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Georgia law declares “communications between [a] psychiatrist and patient” privileged and therefore excluded as evidence in a civil proceeding. But what happens when the patient is deceased and his heirs have reason to believe the psychiatrist may be responsible? A divided Georgia Supreme Court recently addressed that question.

Cooksey v. Landry

A young man committed suicide in 2012. He had been under a psychiatrist’s care for many years. A month before the man’s death, the psychiatrist prescribed two common antidepressant drugs. These drugs carried what is known as a “Black Box Warning,” which is the strongest warning the Food and Drug Administration may require for a legal product. The FDA cautioned that use of these two drugs can lead to “an increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in young adults.”

Not all motor vehicle accidents involve cars or trucks. Even the misuse of something like a golf cart may give rise to a personal injury lawsuit. And as with any accident litigation, the roles and responsibilities of the insurance companies may prove critical.

Golf Cart Accident

For example, the Georgia Court of Appeals recently weighed in on a personal injury lawsuit arising from a golf cart accident. The incident occurred in a planned community in Fayette County. A man was driving his motorized golf cart on one of the community’s paths when he struck and injured a woman. She sued for negligence.

In a June 19 decision, the Georgia Court of Appeals awarded summary judgment to the defendants in a personal injury lawsuit arising from serious burn injuries suffered by a 13-year-old child. The Court of Appeals, reversing a trial judge’s earlier decision, said the child had assumed the risk of standing too close to the fire that caused his injuries. Despite the child’s age, the court said he was old enough to understand the potential risks and consequences of his actions.

Taylor v. McGraw

The child and his grandfather were attending a backyard marshmallow roast at the defendants’ home. The defendants ignited a wood-burning fire in a metal barrel. One of the defendants instructed his children to take some sawdust from a nearby shed and throw it into the fire. This caused the fire to flare up. Shortly thereafter, the adults left the children alone with the fire. The victim and two of the defendants’ children then proceeded to get more sawdust and throw it into the fire. This “made the fire shoot up,” according to one of the defendant’s children and burned the victim.

In a June 11 decision, the Georgia Court of Appeals reversed a trial court’s judgment in favor of an auto insurer that sought to deny uninsured motorist coverage to an insured accident victim. The appeals court addressed the conditions by which an insurer may apply a “named driver exclusion” clause. The trial court said such a clause could be enforced in this case, but the appeals court disagreed.

Roberson v. 21st Century National Insurance Company

The case arose from a 2009 automobile accident. The plaintiff was driving his police cruiser in Macon when another vehicle struck him. The plaintiff filed a personal injury lawsuit against the driver and owner of the other vehicle. He also served his wife’s insurance company because she had a personal automobile policy that included uninsured motorist coverage.

On June 5, the Georgia Court of Appeals issued an important decision in a dispute between an accident victim and his insurance company over whether his policy covered uninsured and underinsured motorist damage. The case centered on the victim’s allegation that the insurance agent that sold him the policy illegally forged his name on a waiver depriving him of such coverage. The insurance company argued that even if the victim’s name was forged, it relied in good faith on the waiver. The trial court sided with the insurance company and granted it summary judgment. The Court of Appeals reversed and returned the case for trial.

Assaf v. Cincinnati Insurance Company

While walking alongside a road, the victim was struck and injured by an automobile. The vehicle was not insured. Accordingly, the victim filed a claim with his own automobile insurance insurance company for uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. The victim said his policy covered up to $1 million in coverage.

Prescription drugs often produce significant negative side effects in patients. But under Georgia law, the burden is generally on the prescribing physician, not the drug’s manufacturer, to warn patients of any risks. The Georgia courts refer to this as the “learned intermediary” rule. The manufacturer still has a duty to warn physicians of risks, but it is then up to the physician to serve as the “learned intermediary” between the drug company and the patient.

While a typical manufacturer has a duty not to market defective products, the learned intermediary rule often shields drug companies from the injuries its products may cause. A recent example comes from a federal appeals court which, applying Georgia’s learned intermediary rule, upheld a trial court’s dismissal of a woman’s lawsuit against the manufacturers of an antibiotic that produced a severe allergic reaction.

Brown v. Roche Laboratories, Inc.

A business owner has a duty under Georgia law to exercise “ordinary care” in maintaining a safe premises for customers. This does not mean a business owner is liable for any and all safety hazards on the premises. Rather, it means an owner who has “superior knowledge” of a hazard and fails to act may be held responsible if that hazard injures a customer.

In cases where the owner and customer have equal knowledge of a hazard—or are presumed by law to have equal knowledge—the owner is not liable. This question often comes up in “slip-and-fall” cases when owners and customers disagree as to whether the owner had superior or equal knowledge. A recent decision by a federal appeals court illustrates how judges deal with these questions.

Womack-Sang v. Publix Super Markets, Inc.

Not all motor vehicle accidents include an automobile or truck. Off-road or all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are involved of hundreds of accidents and fatalities each year. The staff of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently released a report on ATV accidents that took place between 1982 and 2012. The CPSC has regulated ATV safety standards in the United States since 2009.

The CPSC’s Findings

The CPSC defines an ATV as “an off-road, motorized vehicle having three or four low-pressure tires, a straddle seat for the operator, and handlebars for steering control.” New ATVs must be four-wheel vehicles, as CPSC regulations ban the importation or sale of three-wheel ATVs. Vehicles with steering wheels and bucket seats, such as a golf cart, are not classified as ATVs.

According to the American Humane Association, nearly 50% of dog attacks in the United States each year involve children under the age of 12. Bite rates tend to be higher for younger children. Young boys are also more susceptible to dog bites than girls.

Georgia law holds the owner of any “vicious or dangerous animal” liable for injuries caused in an unprovoked attack when the owner is careless or allows the animal “to go at liberty.” Many Georgia counties also require outdoor animals to be leashed or otherwise restrained. The existence of such laws is sufficient to prove the animal has a “vicious propensity” for purposes of liability.

Eshleman v. Key

In a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit, it is not enough to show the defendant was at fault for the plaintiff’s injuries. Under Georgia law, a plaintiff cannot recover damages if he or she is “50 percent or more responsible” for the injuries suffered. The question of responsibility is typically decided by a jury. In some cases, a trial judge may grant one party summary judgment if he or she determines there is no genuine dispute over the facts. But judges must be careful not to short-circuit the trial process, as the Georgia Court of Appeals explained in one recent case.

Reed v. Carolina Casualty Insurance Company

In 2008, a commercial tractor-trailer driver parked his vehicle in an emergency lane at the intersection of Interstate 285 and Interstate 75 in Cobb County. It was early in the morning and the driver wanted to rest. Nevertheless, parking in an emergency lane violates Georgia traffic laws.

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