Wrongful death attorney

August 17, 2016

Great West Cas. Co. v. Robbins – Fatal Truck Accident Lawsuit Insurance Battle

When it comes to auto insurance coverage following a motor vehicle accident, it’s important to understand that crashes involving semi-trucks are totally different from those involving passenger-style vehicles such as cars, pickup trucks or motorcycles. That’s because if you are struck by a pickup truck, it’s more likely that than not that there will be more than one commercial policy for the defendant and the trucking company.

Trucking carriers are required to carry insurance by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and they don’t follow the same rules as those required for passenger vehicles. In general, policies that cover semi trucks are much larger than those that cover passenger vehicles, primarily because it’s well-established that these vehicles tend to cause far more damage when involved in an accident. Typically, you don’t want to settle a truck accident claim too quickly because it’s important to have a good idea to have a better handle on the type and scope of injuries, the necessary treatments involved and the impact it will have on one’s work and home life.

Because it’s not uncommon in these cases for victims to be dealing with more than one commercial insurance company, it’s imperative to seek the assistance of an experienced truck accident lawyer. Continue reading

July 9, 2016

Study: 1 in 5 Nursing Home Residents Abused by Other Residents

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

It’s long been understood by those who work closely with nursing home abuse victims that aggression and attacks by other residents is one of the possible threats. Now, a new study conducted by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine reveals 1 in every 5 nursing home residents – or 20 percent – report being abused by other residents.

The study involved culling information on more than 2,000 nursing home patients. Findings were that more than 400 of them had been involved at least once in some type of abuse involving another resident over the course of the four-week study.

Accounting for 45 percent of those cases were verbal taunts. But physical assaults too made up 26 percent of incidents. Plus, it’s worth noting that verbal taunting can often be a precursor to a physical attack, including a possible sexual assault. Continue reading

June 22, 2016

Estate of Summers v. Nisbet – Deadly Fire and Prioritizing Victim Claims

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

It was one of the most horrific – and deadly – fires in Maine’s history. In 2014, a blaze broke out in a two-story rental unit, killing six people. Soon after, it was alleged the landlord reportedly kept the property in relatively shoddy condition with negligent repairs and poor maintenance – including lack of smoke detectors.

Soon after, there was a rush to file wrongful death lawsuits (five in all) because, as is usually the case, the defendant only has a finite amount of insurance and assets that could cover such claims. But given the large number of deaths, there was a dispute over which family should be the first in line for the payout, if the landlord was indeed found liable for the deaths. (Meanwhile, the landlord faced criminal manslaughter charges.)

Recently, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court settled the issue in Estate of Summers v. Nisbet, closing a legal gap that had existed in the state up to that point. Continue reading