Latest Massachusetts Headlines

All the headlines from our Massachusetts Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Peachtree Special Risk Brokers Acquires Massachusetts’ RLA Insurance Intermediaries

Mar 24 2020 // Peachtree Special Risk Brokers LLC, a subsidiary of Brown & Brown Inc., has acquired substantially all of the assets of RLA Insurance Intermediaries.RLA Insurance Intermediaries was founded in 2010 by Jeff Hays and...

Exxon Loses Jurisdiction Fight in Massachusetts Climate Suit

Mar 20 2020 // Exxon Mobil Corp. suffered a setback in a climate change case when a federal judge ruled that a consumer protection lawsuit filed by Massachusetts should go back to state court.U.S. District Judge William G. Young in...

Massachusetts’ Governor Baker Announces $10M Small Business Recovery Fund

Mar 18 2020 // Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has announced a $10 million small business recovery loan fund to help companies struggling because of efforts to slow the coronavirus pandemic. Baker said Monday the fund will provide...

Pilot Dies After Small Plane Crashes in Massachusetts

Mar 16 2020 // The pilot of a small plane that crashed into a wooded and swampy area shortly after takeoff from a Massachusetts airport has died, authorities say.The Cessna 177 single-engine plane crashed about 100 yards north of the...

Insurer Responsible for Liability Claims Despite Uninsured Premises Exclusion

Mar 13 2020 // The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that an insurer is responsible for paying liability claims resulting from the improper use of a portable generator, despite an uninsured premises exclusion in the...

The Hilb Group Acquires Massachusetts’ LifePlus Insurance Agency

Mar 12 2020 // The Hilb Group LLC (THG) has acquired Massachusetts-based LifePlus Insurance Agency Inc. (LPINS). The transaction became effective March 1, 2020.Established in 2004, LPINS is a full-service ancillary benefits agency,...

Hold the Phone: Massachusetts’ Hands-Free Driving Law Takes Effect

Mar 9 2020 // Massachusetts’ new hands-free driving law went into effect February 23rd.The law, signed by Governor Charlie Baker in November, is intended to reduce the number of distracted driving injuries and deaths in the state....

Officials Say 250 in Coronavirus Quarantine in Massachusetts

Mar 6 2020 // Massachusetts officials are launching an aggressive plan to regularly disinfect the state transit system and are calling on colleges and high schools to cancel study abroad programs as more than 700 residents have been...

Dollar Tree Stores Faces $523K in Penalties for Safety Violations in Massachusetts

Mar 6 2020 // The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Dollar Tree Stores Inc. for exit, storage and fire hazards at a store in Boston, Mass. The national discount retailer...

39 States Investigating E-Cigarette Maker Juul Over Marketing to Underage Users

Feb 27 2020 // A group of 39 state attorneys general on Tuesday announced an investigation into Juul Labs Inc.’s marketing practices, adding to mounting legal and regulatory problems for the e-cigarette maker over its role in the...

NiSource’s Columbia Gas to Pay $53M, Plead Guilty for Massachusetts Gas Explosions

Feb 26 2020 // Columbia Gas of Massachusetts has agreed to accept responsibility for the gas explosions on Sept. 13, 2018, in Lawrence, Andover and North Andover that killed one individual, injured 22, and damaged homes and...

Declarations

Feb 24 2020 // “The defendants’ statements were privileged; such a privilege cannot be evaded simply by relabeling a deficient claim.”— Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Barbara Lenk stated in her...

Hold the Phone: Massachusetts’ Hands-Free Driving Law to Take Effect

Feb 21 2020 // Massachusetts’ new hands-free driving law takes effect this Sunday, February 23rd.The law, signed by Governor Charlie Baker in November, is intended to reduce the number of distracted driving injuries and deaths in...

Wendy’s Pays $400K to Resolve Child Labor Law Allegations in Massachusetts

Feb 20 2020 // Fast-food chain Wendy’s has agreed to pay $400,000 to resolve allegations that it violated child labor laws by having teenage employees at dozens of Massachusetts restaurants work later and longer than allowed, the...

Massachusetts’ J.E.D. Insurance & Financial Service Agency Joins SAN Group

Feb 20 2020 // J.E.D. Insurance & Financial Service Agency recently joined Satellite Agency Network (SAN) Group Inc., an alliance of independent insurance agencies in the Northeast.The full-service agency specializes in home,...

Massachusetts Chemical Plant Re-Opens a Day After a Series of Explosions

Feb 18 2020 // A Massachusetts chemical manufacturing plant re-opened Friday, a day after at least six explosions at the facility forced workers to evacuate and blew a hole in the roof.Seqens North America, formerly PCI Synthesis, in...

State Lawsuit Alleges Juul Advertised Vaping on Teen Websites

Feb 13 2020 // E-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. bought online advertisements on teen-focused websites for Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network and Seventeen magazine after it launched its product in 2015, according to a lawsuit filed on...

Massachusetts’ Warren Insurance Agency Joins Satellite Agency Network Group

Feb 5 2020 // Warren Insurance Agency Inc. recently joined Satellite Agency Network (SAN) Group Inc., an alliance of independent insurance agencies in the Northeast.Warren Insurance Agency was founded in 1979 by its owner, Edward...

Deadline to File Claim in Massachusetts Natural Gas Disaster Approaching

Feb 3 2020 // Officials are reminding Merrimack Valley residents that Friday is the deadline to file a claim in the $143 million class action settlement stemming from 2018’s natural gas explosions and fires.Lawyers encourage...

FBinsure Acquires Massachusetts’ Nimiroski Insurance Agency

Feb 3 2020 // FBinsure has acquired the Nimiroski Insurance Agency, an independent agency located in Attleboro, Mass.Established in 1963, Nimiroski Insurance has been an active member of the Attleboro community for more than 50 years,...