Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

In Massachusetts, Fall River resident Alyssa Bolduc, is suing Massachusetts State Trooper Allyson Powell for compensatory damages over a strip search that took place during a traffic stop in Dartmouth in March 2007.

Bolduc, 18, says that she and three friends were pulled over because of an unlit headlight. Bolduc says that she had unbuttoned the top button on her pants because she and her friends had just finished eating at the Dartmouth Wendy’s and she was full from her meal.

Although the police stop was for the headlight, Bolduc says that the police officers asked her and her friends if they had drugs or any prior criminal offenses.

Police noticed her unbuttoned pants and requested a female police officer to do a strip search. Bolduc says she was forced to stand naked from her waist down to her ankles in front of her friends and motorists—she says police told her to take under underwear off too. Officer Powell, wearing leather gloves, then allegedly conducted an “internal and manual body cavity search” of the teenager’s genitals. The teenager was not given a ticket or arrested following the search.

However, two of companions received traffic tickets. Christine Moniz was issued a $35 ticket for driving without a license, and Ryan O’Connell was issued a $35 ticket for letting someone without a driver’s license drive the car.

Massachusetts’s police strip search policy says that searches must be conducted in a police department facility unless circumstances necessitate otherwise and always in an area of complete privacy, away from public view. Police strip searches must also involve no touching.

Bolduc filed a formal complaint the day after the March 7, 2007 incident. An internal affairs report found evidence that Officer Powell violated police policies. The Massachusetts State Police Division of Standards and Training is disciplining her.

Our Boston personal injury lawyers represent clients in cities across Massachusetts that have been injured because of other parties’ negligent, careless, or criminal actions.

Lawsuit filed against Mass State Trooper, Herald News, April 30, 2008

Related Web Resource:

New England: Massachusetts: Strip-Search Settlement, New York Times, June 1, 2002

Related Web Resources:

Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Massachusetts Police Brutality

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Posted In: Personal Injury , Police Brutality

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A report coauthored by the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health and the Massachusetts AFL-CIO found that 80 Massachusetts workers died in 2007 because of injuries sustained while at work or because of work-related illnesses. The report is called "Dying for Work in Massachusetts."

The most dangerous industry for Massachusetts workers continues to be construction and firefighting. 20 construction workers died while on the job last year, while 9 Massachusetts firefighters died, most of them due to work-related illnesses. Other industries in Massachusetts with a high number of worker fatalities in 2007 are transportation, fishing, utility work, and motor vehicle repair.

Stress on the job reportedly led to six deadly heart attacks. Three of these fatalities were 38-year-old firefighters. 19 worker deaths were caused by fall accidents.

Two 17-year-old construction workers were among 2007's worker fatalities. A 71-year old mechanic was recorded as the oldest person to die last year due to a worker injury. One telecommunications worker with Verizon was electrocuted and died in Plymouth when his bucket struck high voltage wires.

Some people have expressed worries that certain companies are prioritizing productivity over worker safety. For example, the bucket used by the telecommunication worker that died was not insulated.

Work safety advocates believe that many of last year’s deaths could have been avoided if workers had been given the proper gear, equipment, and training. For instance, the 17-year-old construction worker that died in a fall accident was not using a safety harness when he fell from a Salem church roof last year.

Although Massachusetts workers’ compensation law provides injured workers and their families with financial compensation, the recovery may not cover all expenses and losses.

Our Boston workers’ compensation law firm can make sure that you are paid all of the workers’ compensation that you are owed in a timely manner. We can also determine whether there are any negligent third parties.

80 people in Massachusetts died of workplace injury in 2007, Associated Press/Boston Herald, April 29, 2008

80 work fatalities in state last year, Boston.com, April 29, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health

Read the Report "Dying for Work in Massachusetts" (PDF)

Massachusetts AFL-CIOhttp://www.altmanllp.com/lawyer-attorney-1226007.html

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The Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles has reduced the $30 million wrongful death judgment against actor Robert Blake to $15 million. Blake,74, had lost the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of his murdered wife Bonny Lee Bakley, but filed an appeal.

Blake said that the jury that awarded the judgment had engaged in misconduct and that the court made procedural mistakes. The appeals court, however, said that it did not find any evidence of jury misconduct or that the trial court had made errors. It did, however, find that the $30 million award was “excessive” and cut the judgment in half.

If Bakley’s estate does not agree to the new award amount, there will be a new trial to determine wrongful death damages.

Blake was tried for Bakley’s 2001 shooting death, which took place outside Vitello’s, a restaurant that she and Blake frequented. The two of them have a daughter named Rose, now 8.

Blake said that he left his wife in the car while he went back to the restaurant to get his gun that he left at the restaurant table. Blake said that he carried a gun with him and had hired a bodyguard to protect Bakley, who he thought was being followed.

Blake says he returned to the car and found his wife had been shot. She was pronounced dead upon arrival at a nearby hospital. Blake was arrested and charged with her murder nearly one year after her death.

One of Blake’s more famous roles as an actor was the television detective named Barretta on the television show with the same name. He has been acquitted of all criminal charges.

If someone you love has died because of the negligent, reckless, or criminal actions of another party, you may be able to sue for wrongful death damages. The best way to determine if you have grounds for a case is to contact a Boston, Massachusetts wrongful death lawyer.

Financial recovery could include pain and suffering, loss, future financial support, medical and funeral costs, and other related-damages.

Court cuts Robert Blake's wrongful death judgment, Reuters, April 26, 2008

Actor Blake Appeals Wrongful Death, ABCNews.com

Related Web Resources:

Robert Blake Timeline, People/CNN

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In Massachusetts, Boston-area psychiatrist Dr. Kayoko Kifuji is being sued for the wrongful death of 4-year-old Rebecca Riley. Rebecca died in 2006 following an overdose of psychiatric drugs.

The lawsuit, filed in Suffolk Superior Court, alleges that Rebecca was mostly prescribed drugs over the phone, using “slipshod diagnosis.”

Kifuji had diagnosed Rebecca with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder and bipolar disorder. She prescribed Seroquel, Clonidine, and Depakote.

The official cause of Rebecca’s death was prescription drug overdose, or "intoxication due to the combined effects" of clonidine, valproic acid (Depakote), dextromethorphan, and chlorpheniramin.” Her body was found in her Hull home on December 13, 2006.

Six weeks prior to Rebecca’s death, a nurse at her preschool in Weymouth told Kifuji that she believed the girl was taking too much medication. She described her as a “floppy doll” that was always tired. The doctor examined Rebecca but did not lower her prescription dosage.

A court-appointed guardian is representing Rebecca’s estate. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for Rebecca’s pain and suffering, her wrongful death, and the loss suffered by her 7-year-old sister and 13-year-old brothers, who are her estate’s beneficiaries. The two of them currently reside in foster homes.

Rebecca’s parents, Michael and Carolyn Riley, have been charged with her prescription overdose death. Her parents, awaiting their criminal trial in jail, have pled not guilty to the charges.

Last year, Kifuji agreed to stop seeing patients while the State Board of Registration in Medicine investigates the case. She told police that she was very concerned when she found out that Carolyn had increased Rebecca's nightly dose of clonidine.

Please contact our Boston, Massachusetts medical malpractice law firm today if you believe that you or someone you love was the victim of medical error or negligence.

Doctor is sued in death of girl, 4, Boston.com, April 4, 2008

Girl fed fatal overdoses, court told, Boston Globe, February 7, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, MD

Psychiatrist takes paid leave after death of girl, Boston.com, February 7, 2008

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The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is suing CSX Transportation and Cohenno Inc, a Stoughton lumber company, and is accusing them of negligence, for allegedly causing a 112-ton freight car to crash into a commuter train in Canton on March 25. The MBTA wants CSX and Cohenno to pay for repairs to the damaged train and cover overtime costs incurred by the MBTA and any other expenses as a result of the train collision. Damages are estimated at up to $1 million.

The freight car had escaped from a lumber yard in Stoughton, where it flew down three miles of train track before striking an MBTA commuter train and injuring 150 people. 120 people have already filed injury claims with the MBTA.

The lawsuit accuses both companies of failing to execute several basic security measures that would have prevented the Massachusetts train accident from happening. The MBTA is accusing CSX workers of failing to set the hand brake on the freight car and not putting a choking device next to its wheels—that would have prevented it from rolling—after delivering the car to the lumber company and storing it on a side rail.

The lawsuit alleges that Cohenno workers lost control of the freight car while trying to move it, which caused it to roll onto the tracks. The son of Bob Cohenno, the lumber company owner, however, says that workers did not try to move the freight car while it was in the yard.

The MBTA is also accusing CSX employees of failing to properly secure a steel gate that seals off the lumber yard from the commuter train tracks and not properly setting the derail device, which could have derailed the freight train so that it wouldn’t have run into the main rail line.

The MBTA alleges that the CSX has a habit of leaving freight cars without activating their hard breaks. According to the lawsuit, none of the freight cars at the Cohenno lumber yard on the day of the crash were properly secured.

In Massachusetts, our Boston personal injury lawyers handle cases throughout the state involving catastrophic injuries and property damage.

If you were injured in a train collision that was caused by the negligence of one or more parties, one of our Massachusetts train crash lawyers would be happy to discuss your case with you during a free consultation.

MBTA sues over commuter rail crash, Boston.com, April 18, 2008

No immunity in train accidents, Boston.com, March 26, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Train crash response 'seemed to just flow', Boston.com, April 3, 2008

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

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Nancy Magee, a Whitman, Massachusetts woman, is suing pet store chain PetSmart for the death of her husband. Her wrongful lawsuit, filed in federal court in Boston, alleges that Thomas Magee and two other people became infected with a rodent virus during their transplant surgeries. All three people had received their organs from the same woman, who is believed to have contracted the virus from her pet hamster, which she had purchased at a PetSmart in Warwick, Rhode Island.

Thomas Magee, 54, underwent a successful liver transplant surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital on April 10, 2005. The hospital delayed his release after he developed high blood pressure and a fever. On May 5, his wife Nancy was notified that he would need another kidney and liver transplant. Thomas died on May 7, 2005.

Later that month, the Rhode Island Health Department announced that Magee, and two other transplant patients—a double lung recipient from Massachusetts and a kidney transplant patient in Rhode Island—had died after becoming infected with the rodent virus.

Magee’s cause of death is listed as lymphocytic choriomeningitis. The virus is found in hamsters, mice, and other rodents. Symptoms are usually not fatal unless the person with the infection already has a compromised immune system.

Humans can contract the virus if they come into contact with the rodent’s saliva, fecal droppings, nesting materials, or urine—especially if the materials come into direct contact with a person’s nose, broken skin, eyes, or mouth. A rodent bite can also transmit the virus. The CDC says that it cannot be transferred between humans—although organ transplantation is now being investigated as a means of getting the virus.

Nancy Magee says that PetSmart was negligent when it failed in its duty to warn customers that hamsters might have the virus, as well as notify them that it could be dangerous for people with weak immune systems.

Nancy Magee is filing her wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of herself and their three children.

Our Boston wrongful death law firm represents clients throughout Massachusetts.

PetSmart Sued Over Infected Hamster Blamed in Three Deaths, Boston Herald, April 16, 2008

Suit: husband’s death tied to hamster, Wicked Local Whitman, April 16, 2008

Related Web Resource:

Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis, CDC.gov

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The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court says that Michael Haslam, a construction worker on Boston’s “Big Dig” freeway project, is not eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits for injuries he sustained when he fell asleep at the wheel while driving home after working for 27 hours straight. The court’s ruling reverses an earlier decision by the Industrial Accident Board.

The state’s highest court says that Haslam failed to prove that he needed to work as many hours as he did and that the circumstances surrounding his injury accident did not exempt him from the “going and coming rule,” which does not cover injuries sustained by workers when they are going to or coming from a job.

On August 3, 2001, Haslam started work at 5am. His shift was supposed to end at 3:30pm. Due to numerous work delays, however, the pouring of concrete did not take place until 1am the following day, and Haslam chose to stay because he needed to make sure that the job was done. He testified that if he hadn’t stayed, “I probably wouldn’t have had a job.”

He also said, however, that no one told him he had to stay. Also, the construction crew supervisor testified that he could have found someone else to replace Haslam if he had known that the foreman was so tired. Haslam's contract stipulates that he cannot be made to work overtime.

Haslam drove home on August 4, 2001 at around 8 in the morning after working for 27 hours. He says that he was “totally exhausted” and fell asleep at the wheel. Haslam struck a utility pole and sustained injuries.

A 2004 ruling found that Haslam was entitled to workers’ compensation for his injuries because “the physical state that caused the accident arose directly out of and had presented itself while [the employee] was still on the job.”

The SJC court, however, agreed with the insurance company that argued that Haslam was not obligated to stay longer than his work shift and that the “going and coming rule" applied.

If you have been injured on the job in Massachusetts, you should contact our Boston workers’ compensation law firm to discuss your legal options. We have helped many injured workers’ whose claims were denied or reduced to recover the compensation that was owed to them.

Sleepy Employee Hurt Driving Home Denied Mass. Workers' Comp, Insurance Journal, April 9, 2008

SJC: Big Dig worker not entitled to workers’ comp, BostonHerald.com, April 8, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, The Big Dig

Department of Industrial Accidents, Labor and Workforce Development

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In Suffolk County Superior Court in Massachusetts, an unnamed plaintiff has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit suing pediatrician doctor Melvin D. Levine for sexual assault, battery, and abuse from 1980 to 1985. This is not the first time that Dr. Levine has been accused of sexual abuse by a former patient.

Several men have stepped forward claiming that the doctor sexually abused them at Children’s Hospital Boston when they were boys. At least four of the men are suing him in court. All of the men describe similar incidents of being abused by the doctor during medical examinations.

In this latest lawsuit, John Doe No. 5 says that Levine conducted unnecessary physical exams on him when he was a boy and engaged in acts of sexual assault, including masturbation and genital touching. He is also accusing Dr. Levine of making threats to assault him and trying to engage in other acts of sexual assault. The plaintiff says that he repressed the sex abuse memories for years until he took his own son to the doctor for the exam.

Between 1971 and 1985, Dr. Levine spent 14 years as the chief of ambulatory pediatrics at Children's Hospital Boston He is a bestselling author.

Dr. Levine, who has treated over 15,000 child patients, claims he is completely innocent of any allegation. Children’s Hospital says they never received any complaints about him while he was at the hospital.

Sex Abuse
A person who is sexually abused can file criminal charges against the perpetrator. He or she can also sue the abuser in civil court. The charges and lawsuits must be filed within the statute of limitations of the state where the abuse took place.

Sex abuse can result in personal injury to the victim, which can include physical, emotional, and mental injuries that can lead to alcoholism, depression, promiscuity, drug abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, suicidal tendencies, sexual problems, intimacy issues, and broken relationships.

It may be impossible to fully recover from damages inflicted by sexual abuse, and medical and therapy costs can be very high.

In Boston, Massachusetts, our personal injury law firm would like to offer you a free consultation to discuss your sex abuse case. There may be civil remedies available to you for the harm that you or your child has suffered.

Lawsuit targets former pediatrician at Children's, Boston.com, March 31, 2008

Sex abuse claims filed against former Boston doctor, NECN.com, March 31, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Biography of Dr. Mel Levine, All Kinds of Minds

Children's Hospital Boston

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Posted In: Child Sex Abuse , Medical Malpractice

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Anne Ferreira, the Raynham, Massachusetts woman who drover her 1996 Toyota Camry sedan the wrong way on the Route 25 freeway on March 11, is being charged with DUI.

She crashed her sedan into a 1997 Buick LeSabre sedan. Both Ferreira and the driver of the sedan, 65-year-old New Bedford resident David McGowan, had to be pried from their motor vehicles. McGowan suffered serious injuries in the car accident and was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Massachusetts State Police said that a preliminary investigation found that Ferreira was driving under the influence of alcohol.

Drunk driving is considered reckless or negligent behavior and can lead to a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit if another person is injured in a motor vehicle collision as a result.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that drunk drivers can experience problems in maintaining the proper lane position (including weaving, drifting, swerving, turning with a wide radius, difficulty braking, speeding problems), vigilance problems (including driving into opposing or crossing traffic, signaling that is inconsistent with driving actions) and judgment problems, such as deciding to turn illegally and driving the wrong way down a road.

The consequences of drunk driving on the driver, his or her passengers, people in other cars, and pedestrians can be catastrophic.

Our Boston, Massachusetts personal injury lawyers have represented many victims of drunk driving cases throughout the state so that they could recover compensation for medical costs, lost wages, and other associated damages.

Of the 442 traffic fatalities that occurred in Massachusetts in 2005, 171 of them were alcohol-related.

Woman in wrong-way charged with DUI, Wickedlocal.com, March 20, 2008

The Visual Detection of DWI motorists, NHTSA

Related Web Resources:

Impaired Driving, CDC

Massachusetts Drunk Driving Statistics, AlcoholAlert.com

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Orit Greenberg, an audience member at a taping of the “Oprah Winfrey Show” on December 5, 2006, is suing Harpo Studios for personal injury.

Greenberg says that she suffered serious and permanent injuries when she fell down a flight of stairs during a mad rush by audience members to secure the best seats.

Greenberg is asking for $50,000 in damages. She says that Harpo Studios neglected to control audience members, who were told that they could sit wherever they wanted. The patrons, who had been in a waiting area, “rushed the gate” and pushed and shoved inro each other as they entered the studio.

Slip and Fall Accidents
Slip and fall accidents can lead to serious injuries, including broken bones and head injuries. It is the responsibility of a property or business owner to make sure that there are no conditions on a premise that can allow a person to slip or trip and fall. These types of accidents can be more serious than they sound, and the medical costs and time necessary for recovery can be lengthy.

Slip and fall accidents can be occur because of poorly lit hallways, damaged staircases, uneven sidewalks, debris or liquids left on the floor, and other unsafe conditions that can cause a person to slip and fall.

To prove liability in a slip and fall case, the plaintiff must prove that the owner or manager of the property caused the condition that resulted in the slip and fall accident, knew about the hazardous condition but did nothing to remedy the situation, or should have known about the unsafe condition and done something to fix it.

The statute of limitations for filing a slip and fall lawsuit in Massachusetts is three years from the time of the injury accident. There are certain cases, however, where the plaintiff may have to notify a property owner of the sip and fall accident right away to stay eligible to file a personal injury lawsuit—there may be even stricter notice requirements if your slip and fall accident occurred on a public premise.

Our experienced Boston, Massachusetts slip and fall lawyers have a combined 50 years of experience that allows us to work towards the best outcome for your injury case. We know how to properly investigate, pursue, and prove your slip and fall accident case, as well as determine how much recovery you should receive.

We will aggressively protect your rights and if necessary, our trial lawyers will fight for your slip and fall compensation in court.

Audience member sues Oprah's company after fall down stair, Suntimes.com, March 19, 2008

Slip and Fall/Premises Liability, CBS.com, March 23, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Slip and Fall, Nolo.com

Harpo Productions, Encyclopedia of Chicago

Continue reading "Oprah Winfrey Show Audience Member Sues Harpo Productions For Fall Accident" »

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Posted In: Premises Liability , Slip and Fall Accidents

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Dr. Rapin Osathanondh, the Massachusetts gynecologist whose patient died last September at his Women’s Health Center in Hyannis, is being sued for wrongful death. The wrongful death plaintiff is Eileen Smith, the mother of 22-year-old Laura Hope Smith, who died during an abortion procedure. Smith is asking for punitive damages for the gross negligence that she says caused her daughter’s death.

The wrongful death lawsuit was filed on March 10 in Barnstable Superior Court. Smith’s defense team says that Osathanondh failed to properly monitor Laura’s vital signs while she was under anesthesia. Osathanondh and a receptionist were the only ones present during the abortion.

The receptionist called 911 after Smith stopped breathing. Cause of death was “cardiac pulmonary arrest during anesthesia during a voluntary termination of pregnancy.”

Osathanondh says that Laura’s death was an unfortunate outcome and that he was not negligent. He surrendered his medical license and resigned from practicing medicine last month--just as Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine was about to suspend his license following Laura's death. His primary medical practice was located in Brookline.

Last week, Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe said he would try to obtain a grand jury criminal indictment against the gynecologist.

Gynecological Malpractice
Injuries caused by gynecological or obstetric malpractice can be very physically and emotionally traumatic for the patient. Injury victims and families of patients that have died because of medical malpractice are entitled to personal injury or wrongful death recovery. Our Boston, Massachusetts medical malpractice law firm would like to offer you a free consultation to discuss your case.

Common Kinds of Gynecological Malpractice:

• Abortion errors
• Inappropriate behavior during an examination
• Failure to diagnose
• Wrong diagnosis
• Hysterectomy mistakes
• Errors during testing
• Birthing errors

Doctor faces lawsuit, possible indictment, Cape Cod Times, March 21, 2008

Doc gives up license over Sandwich abortion death, Capecodtoday.com, February 21, 2008

Related Web Resource:

Cause and Effect Analysis of Closed Claims in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Green Journal, 2005

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Posted In: Medical Malpractice , Wrongful Death

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Six construction workers and a Florida tourist died in a construction accident on Saturday after a crane collapsed at a construction site in New York. 10 other people were injured.

The construction site was at a 43-year-old building that had already received multiple safety violations. On Tuesday, investigators were trying to determine whether the nylon webbing, worth $50, broke while lifting a large piece of steel.

The 200-foot crane fell while construction workers tried to attach a large, 12,000-pound square steel collar around the tower of the crane at the 18th floor of the building, located on East 51st Street. They were applying manual winches that seemed to be hanging from nylon slings that were hanging from a higher part of the tower.

The collar, winches, and slings fell, crashed into another collar at the ninth floor, and landed on a third collar located close to the bottom of the construction site. The tower then collapsed, leveling a nearby building and damaging other nearby properties.

According to Paul S. Zorich, chairman of the committee on crane and sling safety standards of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, photographs of the sling show that it could have been “grossly overloaded.”

Construction safety experts say that these slings usually can carry loads as heavy as several tons unless they are worn or damaged.

Steven R. Dewey, president of All-Lifts, a company that makes construction slings, says sling failures only occurs if they are damaged or cut. He also said that slings are manufactured to carry five times the indicated weight.

Joy Contractors is the company overseeing the crane work at the site.

Construction accidents can often lead to catastrophic if not deadly injuries. Construction workers injured on the job cannot sue their employers for recovery. They are, however, eligible for workers’ compensation benefits and they may be able to claim damages from third parties, such as the manufacturer of a defective product or another party that is found liable for the injury accident.

Injured parties that are not construction workers may be able to claim damages from the construction company or other parties associated with the project if negligence can be proved. The best way to do this in Massachusetts is to retain the services of a Boston, Massachusetts personal injury law firm that is experienced in dealing with construction accident cases.

Even if your employer guarantees you workers’ compensation benefits, one of our Boston, Massachusetts workers’ compensation attorneys can make sure that you receive all of the benefits you are eligible for in a timely manner.

Failure of Strap Is Suspected in Crane Collapse, New York Times, March 18, 2008

Seven dead in New York crane accident, BBC News, March 16, 2008

Related Web Resource:

A Review of Crane Safety in the Construction Industry

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Posted In: Construction Accidents , Workers' Compensation

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