Our attorney Lew Garrison filed suit in Montgomery, Alabama federal court on July 3rd on behalf of three hundred and forty-seven black farmers who were illegally discriminated against for decades by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Our firm represents thousands of black farmers who may be eligible for benefits as a remedy for the past discrimination by the USDA.  The benefits are provided for by the Farm Bill recently enacted into law by Congress, over President Bush’s veto.  The benefits are needed to cure problems associated with a 1999 class action lawsuit known as the Pigford case, which attempted to resolve the discrimination claims black farmers had against the USDA.  Deadlines for black farmers to file claims in the Pigford case expired many years ago, leaving more than 65,000 people without an opportunity to have their claims decided on the merits.

The suit we filed on July 3rd comes two weeks after Congressman Artur Davis (D-Ala.) held an informational meeting in Tuskegee, Alabama, that was attended by more than one thousand black farmers from across Alabama, Georgia, and neighboring states.

For many years, Congressman Davis has fought to restore a remedy to those black farmers who suffered discriminatory treatment, but whose claims were not adjudicated in the Pigford class action settlement. This year, Congress included a provision in the Farm Bill that would give approximately 65,000 black farmers who were “late filers” in the class action settlement an opportunity to have their claims considered on the merits. The Farm Bill, which included provisions allowing black farmers to seek benefits, was vetoed by President Bush, but Congress overrode the President’s veto and the bill is now law.

Our attorney Lew Garrison, who represents the Plaintiffs in the case filed on July 3rd, said, “We are grateful that the courthouse doors have been opened again for thousands of black farmers who were victims of decades of discrimination at the hands of the USDA. Thanks to the unrelenting efforts of Congressman Artur Davis and Senator Barack Obama, the farmers who qualify to file their claims under the new law will finally get their day in Court.”

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Lew Garrison is a partner in the law firm Heninger Garrison Davis, LLC, in Birmingham, Ala.  To request a copy of the complaint, call Chris Hood or Bill Bross at Heninger Garrison Davis, LLC, ph. 205/326-3336.  The lawsuit is Adams, et al., v. Schafer, 2:08 CV 00520 WC, U.S. Dist. Ct., Middle Dist. of Ala.  It may be viewed online at www.pacer.gov, which is the official website of the federal courts.

     JURY AWARDS $1,650,000 IN TOTAL DAMAGES

     On March 2, 2007, a Talladega County, Alabama jury returned a verdict for the Plaintiff in a medical negligence case against a local physician and his employer, Baptist Health Centers, Inc.  The jury found the healthcare providers liable for the death of a 6 1/2 month old child.  The child died due to toxicity from Lindane, a medication used in the treatment of head lice and scabies.  The jury found that he physician wrongfully prescribed the drug and/or inadequately instructed the mother with respect to use of the medication.

     A set-off of $1,150,000 was allowed against the verdict due to previous settlements with the manufacturer and the local pharmacy.  The case was tried by Heninger Garrison Davis partner, Tim Davis and Talladega attorney, Steve Adcock.

     Heninger Garrison Davis has successfully represented thousands of individuals who ingested the diet medications Fen-Phen, Redux and Pondimin.  We also represent persons who suffer, as a result of ingesting these drugs, the condition known as Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (”PPH”).

THE DANGER

Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (”PPH”) is a serious and potentially life threatening cardiovascular condition.  PPH causes high blood pressure in the lungs that produces fatigue, dizzy spells, fainting, chest pain and can create a feeling of breathlessness with the slightest exertion.

A 1996 study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that the use of Fen-Phen for three months or longer can increase the risk of developing PPH by a factor of twenty-three.  Other medical research shows that PPH from the use of Fen-Phen, Redux and Pondimin will continue to increase because of the large, initial underestimation of actual patients affected.  According to the American Heart Association, an estimated 500 to 1,000 new cases of PPH are diagnosed in the United States each year, mostly in women between the ages of twenty and forty.

SYMPTOMS OF PPH

Typical initial symptoms of PPH are weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain, dizzy spells and fainting.

Advanced symptoms of PPH, due especially to delay in diagnosis, can include bluish lips and skin, ankle and lower leg swelling, increased chest pain and even death.

DIFFICULT TO DIAGNOSE

     PPH is often misdiagnosed and mistaken for more typical (but less dangerous) conditions.  Years can go by without proper diagnosis, allowing the disease to progress into late stages.

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WHAT YOU SHOULD DO

If you or a loved one used Fen-Phen, Redux or Pondimin and now suffer any symptoms that might be PPH, please seek medical attention.  If you have PPH and took Fen-Phen, Redux or Pondimin, please fill out and submit our confidential questionnaire or contact us by telephone.  Our confidential questionnaire and toll-free number can be found on the Heninger Garrison Davis home page at www.hgdlawfirm.com.

  A catastrophic explosion and fire at the BioLab chlorine plant and processing facility in Conyers, Georgia, in May, 2004, forced thousands of nearby residents to flee, shuttered businesses and schools, and halted interstate traffic east of Atlanta for several hours.  The chlorine cloud produced by the blaze blew across several Georgia counties and as far east as South Carolina.  It could be seen on weather photographs taken from space.

  The chlorine injured hundreds of residents, causing severe respiratory, eye and skin injuries.  Many of those citizens sought the help of attorneys, including the attorneys of Heninger Garrison Davis.  Our firm, together with allied counsel, filed suit for the injured citizens in the federal court in Atlanta and in the Georgia courts in the counties where the most serious injuries occurred.

  The lawsuits are currently pending.  Our attorneys seek compensation for everyone injured on a class-wide basis in the federal suit, which is one of the first in the nation brought by plaintiffs under the federal “Class Action Fairness Act of 2005.”  The federal suit is groundbreaking in that regard, and it has involved many novel legal and procedural issues.  Our firm will persevere with the suit until each person injured by the catastrophe receives full and fair compensation.

  The suits filed by Heninger Garrison Davis were covered extensively by the Atlanta area media and by the Associated Press.  The media quoted our lead attorney in the case, W. Lewis Garrison, Jr., as promising his utmost to ensure full compensation for the citizens harmed by the blaze.  The suits name the BioLab company and its owner at that time, the Great Lakes Chemical Corp., as defendants. �

On January 16, 2007, a catastrophic train derailment, explosion, chemical fire, and chemical release occurred in Bullitt County, Kentucky, just south of Louisville. The catastrophe occurred immediately adjacent to the homes and property of a large number of Bullitt County residents. Intrepid firefighters responding to the disaster rescued some residents from certain death.

The rail cars involved in the catastrophe were owned and/or operated by CSX Coorporation anor CSX Transportation, Inc. In two lawsuits filed afterward, clients of Heninger Garrisoon Davis, LLC, alleged that CSX/CSXT, on their own accord and through their agents, servants, and employees, caused the rail car derailment, explosion, fire, and chemical release. The substances released from the rail cars involved in the catastrophe were and are incediary, dangerous and ultra hazardous.The enormous conflagration that ensued engulfed and inundated the Plaintiffs’ property, residence, and persons with dangerous and injurious chemicals and pyrogenic products. Nearby waterways were also dangerously contaminated.

The Plaintiffs in the two suits filed suffered fear, evacuation, personal injuries, mental anguish, property damage, economic loss, expenses for medications and for medical treatment, and other injuries and damages. The chemical gruesomely injured one of more Plaintiffs who have been hospitalized in intensive care. The Plaintiffs claim that CSX/CSXT are strictly liable for that catastrophic harm and are guilty of negligence, nuisance, and trespass.  �

Steel Coil (Trucking Accident)

We represent the injured driver of an automobile which was struck by an enormous, heavy steel coil that fell from the flatbed of a tractor-trailer truck in Birmingham. Our attorneys claim on behalf of the injured driver that the trucking company negligently loaded and transported the coil.

After the accident, our attorney Steve Heninger was asked by local news to discuss the hazard involved. Click the screenshot above to see the interview with our firm on this broadcast.

The danger of steel coils falling from trucks has gained attention in recent years due to the large number of such events. “Since 1987, steel coils have dislodged from flatbed trucks onto Birmingham-area interstates at least 23 times,” according to The Birmingham News.

If you feel that you or a loved one may have a accident or injury claim,
call our Birmingham office for a free consultation anytime day or night
at 1-800-241-9779.