Boston Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Today, a Memorial was held in front of the State House in Boston, Massachusetts to remember the lives of 58 workers who died on the job in Massachusetts in 2011. Not only were those killed on the job remembered but many who were injured and became ill on the job due to unsafe or unhealthy work conditions.

The names of all 58 men and women who were killed on the job were read before a crowd of about 200 people followed by a moment of silence. Occupations of those who died differed from drivers, social workers, firefighters and construction workers among many others. It was also estimated that 580 workers died from an occupational disease.

One of the bills was to end temp worker abuse with the Temp Worker right to Know Bill, which requires employers to provide some basic information about a job and increases oversight by state enforcement agencies.

Another issue is safe alternatives to toxic chemicals which promotes safer, feasible alternative to toxic chemicals that are used in the workplace which is An Act for a Competitive Economy Through Safer Alternatives to Toxic Chemicals (SB397, H1136). Another bill is putting a stop to workplace violence. This includes Stephanie's Law (S2006). Also, increasing the workers compensation benefits for the burial of a loved one from $4,000 to $8,000 (HB 1406).

Continue reading "WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY PROVES NEED FOR STRONGER WORKER SAFETY LAWS" »

Sheff Law also argued that under the case of Hultin v. Harvey, the workers compensation insurer would lose its Hunter rights in the future since its recovery on the third party case had exhausted all damages recoverable under Section 15. That argument was not particularly relevant in our case because our client had already resolved his workers compensation case by means of a lump sum settlement. Thus, there was no possibility that the plaintiff could claim lost wages benefits in the future.

As the client was essentially at a medical end point, the potential for future workers compensation claims for medical treatment was limited. It should be noted further that there is also a potential argument to be made that not only would we have been able to allocate all but approximately 20% of the total settlement to pain and suffering, but furthermore, the insurer would have had an obligation to take less than that amount due to their requirement to reduce their lien by a proportionate share of legal fees and costs under M.G.L. Ch. 152, Section 15. As a result, we argued that they would have had to reduce their recovery by an additional 35-38%.

Continue reading "A NEW WEAPON FOR NEGOTIATING WORKERS COMPENSATION LIENS ON THIRD PARTY CASES (PART 2)" »

Recently, Sheff Law Offices handled a difficult personal injury case (slip and fall on ice at a location where the client, with significant pre-existing injuries, was responsible for snow removal). Given the fact that the client was in the course of his employment at the time of the incident and had received significant workers compensation benefits, the workers' compensation insurer maintained a large lien which, as usual, had to be satisfied out of the proceeds of the settlement in the third-party case.

As the lien was greater than one/third of the total settlement, the plaintiff offered to pay the workers compensation insurer one-third of the total settlement, the standard we have employed in the past when the amount of the lien is greater than one third of the total settlement. The insurer refused to discuss any compromise. We conveyed the typical argument that the case wouldn't settle under those conditions and that the plaintiff would be required to try a very difficult liability case, resulting in a possible zero recovery for everyone.

The insurer balked at all of these arguments, indicating that it simply didn't care about the risks of going to trial and continued to refuse to discuss a compromise. The insurer pointed out that they paid a significant amount to the client, including a six figure lump sum settlement. As such, the insurer believed that it was entitled to full recovery of its entire lien.

Continue reading "A NEW WEAPON FOR NEGOTIATING WORKERS COMPENSATION LIENS ON THIRD PARTY CASES (PART 1) " »

Recently, a nineteen year old worker died while working on a home in West Springfield that was damaged by the June 1, 2011 tornado that destroyed and damaged many properties in the Western Massachusetts area. The worker fell four stories from the roof to the basement of the damaged home. The worker was working with a crew a re-frame the house.

This recent death created the need to make sure proper safety measures are taken to prevent such a fall. Falls are the #1 cause of work related fatalities according to Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). In 2010, there were 4,070 work related deaths. One fifth of those fatalities (or 18.5%) were construction related. Also according to OSHA, the second highest violation of OSHA standards is Fall Protection in Construction. While the number one reason for fatal injuries was due to fall from a different level.

Continue reading "MASSCHUSETTS WORKER'S FATAL ACCIDENT PROVES NEED FOR SAFETY MEASURES TO PREVENT FALLS" »

According to the US Department of Labor, fatal work related injuries are still an issue among working class Americans.

An estimated 4,547 fatal injuries were recorded in 2010 in the US. Of those, 146 on the job fatalities were in New England states.

Among the six New England states, Massachusetts had the highest number of work related deaths with 51 in 2010 and Connecticut had 49 fatalities. Together Massachusetts and Connecticut accounted for almost 70% of the fatal injuries in New England.

The top three causes of work related fatalities are falls with 15 deaths, transportation incidents with 14 deaths and assaults and violent acts with 12 deaths in 2010. These incidents were 80% of Massachusetts' workplace deaths.

As more people are going back to work, the number of work related fatalities and injuries are sure to increase.

Continue reading "WORK RELATED INJURIES STILL CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR WORKERS IN MASSACHUSETTS" »