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Tire Aging and Tread Separation: The Hidden Danger of “New” Old Tires
Most drivers judge tires the way tire shops taught them to: by tread depth. That is reasonable — but dangerously incomplete. A tire can have deep, healthy-looking tread and still be a hazard, because rubber degrades with age whether or not the tire is ever driven. In a hot climate like Georgia’s, that tire aging…
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Shifted Loads and Flying Cargo: How Improper Loading Causes Truck Wrecks — and Who’s Responsible
When people picture a truck wreck, they picture a collision. But some of the most devastating truck crashes begin with the cargo. A steel coil breaks its chains and comes through a windshield. Lumber or pipe spills across an interstate at 70 miles per hour. Or the danger stays invisible: a load shifts inside a…
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Why a Tractor-Trailer Wreck Is Not Just a Bigger Car Wreck
It is tempting to think of a tractor-trailer wreck as a car wreck with bigger numbers: a bigger vehicle, bigger damage, a bigger insurance policy. But truck cases differ from ordinary car wreck cases a vast number of ways, and in ways that matter: the rules that apply, the evidence that exists, the parties who…
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New Music, Distracted Driving, and Georgia Road Danger
Most drivers know better than to text while driving. But texting is not the only distraction. Changing a song, opening a playlist, or searching for a new album while driving can be just as dangerous. A recent New York Times story discussed research finding that traffic deaths appear to increase on days when major new…
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Georgia’s new “tort reform” legislation – an overview
UPDATE: Senate Bill 68 was signed into law on April 21, 2025. In coming days, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp will sign Senate Bill 68, a sweeping revision to numerous provisions of the Georgia Civil Practice Act and tort laws that will change the landscape of litigation in Georgia. While the focus of the bill is…
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Georgia Supreme Court Amicus Curiae Brief on Defendants’ Bad Faith
Yesterday, John Hadden and Kevin Ketner submitted a brief to the Georgia Supreme Court on behalf of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association. The issue involved whether a defendant’s traffic violations could serve as a basis for an award of attorneys’ fees. The case is Love v. McKnight, Georgia Supreme Court Case No. S24G0371. Under Georgia…
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Making the right evidence argument at trial
In connection with my annual updates to Georgia Law of Evidence, I read hundreds of cases (at least) every year from the Georgia Court of Appeals and Supreme Court dealing with interpretations of the Georgia Evidence Code. Last night, I read one that caught my attention because the issue was seemingly simple, and a piece…
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Why Georgia Drivers Should Have Uninsured Motorist Coverage
We often hear from clients who have been involved in automobile wrecks that they have “full insurance coverage” on their automobiles. Unfortunately, very often what they thought was full coverage is actually minimal coverage that provides only personal injury and property liability coverage that pays for damages to othersinvolved in a wreck. It often excludes one of the…
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Were you a Passenger in an Atlanta Car Accident?
Being in a car accident can be scary and traumatic, and it could leave you with either minor or major injuries. And if you were the passenger in a car that was involved in an accident, you might think you have nowhere to turn to get compensation for your medical costs, lost wages as you…
John D. Hadden – Trial Lawyer
Trial & Appellate Lawyer at Penn Law, LLC | Author on Torts and Evidence