Cape Cod Injury Lawyer Blog

Those who are injured on the job have a legal right to seek workers’ compensation benefits to cover medical expenses and at least partially offset lost wages. If a particular work injury results in a permanent disability, a worker may also file a claim for incapacity benefits. Of course, the benefits are not automatic, and…

For most people, the most notable component of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the right to remain silent (“[not] compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself”). However, another important part of the Fifth Amendment is the so-called Double Jeopardy Clause. Under the double jeopardy provisions of the…

Workers’ compensation laws are designed to give those who are hurt at work a less contentious path toward benefits (such as disability payments and medical expenses) than a traditional personal injury lawsuit, in which the plaintiff would have to prove that the defendant was negligent in order to recover compensation. However, certain procedural requirements are…

There are four components in a basic negligence lawsuit: duty, breach of duty, causation, and damages. Whether a duty exists in a given situation is usually a question of law to be resolved by the court. Recently, a Massachusetts appeals court was called upon to resolve the issue of whether a landowner owed a duty…

As you may remember, 2015 was rife with vehicle recalls. According to news reports, there were in the neighborhood of 900 recalls in all, affecting tens of millions of vehicles. Issues such as sudden acceleration, faulty ignition switches, and Volkswagen’s infamous cheating on certain emissions tests made headlines throughout the year. Although there have been…

Have you ever wondered what an appellate court takes into consideration when deciding an appeal? The answer is that it depends. The fact is that many issues are possible subjects of an appeal. In a recent case, the issues included the admissibility of certain testimony and demonstrative evidence, as well as whether a new trial…

Under Massachusetts law, medical malpractice lawsuits are subject to both a statute of limitations and a statute of repose. The statute of limitations controls the time during which a claim may be filed after an action accrues, but the statute of repose allows a set amount of additional time in certain instances, including when the…

In order to obtain a jury verdict in a negligence case, including a case arising from an accident at an amusement park, fair, or carnival, the plaintiff must prove not only that the defendant owed him or her a duty of care and breached that duty, but also that the defendant’s breach of duty was…

The existence of a pre-existing condition can be an important factor in a workers’ compensation case, but a pre-existing condition, in and of itself, does not necessarily mean that the matter will be resolved in the employer’s favor. Under Massachusetts law, the work injury does not have to be the predominant cause of the injury…

Landowners and business operators have certain legal duties to those who come onto their property for business purposes. This includes the duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition. However, those who enter another party’s property unlawfully are not necessarily owed the same duty of care. While the landowner does not have the…