Los Angeles Times (2/6, Cart) reports that the US Consumer Product Safety Commission "launched an investigation Thursday into this week's accidental death of an Orange County child caught in a washing machine." A spokesperson for the agency said that "investigators will examine the front-loading washer to determine if the design poses a safety risk." The machine in question, "a Kenmore 417, features an 'easy start' button that is 20 inches from the floor. Read complete story: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-washing-machine-death6-2009feb06,0,4007015.story Begam, Lewis & Marks attorneys have significant experience handing product liability cases against manafacturers to hold them responsible when their defectively designed or manufactured products cause injury or death.

In an unusual twist on adult liability for teenage drinking, an Illinois homeowner has agreed to pay $2.5 million to resolve a lawsuit filed by a guest who was paralyzed after an underage drinking party. However, unlike other cases, the homeowner did not buy the alcohol and was not aware that the teens were drinking. Attorneys for the paralyzed young man argued that the homeowner failed to adequately supervise the teens. >Emily S. Achenbaum, Chicago Tribune Read Article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-mom-settlement-12feb12,0,312939.story Begam, Lewis & Marks rountinely handles dram shop and other liquor liability based claims against companies that over serve adults and against anyone who serves alcohol to minors. Call for a free consultation if you have been the victim of a drunk driver.

Conditions at a Georgia peanut plant blamed for a nationwide salmonella outbreak were only a small element of the unmasking of major problems in the food safety system, the New York Times reports. Investigations into the outbreak revealed major disconnects between government oversight and corporate accountability. The outbreak has killed eight people and sickened an estimated 19,000 more according to the newspaper. Michael Moss, The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/us/09peanuts.html?_r=1&ref=business

"Pfizer Inc. said Monday that it will become the latest drug maker to publicly disclose the payments it makes to doctors, as the industry has come under fresh fire for its undue influence and could face toughened legislation. The New York drug maker follows Eli Lilly & Co., Merck & Co. and GlaxoSmithKline PLC in pledging its commitment to transparency. Pfizer will report all payments to doctors of more than $500 for consulting and speaking arrangements and will also make public the money it pays them to participate in its clinical trials." The piece notes that Congress is considering mandating this type of disclosure, and paints the move on the part of the drug industry as part of an effort to "clean up its image." Read complete story

Forbes (2/3, Hegeman) reported, "Court documents link a Wichita-area doctor accused in 59 overdose deaths to a pharmaceutical company that illegally marketed to doctors a highly addictive narcotic for non-approved uses like treating migraines." The narcotic "Actiq is fentanyl in lollipop form" and "is a synthetic opiate approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration only for end-of-life cancer patients suffering severe pain." Dr. Stephen "Schneider and his wife, Linda, were charged in December 2007 with conspiracy, unlawful distribution of controlled substances, unlawful distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death, health care fraud, health care fraud resulting in death and illegal monetary transactions." Read Full Story at: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/02/03/ap5999608.html Begam, Lewis & Marks handles medical malpractice, wrongful death, and pharmaceutical cases. If you know of any family injured through the wro

A bus carrying Chinese tourists overturned Friday, January 30th, near Hoover Dam, killing at least seven people and injuring at least nine, an Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman said. The accident happened at 4 p.m. on U.S. 93 at mile marker 27, about 27 miles south of Hoover Dam, said Lt. James Warriner. The dead lay in body bags on the roadway near the bus, which was on its side across both lanes and onto the shoulder of the highway Initial reports from the scene indicated rescuers had difficulty communicating with the passengers, all of them Chinese nationals. Read the full story at: http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/01/30/arizona.bus.crash/index.html?eref=time_world Begam, Lewis & Marks has spent many years representing those who have been injured in bus and commercial trucking crashes, with one of its partners being a past president of, current executive board member of, and frequent national speaker for AAJ's Interstate Trucking Litigation Group.

A federal advisory panel urged the Food and Drug Administration on Friday to ban the prescription pain medication Darvon in light of its weak pain relieving properties and potential for addiction. Companies that market the drug maintained that it is a safe and effective treatment option. Darvon, primarily marketed as Darvocet, remains one of the most commonly prescribed drugs, with more than 20 million prescriptions written in 2007. Wire Services, Cleveland Plain Dealer 01/31/2009 Read Article: Cleveland Plain Dealer Begam, Lewis & Marks represents individuals and families who have been injured as a result of defective or dangerous drugs.

The AP reports, "A consumer group seeking Medicare billing records to peek over the shoulders of doctors and grade them on quality said Monday it's not giving up despite a reversal from a federal appeals court" and "consumer advocates, employers and insurers argue that access to Medicare claims filed by doctors' offices could help independent groups monitor quality and ferret out waste." However, "doctors are worried that such disclosures would violate their privacy, and that resulting ratings could portray some physician's offices inaccurately." Read the full Story: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/sns-ap-medicare-disclosure,0,4040764.story Begam, Lewis & Marks handles medical malpractice cases against hospital, doctors, and nurses when they have failed to act reasonably and prudent and injured or killed patients.

The Arizona Republic (2/3, Anderson) reports, "Twin federal lawsuits filed in Phoenix and Seattle accuse the nation's two biggest mortgage lenders of using their industry muscle to twist the independent home-appraisal process into a corrupt moneymaking scheme." Both lawsuits "accuse the lenders of violating the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, which protects consumers involved in real estate transactions, and the Racketeering and Corrupt Policies Act, best known by its acronym RICO and usually associated with organized crime." For full story: http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/2009/02/02/20090202biz-wellsfargo0202ON.html Begam, Lewis & Marks represents those injured both physically and financially by the negligence and intentional acts of others.