Maine Injury Lawyer Blog

February 1, 2014

Bangor Area Driver Killed in Head-On Collision

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.

January 25, 2014

Bangor Uninsured Motorist Claims Follow Hit-and-Run Crashes

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

January 20, 2014

Bangor Injury Claims: Establishing Causation Per the Daubert Standard

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

January 7, 2014

Bangor Workers’ Compensation Claims May Stem from Cold Weather Injuries

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

December 30, 2013

Exculpatory Agreements for Children Have Varied Enforcement in Maine

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

December 22, 2013

Maine Ice Slip and FallsAccidents Commonplace as Winter Begins

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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 aspremises 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.

December 14, 2013

Maine’s Emergency Medical Responders & Overexertion Injuries

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

December 1, 2013

Timely, Proper Filing of Medical Malpractice Claims Key to Success

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

November 17, 2013

Hit-And-Run Accidents on the Rise in Portland

by Peter Thompson & Associates

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.

November 11, 2013

Local Man Killed in Portland Railroad Crossing Accident

by Peter Thompson & Associates

Officers recently responded to the scene of a fatal accident involving a Pan Am Railways freight train and a pedestrian. According to Bangor Daily News, the accident happened just before 8:00 p.m. Officers were forced to shut down a section of Forest Avenue — the part that runs from Walton Street to Woodford’s Corner.Officers received a report that a pedestrian was struck by a freight train at that crossing. They haven’t identified the pedestrian.

Our Portland injury lawyers understand that there were close to 2,000 railroad accidents at public and private crossings in the U. . in 2012. Of these accidents, there were close to 300 people killed, according to Operation Lifesaver. In addition, there were another 950 people injured in these accidents. Did you know that there are more than 210,000 railroad crossings, approximately 129,644 intersect with public roads in the United States?sAbout every 90 minutes, there is a train derailment or a train collision. Currently, railroads are self-regulated and fall under the scrutiny of the federal government.