Telemedicine became an important part of health care when the Covid-19 pandemic necessitated a Public Health Emergency (PHE) in March 2019. Although the PHE was cancelled in the Commonwealth on June 15th last year (Boston doesn’t end its own PHE order until April 1st...
Does State Law Override Local Rules?
Vaccine and mask mandates are gradually being wound down in many parts of the U.S. including here in Massachusetts, as an increased vaccination rate and the gradual reduction in the severity of the Omicron wave take hold. But who actually had the authority to issue...
Who is Liable for a Slip and Fall on a Sidewalk in Massachusetts?
Slip and fall accidents are common in winter anywhere in the state, especially when there is plenty of snow and ice around. In fact, slip and fall accidents are the most common type of accident after car accidents. If you are walking around when the weather has been...
Plan Your Estate to Minimize Probate Assets
Why you should plan your estate? A surprising number of people don’t bother planning what to do about the assets they own when they pass away. Not leaving a will or other means of determining how your assets should be distributed may not concern you if you have...
Does a DUI/DWI Stay as a Criminal Record and Can it Count as a Prior Conviction in Massachusetts?
OUI/DWI/DUI: What’s the difference? If you drink too much or take certain drugs which affect your ability to drive, it could be dangerous to drive and you could hurt or even kill anyone in your vehicle or another vehicle. In every state in the country, there are clear...
Divorce : Filing a Counter Claim in Massachusetts
A divorce is often a messy, complicated and stressful business. Decisions have to be made about assets, child custody, child and spousal support. Ideally, these decisions are made rationally and sensibly and an agreement made which suits both parting spouses and made...
When Does the Right To a Lawyer Apply In Massachusetts?
The only constitutional right to a lawyer in Massachusetts at present is if you have been accused of a criminal offense and you do not have enough money to pay for a lawyer yourself. The court will appoint a lawyer to defend you throughout the proceedings against you....
What Does “Under Seal” Mean?
What is a “seal?” Seals have been around for hundreds of years, but their purpose has changed a lot during that time. The term “under seal” for instance, has little in common with the main reason for using a physical seal in the past. But what actually is a seal? The...
How Does Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Work in the Case of a Divorce in Massachusetts?
Divorces are rarely so disputed that they end in litigation. In fact, there are several ways that a disputed divorce settlement can be resolved without the very public, stressful and expensive need to go to court. Alternative dispute resolution, or ADR for short, is a...
Can a Contractor Take a Lien On a Residential Property In Case of a Dispute In Massachusetts?
Just as a coin has two sides, so has a dispute between a property owner and a contractor who has supplied construction services to that owner. Let’s just tease that sentence out before explaining what rights in Massachusetts law both contractors and owners have when...
Employer Rights to Electronic Monitoring in the Workspace in Massachusetts
Do employers in Massachusetts have the right to monitor your workspace activity? Yes, they do, as long as the activity they monitor has something to do with the business of the employer. The only exceptions are when specific privacy rights are included in an...
Tips to Settle a Dispute With a Residential Contractor
There are many reasons why there could be a dispute with a residential contractor. In fact, disputes between owners and contractors, contractors and sub-contractors and between them and suppliers of materials are commonplace. This doesn’t mean that disputes cannot be...
What is Hearsay Evidence in Massachusetts?
We all know what “hearsay” is in colloquial language. Loosely, it refers to things that are said about someone which cannot be substantiated. Hearsay may also be referred to as “rumors” or “tittle tattle.” To give an example of hearsay, let’s say that a group of...
The 4 Most Common Causes of Neighborhood Disputes in Massachusetts
There is an old, but true, saying that you can’t choose your own family. For many people, it's also sometimes unfortunately true that you can’t choose your neighbors! While the ties that bind you or not to your neighbors are far less strong than those with your...
How Employers Should Respond to Workplace Injuries in Massachusetts
COVID-19 has probably and rightly been center stage the last 18 months as far as employers are concerned. Much of the initial worry revolved around whether it was possible to keep the business running and who in the workforce was going to get sick next. As...
Is it Legal in Massachusetts for Employers to Use Vaccination Mandates on Employees?
The pandemic unfortunately hasn’t conveniently disappeared, even though in many parts of the U.S. life has returned to something resembling near normality. The principal reason why this improvement has happened, even if it hasn’t been perfect, is the availability of...
When Is It a Good Idea To Use a Cease and Desist Letter In Massachusetts?
Cease and desist letters are a response to actions by an individual or business which is doing something wrong which affects you in some way. Common reasons for sending a cease and desist letter in Massachusetts includes incidences of bullying, intimidation,...
Can I Challenge an Unfair Divorce Settlement in Massachusetts?
Divorce is by its very nature often messy, emotionally fraught and frustrating. Somehow or other an agreement has to be made about shared assets, property and child custody. The longer a couple has been together, the greater the number of children and the more...
The Difference Between a Mandate and a Law in Massachusetts
In an emergency, decisions usually have to be made in a hurry. There may be no time to plan what to do and how to do it. If the emergency is a personal one, it’s often up to you and who is around you to make urgent decisions about your own safety. Later, you might...
Steps in a Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawsuit Settlement
If you have been injured because of the negligence of someone else, you may be able to recover the cost of your injury through a personal injury lawsuit. In Massachusetts, personal injury lawsuits are filed in a district court or the Boston Municipal Court. Not all...