At the Houston law firm Doyle Dennis Avery LLP , we are immersed in several complex and constantly evolving areas of law. Our experienced attorneys apply genuine passion in our strategic advocacy efforts for injured maritime workers, soldiers severely harmed by military contractors while deployed overseas, and people injured while working and traveling internationally.
This afternoon a jury in the 163rd District Court of Orange County, Texas found Commerce and Industry Insurance Company, an AIG company, responsible for workers’ compensation survivor benefits for the family of a worker original injured at BP’s Texas City plant in May 2004. After a two and a half day trial before the Honorable Dennis Powell, the jury found that Bruce Stewart’s death from an accidental overdose of medicine prescribed for treatment of his injury was “a result of” the original injury as it arose from the medical treatment made necessary by the on the job injury.
Mike Doyle of Doyle was quoted in today’s Houston Chronicle article by Lise Olsen and Terri Langford on Gulf Accidents. The article addresses the long history of oil rig explosions in the Gulf of Mexico over the past several years. Often the maritime industry touts its safety record based on reported incidents, but many if not most incidents are unreported, and there is essentially no hands-on oversight of rig safety. These safety shortcomings can result in tragedy, as evidenced by the recent tragedy on the Deepwater Horizon, a Transocean and BP operation. As Mike Doyle was quoted, “There is a big difference between their actual incident/injury rate and their self-reported (rate).”The full text of the Chronicle article can be found at this link.
Kimberley Soukup is a licensed workers’ compensation adjuster who takes her responsibilities to injured workers under Texas law seriously. Unfortunately, her determination to adhere to the laws intended to assure fair administration of workers’ compensation claims got her in hot water with her employer, third-party administrator Sedgwick Claims Management.
Matthew Finkelstein recently joined Doyle in Houston as an associate. Matthew is licensed to practice law in both Texas and Louisiana. Prior to joining the firm, Matthew practiced personal injury and workers’ compensation law in Houston. Matthew will work on the firm’s bad faith, personal injury, and maritime injury dockets.
Matthew is a 2009 graduate of Tulane University Law School and a 2005 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.