5 comments about How to Win Your Personal Injury Claim.

1. I thought it was very helpful, but I ended up getting a lawyer anyway. Based on how stressed and ill I felt after the accident, I chose to use an attorney for my own peace of mind. The book helped me make a chronological report of events the day of the accident, and all the pain issues and stress that followed. The notes, reports, and calendar I kept have been invaluable to my attorney. The other insurance company fought with me over car rental. Using the guidelines in the book, I was able to create a letter that convinced them to pay the $1000 in car rental costs. I decided to use a lawyer for all the pain and suffering issues.



2. I had a boating accident (I was a passenger) in 2001. I heard terrible stories from people who had hired lawyers and ended up with nothing. I bought this book and after 2 years of medical procedures & appointments, when I was done, I composed a letter requesting $85,000 from the insurance company (who had already been paying all my medical bills), State Farm. The policy was for $100,000 and the boat owner had only made one month's payment. I figured I would negotiate down to $65,000 minimum. I reasoned that if I ended up having to get a lawyer, I would ask for the $100,000 and end up with $66,000 (lawyer would get 30 percent). With my letter, documentation and before, during and after pictures, State Farm ended up awarding me $90,000. $5,000 more than I had requested. I highly recommend this book, but you must be thorough and patient. It's a lot of "legwork". A lot of research and stuff, but who knows your "pain and suffering" better than you. Certainly not a lawyer!!! The money is gone, but I used it to keep my paralyzed 83 year old mom at home with a caregiver until she passed away!



3. I would recommend you buy this book which is published by Nolo Press, which is probably the most prominent self-help legal publisher. It is a very good overview and covers alot. If you had to buy one book only, this is it.
   
   
   I had also bought "Car Accident Secrets" which is written by an insurance "insider". I don't really recommend it. It only provided general/basic info. which is covered by Joseph Matthew's book. Good luck.



4. This book is very vague especially relating to car accidents. I had much better luck with Car Accident Secrets. It contained more information and was very easy, had step by step instructions to follow. I would recommend purchasing Car Accident Secrets if you have been involved in a car accident.



5. This is the second NOLO book I've bought ("patent it yourself" was the first), and I'm equally impressed at its organization and vital usefulness. This guidebook is as essential for navigating a damages or personal injury claim as a travel guide is for navigating a new city. It specifically lists steps that you need to take, forms that you need to fill out (including their URLs when possible), letters that you need to write, and walks you through the whole process. It also informs you what types of shenanigans insurance companies can and cannot get away with.
   
   90% of my legal questions were answered in this book, so that when I finally met with a legal ad adviser face to face, I was well prepared and only needed to ask a few more nuanced questions.
   
   My car was totaled and without collision coverage, I was forced to deal with the other guy's insurance company directly (Liberty Mutual, ranked one of the lowest in consumer reports because of their aggressive tactics when filing a claim). Liberty Mutual denied liability without giving any written justification even though their guy hit me while taking a left turn. This book has prepared me for the fight though. I plan to represent myself in small claims court.
   
   This book is also more useful and broadly applicable than just personal injuries. In my auto accident, I was not injured and was not even considering faking, so most attorneys wouldn't take my case. But I just ignored the chapters on personal injury and focused on the sections discussing liability and property damages.

1 comments about Contracts: Transactions And Litigation.

1. This was a great introduction to contract law, but there were literally hundreds - maybe even a thousand - of typographical errors: Words spelled incorrectly (even basic words like "plaintiff") or inconsistently (like parties' actual names), words left out of quotations, spacing errors, punctuation errors, indention errors, etc., etc. The number of errors was so large that it became extremely distracting at times and really took away from the cases and editorial remarks presented.

1 comments about Contracts: Barnett (Casenote Legal Briefs).

1. These casenote brief books are indispensable for class. When you've read the case a few days prior, you can refresh your memory right before class using these briefs. They also distill the important points of the case. When called on in class, you will be sure to have the vital information to answer the professor's question. Sometimes even having read and briefed a case it is difficult for 1L's to grasp the bottom line information. These briefs will ensure that you don't thrash around when trying to answer your professor's questions. I recommend them to supplement your case reading. Great in a jam when you haven't prepared for class or read the case.

No comments about High Court Case Summaries on Contracts (Keyed to Fuller, 8th) (High Court Case Summaries).

5 comments about An Introduction to Mathematics (Galaxy Books).

1. "The study of mathematics is apt to commence in disappointment."
   
   "One of the causes of the apparent triviality of much of elementary algebra is the preoccupation of the textbooks with the solutions of equations."
   
   In discussing Descartes' coordinate geometry, Whitehead states, "Philosophers, when they have possessed a thorough knowledge of mathematics, have been among those who have enriched the science with some of its best ideas. On the other hand, it must be said that, with hardly an exception, all remarks on mathematics made by those philosophers who have possessed but a slight or hasty and late-acquired knowledge of it, are entirely worthless, being either trivial or wrong."
   
   "Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them. Operations of thought are like cavalry charges in a battle - they are strictly limited in number, they require fresh horses, and must only be made at decisive moments."
   
   "The really profound changes in human life have all had their ultimate origin in knowledge pursued for its own sake."
   
   Alfred North Whitehead, a remarkable British mathematician and philosopher, enlivens his look at the fundamental ideas underlying mathematics with provocative observations. Nonetheless, Whitehead does not avoid mathematics while trying to explain mathematics. While this book is clearly for the layman, it may occasionally require some effort. An Introduction to Mathematics is delightful, insightful, and intellectually stimulating.
   
   Whitehead argues that mathematics is an abstract science that is primarily concerned with generality, not specificity. In trying to master the techniques and mechanics of arithmetic, algebra, and geometry, many students fail to recognize the fundamental ideas. They become lost in a murky fog of details.
   
   I found myself surprised by Whitehead's insightful explanations of familiar topics like variables, constants, and simple algebraic equations. I know math. But I now recognize that I had not really given sufficient thought to some very basic concepts. Just a few pages into this little book I was actually looking at some familiar concepts from a very different perspective.
   
   Later discussions on mathematical symbolism, imaginary numbers, conic sections, trigonometry, and infinite series move more slowly and may require rereading. But the insights gained will more than offset any additional effort.
   
   Whitehead occasionally digresses to discuss the act of mathematical creation. He agrees with the poet Shelley who compared the discovery of "some great truth" to the slow snowflake by snowflake accumulation that leads to an avalanche. While not discounting the role of genius, Whitehead sees breakthroughs in mathematical thought, often as unexpected as an avalanche, the natural result of the accumulation of knowledge through the centuries.
   
   Whitehead's small book could serve as the basis for a short class or tutorial for high school students (or perhaps even for humanities majors with less than fond feelings for mathematics.) An Introduction to Mathematics is an effective counterbalance to standard textbooks that focus too much on technique, manipulation, and mechanics. Five stars.



2. This is a nice, little book: short, clear, and very well written. I confess, though, that I'm not sure who its best audience really is. If you know some math, and have thought and read AT ALL about the philosophy of math, you will not find much new in this book; still, since it will be quick and easy to read, you will probably find it worthwhile, for the occasional new insight or alternative way of looking at things. I found the section on series particularly worth reading, because series were not well covered in my own math education. I also found the comments on the measurement of time to be subtle and thought-provoking.
   
   If you know little or no math, you MIGHT find this a good introduction (as the title implies), but don't expect any detailed exposition on the actual PRACTICE of math. This book is really an introduction to the philosophy of math. It is concerned with WHY we do math, and why math takes the form that it does. Whitehead's goal is to introduce some key concepts, common to all math, such as variables and abstraction. Any actual proofs or expositions in the book are included only as examples of how these concepts play out in seemingly different areas of study.
   
   Perhaps the reader best served by this book would be one who is comfortable with the practice of math at least through the basic high school level (geometry, algebra, trigonometry), and possibly more, but is just starting to think about the underlying philosophy: the "why" of math as opposed to the "how" of it.
   
   For those who don't know, Whitehead was, of course, one of the premier philosophers of math of the early 20th century, co-author with Bertrand Russell of the 3-volume magnum opus "Principia Mathematica". The present book was written around 1911, and is definitely dated in spots - for instance he talks about electro-magnetic vibrations in the "ether" - but that doesn't detract from either its usefulness or readability.



3. Whitehead's "Introduction to Mathematics" is an illustrative, lucid, and concise discourse on the "three great mathematical ideas of the variable, of algebraic form, and of generalization." As other reviewers have indicated, the author presupposes that the reader have at least *some* experience with elementary algebra, geometry, and trigonometry. The book's greatest strength, however, lie in its ability to supplement the rigor of an undergraduate math education (or something akin) with the "why" of said education. In sum, both math- and non-math oriented folk will benefit from reading this book --- the non-mathematicians may be turned on to the elegance of the discipline whereas the mathematicians may be reminded (gasp!) of its beauty and relevance.



4. I assume that it was very unusual, in the early 20th century, for scholars of Whitehead's stature to write for an educated lay readership, and that IM is one of only a handful of 'popular mathematics' books of its day. As such, IM and Whitehead are to be commended. Aside from an occasional reference to the 'ether', as others have noted, IM is current and compelling in every respect. It is a fine read (though rather curiously organized: it's final two chapters seem to belong much earlier in the book). I give it 4 stars only because others, standing on Whitehead's shoulders, have done a much better job of covering similar ground. I have in mind, especially, Tobias Dantzig's first-rate "Number: The Language of Science" (recently reissued).
   
   A word to the wise: avoid the Barnes and Noble edition of IM. It is rife with typos, not to mention a missing diagram. I don't know whether the errors are B&N's own, or owe to the fact(?) -- it seems -- that this edition corresponds to (though does not photo-reproduce) the original 1911 edition, which (judging from the latest offerings on Amazon), was superseded by a corrected edition in 1948. Whatever the source of these errors, they are many and greatly distracting.



5. This is one of those rare works by a true master. The following quote from page 161 definitely applies to the book itself:
   
   "If we understand the preceding ideas, we understand the foundations of modern mathematics".
   
   This is what this book is about. If you're looking precisely for this, as I was, you'll be truly enlightened by its reading.

No comments about Contracting.

No comments about Contract Law: Selected Source Materials 2005.

No comments about Casebook on Contract Law.

5 comments about Contracts (Sum & Substance Cd's "Outstanding Professor"Series).

1. Upon receiving my copies of "Contracts" audio CDs (Douglas J. Whaley), I am surprised at the negative reviews. Having completed two masters degrees, I have plenty of experience with poor instructors, poor textbooks, poor audio lessons; and poor universities. In my opinion, these Contracts CDs are excellent. Professor Whaley provides: (a) a clear speaking voice; (b) excellent inflection to keep the listener's attention; (c) good humor and vocabulary; (d) humorous case examples (e.g., minors as chimpanzees, dog law, paid-in-full checks, etc.); (e) well-organized lectures; and (f) plenty of detail to support further research. While I am not a Law student, these CDs are providing an excellent refresher for my MBA Business Law classes. These CDs are worth the price, and I will be ordering Professor Whaley's CDs on "Sale & Lease of Goods" (as well as the Finz CDs on Torts).



2. Having listened to this CD numerous time (its a requirement for my law school) - I found that it is presented in a very confussing fashion. There is no clear progression from basics to putting it all together.
   
   In contrast, the Dressler Sum and Substance on Criminal Law and Criminal Procedures are excellent. He is a fantastic instructor and makes you want to listen.
   
   My vote: Get the Dressler S&S, avoid the Whaley materials at all costs!



3. I like this CD a lot. It's great for reviewing during my commute to and from law school. However, it's not as engaging as other Sum and Substance cds. It's pretty dry and the guy does not go in the best order. Also, for some reason the sections are not as broken up as on other series which makes it kind of pain if you aren't going to sit down and listen for a long time (since it's hard to find your spot again). I would definitely recommend it for any law school commuters or anyone with some down time that they want to use to review.



4. The Sum & Contract CD by Professor Whaley is very boring and lacking substance. The last CD-summary out of all the 7 Cds in the case was slightly helpful. Got rid of my CD after a week. I am about to try the Legend series or Fleming Fundamental of Law series.



5. The other Sum and Substance CDs are well done, even interesting. "Contracts" by Professor Douglas J. Whaley somehow slipped past the editors. Information is given, then the Prof. reverses himself and corrects the information after you've already taken notes. He fumbles and bumbles, gives incorrect citations, then apologizes. He uses terminology not explained until several discs later, which is not always relevant to the topic. He skips about, and does not stay on point.
   If you are able to find another source for Contracts, do so. This was required by my law school. I had to rewind over and over to try to understand what he was trying to say. Other S&S CDs were not disorganized like this one.

1 comments about Construction Scheduling: Preparation, Liability and Claims.

1. The book was a long read and made some challenging conclusions but provided me with specific, valuable knowledge in serious construction scheduling topics such as extension of time claims and time impact analysis. The examples included are many as are the case studies. The book opened my mind as to the significant capability the construction schedule can have on making or breaking the profitablility of a compressed project or one that is prone to delays. The book is a must read for consultants on the matter but also important to senior project controls staff.