Fall Greetings to you all!

We have not had a blog post in a while because we have been busy at work representing injured persons in motor vehicle accidents, car accidents, truck accidents and slip and fall accidents. We are sorry!

BUT, we did want to take time out today and recap our time with Oaklyn, Tonewood Brewing and the fabulous people that organized and participated in Final Friday.

We were a sponsor this year and we had a lot of fun meeting all of the great people of our community, and we had giveaways, contests and all other kinds of fun stuff.

Here are some photos from our Final Friday events (the last Friday of every month from July through October). We had our little pre-Halloween costume party, we did a dunk-the-lawyer dunk tank and we gave free legal advice all afternoon to anyone who needed it.

We are thankful and grateful for such wonderful community support. We hope to support you in kind if you have a legal issue that you need help with, whether it is a traffic ticket, an injury you sustained at work, a dispute you are having with your neighbor or a car accident. Give us a call and we hope to be able to help you as you gear up for the holidays.

Be safe and well!

-David

Announcement

Hasner and Hasner, PA is sad to announce that David T. Wright, Esq. has left our firm. We thank him for the work that he did for us, and what we were able to accomplish with him, and we wish him the best moving forward.

Without Mr. Wright in the fold, Hasner and Hasner, PA identified the need to bring another attorney on board with the firm. As such, Hasner and Hasner, PA is excited to announce that Damian Sammons has joined the firm as Senior Counsel. The firm is excited to have Damian’s wealth knowledge and experience available as Hasner and Hasner to continues in its mission to provide excellent service to its clients and aggressively represent those who are hurt in accidents or face criminal charges. Please join us in welcoming him and please do not hesitate to give us a call to discuss your legal issue. Mr. Sammons’ bio can be found under the “our attorneys” tab on the webpage.

Final Friday

Final Friday

Hasner and Hasner, PA is proud to be a sponsor for all Final Friday events in Oaklyn, New Jersey for the 2024 year. For those of you that do not know, Final Friday is an event that occurs on every last Friday of the month throughout the summer. The hours are from 4PM to 10PM and it’s on Clinton Avenue in Oaklyn, NJ. The entire community comes out, the road is blocked off and food vendors and music acts and other kinds of entertainment are generally present. It is usually a very good time to relax and be outdoors and mingle with your neighbors. Since we are a community friendly and community based law firm, we will be there. We may have some special events like corn hole competitions or other games, so come on out, have some food and meet your local lawyers!

The dates are: Friday, June 28, 2024, Friday, July 26, 2024, Friday, August 30, 2024, Friday, September 27, 2024 and Friday, October 25, 2024.

Spring Retirement

More changes have occurred at Hasner and Hasner, PA. Please join us all in congratulating Louis G. Hasner on his retirement! He worked hard for his clients and the community and the firm for over 40 years and we are sad to see him hang up the suit for good. His presence in the office and his experience litigating matters will be missed.

The firm is happy to see him excited about the new phase of his life, which includes more golfing, tennis and more spending time with his family.

Fall Changes

Hasner and Hasner, PA has experienced many big changes over the last two months that you might not be aware of. We have changed locations, moving from our long time home in Clementon, New Jersey to a new office in Audubon, New Jersey. We have also updated our staff by adding David T. Wright, Esq. as an associate attorney with our firm. We are proud and happy to welcome him to our team.

Despite our staffing changes and changes in location, our goal remains the same: to provide at least the same, if not better, legal services for the members of our community. We aim to be more responsive to your legal needs than ever before, and we believe these changes in our firm will help do that. As we continue to maintain and grow our presence in the community, we look forward to helping you and seeing you around town. Please do not hesitate to call us if you have any question about anything, whether it be a legal problem or just to say hello.

High Burden of Proof

Burden of Proof

With limited exceptions (parking tickets, for example), the State of New Jersey has the burden of proof if you are charged with a crime or traffic offense. The burden of proof for these types of matters is beyond a reasonable doubt. The State typically has the burden to prove you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt as to each element of the offense. An offense may have two or more elements and the State of New Jersey must prove EVERY element beyond a reasonable doubt. Let’s take possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose as an example. In order for the State to prove a defendant guilty of that offense, the State must prove the following things beyond a reasonable doubt: 1) that the defendant had possession of the weapon. Possession can be actual (gun found in the defendant’s actual hand) or constructive (gun is in the glove box of a car driven by defendant), but it needs to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt; 2) that the gun is an actual weapon, under the statute; 3) that the defendant either actually used the gun for an unlawful purpose or intended to use the weapon for an unlawful purpose. An example of this would be if the defendant threatened to shoot someone with the weapon. It is unlawful to shoot someone (at least, under nearly all circumstances) and thus, that can be used as evidence of intent to use the weapon unlawfully. Compare this to taking the gun to a gun range or to the woods to hunt if the defendant had a hunting license which could be construed as using the gun lawfully. There are additional nuances to this gun example that may come in to play that you may not realize, such as whether the gun is loaded or capable of being fired.

Beyond a reasonable doubt

There are numerous definitions of “beyond a reasonable doubt”, but there is no question that the burden is high. For example, the Supreme Court of the United States says that “proof beyond a reasonable doubt is proof, for example, that leaves you firmly convinced of the defendant’s guilt. In this world, we know very few things with absolute certainty. In criminal cases, the law does not require proof that overcomes every possible doubt. If, based on your consideration of the evidence, you are firmly convinced that the defendant is guilty of the crime charged, you must find him guilty. If, on the other hand, you are not firmly convinced of defendant’s guilt, you must give defendant the benefit of the doubt and find him not guilty.”

It is also worth considering speaking to an experienced criminal defense attorney like one at Hasner and Hasner, PA because if the State is reliant on documents or evidence other than testimony, they are required to follow the rules of evidence and rules of court to get those pieces of evidence to be considered by the judge or jury. It is not a guarantee that just because a document says something that it will be introduced into evidence or considered by the judge or jury. There are many considerations to look at when determining whether to go to a trial or to consider negotiating a different resolution.

Contact Hasner and Hasner, PA today for a free consultation.

DOG BITES, ONE BITE RULE AND STRICT LIABILITY: NEW JERSEY VS. PENNSYLVANIA

Dog Bite Laws

At Hasner and Hasner, PA, we are proponents of responsible pet ownership. The 2nd most popular pet in the United States after cats is dogs. Many people own and love dogs. Also, many people adopted dogs during the COVID19 pandemic and lockdown. If you are one of those that owns a dog or is around dogs on a consistent basis, we are excited for you as they can bring joy and color to your life.

It is important to enjoy dog ownership in a SAFE way. Do your best to get as much of a history as you can on your dog, or the dog that you are encountering. What is the breed? Does that breed have a history of being aggressive or biting? Has your particular dog ever bitten anyone before? How does your dog behave with other dogs? How does your dog behave with children? How does your dog behave with strangers?

Getting answers to these questions should be done in a very careful way. Always leash and take close control of your dog when the dog is in new situations or when the dog is outside.

New Jersey Dog Bites

In New Jersey, if a dog bites a person, there is a strict liability statute for the owner of the dog. This means that even if that dog had never bit anyone prior to that incident, the owner is still responsible for the pain and suffering and injury caused by that bite.

Pennsylvania Dog Bites

In Pennsylvania, if a dog bites a person, there is no strict liability statute like there is in New Jersey. In Pennsylvania, in order to make a recovery for injury caused by a dog bite, one must demonstrate the dog owner’s negligence. This negligence can be demonstrated if the dog bit someone in the past, such that the dog owner was aware that the dog was capable of biting a person. It can also be evidence of negligence on the owner if the owner was aware that the dog was an aggressive dog even if the dog had not bitten anyone before.

You may have heard the phrase “one bite rule” before. All this means is that if a dog has bit someone before, that is evidence that the dog could be violent towards humans or might have vicious propensities because of that prior bite. This prior bite could provide evidence of the owner’s negligence if the owner does not take precautions to prevent a subsequent bite. This rule applies in Pennsylvania but NOT in New Jersey.

Call Hasner and Hasner

If you or your family member has sustained a personal injury by being bitten by a dog, please do not hesitate to give us a call for a free consult to help you in your specific situation.

-David

AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE RATES GOING UP

Auto Insurance Rate Increase

Do you know how much insurance coverage you have if you are involved in a motor vehicle accident? If you do not know, I urge you to look right now. I’ll wait.

This is too important to ignore.

Before you get behind the wheel again today or go sit in the passenger seat of a car, be sure you KNOW what your insurance coverages are. If you are involved in an accident in New Jersey, your coverage follows you as an individual first. If you have questions about insurance coverage when you are involved in a car accident, do not hesitate to give our office a call for a FREE consult.

If the answer to the above question is that you have what we call a 15/30 policy, that is the absolute minimum coverage you can have in New Jersey. It allows for you to be covered for $15,000 per individual and $30,000 TOTAL coverage for individuals hurt in a car accident if that accident was your fault. If you have a 15/30 UM/UIM policy, then that is $15,000 of coverage that you provide for yourself per accident if someone ELSE causes an accident where you are injured and they are uninsured or underinsured.

Now here comes the curveball: If you have one of these 15/30 policies, they are no longer allowed. Governor Murphy signed a bill into law that goes into effect in January of 2023 in New Jersey (so, right now) that requires you to have a MINIMUM of 25/50 coverage ($25,000 per individual and $50,000 total per accident).

This is a good news/bad news situation. It is good news because it forces everyone to have insurance policies with higher minimum limits in New Jersey so that if they cause a motor vehicle accident with injuries, there is more coverage to go around. So, if you are seriously hurt and an accident is not your fault, you’re not going to be stuck with a small recovery due to low coverage limits. The bad news is that your insurance rates are going to go up to pay for the increase in minimum coverage.

Contact Hasner and Hanser

At Hasner and Hasner, PA, we understand that affording coverage in New Jersey is difficult and that this will make it a little more expensive. There are other ways to save on coverage, and you should always know what you have. So, do not hesitate to call us for a FREE consult to review your automobile insurance coverage, so that we can let you know what we recommend and your options to make things cheaper.

-David

YOUR LOCAL ATTORNEYS GIVING BACK LOCALLY

Dog on a leashHasner and Hasner giving back to the Community

My dad, Lou Hasner, and I are big believers in having strong community ties. At Hasner and Hasner, PA we want to put faces to the voices we hear on the phone and the names we see on our paperwork. We want to shake your hand. We want to know how your family is doing. We are proud to be located in the close knit community of Clementon, New Jersey, representing clients who get traffic tickets, or get in car accidents and they’re hurt or have damage to their cars, or even if they have a court date after a fight with a spouse or significant other. Give us a call and we will talk to you at no charge and tell us your story.

It is with this background in mind that we are proud to announce that Hasner and Hasner, PA has made a $2,000.00 charitable donation to the Animal Adoption Center in Lindenwold, New Jersey in the name of one of our clients who passed away recently. This client had an incredible story: he was a Marine and a community resident who was hit by a car while he was walking his bicycle across the street and was hospitalized with a broken leg. He did not own a cell phone and had very few personal belongings in his small apartment in Clementon. He found our office by dialing ‘0’ on his hospital phone after the accident and he asked for a local personal injury attorney and the operator directed his call to our office. Amazingly, this client was in his 80s and prior to that accident he still found time to ride his bicycle around town and had an active lifestyle. He was not the same after the car accident that we handled for him and he could not ever really get back on that bicycle before he died. He passed away at 86 after dying of natural causes.

One thing he did mention to us in person, after riding his bicycle to our office, was that he had no wife or living family or relatives, but he loved animals. This client was very particular about his love for animals. So, when he passed, we at Hasner and Hasner, PA felt that it was only right to do a little something for the local community in his honor by donating $2,000.00 to the Animal Adoption Center in Lindenwold, New Jersey on Berlin Road in his name. We are happy that our donation will go towards feeding or housing some needy dog or cat or pet that was found stray in the streets or returned by their owner who was unable to care for them. That is what he would have wanted, and we wanted to give back to our local community as your local attorneys at law.

Contacting the Adoption Center

Please contact the Animal Adoption Center in Lindenwold, New Jersey on Berlin Road to adopt or rescue or foster a dog or cat or pet in need, and don’t forget to give us a call if you have any legal question of any kind. Their website is: www.aacnj.org.

When my wife and I lost our first dog, Sally, to complications from old age, it was sad and heartbreaking. We knew we could not remain dogless for long and we had to rescue a dog in need. We visited the Animal Adoption Center in Lindenwold and brought home Iroh, who is the dog pictured below. He has been with us for over 1 year now and we could not be happier and Iroh could not be happier being in such a loving home. He is quite the good dog. Please continue to support this local animal shelter.

-David

Seasons Greetings & Happy New Year from Hasner & Hasner

Season Greetings and Happy New Year

Seasons Greetings & Happy New Year from Hasner & Hasner

Contact Us

We hope everyone has a joyous holiday season. If you find yourself in need of legal counsel, whether it is for an accident or legal issues don’t hesitate to give us a call or contact us.