Personal Injury

August 1, 2017

Medical Malpractice Cases and Medical Battery

When we are dealing with a medical malpractice cases, we are typically dealing with action founded under a theory of negligence. In a standard negligence case, the elements of the tort are duty, breach, causation, and damages. The duty is a duty of due care to act as a reasonable and prudent person so as to prevent a foreseeable injury to foreseeable persons and property.

In the case of medical malpractice, we use the same standard, but instead of the reasonable and prudent person, we use a reasonable and prudent medical professional performing that same procedure. For example, in the case of heart surgeon preforming an operation, a surgeon is supposed to act as reasonable and prudent heart surgeon would act in performing the same procedure. Continue reading

June 5, 2017

Three Injured Following Ferris Wheel Accident

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

One popular activity in the summer months is going to local fairs and carnivals. While there are regular amusement parks in Massachusetts that have permanent attractions, there are also various fairs where the attractions are brought in on specially designed trucks that basically each deploy into a carnival ride.

While these can be a lot of fun, we tend to see more accidents at these types of fairs and carnivals than regular amusement parks. There a variety of reasons for this, including that the equipment is mobile. This means it is often less expensive and less well constructed and maintained than rides at a traditional amusement park. There are also a lot more issues with regulating the rides, as they may be from another state and not where the fair is being held. Continue reading

June 1, 2017

Water Park Liability Considered After Child Injury on Water Slide

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

It’s summertime, and water slides are a popular activity for adults and children alike. They offer a thrill, but they aren’t always safe. When a child injury occurs on a water slide, our attorneys will examine whether a dangerous condition existed on site about which the park or employees should have known (premises liability) or whether there was some defect in the slide or its components about which the manufacturer or distributor should have been aware (product liability).

A recent child injury in California involved a new water slide at a water park in California. The ride is called “The Wave” and features a half pipe on an 80-degree decline with a three-story drop. Once the water slide reaches the base, the tube sits on a concrete slab.

When the 10-year-old rider, who met the minimum height requirement for the ride, reached the bottom of the ride, instead of sliding along to the tube to the pool at the end, he was launched out of the tube and slammed into the concrete base pad. Continue reading

May 28, 2017

NHL Star Sidney Crosby Suffers Head Injury Scare

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Head injuries – and traumatic brain injuries in particular – account for 30 percent of all injury deaths in the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Every day, more than 150 people die from TBIs. Although such injuries can happen to anyone, those in physically laborious professions tend to have higher rates.

It seems like every year, the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins find themselves locked in a fierce battle to get to the eastern conference finals of the National Hockey League. This rivalry includes two of the greatest hockey players to ever play the game – Alex Ovechkin for the Washington Capitals and Sidney Crosby for the Penguins. Many consider Ovechkin to be the greatest offensive player in the game and Crosby is considered by many to be the best all-around hockey player.

Despite all of his success, including winning the Stanley Cup, Crosby has had a long history of concussions and has also had a history of taking a long time to recover from them. He has missed a significant amount of playing time due to concussion symptoms. There is serious concern that he may have quality of life issues for the rest of his life following his eventual retirement from the NHL. Continue reading

May 20, 2017

Injuries at Amusement Parks a Risk During the Summer Months

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Last summer was a particularly dangerous one for amusement park attendees. USA Today reported on numerous incidents which occurred at amusement parks which resulted in serious and even fatal injuries. With summer a prime time for visits to amusement parks, it is important for those who will be heading out to hit the rides to understand the risk they face while at the park.

When an accident at an amusement park does occur and injury or death results, victims need to understand what options they have for holding the amusement park owners and operators accountable for their losses.

A Boston personal injury lawyer can provide assistance in determining if a case can be made against the amusement park so the victim or his family can obtain monetary damages. Victims should be made whole, which means compensated for both economic and non-financial loss such as loss wages, costs of medical bills and the pain endured as a result of the amusement park accident.

May 17, 2017

What Happens if a Tourist Gets Hurt During a High-Risk Activity

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Summer is a prime time for vacations, and many adventurous travelers like to take trips to hike, rock climb, go boating or diving, water ski, parasail or take part in other fun but risky activities. If you are heading off for a summer trip and you will be doing something more high risk than just sitting in a lounge chair by the beach for your whole vacation, it is important to understand what your rights are when participating in high-risk recreation.

A Boston injury lawyer can provide insight into what responsibility the operators of tourist activities have if you engage in high risk behavior. In most cases, you can file a lawsuit against the operator of various types of recreational activities even if the operator has had you sign a liability waiver and even if the activity you’re engaging in tends to be an inherently high risk one.

What Happens if Tourists Get Hurt Doing Something Dangerous

May 10, 2017

Tourist Injury Involves Hammock in NYC, Possible Premises Liability Claim

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

When people think about lying out in a hammock, they are typically thinking of lying out in some tropical paradise with the hammock stretched between two palm trees. They are not usually thinking about New York City. However, as it turns out, there are hammocks in the big city, and one of these hammocks allegedly resulted in a tourist being injured, according to a recent news report from CBS News.

Authorities have said the hammock had been placed on the fifth story of a building in lower Manhattan. Due to high winds and during a big rainstorm, the hammock, along with its heavy wooden base and suspension system, fell from the building and landed on a tourist walking on the sidewalk below. Continue reading

May 7, 2017

Child Injured in ATV Accident

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Riding an all-terrain vehicle, also called an ATV or “four-wheeler” can be a lot of fun, but it can also result in serious personal injury. There are a lot ways that an injury can occur on an ATV. In some cases, we are dealing with an inexperienced driver who has rented an ATV or is using one that belongs to a friend. It is also possible that a rider is seriously injured when sitting on the back on an ATV being operated by someone else.

There is no seat belt on most of these vehicles, and it is not hard for a victim to fall and suffer serious injury or event death. In some cases, we are dealing with an experienced rider who is just going too fast and taking unnecessary risks. If a passenger is injured in this process who is not related to the operator, he or she might have a valid personal injury claim. In some cases, the vehicle will even be insured, and in other cases, a homeowner’s insurance policy might cover the victim’s damages for his or her injuries. Continue reading

April 17, 2017

Mob Boss Sues Prison for Personal Injuries

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A former organized crime boss is suing the federal government for injuries he sustained in a game of ping-pong in prison.

The New York Daily News splashed the cheeky headline, “Bada-Ping!” across its front page story, which detailed how the 64-year-old plaintiff, convicted a year earlier of racketeering conspiracy connected to several plots of murder, was injured in a slip-and-fall. He asserts prison officials knew or should have known there was a hazardous wet floor in the recreation area of the prison. As proof, he noted the proximity of the showers to a leaky slop sink pipe nearby. The leak had been reported to officials from the prison days or weeks before the fall. Plaintiff suffered a fractured right knee cap that required surgery, and he is continuing to undergo physical therapy and occupational therapy.

The government refutes any allegations of negligence. What the newspaper fails to note is that suing a prison or jail – particularly one operated by the government – can be very difficult. Suing privately-run prisons and jails may be a bit easier, but there are still significant challenge. Only claims of serious injury or wrongful death have much of a chance of moving forward, and that’s only if plaintiffs can prove a violation of civil rights, including deliberate indifference to a medical need. Continue reading

April 13, 2017

Mass Man Injured in Snowmobile Accident

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

With the winter weather behind us and warmer days ahead, people will not likely be doing all that much snowmobile riding in the near future. While it is actually becoming more popular for people to put wheels on the ski blades and race on grass fields, this is still not a common activity for most riders.

Even though the riding season may be over, there were many people who were injured over the past winter while using a snowmobile or riding on one as a passenger, and some of these victims may have a valid personal injury claim. This may include a case against a negligent operator, a negligent snowmobile rental company, or even the manufacturer for failure to warn of a known danger. In some cases, the device itself may have been defectively designed or manufactured, and this could lead to a products liability case, which is a special kind of personal injury case. Continue reading