ABOUT THE ATTORNEY



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Sean was born in Waycross, Georgia in 1973. After graduating high school in Tennessee in 1991, he worked as marine mechanic, owned a landscaping company, and worked approximately three years as a diesel electrician for Norfolk Southern Railroad. He left Norfolk Southern in 1996, returning home to South Georgia where he graduated from Valdosta State University in 2000, with a BBA in Accounting. Around 2000, he became the Freight Conductor Program Coordinator at Okefenokee Technical College in Waycross, Georgia, recruiting students over a five state territory for Railroad Conductor positions. In 2002 he began an eight year employment for CSX Transportation. As a Railroad Manager, Sean worked in many capacities ranging from managing union employees in the repair of the locomotive fleet, training managers in injury and accident investigation, maintaining Federal Railroad Administration legal compliance, and eventually rounded off his stay at CSX as a hearing officer, acting as the investigator, hearing officer, and recommending discipline to affected union employees. Through his employment at CSX, he learned the inner workings of one of the world’s largest transportation companies. In May, 2011, he graduated law school at the Florida Coastal School of law in Jacksonville, Florida. Sean then opened his law office in Waycross, Georgia, associating himself with the utmost elite trial practice firm in the State of Georgia, providing one of the most aggressive, client focused legal service with the financial strength and resources to handle the most demanding severe personal injury, medical malpractice, wrongful death, and products liability cases.


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Sean recognizes that a great client advocate requires more than a law degree. He believes his real life experience and hard work provides his clients with a person that can understand their needs and concerns better than most attorneys. Sean Simmons is passionate about his work, creative thinking, problem solving, and dedication to success as evidenced by him being titled the 2014 Georgia State Super Heavyweight Bodybuilding Champion, being featured on the cover of Void Magazine (ISS 24 – Vol. 3 – Oct. 2012), and his Newspaper Ad being featured by Jay Leno on the Tonight Show.




Have a case that needs resolving?

Give me the facts and I’ll take care of the rest.






PRACTICE AREAS



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Serious Personal Injury

Being injured in a car or truck accident can be a very traumatic experience. It can also be very complicated. Many automobile accident victims may need to seek the specialized assistance that our office can offer you. It is the insurance adjustors’ job to save their company money by giving less money to people injured in accidents. Insurance adjusters are trained professionals, paid to protect insurance companies. That’s why you need someone on your side to protect your rights and get you the compensation you deserve. If you are involved in an auto accident, following a few simple steps can make a big difference in protecting your rights.


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If you are involved in an auto accident, following a few simple steps can make a big difference in protecting your rights. If you are involved in an accident you should:

* Stop your car immediately. Remain calm and move your vehicle out of the flow of traffic.

* Make sure that no one is injured. If someone is injured call for help and do not move the victim.

* Call the police and file an accident report.

* Do not give any statement to an insurance adjuster or sign anything until you have had time to seek professional advice from an attorney.

* Write down as many of the pertinent facts as possible, including names and phone numbers of witnesses, statements from other witnesses and anything else that you can remember about the accident.

* After the accident you should keep detailed receipts of all expenses that you have relating to the accident or injury. These receipts may prove valuable in court. It is also important to keep careful notes related to any injuries you have received in order to document them for the court. Do not allow insurance companies to violate your rights for the sake of higher profits. Seek professional legal assistance from someone who cares about seeing to it that you get compensated fairly. At Simmons & Associates, we know how to handle accident cases just like yours. We have the experience and expertise to get you the compensation you deserve.




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Trucking & Railroad Negligence

Railroads use very ominous, heavy, fast moving equipment to transport very dangerous substances all through our Georgia cities. Unfortunately, as an attorney with thirteen years working for these railroads, Sean Simmons knows that often times when an accident occurs involving a Railroad, almost always Railroad negligence can be found. As a former employee of Norfolk Southern Railroad, Conductor/Engineer Recruiter for Okefenokee Technical College, and Manager at CSX Railroad. Sean Simmons knows all too well where the Railroads hide the proof of their negligence.


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Sean Simmons knows how to find out if common negligent practices occurred such as:

  • Whether the locomotive pulling the train that injured you or a loved one was “signed off” (a common railroad practice where a Manager pays employees fraudulent overtime to sign off on the maintenance of a locomotive’s repair for problems such as improper braking, lighting, or tractive effort, in order to illegally increase a shop’s production and increase the amount of equipment not out of service for repair). The employees fraudulently signing the documents as work completed make a killing in fraudulent overtime, the Managers show an increase in production, while the public that trusts these railroads to operate safely are left the seriously injured victims when these fraudulent maintenance and repair protocols fatefully meet the operators or passengers of vehicles.
  • Whether the Employees actually performing the work have been properly trained to do the very work they are assigned to do. Today’s new locomotive fleets are high tech devices that require highly skilled labor to repair and maintain. As a former railroad Electrician and Manager of fleet repair at CSX Railroad, trained in GE DASH 8, DASH 9, GE CW40AC, and General Motors EMD GP 38, 38-2, 40, 50, 60, 70, MAC 70, and EVO locomotives, getting to the bottom of railroad negligence is like taking candy from a baby.
  • Whether the Engineer and Conductor were performing their duties properly. All too often in the age of cellular devices, train personnel are spending their time in control of these ominous machines blasting through your towns across your routes back to your home and family while texting, trading on Ebay, and playing Candy Crush, instead of blowing the horns at the appropriate times, watching for vehicles stalled on crossings, and making sure they are obeying the necessary FRA guidelines and speed restrictions that protect the communities they are supposed to be good stewards of.

The railroads, hired Sean Simmons, they trained Sean Simmons, and they fired Sean Simmons. Now, they get to deal with Attorney Sean Simmons.

Each day catastrophic injury and death occurs as a result of negligence by over-the-road truck and tractor trailer drivers. Many times the wrongful acts that lead to the accident occur before the truck driver ever gets on the road. Either the trucking company hired a driver who is not adequately trained or is highly at risk or reckless and a danger to the motoring public. On many occasions drivers are not in compliance with specific federal regulations which are designed to secure the safety of the public from drivers who are fatigued or equipment is defective. Even the slightest carelessness by a fatigued driver operating a tractor trailer weighing in excess of 83,000 pounds can cause instant death and destroy lives. 



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Wrongful Death

Georgia recognizes two legal causes of action when a death occurs as a result of either wrongful acts or negligence. These consist of action for wrongful death as well as a survival action. An action for wrongful death can be brought by the surviving spouse or a child on behalf of survivors for the value of the deceased person’s life. This is a great distinction from other states which provide that the damages are limited to the loss, caused by the surviving family. Damages under Georgia Law include economic damages which in part can be measured by lost earnings and earning potential as well as non-economic damages measured purely upon the extrinsic value of the life of the decedent.

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Under a survival action, the representative of the estate of the decedent brings a claim of action for medical expenses, funeral expenses, and pain and suffering. The representative of the estate must either be named by will or appointed by the Probate Court, usually in the County where the decedent resided at the time of death. The period in which a suit must be filed is generally two years from the date of death. It is important that this not be confused with a claim for negligence which may have occurred sometime prior to the death which lead to the death. This may in fact be a separate and distinct suit and the time to file that claim would tend to run from the date of  negligent act.



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Medical Malpractice

“A 39 year old man is admitted to the hospital for treatment of a minor infection. The physician orders a drug to be administered by IV and instead the nurse administers it by direct injection over a period of time which causes the patient to develop seizures and ultimately die from cardiac arrest.”

It was reported in September, 2000 that since 1995 at least 1,720 hospital patients have been accidentally killed and 9,584 others injured from actions or inaction of nurses across the country who have been affected by cuts in staff and other cost reducing methods adopted by hospitals around the country.

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In December, 2001 it was noted by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations, that as of 1998 only 15 instances of physicians operating on the wrong body part or wrong patient occurred. Since that time, 136 have been reported to the Commission. Such errors are preventable with appropriate pre-operative measures.



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Product Liability

Every day we place our trust in products that help make our lives easier and more productive. When a product fails, it can sometimes lead to disastrous consequences.

A defective automobile air bag may cause the very harm it was intended to prevent. A poorly manufactured vehicle tire may place the occupants of the vehicle and other motorist in considerable danger. Often, discovering that a tragic accident was caused by a defective product requires intensive research and investigation. If you have been seriously injured by a defectively designed or manufactured product, it is important to know your legal rights. The law governing liability for defective products can be complex. We know how to handle product liability cases and can give you the legal counseling you deserve in your time of need.




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Nursing Home Negligence

Many people are faced with the difficult decision of whether or not to put a cherished parent or elderly family member under the care of a Nursing Home. When the decision is made to put them into a nursing home it can often come at great financial expense to the family. Then to discover that your loved one is being improperly cared for or neglected after you turned their care over to someone you trusted can be heartbreaking. Unfortunately, it happens all the time. But there is something you can do about it. Your loved ones do have a right to be treated kindly and not strapped down or abused. At Simmons & Associates, we are committed to helping you fight Nursing Home Neglect and Abuse.


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Some common signs of neglect or abuse are:

* Untreated bed sores

* Bruises that imply restraints have been used

* Open wounds, cuts, bruises or welts

* Fleas, lice, or dirt on elder

* Excessive, sudden weight loss for no medical reason

* Fecal or urine odors

* Unprescribed changes in medication

* Caregivers refusal to allow visitors to be alone with the elder

Don’t allow your loved ones to be neglected and abused by careless Nursing Homes. They don’t have to be abused. Help them stand up for their rights and help them get back their dignity. We are committed to helping your loved one achieve a favorable outcome from a bad situation.




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Workers Compensation

Workers’ compensation laws allow employees certain benefits when the employee is injured on the job, specifically an accident arising out of and in the context of employment. Most employers are required to carry Workers’ Compensation insurance. Benefits may include temporary total disability benefits while you can’t work, medical bills, permanent partial disability benefits, or total disability benefits.

As with any injury claim, including worker’s compensation injuries, be sure to contact a personal injury attorney immediately before speaking to insurance adjusters. Do a simple internet search, and you will see how speaking with insurance adjusters is never wise without counsel.

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You do not have to prove that your employer was at fault to make a claim for benefits in Georgia. You do have to show that your injuries arose out of and in the course of your employment. In other words, if you got hurt while doing something work related and during work hours, you are typically covered. You are not covered if your injury was the result of your willful misconduct. For example, if you get into a fight at work and get injured as a result, you are not eligible for benefits. On the other hand, injuries resulting from a mistake are generally covered. In most cases you cannot sue your employer for negligence.

In order to receive medical coverage, you are required to see a doctor chosen by your employer. A list of approved doctors should be posted in the workplace. If you go to a doctor not on the list, it is considered “unauthorized treatment” and the cost will not be covered.

Attorney’s fees in Georgia work injury claims are limited to 25% of whatever your lawyer recovers for you (up to 400 weeks of benefits). If you recover $40,000, the attorney fee would be $10,000. However, if you get nothing, you would owe them nothing.

In Georgia, the law requires you to give your employer notice of your injury within 30 days of the accident. You should do this in writing as soon as possible so that there is no dispute as to when notice was given. If you fail to provide proper notice your case can be dismissed.

If you are having trouble getting benefits, or have any other dispute with the insurance company, it’s important to file a claim right away. There is a time limit on claims – one year from the date of the injury – or your case will be forever barred. The claim should be filed with the State Board of Workers’ Compensation.

Finally, please know that in Georgia a Workers’ Compensation Claim is not a lawsuit, but rather a claim for benefits similar to filing for health insurance or long term disability. In almost every instance your law firm deals directly with the insurance company for your employer, not the employer themselves. Unlike health insurance coverage disputes, quick action can make a disputed job injury case more successful.

A good Georgia work accident attorney can guide you through the benefits process and be there in case you have questions or anything goes wrong. They can also prevent problems such as unpaid benefits or denial of medical treatment from arising in the first place. Either way, it makes sense to have someone looking out for your best interests. Simmons & Associates stands ready to stand up for you.






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