Skip to content
MyClaimWorth
ME
★ Maine · workplace

Workplace settlements
in Maine.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

Maine pays injured workers 80% of their after tax wages, capped at 125% of the state average weekly wage. A work injury can also lead to a lawsuit against someone else, as when a worker’s wrist fracture surgery went wrong and a jury awarded $2 million.

Facts that decide a workplace claim in Maine

Weekly benefit80% of the employee’s after tax average weekly wage, but not more than the maximum, paid for the duration of the incapacity.39-A M.R.S. § 212
Maximum for injuries since 2020$441 or 125% of the state average weekly wage, whichever is higher. With the $1,249.12 average from 1 July 2026, that is $1,561.40 a week.39-A M.R.S. § 211; Workers’ Compensation Board SAWW page
State average weekly wage$1,249.12 as of 1 July 2026, with a cost of living multiplier of 1.04194054.Maine Workers’ Compensation Board
Suing a public entityA contractor’s employee hurt by equipment a public university owned must fit a Tort Claims Act exception to sue it.Badler v. University of Maine System (Me. 2022)
Deadline to sueSix years: “All civil actions shall be commenced within 6 years after the cause of action accrues,” one of the longest general deadlines in the country.14 M.R.S. § 752
united states · sister site
Your workplace claim in Maine. See the number for your own case.

FairSettlement gives you a free estimate for your own workplace case in about two minutes, no cost and no obligation.

Check my case
★ ME · reported workplace outcomes

What Maine courts have awarded.

Real Maine decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Nason v. Pruchnic
    Maine Supreme Judicial Court · 2019
    $2,000,000 verdict, affirmed

    In 2013 Robbie Nason fractured the scaphoid bone of his right wrist while working. A hand surgeon at Eastern Maine Medical Center operated, but the repair left him with permanent wrist pain and impairment, and he lost significant overtime after moving to a new position. The jury found the surgeon and hospital negligent and awarded $2,000,000; the Court held the award bore a rational relationship to the evidence and affirmed.

  • Badler v. University of Maine System
    Maine Supreme Judicial Court · 2022
    Judgment for the University affirmed

    Eric Badler, a baker employed by the food service contractor Sodexo, severely injured his right index finger in an industrial mixer owned by the University at its Farmington campus; the bowl supplied was incompatible with the mixer. He sued the University, which claimed immunity under the Maine Tort Claims Act, and the Court affirmed judgment for it.

★ ME · workplace · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a workplace settlement in Maine.

  1. 1

    A work injury can lead to a malpractice claim. Nason’s fracture happened on the job, but the $2 million came from a negligent surgical repair, which is outside workers’ compensation.

  2. 2

    Lost overtime counts. The Nason award reflected the loss of significant overtime after he could no longer do his old job.

  3. 3

    Public owners of equipment are often immune. Badler shows a contractor’s employee may be unable to sue a public university even when its machine caused the injury.

★ ME · statute of limitations
6 years for personal injury, longest in the US

14 M.R.S. § 752

★ ME · fault rule
Modified comparative, 50% bar

Modified comparative, recovery barred at 50% claimant fault.

★ ME · caps

What caps recovery.

Statutory caps that may bear on a workplace settlement in Maine.

★ workplace · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How Maine's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for workplace claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationWorkplace page
Maine · you are hereModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury, longest in the US—
MarylandPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryMD · workplace →
MassachusettsModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryMA · workplace →
New HampshireModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryNH · workplace →
New JerseyModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryNJ · workplace →
New YorkPure comparative negligence3 years for personal injury; 2 years 6 months for medical malpracticeNY · workplace →
PennsylvaniaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryPA · workplace →
NebraskaModified comparative, 50% bar4 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeNE · workplace →
North DakotaModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeND · workplace →
TennesseeModified comparative, 50% bar1 year from date of injury, among the shortest in the USTN · workplace →
UtahModified comparative, 50% bar4 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeUT · workplace →
MichiganModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryMI · workplace →
MinnesotaModified comparative, 51% bar6 years for personal injury (uncommonly long); 4 years for medical malpracticeMN · workplace →
★ ME · workplace · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

united states · sister site
Hurt at work in Maine? See what your own claim could be worth.

FairSettlement, our US sister site, gives you a free estimate in about two minutes. No cost and no obligation.

Check my case

Sources

Checked 2026-09-28.

★ all of ME
Maine overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for Maine as a whole.

★ national frame
Workplace in United States

Workplace band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Workplace · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of workplace bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in Maine. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.