As Wisconsin emerges from its winter freeze, more bicyclists are beginning to pop up on streets and trails around the state.
And that means an increase in potential bike accidents. In 2008, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation reported more than 1,000 accidents involving bicycles.
Madison personal injury attorney Jason Knutson has seen such a spike in bike injury cases that he and two other attorneys at Axley Brynelson LLP in Madison have formed a group to specifically focus on these matters.
The group will help cyclists injured in accidents get compensation for things such as bicycle repair or replacement, time off from work, medical bills, and the pain and suffering accompanying an accident.
“There’s been such a massive uptick in bike traffic in Madison,” Knutson noted. “Which means there is just more opportunity for interaction between cars and bikes.”
He attributed the increase to commuters, college students and competitive racers taking advantage of the navigable Madison area.
Menomonee Falls personal injury lawyer Michael L. Bertling has also noticed an increase in bike traffic. There are several recreational and scenic routes in the area that are used by both avid and novice bikers.
“The rides are pretty, but they can be dangerous,” said Bertling, who does both plaintiff and defense work at McLario, Helm & Bertling SC.
He recently defended a case in which a bicyclist came around a sharp corner, collided with a motorist and died.
Bertling was able to settle the case on favorable terms for the defendant, but he noted that bike accident cases can be lucrative, given that the injuries are often severe. Further, “I’ve found that highly motivated cyclists are often professionals, so if they get hurt and are not working, they are losing a lot,” he said.
Attorney Robert C. Menard agreed that damages can be significant, particularly if the cyclist was not wearing a helmet and suffers a head injury. And juries tend to be sympathetic to bicycle accident victims, because riding a bike is perceived as eco-friendly and good exercise.
Marketing opportunity?
Menard, of Derzon & Menard SC, gets a handful of bike accident cases annually, as does fellow Milwaukee attorney Molly C. Lavin of Habush Habush & Rottier SC.
But Lavin noted the “smattering” of cases she gets is not enough to support her practice, let alone an entire sub-group of personal injury attorneys.
“Certainly, it’s not enough to support a full-time lawyer,” she said, adding, “there is a lot more bike riding in Madison than Milwaukee.”
One side advantage to establishing a bicycle injury practice group: it allows your firm to differentiate itself for marketing purposes, suggested Menard.
While most PI firms handle bike accident cases, highlighting a specialty practice might generate more interest, especially online.
“I see a lot more lawyers trying to delineate themselves on the Web in a Google search, as opposed to general personal injury,” Menard said. “We mention scooters and mopeds on our site, so if someone is searching those, hopefully we come up.”
Knutson said that his firm is just trying to meet the need in a growing area of the law. Axley Brynelson not only handles car-bike collisions, but also cases involving dogs chasing and injuring bikers and cyclists crashing into open car doors.
“We put our team together to really concentrate on those accidents,” he said.
3 Comments on This Article
1
Mr. Zales speaks as if cars preceeded bikes onto our nations highways and should accomodate themselves to the presence of cars.
Motor vehicles came after horses, carriages and bicycles. They need to account for the slower traffic on highways and avoid accidents with that traffic. They also need to allow a minimum of 3' of space when passing those slower vehicles, even when that means (heaven forbid) that they have to wait for oncoming traffic to clear before executing a pass. Patience is a virtue all drivers need to have. Driver's don't have a license to endanger bikers because they are in a hurry or late for work.
Bikes have authority to go through red lights when they don't change (usually because the traffic loops don't detect their presence.) That isn't "blasting" through red lights.
Most of the rules of the road in Ch. 346 apply to vehicles, not just motor vehicles, and therefore apply to horsecarts and bikes as well as cars and trucks. Those laws can be and are enforced against violators on bicycles.
The one travesty in the law now is that bikers who don't wear helmets may be responsible for that decision and their jury award may reflect it. Motorcyclists making the same stupid decision can't have their verdict affected by that. s. 895.049, Stats.
Comment ByHeep Wednesday, April 7, 2010 at 2:09 PM
2
The vast majority of cyclists DO follow the rules of the road. Where is your evidence that cyclists "typically" "blast through red lights"? I commute to work on my bike nearly every day when I am not in court or do not have a client meeting. I see far more motorists making rolling stops, turning left through the end of a light cycle, turning right in front of a cyclist, and running bicyclists off the road than I see cyclists violating the rules of the road. Most cyclists go out of their way to ensure they are following the rules of the road.
The real problem is most drivers do not know that cyclists have the same rights on most roads as do motor vehicles (or, if they do know, they don't like it). Yes, there are some cyclists who blow through red lights or roll through a stop sign. But I see just as many cars do the same thing. I see far more cyclists "suffering the consequences" of being clipped by vehicles not passing with 3 feet of space, being “doored” or hit by someone who failed to check the bike lane before exiting their vehicle, having a motorist run up behind them and lay on the horn, and getting objects hurled at them by teenagers in pickup trucks.
As our roads get more congested, both cyclists and motorists need better education as to the rules of the road. However, your attempt to label all cyclists as being categorically "unwilling" to obey the rules of the road is ill informed and “typical” of the anti-bicycling sentiment among many who do not like to share the road with cyclists.
Comment ByTim Barber Monday, April 5, 2010 at 10:00 AM
3
There would be a lot less bike-car accidents if bike riders would follow the rules of the road. But they don't want to. Typically, they blast through red lights, don't stop at stop sings and make turns in front of cars. I'm all for encouraging riding a bike, but it's time to make bike riders comply with our safety laws or suffer the consequences. Comment ByNick Zales Monday, April 5, 2010 at 7:59 AM
Commenters, let's maintain a civil discussion here. Please observe the following guidelines:
Do not use profanity or euphemisms for profanity.
Do not personally attack or bait other commenters.
Express your own views; don't just argue for argument's sake.
Sarcasm doesn't work on the Web. Either avoid it or clearly label it so you aren't misinterpreted.
Don't make the same point repetitively.
No spam. Link to a commercial site only if it's relevant to the discussion.
Putting your name on your comments increases their value and credibility. However, if you must conceal your identity, please choose one pseudonym and stick to it. No "sock puppets".
