What You Need to Know About Auto Accidents in Massachusetts

Quick Action Is Required After an Accident There is never a good time to have an accident. Depending on the circumstances, an accident can be a minor inconvenience or a life-altering calamity. Recent studies suggest that the average driver will have a collision three or four times over a lifetime, or about one collision every eighteen years. We all hope and pray that any collisions we are involved with are minor and result in no serious property damage and–even more importantly–no real harm to people. Yet even a minor “fender-bender” can ruin more than an ordinary afternoon of errands and

I suffered an injury on a wet floor at the gym. The manager says I can’t sue because I signed a “general release” when I joined. Is this true?

While it’s standard procedure for a health club or gym to require members to sign a liability waiver, members still have rights. The purpose of a general release of liability waiver is to protect the gym from injuries caused by members. It’s common to sustain an injury while exercising. For example, pulling a muscle by lifting too much weight, misusing an exercise machine, or overexerting are typical injuries covered members are prohibited from bringing about legal action. However, when an injury is sustained due to the gym’s negligence, a release is not enough to excuse the gym from liability. Similar

How Does Legal Marijuana Impact Personal Injury Cases?

While marijuana use is legal for people over the age of 21 under Massachusetts law, it does not change whether or not a person under the influence can be considered at fault in a personal injury case. Marijuana use, legal or not, is treated similarly to alcohol and other substances when it comes to things like driving, operating heavy machinery, and personal injury cases. Like alcohol, cannabis impairs a person’s reaction times. Massachusetts has passed a range of laws governing the legal use of cannabis to keep people safe. Just like it is illegal to drive under the influence of

Injured While Ridesharing: Can Passengers Sue the Company as Well as the Driver?

Ridesharing has been hailed as one of the great conveniences of modern life: easier than designating a driver, cheaper than a cab, and faster than waiting for the bus. When it comes to injuries incurred because of a rideshare driver’s recklessness or negligence, however, it is less clear how victims can receive compensation. The average driver, even working fulltime, is almost certainly lacking insurance, assets, and earnings substantial enough to cover millions of dollars in medical treatment expenses and lost wages. As of 2021, however, the rideshare industry was valuated at $61 billion. For such a massive, profitable industry, the

How does the court determine fault for injuries suffered in a car accident?

The terms comparative fault and contributory negligence are legal doctrines often referred to during auto accident lawsuits to address who is at fault. More precisely, these terms determine the percentage of each party at fault to determine how and if damages will be awarded. If you are injured in a car accident, you may be entitled to recover damages from the responsible party. Under Massachusetts law, anyone operating a motor vehicle has a duty to standard care. All drivers are expected to obey traffic laws and exercise caution based on driving conditions. When it comes to auto accidents, it’s not

How can parents receive compensation for the death or injury of their child?

A Lawsuit No One Wants to File The worst thing a parent can imagine is harm coming to their child—be that serious injury or even death. Indeed, even people without children cringe at the thought of a little one’s suffering. Unfortunately, in the world we live in, the most vulnerable among us are not shielded from injury and accident. As such, the law has remedies for parents that they wish they never would have needed—financial compensation for the injury, disability, or death of their child. Damages: A Primer In any discussion of personal injury or wrongful death cases, it is

The Truth About How Much Your Personal Injury Case Is Worth

When determining how much a personal injury case is worth, it’s important to remember that every case is different and must be evaluated independently. Personal injury cases are anything but cut and dry, and there is no mathematical formula to determine how much one is owed for sustained injuries. Be wary of lawyers who claim they can immediately value your personal injury case as each case depends on many factors, such as the nature and severity of an injury, the extent of medical expenses, and the permanency of the injury. How an injury impacts an individual’s ability to work and

Can I sue my employer if I was injured on the job?

According to Massachusetts General Laws, all employers must provide workers’ compensation insurance coverage. This ensures that employees who are injured on the job or contract an illness related to their work are protected by Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation benefits. Compensation benefits are guaranteed in most cases even if the employee is at fault for their injury. Benefits may cover partial pay replacement, hospital and medical care expenses, and disability compensation. In exchange for the guarantee of benefits, injured employees receiving workers’ compensation cannot sue their employer for personal injuries. There may be an exception in some cases if it can be

Punitive Damages and Personal Injury Cases: A Rare Option in Massachusetts Courts

American law commonly recognizes two major types of compensation, or damages, that are available to victims of personal injuries: compensatory and punitive. In general, Massachusetts and the other New England states do not allow for punitive damages. One exception to this in the Commonwealth is in wrongful death cases. Compensatory Damages: An Overview In short, compensatory damages seek to provide an equivalent dollar amount to make up for the losses incurred by an injury. These can include the cost of medical bills, loss of income, loss of future earning potential, pain and suffering, and loss of companionship if one’s spouse

How does contributory and comparative negligence affect my car accident lawsuit?

Anyone who has experienced an auto accident knows how quickly things can spiral out of control. With any luck, all parties involved can walk away from such an event unharmed. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. In the event an auto accident leads to injury, it’s crucial to determine who is at fault and the level of culpability they contributed to the accident. Comparative fault and contributory negligence are models for determining who bears responsibility for an auto accident. This is central to car accident lawsuits as there is often no clear answer. Oftentimes more than one person may

What Type of Damages Can You Sue for When Injured?

If you have been injured as the result of someone else’s reckless actions or lack of care—whether on the road, in unsafe premises, or elsewhere—you may be entitled to compensation for the material and immaterial consequences of your injury. A skilled personal injury can give you a personalized assessment of the damages you have suffered, what a court would assign as their worth, and how best to obtain compensation for you through the legal system. This article, however, is designed to give you an overview of damage claims that Massachusetts courts may recognize. Compensatory Damages Only In American law, two

What You Need to Know if a Defective Product injures your Child

Trips to the emergency room are every parent’s worst nightmare. Yet, according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, each year, over 200,000 children are treated at hospital emergency rooms for toy-related injuries. While some injuries are due to improper use, thousands of new toys hit the shelves every year, and unfortunately, not all are safe. If a defective toy injures your child, you may be able to file a product liability lawsuit. Most personal injury cases are based on negligence; however, when the negligence is in relation to product design or manufacturing or a failure to warn appropriately,

Know The Legal Steps To Take After A Wrongful Death Caused By An Auto Accident

Struggling with the loss of a loved one is never easy. Figuring out the legal steps when dealing with a wrongful death due to an auto accident is difficult, which is why we’re here to help ease this troubling time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that there are more than 32,367 fatalities annually as a result of car crashes. Such collisions are often a result of the negligence of another person. Many drivers falsely believe that car accidents are always “accidental” and are something unfortunate that just happens. From the carelessness of another driver, the negligence

Rear-end collisions and the rush to settle

Rear-end collisions are not uncommon, but they are not simple or routine. Rear-end collisions come on a sliding scale, ranging from the annoying to the frightening to the downright devastating. A long-haul trucker whose brakes fail at an off-ramp can total cars, wreck bodies, and take lives. On the other hand, a distracted driver letting his foot of the break in snail’s-pace traffic will probably result in a dinged bumper and frayed nerves. What rear-end collisions often have in common is insurance companies’ haste in settling. Why could this be? Liability in rear-end collisions is clear: whoever was in the

My husband’s medical condition was misdiagnosed. Who should be held responsible?

When a serious injury or even death results from a misdiagnosed condition, there are several parties that can be held liable. This includes doctors, radiologists, nurses, and pharmacists as potentially responsible parties. However, for a medical professional to be held liable for medical malpractice, there are specific legal requirements under the Commonwealth of Massachusetts law. Restrictions stipulate when a claim can be made, limit the damages, and require specific types of evidence. Failing to diagnose or misdiagnosing an illness or condition can qualify as medical malpractice if it can be proven that a doctor or healthcare provider was negligent. This

Legal Resources