine that with the cable inspection fiasco, the writing is on the wall. I really would not feel this way if SF would just have agreed to have anyone inspect the cable. What are they trying to hide?

That's just the way that it's done. There is so much that people do not realize is done looking from the outside in. If an attorney can not negotiate the meds down to 80% of what the bills are, they simply should not be practicing law.

The medical providers know and understand this. I've seen some medical providers even accept 50% of what the original bill is. Yes, all things that people do not know go on.

[The Interpreter]

All things that MOST people don't know go on. Insurers do the same thing. About the only people who pay full price in the medical field are the uninsured, and that's when THEY pay at all...which is why the "medical provider's suggested retail price" (known in the trade as usual, customary and reasonable) is a polite fiction, at best...

[WooferBearATL]

All things that MOST people don't know go on. Insurers do the same thing. About the only people who pay full price in the medical field are the uninsured, and that's when THEY pay at all...which is why the "medical provider's suggested retail price" (known in the trade as usual, customary and reasonable) is a polite fiction, at best...

Most insurers use vendors such as Corvel or Mitchell to discount medical bills to what is "standard and reasonable." That gives a base and you can usually negotiate down beyond that.

I tell you when I deal with someone that is not represented, I usually settle much higher than if someone is represented. I think that there are clear situations that someone should be represented (such as this one) as the situations and dealings are far more complicated than your average person is able to handle. In fact, it makes it much easier for all involved. But minor type injuries, the winner in the situation generally is the attorney involved.

[Browntggrr]

Yeah, I'll admit that I have no clue as to the ins and outs of insurance companies and medical costs.

But it just seems that for a corporation like SF, they had an opportunity to handle this delicate case in a much better manner than they have. It is, and has been quite obvious that this girl did nothing to cause this accident. At which point, the SF attorney should have already been negotiating a price that is to be paid for her medical costs and not let the family stress out about the costs.

Instead of appearing to have sympathy for the victim, they come off as a used car salesman selling a little old lady a lemon.

[The Interpreter]

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. In most cases, if you are insured, your insurer, and not you, will provide the defense and can turn down settlements so long as they are coming out of their pockets. In most cases, they cannot settle without your agreement, but you can't settle without theirs, either. Now, should you choose to pay out of your own pocket, you can settle when your insurance company would choose not to. On the other hand, should you want to settle, the insurance company says no, and any final verdict is beyond the policy limits, in most cases it is the insurance company that will be on the hook for the total amount, as this is called failure to settle in bad faith...

[WooferBearATL]

Yeah, I'll admit that I have no clue as to the ins and outs of insurance companies and medical costs.

But it just seems that for a corporation like SF, they had an opportunity to handle this delicate case in a much better manner than they have. It is, and has been quite obvious that this girl did nothing to cause this accident. At which point, the SF attorney should have already been negotiating a price that is to be paid for her medical costs and not let the family stress out about the costs.

Instead of appearing to have sympathy for the victim, they come off as a used car salesman selling a little old lady a lemon.

That is actually the responsibility of Plaintiff council. It's likely that SF does not have a complete record of the medical costs. That would not always be produced until Discovery takes place. As I mentioned, the Plaintiff council will negotiate the bills after a settlement is reached. The medical providers will never know what the actual settlement/award will be. To make that evident would put the person negotiating the bills at a disadvantage. Funny story; A couple weeks ago I was dealing with an attorney on a UM Claim. He went Ape S*it as we made payments for medical billing under the medpay portion of the policy. He was complaining to the Medpay rep that we did not even allow him an opportunity to negotiate the bills. Now mind you, I can sympathize with the attorney involved as it affects his bottom line - but it certainly did not take into consideration that the insured was being hounded by medical providers.