Every fall, Connecticut trades one hazard for another. The leaves come down, the rain soaks them, and a flat walkway turns into something closer to black ice — except it doesn’t look dangerous at all. That’s exactly what makes it dangerous. Most people who fall on wet leaves never saw them as a risk until they were on the ground.

Whether someone else is responsible comes down to one thing first: whose property you were on.

Scenario 1: You fell at a store, restaurant, office or parking lot

If you were a customer, patient or anyone else there on business, Connecticut law calls you an invitee. That gives you the strongest protection the law offers.

A business owes invitees reasonable care: inspect the property, fix hazards, or warn people about them. The key question is notice — did the owner know about the leaves, or should they have known?

• Actual notice means they knew. An employee walked past the pile, a customer complained, the manager saw it.
• Constructive notice means the hazard was there long enough that a careful owner would have found it. A soaked carpet of leaves across the only entrance after two days of rain is a strong example.

Leaves don’t appear in a second. They build up over days, and that time is often what turns a ‘freak accident’ into a case. Parking lots, entry ramps, outdoor stairs and the walkway from the lot to the door are where these falls happen most.

Scenario 2: You fell at a friend’s, relative’s or neighbor’s home

This is the one people feel awkward about, and it’s the one Connecticut treats more generously than most states.

Under Connecticut General Statutes § 52-557a, a social guest — someone invited over for dinner, a party or a visit — is owed the same standard of care as a paying customer at a business. So if a homeowner let wet leaves pile up on the front steps for days and you were invited in, the rules from Scenario 1 generally apply.

A claim like this is usually made against the homeowner’s coverage, not against your friend’s savings — which is why it’s worth a conversation instead of an assumption that you ‘can’t do that to them.’

If you were renting, or visiting a rental, the landlord may be responsible for common areas like shared stairs, walkways and parking areas, even if they hired a company to maintain them.

Scenario 3: You fell on a town or city sidewalk

This is the one with the trap.

Claims against a Connecticut town or city for a defective road or sidewalk fall under C.G.S. § 13a-149. Before you can bring that claim, you must give written notice to the town or city clerk (or a selectman) within 90 days of the fall. The notice has to describe the injury, the cause, and the time and place it happened.

Miss that window and the claim is usually gone for good — no matter how badly you were hurt or how obvious the hazard was. If the fall happened on a state road or state-maintained sidewalk, a similar 90-day notice goes to the Commissioner of Transportation instead, under § 13a-144.

Two more things make sidewalk cases tricky:

• It’s not always obvious who owns the sidewalk. Some stretches belong to the town, some to the state, some to the property owner next to it. Figuring out which one — before the 90 days run out — is part of what a lawyer does first.
• The town’s liability depends on a true defect. Loose leaves on their own are usually treated differently from a broken slab, a missing grate or a sunken curb hiding under the leaves. Many of the worst leaf falls are really a hidden defect under the leaves.

‘But I should have watched where I was going.’

Maybe. Connecticut still lets you recover.

Connecticut uses modified comparative negligence (C.G.S. § 52-572h). If you were partly at fault — say, looking at your phone — your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame. As long as your share isn’t greater than the other side’s, you can still recover. Being a little careless doesn’t erase an owner’s responsibility for a hazard they left in place.

The deadlines, in one place

What to do in the first week after a fall

1. Get checked out. Wrist, hip, knee, back and head injuries are common from backward falls on slick surfaces, and some don’t show up fully for a day or two.
2. Photograph the spot — today if you can. Leaves get raked, blown and washed away, and your best evidence goes with them. Get wide shots and close-ups, and anything hidden underneath.
3. Report it. At a business, ask for a manager and make sure an incident report is written. Get a copy or a photo of it.
4. Get names. Witnesses, the employee you spoke to, the homeowner or landlord.
5. Keep the shoes you were wearing, and don’t clean them.
6. Write down what happened while it’s fresh: the date, time, weather, lighting, and what you saw.
7. Don’t give a recorded statement or sign anything from the property owner’s side before getting advice.
8. Call early if it was a public sidewalk. The 90 days start the day you fell.

How a free case review with Tom Ganim works

Attorney Tom Ganim has handled Connecticut personal injury cases since 1992, from the same Main Street office in Bridgeport that his father opened in 1951. When you call about a fall, Tom looks at the three things that decide it: whose property it was, whether they knew or should have known about the hazard, and which deadline applies to you. If the case is worth pursuing, he’ll tell you how. If it isn’t, he’ll tell you that plainly — and it costs nothing to find out. There’s no fee unless we win.

Learn more about our Bridgeport personal injury practice, or tell Tom what happened.

Keep Calm. Call Tom. (203) 372-7772

Frequently asked questions

Can I sue if I slipped on wet leaves in Connecticut?

Possibly. It depends on whose property you were on and whether the owner knew, or should have known, about the leaves and failed to clear them or warn you. Businesses and homeowners who invite you in owe you reasonable care. Falls on town sidewalks follow separate rules with a 90-day notice deadline.

How long do I have to file a slip and fall claim in Connecticut?

Generally two years from the date of the fall. But if you fell on a town, city or state sidewalk or road, you must give written notice within 90 days, or you can lose the claim entirely.

Can I make a claim if I fell at a friend’s house?

Yes. Under C.G.S. § 52-557a, Connecticut gives invited social guests the same protection as business customers. These claims are usually handled through the homeowner’s coverage, not paid out of your friend’s pocket.

What if the fall was partly my fault?

You can still recover in Connecticut as long as your share of the fault isn’t greater than the property owner’s. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault.

What does a case review cost?

Nothing. Tom Ganim reviews injury claims for free, and there’s no fee unless we win. Call (203) 372-7772.

This article is general information about Connecticut law, not legal advice for your situation. Deadlines and outcomes depend on specific facts. Contact the firm for a free, confidential review.

The post Slipped on Wet Leaves in Connecticut? Who’s Responsible Depends on Where You Fell appeared first on Attorney Tom Ganim.

Most people who call about a possible malpractice claim start the same way: “Something went wrong, and nobody will tell me why.” That feeling is real and it deserves an answer. But Connecticut law asks a narrower question than “did something go wrong?” — and knowing what it asks is the fastest way to figure out whether you have a case worth pursuing.

Question 1: Did a health care provider owe you a duty of care?

This is usually the easy one. If a doctor, nurse, surgeon, hospital, clinic, pharmacist, dentist or other licensed provider treated you, they owed you care. The duty exists because of the treatment relationship.

Where it gets less obvious:

• Hospitals can be responsible for their own employees, and sometimes for doctors working in their emergency departments.
• Independent physicians working inside a hospital may be responsible on their own, separate from the hospital.
• State-run facilities — UConn Health, for example — follow a different path. Claims against the State of Connecticut usually have to go through the Office of the Claims Commissioner before a lawsuit can proceed, and that process has its own timing.

Figuring out who is responsible matters as much as whether someone is. It decides where the claim is filed and who has to answer it.

Question 2: Did the care fall below the accepted standard?

This is the heart of every malpractice case, and it is where most potential claims succeed or fail.

The “standard of care” is what a reasonably careful provider in the same field would have done in the same situation. It is not perfection. Medicine carries risk, and a complication that was a known, accepted risk of a properly performed procedure is usually not malpractice — even when the result is devastating.

Connecticut builds this question into the lawsuit itself. Under Connecticut General Statutes § 52-190a, a malpractice case cannot be filed until a similar health care provider — someone in the same field or specialty as the one being sued — reviews the facts and writes an opinion that there appears to be evidence of negligence. That written opinion is attached to the complaint. The rule exists to stop weak cases early, and it means every legitimate claim has medical backing from day one.

You do not arrange this yourself. It is part of what a lawyer evaluating your case handles.

Question 3: Did that failure actually cause your injury?

Proving a mistake happened is not the finish line. You also have to show the mistake caused the harm — not the underlying illness, not a separate condition, not something that would have happened anyway.

This is where delayed-diagnosis cases often turn. If a cancer was missed at a stage where treatment would have changed the outcome, causation is strong. If it would have progressed the same way no matter when it was found, the case gets much harder, even though the miss was real. Medical records and expert review answer this question; opinions and hindsight don’t.

Question 4: Did it cause real, measurable harm?

A near-miss — a wrong medication caught before you took it — is alarming, but without injury there is usually nothing to recover. A viable case involves harm you can point to:

• Additional surgery, hospital time or treatment you would not otherwise have needed
• Lost income, now or in the future
• Permanent injury, disability or disfigurement
• Pain and suffering and loss of the ability to enjoy life’s activities
• In the worst cases, the death of a family member

Connecticut does not cap damages in medical malpractice cases, unlike many states. That makes the harm question especially important: what you have lost, and what you will lose, drives what the case is worth.

The fifth question: Are you still inside the deadline?

You can answer yes to all four questions and still lose the case to the calendar. Under C.G.S. § 52-584, a Connecticut malpractice claim generally has to be brought:

• within two years of when the injury was discovered, or reasonably should have been discovered, and
• never more than three years after the act or omission that caused it — even if you didn’t know about the harm yet.

A few things can change that math. When treatment for the same problem is ongoing, the clock may not start until that course of treatment ends. And § 52-190a lets a lawyer obtain an automatic 90-day extension to finish the medical review before filing. For a death caused by malpractice, a separate wrongful-death deadline applies, and claims against the State move on their own timeline.

Those rules are narrow, and they are not something to count on without advice. The honest takeaway: the review takes time, so the earlier it starts, the more options you have.

What to do right now if you think something went wrong

1. Request your complete medical records — from every provider and facility involved, not just the one you suspect. You are entitled to them.
2. Write down the timeline while you remember it: dates, symptoms, who you saw, what you were told, and what you asked.
3. Keep every bill, prescription and discharge paper.
4. Don’t sign anything from a hospital or provider about the incident before you have had it reviewed.
5. Get an evaluation early. The deadline does not pause while you decide.

How a free case review with Tom Ganim works

Attorney Tom Ganim is a Connecticut medical malpractice lawyer who has practiced since 1992, from the same Main Street office in Bridgeport that his father opened in 1951. When you call about a possible malpractice claim, Tom evaluates it personally: what happened, whether the four questions above can be answered yes, and whether the deadline still leaves room to act. If the case is worth pursuing, he will tell you how he intends to hold the responsible provider accountable. If it isn’t, he will tell you that too, plainly, and it costs you nothing to find out.

Learn more on our Bridgeport medical malpractice page, see our broader personal injury practice, or tell Tom what happened.

Keep Calm. Call Tom. (203) 372-7772

Frequently asked questions

How do I know if I have a medical malpractice case in Connecticut?

You likely have a case if a provider’s care fell below the accepted standard in their field, that failure caused your injury, and the injury caused real harm — and you are still within the deadline. A bad outcome alone is not malpractice. A lawyer’s review, backed by a similar health care provider’s opinion, is how that gets answered.

How long do I have to file a medical malpractice claim in Connecticut?

Generally two years from when the injury was discovered or reasonably should have been, and no more than three years from the act or omission itself, under C.G.S. § 52-584. A 90-day extension is available to complete the required medical review, and ongoing treatment can affect when the clock starts. Wrongful-death and state claims have their own deadlines.

What is the good faith opinion letter in a Connecticut malpractice case?

C.G.S. § 52-190a requires a written opinion from a similar health care provider stating there appears to be evidence of negligence. It is attached to the complaint when the case is filed. Your lawyer arranges it as part of evaluating and preparing the claim.

Is there a cap on medical malpractice damages in Connecticut?

No. Connecticut does not cap economic or non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases. What a case is worth depends on the actual harm — medical costs, lost income, permanent injury, and pain and suffering.

What does it cost to have my case reviewed?

Nothing. Tom Ganim reviews potential malpractice claims for free and tells you honestly whether yours is worth pursuing. Call (203) 372-7772.

This article is general information about Connecticut law, not legal advice for your situation. Deadlines and outcomes depend on specific facts. Contact the firm for a free, confidential review.

The post Do You Have a Medical Malpractice Case in Connecticut? Four Questions That Decide It appeared first on Attorney Tom Ganim.

The case is Callahan v. iCare Health Management, LLC. She was injured in 2017. She filed her notices of claim between 2020 and 2022. The Workers’ Compensation Commission never reached the question of what she was owed, because it ruled it had no jurisdiction to hear her at all.

That is the part of Connecticut workers’ compensation nobody explains on the first day of a new job. The benefits are generous by design. The door to them closes fast, and it closes whether or not you knew it was open.

There are two clocks, and you do not get to pick

Under C.G.S. § 31-294c, a written notice of claim must be filed:

• Within one year of the accident, for an accidental injury
• Within three years of the first symptom, for an occupational disease

Three years sounds like plenty of room. It is also the clock most workers assume applies to them, because most workplace injuries in Connecticut do not happen in a single dramatic moment. They accumulate — a shoulder that gives out after years of lifting, a back that fails after a decade of the same motion.

That accumulation is called repetitive trauma, and here is the trap: Connecticut does not automatically treat repetitive trauma as an occupational disease. Callahan confirmed that repetitive trauma claims generally fall into the accidental injury category, which means the one-year clock — running from your last day of exposure at that job.

To earn the three-year window instead, you have to prove the condition is peculiar to your occupation and caused by hazards in excess of the ordinary risks of employment. The court was explicit that showing the work caused it is not enough. You need medical evidence that this specific occupation made you more susceptible than other physically demanding work would have.

Most people do not develop that evidence on their own. Most people find out it was required after the deadline has passed.

How the first month actually unfolds

If you are hurt at work in Connecticut today, the sequence looks roughly like this.

Day one. You report the injury to your employer. Do it in writing, even if you also say it out loud, and keep a copy. Verbal reports evaporate; a dated email does not. Your employer directs your initial medical treatment.

The first weeks. After that initial employer-directed treatment, you generally choose your own treating physician. The exception matters: if your employer participates in an approved medical care plan, you must select from the doctors on that plan’s list. Changing physicians later is possible through a referral, carrier approval, or a request to an Administrative Law Judge.

Filing the claim. A Form 30C — the Notice of Claim for Compensation — is what actually preserves your rights. Reporting the injury to a supervisor is not the same thing as filing a claim. This is where most claims are lost.

Day 28. This one runs in your favor. Once your employer receives that written notice, they have 28 days to either start paying compensation or file a formal notice contesting liability. If they do neither, they are conclusively presumed to have accepted that your injury is compensable. They can still argue about how disabled you are. They cannot go back and argue it never happened at work.

That 28-day provision is one of the strongest tools in the Act, and it only exists if the notice was filed correctly in the first place.

What the benefits are actually worth

Connecticut pays temporary total disability at 75% of your after-tax average weekly wage, calculated from the 52 weeks before the injury. Because it is figured after taxes and Social Security rather than on gross pay, the real-world replacement rate is higher than the “75%” headline suggests.

There is a ceiling. Effective October 1, 2025, the Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission set the state average weekly wage — and the maximum weekly total disability rate — at $1,716.00.

Medical treatment for an accepted claim costs you nothing. Bills go to the carrier, never to you, and providers are barred from billing you directly. If you are getting invoices for treatment on an accepted claim, something has gone wrong and it is worth a phone call.

Beyond wage replacement, claims can include permanent partial disability awards for lasting impairment, and discretionary benefits where an injury permanently reduces your earning capacity.

Questions we get in the first conversation

Can I be fired for filing?
No. C.G.S. § 31-290a bars an employer from discharging or discriminating against you for filing a claim or exercising your rights under the Act. Remedies include reinstatement, back wages, and attorney’s fees. Fear of retaliation is one of the most common reasons claims never get filed — and it is a reason the statute specifically addresses.

Can I sue instead?
Not your employer. Workers’ compensation is the exclusive remedy against them. But if someone other than your employer caused the injury — a negligent driver, a contractor on a shared site, a defective machine — you may have a separate third-party claim on top of the comp claim, handled as a personal injury case. These are frequently missed, and they are often worth more than the comp claim itself.

What if the claim is denied?
Denial is not the end. Disputes move through the Commission in stages — an informal hearing first, then a pre-formal to narrow the issues, then a formal hearing with sworn testimony and a written Finding and Award. Bridgeport and the surrounding towns are handled by the Fourth District office at 350 Fairfield Avenue.

What if I already missed the deadline?
Talk to someone before you assume you did. The date the clock started is a legal question, not an obvious one — for repetitive trauma it runs from last exposure, not from when the pain began, and the occupational disease classification is genuinely arguable in some cases. Callahan is a warning about waiting. It is not a reason to give up without asking.

The window is shorter than the injury

The cruel arithmetic of repetitive trauma is that the injuries which take years to develop are the ones governed by the shortest deadline. By the time a shoulder finally stops working, the one-year clock from your last day of exposure may already be most of the way gone.

If you are hurt and still working through it, that is exactly the moment to get the notice on file. Filing does not commit you to a fight. It keeps the door open.

Talk to Tom

Ganim, Ganim & Ganim, P.C. has handled workers’ compensation claims for Bridgeport and Fairfield County workers since 1951, out of the same Main Street office. If you were injured on the job — recently or a while ago — a conversation costs you nothing and can tell you quickly whether your claim is still live.

Call (203) 372-7772 or request a free case review. You can read more on our workers’ compensation page.

Keep calm. Call Tom.

This article is general information about Connecticut law and is not legal advice. Deadlines, benefit rates, and classifications depend on the facts of the individual case, and the law changes. Speak with an attorney about your specific situation.

The post Connecticut Workers’ Comp Deadlines: The One-Year Rule That Ends Most Claims appeared first on Attorney Tom Ganim.

Understanding that split is the difference between keeping your license and losing it by default. Here is how Connecticut actually handles a DUI arrest.

The two cases you are facing

The criminal case is heard in Superior Court under Connecticut General Statutes § 14-227a. That is where fines, probation, jail exposure, and any diversionary program are decided.

The administrative case is handled by the DMV under the state’s implied consent law. It concerns only your license, and it is triggered by the chemical test result — not by a conviction. You can beat the criminal charge and still lose your license if you ignore the DMV side, because the two are decided independently.

The DMV suspension typically begins about 30 days after the arrest. That window is short, and it is the part people most often let lapse.

The limit that applies to you is not always 0.08

Connecticut sets three different thresholds depending on who is driving:

• 0.08% — drivers 21 and over in a standard vehicle
• 0.04% — operators of a commercial motor vehicle, under C.G.S. § 14-227a
• 0.02% — drivers under 21, under C.G.S. § 14-227g

The commercial limit catches working drivers off guard. If you hold a CDL, the number that ends your ability to earn a living is half the one most people have in mind — and it applies to the vehicle you were operating at the time.

You should also know that a BAC reading is not the only route to a conviction. Connecticut law reaches operation while under the influence, which can be proven through observation, field testing, and driving behavior even where no test number exists.

The 45-day suspension

If you fail a chemical test or refuse one, the DMV imposes a 45-day license suspension on a first offense. That is a fixed administrative consequence, and it runs regardless of what happens in court.

Refusing the test does not avoid this. Refusal carries its own suspension and, as covered below, a longer interlock requirement than failing the test would have produced.

The ignition interlock requirement — and why you may hear two different numbers

After the 45 days, you do not simply get your license back. Restoration requires installing an ignition interlock device (IID) on any vehicle you operate. This is the piece that generates the most confusion, because the required period depends on which track you are on.

Following the administrative suspension, the Connecticut DMV requires:

• Six months — drivers 21 and over who failed the test at 0.08% or above
• One year — drivers under 21
• One year — any driver who refused the chemical test

A criminal conviction under § 14-227a carries its own interlock term, and for a first conviction that term is one year. When both apply, the longer period governs. So a driver told at the DMV to expect six months can end up on the device for a full year once the court case concludes.

The device is also not free. Installation, monthly monitoring, and removal are paid by the driver, and missed or failed rolling retests are reported.

What a first conviction carries in court

A first violation of § 14-227a is a misdemeanor, and the exposure is real:

• Fine of $500 to $1,000
• Up to six months imprisonment, including a mandatory minimum of 48 consecutive hours that cannot be suspended
• That sentence may instead be suspended in favor of 100 hours of community service as a condition of probation
• License suspension of 45 days, followed by the interlock period described above

Penalties escalate sharply for a second or third offense within the statutory look-back period, and a third conviction carries permanent revocation of your operator’s license.

What often goes unmentioned

The statutory penalties are only part of what a DUI costs. Employment consequences follow for anyone who drives commercially, holds a professional license, or works in a role with a background-check requirement. Auto policy premiums rise. And for non-citizens, a criminal conviction can carry immigration consequences that reach far past the fine.

These are the reasons the first two weeks matter. The DMV hearing request has a deadline. Evidence about the traffic stop, the field sobriety testing, and the calibration and administration of the breath test is best examined early, while records are still available.

Being arrested is not the same as being convicted

A DUI arrest is not a foregone conclusion. There are real questions in most of these cases: whether the stop itself was lawful, whether field sobriety tests were administered to standard, whether the testing equipment was properly maintained and the operator properly certified, and whether the timing of the test supports the reading it produced.

Connecticut also offers first-time offenders a possible path through the Alcohol Education Program, which can result in dismissal of the charge on successful completion. Eligibility is limited and it is granted at the court’s discretion — it is not automatic, and it is not available to everyone.

Talk to Tom

Attorney Tom Ganim has defended DUI charges in Bridgeport and across Fairfield County for decades, and Ganim, Ganim & Ganim, P.C. has been part of this community far longer. If you were arrested recently, the DMV clock is already running — that is the reason to call now rather than after your court date.

Call (203) 372-7772 or request a free case review. You can read more about our approach on our DUI and DWI defense and criminal defense pages.

Keep calm. Call Tom.

This article is general information about Connecticut law and is not legal advice. Penalties vary with prior history, BAC level, and the facts of the individual case, and the law changes. Speak with an attorney about your specific situation.

The post Connecticut DUI Penalties: What Actually Happens to Your License After an Arrest appeared first on Attorney Tom Ganim.

But Connecticut law puts a clock on these cases, and the decisions made in the first few weeks often determine what a claim is worth years later. Here is what you should know.

What Connecticut treats as a catastrophic injury

There is no single statutory definition. In practice, a catastrophic injury is one that permanently changes what you are able to do — an injury you do not simply heal from and move past. That typically includes:

• Loss of a limb, hand, foot, or digits, whether traumatic or surgical
• Severe crush injuries that lead to amputation weeks or months later
• Spinal cord injuries causing paralysis
• Traumatic brain injury with lasting cognitive effects
• Severe burns and permanent disfigurement
• Injuries requiring lifelong assistive devices or attendant care

What these have in common legally is that the damages are not finished when treatment ends. They continue for the rest of your life, and a claim has to account for that from the beginning.

How these injuries happen around Bridgeport

Most of the amputation cases we see in Fairfield County trace back to one of four situations:

Traffic collisions. High-energy crashes — a truck striking a passenger vehicle, a motorcycle or pedestrian hit at speed — produce the crush and degloving injuries that most often end in amputation.

Workplace and machinery accidents. Manufacturing equipment, presses, conveyors, saws, and unguarded moving parts. These cases frequently involve both a workers’ compensation claim and a separate claim against a third party — an equipment manufacturer or an outside contractor — who is not your employer. Those are two different cases with two different sets of rules, and one does not replace the other.

Medical causes. A missed compartment syndrome, an untreated infection, a surgical error, or a delayed diagnosis that allows a salvageable limb to deteriorate past the point of saving. These are medical malpractice claims and carry additional filing requirements.

Property and premises hazards. Industrial or construction sites, defective equipment on someone else’s property, and severe animal attacks.

What Connecticut law allows you to recover

Amputation claims are valued differently from ordinary injury claims, because the largest costs arrive long after the hospital discharge.

Economic damages

• Medical care — emergency treatment, surgery, rehabilitation, and future care
• Prosthetics over a lifetime. A prosthesis is not a one-time purchase. Devices are replaced on a cycle, sockets are refitted as the residual limb changes, and higher-function components carry higher costs. A claim that accounts only for the first device undervalues the case substantially.
• Home and vehicle modification — ramps, widened doorways, accessible bathrooms, hand controls
• Lost wages and lost earning capacity. These are separate. Lost wages cover what you missed. Lost earning capacity covers the difference between what you would have earned across your working life and what you realistically can earn now.
• Attendant care and household services you can no longer perform yourself

Non-economic damages

Connecticut also allows recovery for physical pain, permanent impairment, disfigurement, loss of the ability to enjoy life’s activities, and the effect on your marriage and family relationships. In amputation cases these are rarely a small part of the claim.

Two deadlines that decide whether you have a case at all

Connecticut is stricter than many people expect, and there are two separate limits — you must satisfy both.

Under Connecticut General Statutes § 52-584, a negligence claim must be filed within two years of the date the injury was sustained or reasonably should have been discovered. Separately, no claim may be brought more than three years after the act or omission that caused it, regardless of when you discovered the harm.

That second limit catches people. In a case where an infection or a missed diagnosis leads to an amputation months later, the three-year clock runs from the original medical act — not from the day the limb was lost. Medical malpractice claims carry their own additional requirements, including a written opinion from a similar health care provider before suit is filed.

Wrongful death claims operate on a different schedule again. If you are unsure which applies to your situation, the safe assumption is that you have less time than you think.

Being partly at fault does not end your claim

This stops more people from calling than almost anything else. Connecticut follows a modified comparative negligence rule under C.G.S. § 52-572h. If you share some responsibility for the accident, your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault — but you can still recover, as long as your share is 50 percent or less. At 51 percent or more, recovery is barred entirely.

In practice: if a jury values your damages at $2,000,000 and finds you 20 percent responsible, you recover $1,600,000. The percentage is worth fighting over, and it is usually contested hard.

Why the first weeks matter more than people realize

Evidence in these cases disappears quickly. Machinery gets repaired or replaced. Vehicles are released and scrapped. Surveillance video is overwritten on a thirty-day loop. Maintenance logs and safety records are easier to obtain before anyone is on notice of a claim.

An early investigation preserves the physical evidence, secures the records, and gets the right experts — a life care planner, an economist, a prosthetist — involved while the picture is still complete. That work is what supports a lifetime damages figure rather than a settlement built around the first hospital bill.

It also matters that you are not negotiating alone. The other side will have adjusters and defense counsel working the file from the first week. You should have someone doing the same for you.

Talk to Tom

Attorney Tom Ganim has represented injured people in Bridgeport and across Connecticut for decades, and Ganim, Ganim & Ganim, P.C. has been part of this community for far longer. A conversation costs nothing, carries no obligation, and will tell you quickly whether you have a claim worth pursuing.

Call (203) 372-7772 or request a free case review. You can also read more about how we handle personal injury claims in Connecticut.

Keep calm. Call Tom.

This article is general information about Connecticut law and is not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts, and deadlines vary with the circumstances. Speak with an attorney about your specific situation.

The post Amputation and Catastrophic Injury Claims in Bridgeport: What Connecticut Law Lets You Recover appeared first on Attorney Tom Ganim.

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