Maine Injury Lawyer Blog

The elderly are more susceptible to injury-causing falls, which is why nursing homes and other assisted care facilities have a duty to ensure that preventative measures are in place and that proper treatment is offered should one occur.

However, our Bangor wrongful death lawyers recognize that it is not enough in a civil trial to prove liability simply by showing that an injurious fall occurred while a patient was in the defendant nursing home's care.

In these cases, what must be proven under the Maine Health Security Act is professional negligence. The recent case of Estate of Boulier v. Presque Isle Nursing Home, reviewed on appeal by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, reveals how this threshold of proof can be difficult to meet - underscoring why you must trust your case to an experienced attorney.

Continue reading "Estate of Boulier v. Presque Isle Nursing Home - Maine Nursing Home Falls" »

A spate of Maine snowmobile injuries - and two crashes resulting in deaths - have prompted the state warden service to issue a formal warning urging caution, adherence to safety practices and a plea to slow down.

According to the Bangor Daily News, at least eight serious snowmobile crashes occurred in a single weekend, resulting in numerous injuries - including those sustained by an 8-year-old boy.

Primarily, authorities say, these crashes involved either inexperienced drivers or drivers who were traveling at excessive speeds. The crash involving the 8-year-old boy occurred while his grandfather was driving the vehicle. In Athens, a 15-year-old boy suffered a head injury when he was thrown from a snowmobile driven by a friend. Several others suffered broken legs or other fractures.

Continue reading "Maine Snowmobile Accidents Spur State Warden's Warning" »

More than once every half hour, a child suffers a shopping cart injury in Maine.

In fact, it's a problem across the country, despite voluntary safety standards that were adopted by the industry back in 2004.

A new study, conducted by the Nationwide Children's Hospital in Ohio and published in the journal "Clinical Pediatrics" in January, reveals that concussions and closed-head injuries resulting from shopping cart use has increased over the last several decades.

Continue reading "Shopping Cart Injuries to Children in Maine a Daily Occurrence" »

Given the astronomical price of prescriptions drugs, it is no wonder that Maine residents sought relief through cross-border imports. In fact, people have routinely secured out-of-country prescription medications since the 1950s.

However, the problem has always been that such transactions were technically illegal under state and federal law, even if they weren't strictly enforced where individual sales were concerned. From a defective drugs lawsuit standpoint, it meant that people had little recourse if the drugs they received were not made and transported safely.

Then late last year, Maine became the first state to legalize the direct purchase of mail-order drugs from certain foreign pharmacies - companies out of Canada, the U.K., New Zealand and Australia. Even so, it's still not clear what legal liability these firms might have if their drugs turned out to be defective or harmful.

Continue reading "Defective Drugs a Concern Following Maine's New Import Drug Law" »

A 47-year-old woman was killed in a recent head-on accident on Route 9, according to the Bangor Daily News. Unfortunately, she was pronounced dead at the scene, reports the Penobscot County Sheriff's Office.

The driver was heading westbound just before 6:00 a.m. when her vehicle collided with a pickup heading eastbound. It happened just west of Rooks Road. Officials are still investigating the cause of the collision. The eastbound driver was seriously injured and remains in Eastern Maine Medical Center.

Our Bangor car accident attorneys know head-on collisions are too often fatal. Preventive measures include traffic signs and road surface markings to help guide drivers through curves, as well as separating opposing lanes of traffic with wide central reservation (or median) and median barriers to prevent crossover incidents. But sometimes even those measures don't save lives.

Continue reading "Bangor Area Driver Killed in Head-On Collision " »

State authorities and police in Bangor are searching for the driver of a Jeep Liberty involved in a midday crash on I-95 with a 15-passenger van, causing two serious injuries. The driver of the Jeep fled the scene before emergency officials arrived.

We anticipate more crashes in the midst of Maine's snowy season and, unfortunately, we see a spike in hit-and-run incidents as well, primarily because drivers are either drunk, driving illegally or don't have insurance. Sometimes, it's a combination of all three.

Thankfully, there are some avenues of recourse for victims. By making an uninsured motorist claim in Bangor, victims can secure compensation for injuries, vehicle damages, medical bills and lost wages through their own insurance carrier.

Continue reading "Bangor Uninsured Motorist Claims Follow Hit-and-Run Crashes" »

In Bangor personal injury lawsuits, solid, reliable expert testimony is a critical part of success. It's the necessary link to proving that you suffered damage directly as a result of the other party's negligence.

If the defense can establish doubt for the jury by insinuating your injuries were caused in some other way, your case could be in jeopardy.

In order to ensure that the testimony provided by your expert witness is admissible in court, the judge will apply the Daubert standard. This much-used criteria was first established in the case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals in 1993, which allows for the standard of flexible reliability.

Continue reading "Bangor Injury Claims: Establishing Causation Per the Daubert Standard" »

In filing a Bangor child injury lawsuit on the grounds of negligent supervision, plaintiff attorneys must first establish that the defendant had a duty to supervise the child.

The existence and scope of the duty of negligent supervision is a matter of law, and in order to prove it, plaintiffs have to show that there was some type of custodial relationship between the two parties. Per Dragomir v. Spring Harbor Hosp.,, Me: Supreme Judicial Court 2009, a custodial relationship in Maine exists between two parties when one party is required or voluntarily takes physical custody of another, such as to deprive the other party of his normal opportunities for protection.

This custodial relationship is not necessarily a formal agreement. It need not be in writing or even expressly stated verbally.

Continue reading "Negligent Supervision in Maine Child Injury Claim" »

Maine is no stranger to brutal cold. As one of the northernmost states in the country, our municipalities and other infrastructures are well steeled for frigidity.

The polar vortex, however, has resulted in record-breaking winter weather, with wind chills in some areas causing temperatures to plummet as far as 60 to 70 degrees below zero. In this kind of environment, frostbite can attack exposed skin in a matter of minutes. A person who travels outside without the proper dress would be at grave risk for hypothermia, and even death.

Employers have a responsibility to take every necessary precaution to protect workers toiling under these conditions. Employees who suffer severe cold stress injuries as a result should file a Bangor workers' compensation claim.

Continue reading "Bangor Workers' Compensation Claims May Stem from Cold Weather Injuries" »

Agreements that extract a party from liability for negligence are handled with a heightened degree of judicial scrutiny in Maine courts.

This is especially true when these exculpatory agreements involve release of negligence for harm to children.

The recent case of BJ's Wholesale Club v. Rosen, reviewed by the Maryland Court of Appeals, illustrates how courts tend to wrestle with these matters.

Continue reading "Exculpatory Agreements for Children Have Varied Enforcement in Maine" »

For the majority of the winter season here in Maine, workers and residents must contend with a potentially hazardous mix of ice and snow.

While some might consider a slip on the ice or a fall in the snow just one of those inevitable cold-weather nuisances - perhaps even a comical one - there is also a high potential for such an incident to result in a serious injury. The result is sometimes that victims are forced to take leave of their job and suffer serious medical complications, including broken bones and joints, as well as back and head injuries. Filing a premises liability claim may best protect your rights in the wake of serious injury.

A recent report by the Maine Department of Labor Standards took pains in detailing just how widespread the problem is, and how much it costs us all each year.

Continue reading "Maine Ice Slip and Fall Accidents Commonplace as Winter Begins" »

Our emergency medical responders are the people we count on when seconds matter and fast, proper care can mean the difference between life and death.

But according to a new report by the Maine Department of Labor's Labor Standards division, these workers, who include EMTs, paramedics and firefighters, are especially vulnerable to injuries. On the job, these employees are at high risk for overexertion injuries resulting from lifting, transporting or otherwise assisting ill or injured persons.

Those type of injuries accounted for more than third of all injuries suffered by emergency medical crews, with strain injuries accounting for some 94 percent of all overexertion injuries. Most often, it was the employees' back that was affected, accounting for about 45 percent of all cases.

Continue reading "Maine's Emergency Medical Responders & Overexertion Injuries" »

When it comes to filing a successful claim of medical malpractice injury in Bangor, when and how you file is just as important as the substance of your lawsuit.

That's the lesson that can be derived from Frame v. Millinocket Regional Hospital, reviewed recently by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

The petitioner appealed a judgment entered by the lower-level superior court to dismiss her unsworn notice of claim to file a medical malpractice lawsuit, pursuant to the Main Health Security Act, as a properly-sworn claim was not filed within the statute of limitations.

Continue reading "Timely, Proper Filing of Medical Malpractice Claims Key to Success" »

Maine's winter driving conditions can change from sunny to blowing snow within an hour or two. Be prepared at all times, but especially in winter. Know road conditions, know your vehicle, use proper driving techniques for the conditions you find, and have the right emergency gear and equipment along. Most of all, in ice and snow - take it slow!

Before you head out in the snow, make sure that you brush all of the snow off of your vehicle. You want to be specially certain that all lights and windows are clear. You've also got to remember that ice and snow demand greater stopping distances. With winter driving, we have to alter many of our driving habits.

Our Portland car accident lawyers understand that the best idea during winter storms is to stay off the road. We also realize that is sometimes just not realistic. If you find yourself on the road during icy, snowy conditions, you had better make sure you know what you're doing. We're here with a few safety tips to help ensure that you make a safe arrival.

Continue reading "Maine Traffic Safety: Weather, Holiday Travel in Focus" »

Four people, including two young children, were involved in a late-night accident as their vehicle was run off the road by another vehicle. The driver in question left the scene of the accident, according to the Portland Press Herald.

Maine State Troopers report that the victims' vehicle flipped over in the accident along Interstate 295 in Cumberland. Luckily, officers were able to track down the dangerous driver later at her home in Portland. She has been arrested and charged with failing to report an accident and leaving the scene.

Our personal injury attorneys in Portland understand that this accident was caused by the careless passing driver. She was attempting pass cars on the right while heading southbound when she swerved back into her lane and slammed into the victim's car. Upon impact, the victims' vehicle went into the median and flipped over onto its side. The driver, a passenger and an 8- and 12-year-old child were taken to Mercy Hospital.

Continue reading "Hit-And-Run Accidents on the Rise in Portland" »