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August 2017 - Legal Snapshot: Summertime Blues by The Law Office of David S. Adams

Tax time has come and gone another year. Income taxes owed (either federal or state) can be discharged in a bankruptcy if...

A Diffuse Axonal Injury (DAI) can result from a shaking or strong rotation of the head, as with Shaken Baby Syndrome, or by rotational forces, such as with a car accident.

A court-imposed fine or penalty is normally not dischargeable in bankruptcy unless it is considered "pecuniary in nature." A recent federal court has found that incarceration costs imposed on a criminal defendant are pecuniary and thus are dischargeable in bankruptcy.

Slip and fall cases are very tough in Kansas as there is no recovery unless the property owner was more than 50% at fault for the fall. Even when a store has a slippery condition on the floor, if a jury finds both parties 50% at fault for the fall, there is no recovery. Missouri does not have this threshold.

Generally, Kansas has a two-year statute of limitations on making a claim for personal injury damages. This period can stretch to five years if the claim arises from an uninsured motorist causing the injury.

A suspended driver’s license can be reinstated after a bankruptcy filing if the suspension arose because of unpaid damages from an accident.

Income taxes are generally dischargeable in a chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy if they are more than three years old (as determined by the April 15 date they were due).

Most recoveries in a personal injury case (medical expenses and pain/suffering) are not taxable to the injured person who gets a recovery.

Many good people do everything they can to downplay how hurt they are after an auto accident. Adrenaline at the time of an accident does a good part of the initial work, and thereafter many just try to “suck it up” and hope their pain gets better without seeking treatment.