Maine Injury, Accident, & Disability Law Blog : Maine Personal Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Joe Bornstein Law Firm : Portland Bangor Maine

The Law Offices of Joe Bornstein is pleased to announce the addition of two new attorneys, David R. Miller and Andrew J. Bernstein. The two lawyers specialize in Social Security Disability law and round out a staff of nine attorneys and 45 legal professionals.

Attorney Miller is an Orono native who graduated from the University of Maine School of Law. He served as Bangor’s Development Coordinator before entering private practice, and joins the Law Offices of Joe Bornstein with an expertise in Social Security Disability law. David is a member of NOSSCR (the National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives), MOSSCR (the Maine Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives), MTLA (the Maine Trial Lawyers Association), the Maine State Bar Association, and the Penobscot County Bar Association. Outside of work he enjoys mountain biking and is a member of the Orono-Old Town Kiwanis club.

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The Association for the Advancement of Retired Persons (AARP) has been offering refresher courses for drivers age 55 and older for the past 25 years. Now, the same driver’s safety course is being offered online. And for those that take the course, they are eligible for a discount on their car insurance.

After years of driving, the AARP says, bad habits start to set in. As one gets older, reaction time and ability to judge distances decrease, while rules of the road and car technologies continue to evolve. A refresher course is recommended for those over the age of 55, and is meant to do exactly that: refresh drivers on the proper rules of the road.

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On May 6, the Maine Civil Liberties Union (MCLU) celebrated their 41st anniversary with their annual Justice Louis Scolnick Award Dinner. Each year at the dinner, the MCLU honors an outstanding member of Maine’s legal community. This year’s event celebrated James E. Mitchell for his “commitment to the vitality of the Constitution.”

The MCLU was founded in 1968 with the purpose of advancing and preserving the civil liberties of Maine residents. The organization is the state affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), whose mission is to assure that the Bill of Rights is preserved for people of all races, colors, and backgrounds.

Through litigation, advocacy, public education, and lobbying, the MCLU works for the following basic principles:

• The right of free expression.
• The right to dissent.
• The right to religious freedom.
• The right to equal treatment for all people.
• The right to fair play in encounters with government.
• The right to be let alone, to be secure from interference in private matters.

Founded in 1920, the ACLU now has a nationwide network of over 300 affiliate offices. With a staff of over 60 attorneys collaborating with nearly 2,000 volunteer attorneys, the ACLU is the largest public interest firm in the country and appears before the U.S. Supreme Court more than any other organization except the U.S. Department of Justice. Nearly ninety years after being formed to protect the civil liberties of America, the ACLU defends one’s right to express his or her view in nearly 6,000 cases annually.

Now in its 41st year, the MCLU continues to fight for equality and justice in Maine. Representing victims whose civil liberties have been violated by government, helping educate students and organizing events in local communities, and advocating both state and federal legislature, are part of the goodwill the MCLU contributes to society. Coincidentally, on the day of the 2009 Scolnick Dinner, Governor Baldacci signed into law the end of a ban on gay marriage in Maine. Something the MCLU lobbied long and hard for, and is very proud of.

And like the MCLU, that has been working on behalf of Mainers for over 40 years, the Law Offices of Joe Bornstein has been protecting the rights of Maine’s injured and disabled for nearly 35 years. Supporting the MCLU is a WIN-WIN situation, and for that we are forever grateful. We would like to thank the MCLU for their outstanding work throughout the great state of Maine, and congratulate its 2009 Justice Louis Scolnick Award Dinner honoree, James E. Mitchell.

For more information on the MCLU and its annual Justice Louis Scolnick Award Dinner, please visit: www.mclu.org.

“The liberties of none are safe unless the liberties of all are protected.”
- U.S. Supreme Court, Justice William O. Douglas
 

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Memorial Day in Maine unofficially marks the beginning of summer. The weather takes a turn for the better, the days are longer and the nights more mild. Many Mainers spend the long weekend cleaning out garages, watering perennials, and firing up the Bar-B-Q while watching the Indianapolis 500. The reason Memorial Day is a national holiday, however, isn’t for America’s leisure, it’s to honor the men and women who died while serving our country.

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A new federal agency report states that Maine has the highest rate of death resulting from Mesothelioma in the United States. A study from 1999-2005 showed that there were over 170 fatalities during those seven years in Maine alone. According to the report, Mesothelioma related deaths are expected to peak in 2010.

Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is connected to asbestos. Most people who develop the disease were exposed to asbestos on worksites where they inhaled particles or were vulnerable to dust and fiber. Some of Maine’s largest employers used asbestos until the 1970’s when it was largely banned. Former employees of paper companies, chemical companies, and those who worked at shipyards are said to be most at risk.
 

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On May 11th, the price of a first-class stamp increased by 2 cents to 44 cents. The rate increase is the fourth consecutive year postage has gone up in the U.S., and is an attempt to offset rising operational costs and the use of the internet to correspond and pay bills. Mail volume is down nearly 15 percent in the past year.

Under U.S. law, the price of stamps is not allowed to rise faster than the country’s consumer price index, which measures inflation. This year’s rate increase is estimated to cost an average family an extra $3 per year. In 2008, the United States Postal Service (USPS) lost $2.8 billion.

Other USPS price increases include:

• Postcards - up 1 cent to $0.28
• Large Envelopes - first ounce - up 5 cents to $0.88
• Parcels - first ounce - up 5 cents to $1.22

According to the USPS, billions of “Forever Stamps” have been sold since their introduction in April 2007 and will continue to be honored for a one ounce letter. The price to buy a Forever Stamp, however, will also increase to 44 cents, and in the future will be valued at the going rate of a first class stamp.

Even amidst the recent price increase, the USPS states that they “continue to offer great service at some of the lowest postage prices in the world.” The World Wide Web, however, is giving them a run for their money.

For more information on the new stamp increase, please visit:www.usps.com/prices.
 

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Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month is a national initiative aimed at getting drivers and motorcyclists to “Share the Road.” Typically, May is one of the deadliest months for bikers, as many begin riding again after taking the winter months off.

2007 marked the tenth consecutive year that motorcycle fatalities increased in the U.S. With over 5,000 fatalities and 100,000 injured bikers in the year alone, motorcycle safety has become a national health concern. Overall, motorcycles accounted for 13 percent of total traffic fatalities in 2007, while totaling fewer than 3 percent of the registered vehicles on the road.

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On May 1st, Law Day was celebrated in the United States. The day is dedicated to highlighting how law and the legal process contribute to our country’s freedom.

Each year, Law Day has a theme. This year’s 31st annual Law Day honored the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln with the theme: A Legacy of Liberty—Celebrating Lincoln’s Bicentennial. Lincoln is long considered one of America’s greatest presidents, however, before elected, he was a lawyer.

In January, Barak Obama became the 26th lawyer sworn in as president.

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As Earth Month comes to close, we at the Law Offices of Joe Bornstein would like to take a moment to highlight some of our environmentally conscious choices.

With a state wide practice and five conveniently located offices, we cast a large net to cover the vast and beautiful state of Maine. Therefore, it is important that we minimize our carbon footprint, while maximizing our effort to give Mainers access to the justice they deserve. In our office, we like to think that “going green” is synonymous with the name Joe Bornstein.

Our employees are continually in search of new ways to improve our office efficiency. Some of our current “green” practices include:

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May celebrates the first anniversary of Maine’s premier personal injury law blog. With nearly 100 unique posts in the past year, The Law Offices of Joe Bornstein’s blog has kept Mainers both informed and entertained. With up-to-date information on the latest current events in Maine, as well as ground breaking news on all things personal injury and Social Security Disability law related, visitors have been well-versed on all of the happenings in their home state.

In addition to keeping readers educated, our blog showcases our firm's good will throughout the state and highlights several worthy causes that we support. Seasonal safety tips, recent Supreme Court decisions, and special messages from attorney Joe Bornstein himself, add to the well-rounded blog that proves week-in and week-out to be a wealth of information.

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