Failure to Diagnose a Heart Attack

Over a million Americans suffer a myocardial infarction (commonly referred to as a “heart attack”) each year. About half of all heart attacks result in severe injury or death to the patient. Quick and proper treatment can often prevent fatality, so there is no room for mistake or negligence on the part of medical providers. Unfortunately, we have seen several cases in which emergency room doctors, cardiologists, or other physicians have ignored symptoms, ignored risk factors, failed to diagnose, misdiagnosed, and failed to properly treat or test, or have otherwise contributed to the injury or death of their patients.

Risk Factors and Coronary Heart Disease

In order to properly diagnose a patient with coronary heart disease, a doctor should be aware of the patient’s medical history. Common risk factors for coronary heart disease patients include:

• 65 or older.
• Male.
• Family History of Coronary Heart Disease.
• Smoker.
• High Cholesterol.
• Hypertension (high blood pressure).
• Sedentary Lifestyle.
• Obesity and Overweight.
• Diabetes.
• Alcoholism.
• Stress.

The above list includes the risk factors identified by the American Heart Association. The more risk factors you have, the greater chance you may have a heart attack or stroke. A doctor should be aware of each patient’s medical history and identify which if any risk factors may apply. Many of these risk factors may be controlled or treated.

Symptoms of a Heart Attack

Common symptoms of a heart attack may include:

• Discomfort, pressure, heaviness, or pain in the chest or just below the breastbone.
• Discomfort, pressure, heaviness, or pain in the arm.
• Radiating pain or discomfort in the jaw, back, throat, or arm.
• Indigestion or feeling of heartburn.
• Nausea or vomiting.
• Sweating or dizziness.
• Anxiety or shortness of breath.
• Irregular, increased, or rapid heartbeats.

Any of these symptoms or combination of these symptoms may indicate a patient is suffering from a heart attack. It is extremely important that a patient suffering a heart attack receive treatment as soon as possible. Generally speaking, treatment for a heart attack is most successful in administered in the first few hours following the first onset of symptoms. Physicians who fail to quickly and properly treat patients put their patients’ health and life at risk.

Doctors are trained to recognize the warning signs of a heart attack and to properly act in accordance with the health and safety of the patient. However, in some instances doctors fail to act properly in regards to the care of heart attack patients. If you or your loved one has been the victim of a doctor’s malpractice, don’t delay contacting us.

Medical Tests to Diagnose a Heart Attack

After symptoms are reported, doctors and emergency staff should administer the proper testing and treatment as soon as possible to avoid severe injury or death to their patients. The common tests for heart attacks include:

• Electrocardiograms (ECG or commonly referred to as EKG).
• Cardiac Enzyme Tests.
• Coronary Artery Disease Tests.
• Echocardiograms.
• Stress Tests.
• Angiograms.

If you or your loved one suffered a heart attack and the doctors failed to administer the proper testing resulting in injury or death, contact a Utah Medical Malpractice Attorney at Salcido Law Firm today.

Common Heart Attack Misdiagnoses

A doctor’s failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis of a heart attack may occur if the symptoms are confused with another health condition. In our experience we have seen doctors misdiagnose a heart attack as:

• Heart Burn
• Anxiety Attack
• Pneumonia
• Gallstones
• Bronchitis

Your Utah Medical Malpractice Lawyers

At Salcido Law Firm, our medical malpractice lawyers are experienced in handling the complex legal and medical issues involved in a failure to diagnose a heart attack case. We represent victims and their families in pursuing just compensation for the damages caused by a doctor’s failure to properly diagnose and/or treat a heart attack patient. We will act as your advocate against the medical providers and their insurance companies to see that your rights are protected and that you receive a fair settlement.

If you or someone you love has been injured or died as a result of the negligent medical care, call us today. Utah law imposes time limits on medical malpractice actions. Do not delay; contact us as soon as possible and Get Protected! Our attorneys are ready to take your call 24/7. Call anytime at 801.207.8212 or toll free at 888.337.3235. You may also email, Skype, or contact us through the form on the right.

Expungement of Utah Arrest Records

In Utah, if you have been arrested but you were never formally charged with a crime or you were charged with a crime but never convicted, you can have your arrest record cleared as soon as 30 days after the arrest, so long as you have not had another intervening arrest.

Let the Utah Expungement Attorneys at Salcido Law Firm help you expunge your arrest records.

Expungement of Utah Conviction Records

If you have been convicted of a crime — other than a capital felony, a first degree felony, a second degree forcible felony, any sexual act against a minor, automobile homicide, a felony DUI, a registerable sex offense or attempt to commit one — have no more than one felony on your criminal record, have not previously obtained an expungement for a crime that would be considered a felony in Utah or two or more crimes that would be considered misdemeanors, have not subsequently been convicted of a crime, and have no more than three total convictions, you may be able to have your Utah criminal conviction records expunged.

The time periods for obtaining expungements differ depending on the type of crime:

(a) seven years in the case of a felony;
(b) ten years in the case of alcohol and/or drug related traffic offenses;
(c) five years in the case of a class A misdemeanor;
(d) three years in the case of any other misdemeanor or infraction;
(e) six years in the case of multiple class C misdemeanors;
(f) 12 years in the case of multiple class B misdemeanors; or
(g) 15 years in the case of multiple class A misdemeanor.

Call the Utah Expungement Attorneys at Salcido Law Firm today to see if you can get your criminal convictions expunged.

Get your life back on track by getting your Utah criminal records expunged.  Don’t waste anymore time.  Get Protected today!

If you answer “yes” you are not alone.  Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies have been steadily increasing during this economic recession.  In October 2009 alone 135,914 individuals in the United States sought bankruptcy protection.  With more and more people being laid off and with the slim job market, it is no wonder that individuals in Utah and across the country are finding that their best option is to declare bankruptcy.

Depending on the amount of your income and debts as well as other factors, you could have most of your debts discharged through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding or restructure your debts through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceeding which will allow you to consolidate your debts under the protection of the court and pay your debts back with modified conditions and generally with lower payments.

Let the Utah Bankruptcy Attorneys help you start afresh under the bankruptcy laws.  It is time for you to get your financial affairs back on track; it is time for you to free yourself from those collection calls; it is time for you to Get Protected!

Many people who have been been injured in a car accident, although through no fault of their own, are often times reluctant to hire an attorney, because “it was an accident.”  They have a misconception that if it was an “accident” no one is at fault, and therefore, each party should be responsible for his own damages.  Such is not the case and this misconception has prevented many people from recovering for their injuries.

Generally speaking, car accidents are always caused by someone’s negligence.  “Negligence” simply means that Party A breached a duty of care that he owed to Party B, causing Party B injury.  It does not mean that Party A acted intentionally or meant to injure Party B.  It simply means that Party A did not act in accordance with his duty.  To put this in perspective, if Party A is driving on an icy road and slides into the back of Party B’s car and injures Party B, Party A was negligent – Party A had a duty to not run into the back of Party B’s car and cause Party B injury.  Party A must make Party B whole for causing him injury.

A person who has been injured in an accident should always contact an attorney.  By hiring an attorney the injured person is merely protecting his rights to be made whole through compensation for the injuries he incurred.  Everyone has a right to not be injured by another person regardless of how that injury occurred.

Hiring an attorney does not make you “litigious” or “selfish” – it makes you smart.  Otherwise, you run the risk of being injured twice – once by the accident and another time by your failure to be compensated for your injuries.  If you have been injured in an accident conact the Utah Car Accident Law Firm to make sure you Get Protected!

At SLF, we can incorporate, organize, register, advise, and handle your initial legal matters to help ensure your company gets started on the right foot and is protected. We offer full business formation services. Below is a list of our corporate formation services and pricing for LLCs.

1.         LLC  Package (Basic) - $499

2.         LLC Package - $999

3.         LLC Package (Full) – $1499

SLF offers free consultation time with our Utah Business Attorneys to discuss the legal implications of your business and any concerns you may have. Do not trust your company’s legal well being to online incorporation services. Get personalized time with SLF Utah LLC Attorneys to ensure your company is properly established and protected.

If you have been injured in an auto accident and are thinking about bringing a law suit against the negligent driver and/or insurance company, consider the following 15 pointers to help you get your case started on the right foot.

1.         Talk to a Utah Auto Accident Attorney at SLF as Soon as Possible. Do not talk to anyone about your occurrence except one of the Utah Car Accident Lawyers at SLF. Do not even talk to your own insurance company or to any lawyers hired by your own insurance company without notifying us so that we may be present if we desire. We will generally want these statements taken in our office.

2.         Talk to Your Doctor. You should return to each of your doctors as often as necessary and should always tell them about all your complaints. You should not minimize your ailments to your doctors as it is one of his or her best ways of knowing how to treat you. If you see any additional doctors, be sure we are advised immediately of their names and addresses. If you need referral to a doctor please let us know. We keep a list of doctors we know and trust.

3.         Record of Complaints. Keep a daily or weekly record of your medical complaints and progress. This can be very helpful, when, a year later, you will be able to recall your pain and difficulties more vividly.

4.         Wages and Earnings Lost. Keep an accurate record of days lost from work because of your injuries.

5.         Auto Accident Report. As soon as possible, give the Utah Accident Injury Attorneys at our law firm any accident reports, police reports, and any letters or documents the insurance companies have sent you regarding the accident.

6.         Financial Records. One of the major things in your auto accident case may be the loss of income or potential income. We will need a copy of any union contract showing wage rates, copies of your W-2 forms, and your income tax returns for at least the last five years.

7.         Medical Records. As soon as possible, give the Utah Personal Injury Attorneys at SLF all relevant medical records.  If you continue to see your doctor, you will need to provide our office with any new and updated medical records.

8.         Medical Bills. Obtain and keep duplicate copies of all medical, hospital and drug bills. You should periodically send these original bills (keeping copies) to us for our files. Also keep records of any other expenses you may have in connection with your injury such as the hiring of extra help. All your bills should be paid by check or you should obtain and keep receipts. You should make and keep a list of all you medical bills and the costs incurred in going to your doctor.

9.         Witnesses. As soon as possible, give the Utah Car Wreck Lawyers at our office the correct names and addresses and telephone numbers of any and all witnesses you may learn of.

10.       Evidence. If your injury requires a cast, brace, traction, or other appliance, save it for evidence and trial. You should notify us that you are keeping these things and when the case is set for hearing you should bring these items with you.

11.       Photographs. Send us the negatives and prints of any photographs pertaining to your case which you or any of your friends have taken. Take photographs of all physical injuries that were caused by the accident, during the healing process. If you are required to be in the hospital and are receiving any type of treatment like traction or physical therapy, please notify our office so that we can have our investigator photograph you. Additionally, please furnish our office photographs of you with your family.

12.       Hospital and Doctor Bills. Have your own insurance carrier pay as many hospital and doctor bills under the medical payment provisions of your policy as possible. You should also have your hospitalization and insurance pay as much on your bills as possible. Doctors and hospitals are more cooperative when their bills are paid. You should not expect them to wait until your case is tried or settled to receive payment. You should, therefore, pay any balance as soon as possible.

13.       Questions. Once the Utah Auto Accident Attorneys at SLF start working on your case, we will probably not contact you until we have something definite to report. We will be contacting you for possible settlements, mediations, pre-litigation hearings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and when your case goes to trial, which may be in excess of one year from the time that suit is filed. If you have any specific questions in regard to these instructions or any other matters in regard to your case, please feel free to call or write us.

14.       Informing Your Team. Be sure to keep us advised of any change in your address or telephone number.  Please inform us if any of the following occur: your condition worsens; you get better; you have another accident, injury, complication or other illness; you are hospitalized; you change doctors or go to another doctor or you are referred by your doctor to a specialist; any other circumstances occur that you think will affect your claim or your health.

15.       Personal Websites. Be sure that any information you have posted about yourself online will not hurt your case.  You should assume that the defense lawyers will “Google” you and search for any online presence you may have.  This may include sites such as Myspace.com, Facebook.com, Etc…  You should remove any information that will be harmful to your case or any information you have posted online that you would not be comfortable having presented to a jury in your case.

If you have been injured in a car accident as a result of the negligence of another, you may be entitled to compensation. Don’t wait, call the experienced Utah Car Accident Attorneys at SLF today and Get Protected!

SLF’s business representation includes general counsel services for Utah corporations of all sizes. We operate as the general counsel for companies in Utah who do not have in-house lawyers and to law departments seeking additional support. The cost of having a traditional in-house lawyer employed with your company can be significant. When you hire SLF as your general counsel you get an entire legal team for much less than you would pay for an in-house attorney. You also get more experience and expertise than the typical in-house attorney can offer your company. Our general counsel services ensure your company is protected.

Our General Counsel Services Include:

General Commercial Law

• Contract Drafting
• Contract Review/Revision
• Contract Disputes and Negotiation
• Credit and Collections
• Real Estate Matters
• Strategic Alliances
• Product Safety
• Transactional Work

Employment Law

• Anti-Harassment Management
• Disability Management
• Discipline and Discharge
• Employee Handbooks
• FMLA Compliance and other Leaves
• HIPAA Privacy and Security Issues
• Performance Management
• Screening and Hiring
• Wage and Hour Compliance
• Workforce Reductions
• International Employment Law
• Privacy Issues

Preventive Law

• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Employee and Executive Training
• Legal Audits and Internal Investigations
• Policy Formation
• Settlements and Releases
• Codes of Ethics/Corporate Compliance Programs
• Responses to Federal and State Agency Requests
• Regulatory Compliance
• Cease and Desist Letters
• Licensing

Litigation Management

• Litigation Strategies
• Management of Outside Counsel
• Preparation of Discovery Responses
• Preparation and Selection of Witnesses
• Preliminary Litigation Support

Corporate Governance

• Maintaining Corporate Records
• Advice on Corporate Governance and Financing
• Attendance at Board Meetings
• Recording and Preparing Company Minutes
• Corporate Compliance and Ethics

Internet and Intellectual Property Law

• Copyrights
• Trademarks
• Privacy Agreements
• Terms & Conditions
• Internet Compliance Programs
• Website Audits
• Patents – outsourced to specialty firm

Legal Research and General Representation

• General Legal Research
• General Legal Representation
• Legal Audits

In addition to the services listed above. SLF has an extensive, established network of outside legal specialists to assist our clients in key areas where deep knowledge of particular subspecialties may be required. Key examples are our relationships with specialists in international law, patent prosecution, a wide variety of technical fields, and complex tax matters.

Don’t waste money on hiring an in-house attorney when you can hire a full legal team at SLF to handle the same work at a fraction of the cost. We offer several payment options including; hourly fees, monthly retainer fees, or flat fees for project work. Call SLF today and speak with a Utah Business Lawyer. Don’t take any chances with your business, call Chris Salcido at SLF and Get Protected!

1. Employment Tax Treatment

S corporations are treated more favorably than LLCs for employment tax purposes. This is an important consideration that can be controlling in the decision of many businesses about whether to operate as an LLC or S corporation.

If all members of an LLC are individuals and participate in management of the LLC’s business, all of the LLC’s income is subject to self-employment tax. What’s more, the income is subject to self-employment tax in the year the LLC earns it even if the income is not distributed to members but is retained by the LLC to provide working capital or to acquire capital assets. Only certain limited types of LLC income, such as capital gains and rentals from real property, are exempt from self-employment tax. If an LLC is organized as a manger managed entity and has members who do not participate in management, income allocated to members who do not participate in management may also be exempt from self-employment tax.

In comparison, income of an S corporation is never subject to self-employment tax in the hands of its shareholders. Wages and salaries paid by S corporations to their shareholders are, however, subject to employment taxes in the same manner as compensation paid by to any other employee. The combined rate of employment taxes imposed on the employer and employee is the same as the rate of the self-employment tax, so the difference in tax systems does not create any savings. But what does create a savings is that employment taxes are only imposed on amounts paid out by an S corporation as compensation. Income of an S corporation that is retained by the business or is paid out as dividends is not subject to employment tax.

Self-employment tax is not a nickel and dime issue. The tax is imposed at a rate of 15.3% on selfemployment income of up to $90,000 received by an individual in 2005, and is imposed at the rate of 2.9% on self-employment income in excess of that amount. Although one-half of an individual’s self-employment tax is deductible for income tax purposes, the imposition of self employment tax as well as income tax on LLC income allocated to a member can significantly increase the rate of tax on the income.

2. Cash Basis Accounting

If a business has owners who do not participate in the operation and management of the business, it may be required to use accrual basis accounting if it is organized as an LLC, even if it does not have inventories or does not have a member that is a C corporation. This is the result of tax rules designed to prevent certain syndications from using cash accounting. These rules generally do not apply to S corporations.

3. Familiar Management Structure

Most states base their corporate laws on model legislation that has been widely adopted or base their corporate laws on long-standing concepts recognized in other states. As a result, there is a large body of law relating to the management and operations of S corporations, and this may reduce the number of potential areas for conflict between shareholders, directors, and officers.

In contrast, the LLC laws of many states differ significantly from those of other states, and all LLC statutes are of relatively recent origin. Consequently, there may be more questions about the proper way to operate or manage an LLC. If you have questions about S corporations and are thinking about forming a new company, contact the Utah Business Formation Attorneys at SLF today and Get Protected!

Utah allows for the clearing of your criminal record under certain circumstances. Getting a criminal record expunged is the process of sealing a criminal record after the case has been resolved. Having your criminal record expunged has many benefits. Consider the following:

1. Having your criminal record expunged can lead to better job opportunities.

2. By having your criminal record expunged you may become eligble for student loans, housing assistance, or other government aid.

3. By having your criminal record expunged you may become eligble for professional licenses or certificates.

4. You will no longer have to fear or be embarrassed when an employer or anyone does a background check on you.

Not everyone who has been convicted of a crime is eligible for an expugement of their criminal record. To find out if you are eligible, contact the Utah expungement attorneys at SLF today and Get Protected!

Let’s be honest, prenuptial agreements are not romantic. A couple in love does not want to think about divorce in any way when they have just decided to get married. But for many lovebirds, the benefits of a prenuptial agreement can be substantial.

If you have considered entering into a prenuptial agreement, it is important that both parties obtain legal advice. A prenuptial agreement must be consistent with state law or it can be overturned. And even a prenuptial agreement that is legal may not be fair to both parties to the marriage. At SLF, we can point out the potential pitfalls of as well as benefits of entering into a prenuptial agreement.

If you are getting married and have considered a prenuptial agreement, but you are not convinced or aware of the benefits associated with these agreements, consider the following:

1. A prenuptial agreement defines the financial arrangements and understanding of the spouses at marriage. The parties therefore know what to expect upon death or divorce.

2. A prenuptial agreement can effectively protect the interests of children from a prior marriage. A sizable portion of assets (called the elective share) may automatically go to a spouse upon death in most states, but this can be avoided by using a prenuptial agreement. This elective share can be waived in a prenuptial agreement. This is an important consideration, particularly where there are children from a prior marriage.

3. A prenuptial agreement may also make sense when there is a significant disparity in wealth. It is also worth considering if you or your spouse-to-be owns a small business or a stake in a family business; a prenuptial agreement can ensure ownership will not be contested in a divorce.

4. While you will have to pay an attorney to draft your prenuptial agreement, the cost of litigating a contested divorce would be far greater.

5. The prenuptial agreement may not only define what is a person’s separate property, but it will also specify what assets or debts will be joint or marital and direct how they will be split in the event of divorce.

6. The prenuptial agreement can direct if, and how, alimony or spousal maintenance will be paid.

If you are considering a prenuptial agreement and would like further information, contact one of the Utah divorce and family law attorneys at SLF today and Get Protected!