personal injury law

Personal Injury Law
Massachusetts vs. New Hampshire: Differences In Personal Injury Claims
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices September 19, 2012September 16, 2025
Massachusetts is a mandatory insurance state, and as a result, all residents of Massachusetts are required by law to carry automobile insurance. New Hampshire, on the other hand, does not require everyone to carry automobile insurance. Many people ask us what this means for them, and their potential injury claim. First, Massachusetts policies have what is called “personal injury protection” (a/k/a “PIP”) coverage. This is a type of insurance that pays for medical bills incurred as a result of an auto accident. So, if you are injured and have a Massachusetts policy, then the personal injury protection will be the first to pay out for medical bills. Under Massachusetts rules, the first $2,000.00 of all related medical bills to the accident are paid by the…
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General Litigation | Personal Injury Law
Product Liability: Understanding The Three General Types of Defects
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices May 19, 2012September 16, 2025
Generally, product liability has three main causes of action. They are a design defect, a manufacturing defect, and a failure to warn (or marketing defect). Each of these defects provide a cause of action to a consumer who is injured by a company’s product. Understanding each of them is important in order to assess whether you or a friend has a claim. A design defect is something that is inherently dangerous about the design of the product that is causing injuries. Thus, no matter what is being manufactured, if the product has a design defect, then the product will be dangerous regardless of how it is used. A good example is lead paint. No matter how it is used or manufactured, it will also come…
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General Litigation | Personal Injury Law
Walking In The Street: Do I Need To Be In A Crosswalk To Be Legally Protected?
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices April 9, 2012September 16, 2025
Over the years, our firm has handled quite a few cases where a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle. Yet, each time, it seems the client is not sure about what the laws are as it relates to pedestrians in the roadway.The first thing to examine is New Hampshire’s Pedestrian Right of Way statute, titled RSA 265:35. You can access a copy of the rule here. As paragraph I of the statute states, cars are required to yield to a pedestrian who is properly in the crosswalk. Thus, in a typical situation where a car hits a pedestrian in a crosswalk, liability is generally clear. However, there are a few other factors under the statute that merit consideration. First, the pedestrian must not have suddenly…
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Personal Injury Law
What Is Negligence Per Se?
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices April 9, 2012September 16, 2025
We previously addressed the term “negligence” and how that term is used in civil law, and, more specifically, in personal injury cases. However, at Parnell, Michels & McKay, we often use a theory called “negligence per se” to increase our chances of success in an injury lawsuit. Negligence per se is the legal doctrine where an act is considered automatically negligent because the person violated a statute or regulation. Typically, this can be seen in a traditional auto accident case. For example, let’s say Mary is driving her car and came to a four-way intersection with traffic lights on all four sides. Mary’s light is red, so she comes to a complete stop. Mary’s light turns green and she starts to proceed through the intersection….
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Personal Injury Law
Personal Injury Claims: The Road Map To Getting Back To Normal
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices February 19, 2012September 16, 2025
The key to understanding personal injury claims is that claims handling is driven by insurance requirements. The vast majority of injury claims are resolved by settlement. The parties to the settlement discussions are most commonly the injured party, his/her attorney, and an insurance company. It is necessary to know how insurance companies process claims in order to achieve the best possible result. The most important thing to remember is that insurance companies rely heavily on objective information to form a valuation of each claim. This comes in the form of medical and billing records, accident reports, pictures, lost wages documentation, and other related records. The more complete your documentation the better your chance of a satisfactory result. Gathering documentation should be your first priority when…
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Personal Injury Law | Workers Compensation Law
Injury Claims: The Road Map To Getting Back To Normal – Part 2
ByParnell, Michels & McKay Law Offices February 9, 2012September 16, 2025
In the last blog post, we talked about how obtaining documentation and other information will help make it easier to resolve your injury claim. To build on that, it is important to understand what comes into consideration when considering the settlement value of an injured person’s claim. It is important to understand this in order to make sure you are getting the compensation you deserve. At the outset of any injury case, someone has been injured in some way. Like everybody else, this person will receive medical treatment for their injury. The hope is that they can recover, and get back to 100% of their previous health. Sometimes, there is no getting back to 100%, which is a difficult situation to be in. In either…
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