Understanding Negligence in Personal Injury Cases
Personal injury cases often hinge on the legal concept of negligence. Negligence is a key element in determining both who is liable for an accident and who must compensate accident victims for their losses. Please know that a skilled personal injury attorney can help you identify the negligent party in your case and hold that party accountable to compensate you for your injuries.
What is Negligence?
Negligence is a legal term that simply means a person or entity failed to exercise the reasonable care that an ordinary prudent person would have exercised in similar circumstances.
Consider, for example, the scenario where a driver is speeding and texting while driving down a neighborhood street. The driver fails to see a stop sign and drives through the intersection, striking another car. Assume that the driver who was struck suffered neck and back injuries.
Here, the law says that the driver who failed to stop was negligent since an ordinary driver under the circumstances would not have been speeding and texting.
Negligence is important in personal injury cases because if a person’s negligence causes an accident, the law considers the negligent party to be responsible or liable for the accident. Further, if a person was injured in the accident, negligent parties must compensate injury victims for their damages or losses.
If we return to our example above, the speeding driver would be considered liable for causing the accident. In addition, the injured driver could file an injury claim or lawsuit against the liable driver to recover compensation for any losses.
What are the Elements of a Negligence Claim?
Personal injury laws say that accident victims must often prove four elements in order to prove that a party was negligent. These elements are:
- Duty – A defendant owed the injury victim a duty to either act or refrain from acting in a certain way.
- Breach of Duty – The defendant acted contrary to his/her duty of care.
- Causation – The defendant’s breach caused the accident victim’s injuries.
- Damages – The victim suffered verifiable injuries because of the accident and these injuries are supportable by medical bills, medical records, or pain and suffering.
Depending on the facts of a case, a judge, jury, or insurance adjuster are often tasked with determining whether a victim can establish the above elements.
What Can Compensation Include?
Negligence can take place in a host of different injury cases, including:
- Slip and fall accidents,
- Motorcycle accidents,
- Pedestrian accidents,
- Car collisions, and
- Rideshare accidents.
No matter the type of case, though, injury victims can always try to turn to negligent parties to recover compensation for their injuries. This compensation may include payment for such things as:
- Medical bills and medical expenses,
- Lost wages,
- Future Lost Earning Capacity,
- Out-of-pocket expenses,
- Property damage, and
- Pain and Suffering.
The specific amount of money that a victim may recover will depend on the specific facts of the case.
Contact Justice Through Compensation for Help
If you or a loved one was injured in an accident, please know that the law firm of Justice Through Compensation is here to help. Our legal team is skilled, experienced, and passionate in their representation. Let us shoulder the burden of an injury claim or lawsuit while you focus on healing from your injuries. Contact us today for the quality legal help you deserve.
* Main image at top by pressfoto on Freepik