Congratulations to Ballin Law’s Zachary M. Ballin, Esq. who has been named the Norfolk County Director for theMassachusetts Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division Board of Directors. The Young Lawyers Division’s mission is providing the necessary tools new practitioners need to excel, as well as providing opportunities for civic outreach, pro bono representation and networking with peers.

​Attorney Zachary Ballin is entering his fifth year with Ballin Law. He represents people in Massachusetts and Rhode Island who have been injured by the unsafe choices that others make.

Nurses enjoy an extremely high level of trust and respect, which is well-deserved. Unfortunately, this level of respect does not prevent nurses from having one of the highest rates of on-the-job injuries resulting from assaults.

One study published in 2014 found that about one-third of the nursing staff at a big city hospital had been physically assaulted within the past year. The study found that many of the injuries are caused by patients or their family members who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or who are undergoing withdrawal from alcohol or drugs. Just a few weeks ago, in September of 2015, one of the nation’s largest hospitals, the Bergen Regional Medical Center in New Jersey, was cited and fined by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for failing to have adequate procedures in place to protect its employees, after eight separate attacks by violent patients within a three month period.

Nurses who are injured as a result of workplace attacks by patients have the right to be compensated for their injuries. Like all employees, nurses, who are assaulted and injured on the job, have the right to make a claim for workers compensation, just as they would with any other on-the-job injury.

In addition, it may be possible to pursue a claim against the patient or the family member who assaulted the nurse. In one reported case in Massachusetts, a visiting nurse recovered $145,000 from the husband of a patient after the husband assaulted the visiting nurse. The same legal principles that allowed this visiting nurse to recover would also allow a hospital-based nurse to recover for an assault.

Our firm has extensive experience in obtaining compensation for first responders such as police officers and fire fighters who are assaulted in the line of duty. The issues involved in obtaining a recovery for police officers and fire fighters in these situations are similar to the issues involved in obtaining a recovery for a nurse who has been the target of an on-the-job assault. If you know of a nurse who has been injured in an assault while at work, please have him or her contact us for an evaluation of the situation to determine whether we may be able to assist them in obtaining fair compensation for their injuries.

​– Paul Johnson, Esq.

A contractor is doing construction work in a right turn lane at a busy intersection. The contractor decides to close off the right turn lane using some cones. Debbie Driver approaches the intersection. She intends on using the right turn lane, as she does every day on her way home from work. There are no advance warning signs about the closed right turn up ahead. There is no one to direct Ms. Driver past the closed right turn and through the intersection. The only detail officer hired by the contractor is farther up the road directing traffic away from the workers and heavy machinery.

Surprised by the closed right turn, Ms. Driver takes a sharp right turn around a traffic island. The turn is too severe an angle. Ms. Driver’s tires run up along a median. She veers off the median and loses control of her car. She hits the officer. The officer suffers injuries to his knees, back and head. The officer was not able to return to work. Despite several surgeries, he has constant knee pain and the symptoms from his head injury continue to persist.

The contractor blames Ms. Driver, telling the State Police that other drivers made the sharp right turn all day without incident. The State Police cite Ms. Driver. It makes no investigation into the contractor’s temporary traffic control plan, or lack thereof.

We filed a lawsuit against the contractor based on the lack of temporary traffic control planning for the closed right turn: In particular, the failure to provide advance warning and the failure to hire an appropriate amount of officers to direct traffic at this busy intersection. The contractor’s crew admitted during depositions that the right turn had just been closed and that Ms. Driver was actually the first one to attempt the sharp right turn. The crew also testified how Ms. Driver looked confused and panicked as she made the sharp right turn. The contractor admitted it was required to provide advance warning signs about the road closure but that it had failed to do so. It also admitted that it could have hired more police officers to direct traffic.

While the lawsuit also included Ms. Driver, it was the contractor that set the stage for the crash. It was the contractor, not Ms. Driver, which failed to prepare a temporary traffic control plan for the road closure. Prior to trial during a mediation the case settled for $1.95 million. The contractor finally took responsibility for the crash.

Each year 40,000 people are injured or killed in roadway work zones. Construction companies needlessly put us all in increased danger of being injured or killed in a crash when they do not properly plan out the work zone. Federal and State regulations require companies that work on our roads to prepare temporary traffic control plans; however, there is frequently no planning beyond putting out a few cones alongside the work vehicle.

Officers injured on or off duty should consult with us early on, so we can determine whether you have a viable case and for you to learn of your rights.
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– Steven M. Ballin, Esq.