Minor Impact Defense Biomechanics Dr. Michael Freeman Dr. Arthur Croft

Important New Study Clarifies Science of "Minor Impact" or "MIST" Cases

Important new research on "minor impact" cases: "the injury risk of real-world minimal damage rear impact crashes was estimated to be at least 2000 times greater than for any ADL. The results of our analysis indicate that the principle underlying the biomechanical injury causation approach, that occupant acceleration is a proxy for injury risk, is scientifically invalid. The biomechanical approach to injury causation in minimal damage crashes invariably results in the vast underestimation of the actual risk of such crashes, and should be discontinued as it is a scientifically invalid practice."
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New! Error Odds: Exposing the Lack of Accuracy in Malingering Tests

Trial Guides introduces Error Odds: Exposing the Lack of Accuracy in Malingering Tests, a continuing legal education webinar recording featuring Dr. Michael D. Freeman, Ph.D., MPH, D.C.

Your client is hurt, but the defense claims that his/her injury could not have resulted from the impact—that your client is malingering. Sound familiar? Join Dr. Michael D. Freeman, noted doctor, expert witness and author of Litigating Minor Soft Tissue Impact Cases for this CLE course on the Error Odds test and the lack of accuracy in malingering tests.

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Beat the Malingering Defense CLE

Beat the Malingering Defense CLE

Dr. Michael Freeman is one of the world's leading trauma epidemiologists, and testifies internationally on the admissibility of junk science in litigation. He has published and presented widely about motor vehicle crash injuries, and serves as a peer reviewer for numerous journals, including Spine and The Lancet.

In this CLE, Dr. Freeman addresses how to overcome allegations of malingering
against your client by challenging the accuracy of malingering tests which
defense witnesses use.
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AAJ Lists Top 10 Worst Insurance Companies in America, Cites Trial Guides' Books and Authors for Uncovering Insurance Bad Faith Practices

AAJ Lists Top 10 Worst Insurance Companies in America, Cites Trial Guides' Books and Authors for Uncovering Insurance Bad Faith Practices

The American Association for Justice (AAJ) has named the Top 10 Worst Insurance Companies in America.  In doing so, it cites Trial Guides' book From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves and articles arising from publicity around that book as the basis for naming Allstate the #1 worst insurer in America.

The 29 page report has a section for each of the ten worst insurers.  The section on Allstate notes at footnote 11 "There is no better analysis of [Allstate's] McKinsey documents than the book, 'From Good Hands’ to Boxing Gloves,' by David Berardinelli, Michael Freeman, and Aaron DeShaw.  Many of AAJ's citations to articles about Allstate's institutional "Deny, Delay, Defend" policy cite the book as the authoritative source on Allstate's policies and procedures as well as the way they have impacted the rest of the insurance industry.  These include the feature articles by BusinessWeek, Money magazine, CNN and others.

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Books for lawyers on minor impact cases

David Ball on Handling Minor Impact Cases

While all of the national attention on From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves has focused on David Berardinelli's section on the McKinsey Documents, the new edition of the legal text contains Dr. Michael Freeman's chapters about the background and junk science used by insurers in minor impact cases, as well as information on dealing with defense biomechanists and accident reconstructionists.
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Allstate Insurance Bad Faith McKinsey & Co.

Allstate Forced to Cut Premiums 15.9%

Why are Allstate's rates so high that it requires a forced reduction by California's Insurance Commissioner? Because under Allstate's claims handling process implemented in the early 1990s, Allstate's claims payments have dropped to approximately 50% of the level they were at in 1992. At the same time, Allstate has requested over 700 rate increases throughout the country. The system implemented by Allstate to help cut claims so deeply, was developed by the same consultant used by State Farm, Liberty Mutual, USAA, and others. If you deal with insurance claims, you deal with these issues.
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Scientist calls Allstate documents scientifically bogus - Dr. Michael Freeman Testifies about Allstate MIST Defense

Scientist calls Allstate documents scientifically bogus - Dr. Michael Freeman Testifies about Allstate MIST Defense

Scientist calls Allstate documents scientifically bogus - Lexington Herald-Leader

"An epidemiologist testified Tuesday that assumptions in an Allstate claims handling manual about how much force passengers endure in low-speed wrecks have no scientific basis.

“These numbers are impossible, and they are just made up,” said Michael Freeman, an epidemiologist at Oregon Health and Science University testifying in the second day of a $1.425 billion civil trial in Fayette Circuit Court challenging Allstate Insurance Co.’s claims handling practices."

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CNN Investigative Report Exposes Insurance Claim Denials - Cites Trial Guides' From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves

CNN Investigative Report Exposes Insurance Claim Denials - Cites Trial Guides' From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves

On February 7, 2007, CNN released its findings from an 18 month investigation into Allstate and State Farm Insurance, and the companies' decision to deny claims to increase profits. The feature focuses on the Trial Guides book From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves, and features co-authors David Berardinelli, Esq. and Dr. Michael Freeman.
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BusinessWeek cites Trial Guides book - "In Tough Hands At Allstate"

BusinessWeek cites Trial Guides book - "In Tough Hands At Allstate"

A new article by BusinessWeek titled "In Tough Hands at Allstate"

The article notes that From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves "tells the story of the key role played by management consultant McKinsey & Co. in reengineering auto insurance claims operations at Allstate Corp. (ALL ) -- and it's a story Allstate doesn't want told."

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