Norman Hanson & DeTroy is honored to be included among the top of the “Highly Recommended” law firms in the State of Maine in the 2017 edition of Benchmark Litigation’s “The Guide to America’s Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys”. In addition, the following attorneys received individual recognition from Benchmark Litigation: Local Litigation Stars Jonathan W…. Read more »
News
NHD Recognized as a Top Firm by Chambers & Partners
Chambers & Partners USA 2017 has recognized Norman Hanson & DeTroy as a Top Firm for the category Litigation: General Commercial. Additionally, Norman Hanson & DeTroy is proud to announce that the following attorneys received the “Ranked Lawyer” distinction in the Chambers & Partners publication: Emily A. Bloch – Litigation: Medical Malpractice & Insurance Jonathan… Read more »
Governor appoints Adrian Kendall to MRDA Board
Adrian Kendall, member in the NHD’s Corporate and Commercial Law and Credit Union Law practice groups, has been appointed to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Maine Rural Development Authority. The Maine Rural Development Authority focuses on the rural areas of Maine that have not experienced the same level of economic development success… Read more »
WC Appellate Division Decision issued on May 31, 2017 – Voc Rehab Plan
In Richards v. D.P. Industries, Inc., Me. W.C.B. No. 17-24 (App. Div. 2017), the employee sustained a compensable injury in 2001 which resulted in significant continuing work restrictions. Ultimately a vocational rehabilitation plan was prepared by a representative of the Department of Labor’s Division of Rehabilitation Services in November 2014. The employer did not agree… Read more »
WC Appellate Division Decision issued on May 25, 2017 – Change in Economic Circumstances
When a determination of incapacity has been made by decree, either party may file a Petition for Review to establish a different level of entitlement, but to do so the moving party must show a change of circumstances since the prior decree either through comparative medical evidence or demonstrating a change in economic circumstances. In… Read more »
WC Appellate Division Decision issued on May 12, 2017 – Change in Economic Circumstances
It has long been recognized that in filing a Petition for Review, an employer must establish a comparative change in either medical or economic circumstances in order to justify a reduction in the level of entitlement. Comparative medical evidence is not necessary when an employer seeks to establish a change in economic circumstances. Folsom v…. Read more »
WC Appellate Division Decision issued on May 9, 2017 – The Ambiguous Section 312 Opinion
The Appellate Division recently had an opportunity to comment upon the proper treatment of an opinion of a Section 312 examiner when that opinion is ambiguous. The issue arose in a somewhat unusual procedural context. In Levesque v. Daigle Oil Company, Me. W.C.B. No. 17-21 (App. Div. 2017), the claimant was concurrently employed by Daigle… Read more »
Changes in expert witness discovery: M.R. Civ. P. 26(b)(4)(C) produces more efficient and effective collaboration
Most of us are accustomed to telling our experts to be careful because anything they put in writing can be discovered by the other side. This is because former versions of both the Federal and Maine Rules of Civil Procedure required the disclosure of “the data or other information considered by the witness in forming… Read more »
Medical Information Privacy in the Workplace
By: Katlyn M. Davidson, Esq. Whether and to what extent insurers and employers can share medical information regarding an employee’s workers’ compensation claim is a question which the Maine Workers’ Compensation Act provides little guidance. Sharing such medical information can be important both for insurers to keep their insureds informed of the status of a… Read more »
Reptile II: It Depends
By Jonathan W. Brogan, Esq. As those of you who read my earlier article regarding reptile theory and its pervasive use by the plaintiff’s bar understand that this theory, though not scientifically valid, is dangerous to defendants in cases involving safety and reasonable care. Cases that involve medical malpractice, trucking and/or auto accidents, and products… Read more »