If you have recently suffered an injury that wasn’t your fault, know that you have rights under the law that entitle you to extract a civil penalty against those that should have better ensured the safety of their driving, their premises, or the product that they sold you.
If this happened to you in Boston or elsewhere in Massachusetts, find out what your rights are in the article below, then give a personal injury attorney (like Jeffrey Glassman) a call.
If they have been violated, there is a good chance that they can make a convincing case on your behalf.
1) Motor vehicle accidents
The first thing that you should know about motor vehicle accidents in Massachusetts is that everybody is obligated to possess no-fault auto insurance while they are operating a vehicle in the state.
They are also obligated to possess limited liability insurance, for if they don’t, you or your insurance company can go after them for damages.
Additionally, the state is obligated to pay out benefits to you from the personal injury protection plan (PIP) if you experience pain and suffering due to the loss of a loved one, medical bills that exceed $2,000, severe disfigurement, loss of a body part, the fracture of any bone, or permanent loss of sight or hearing.
In order to be protected from civil suits, drivers must make every effort to pilot their vehicle with reasonable care.
If a driver operates their vehicle in a reckless manner with complete disregard for traffic laws, you and your personal injury lawyer will have reasonable grounds to file a civil lawsuit should they get into an accident with you.
2) Injuries suffered in a home or place of business
If an employer, business owner, or the owner of a house are negligent in the way they keep up their workplace or home, employees, contractors, and guests may have grounds to file a civil lawsuit should they suffer an injury as a result.
Examples of this include slipping and falling on an icy walk, getting bit by a cross dog, or suffering an injury as a result of unsafe conditions in the workplace.
Business and homeowners must take every reasonable measure to control hazards that are present on their property.
Failing this, they must adequately warn any guests of hazards that are present, though this action alone may not be enough to protect the owner from being sued.
Similar conditions extend to landowners as well, although the degree of legal protection extended to trespassers is considerably less.
A notable exception to this are children, as they may not be aware of potential hazards that they might encounter, and they are more likely to trespass on land than adults.
As such, any hazards that may not be perceived as dangerous by children should be addressed by landowners, lest they be liable should said children get into an accident.
3) Injuries caused by defective products
Products that cause an unforeseen injury when operated in the manner intended by the manufacturer can be the subject of a successful civil lawsuit should the injury occur within the state of Massachusetts.
Depending on the circumstances of the injury, the suit may be brought against any of the parties along the supply chain, from the company that designed the product, to the factory that made it, to the store that stocked it.