What Is Injury Law?

The law of injury focuses on civil offenses that cause damage to your body, emotions and mind. The aim of an injury lawsuit is to collect money for damages like medical bills and pain and suffering.

It's not easy to avoid injuries, but you should protect yourself as much possible. For example, if you are about to fall backwards, try to turn your head around and protect it by using your arms.

Negligence

Anyone who has suffered injuries or other injuries as a result negligence of another can file a lawsuit for negligence and seek financial compensation. To establish their case, the plaintiff will need to establish four elements: duty, breach of duty, causation, and damages.

Negligence is defined as the inability to exercise the level of care that reasonable people would have in similar situations. A driver, for example should follow traffic laws to prevent injuries or accidents to other road users. A doctor must treat patients in the same manner that an individual who has the same training would under similar circumstances. A lawyer may also rely on experts to prove that the defendant's conduct was below industry norms.

To prevail in a negligence lawsuit, the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant's negligence was the primary cause of the injury. This is referred to as legal causation. A good personal injury lawyer will argue that the defendant’s actions were the sole reason for the plaintiff's injuries.

The plaintiff must prove that their injuries have caused tangible financial loss like lost income and medical bills. Gross negligence is the most serious form of negligent behavior in that it involves total disregard for the safety of others. A nursing home that fails to change a patient's bandages over a period of several days is an example of gross negligence. In some states, defendants can use the defense of contributory negligence to block the plaintiff from claiming damage.

Statute of Limitations

If someone else's negligence or careless disregard for your safety cause injuries to you or suffer injury, the law allows an unspecified amount of time to file a lawsuit, called the statute of limitations. This time frame is set by the state legislature to encourage timely filing and prevent unreasonable delays.

The time period for filing a claim differs from state to state and for different types of injuries to the next. For instance in Pennsylvania personal injuries such as car accidents, you generally have two years from the date of your accident to file claims. However, certain claims can be subject to the discovery rule. This means that the statute of limitation doesn't begin until the injury is discovered or could have been reasonably discovered.

In some instances, like those involving intentional torts, such as false imprisonment and assaults, as well as defamation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, the limitations period is extended. A statute of limitation can also be exempted or tolled in some circumstances, for example, when a minor is involved or a person is serving in the military or in a prison.

If you try to start a lawsuit after the deadline for filing a lawsuit has passed your case will be dismissed without being heard. It is therefore important to speak with an experienced injury lawyer prior to when the statute expires.

Damages

Many expenses associated with injuries come with the price tag. These are referred to as special damages. They can include medical expenses, out of pocket expenses, lost wages, the cost to repair or replace your property, and other fixed costs. The law does not limit the amount of special damages that you can seek.

Other losses are hard to quantify, like pain and suffering or loss of enjoyment life, as well as other intangible harms. Putting a dollar amount on personal losses such as physical or emotional pain can be a challenge, but attorneys and insurance companies utilize formulas to measure them.

For instance, a person who is a plaintiff in a personal injury suit for whiplash could have sustained serious injuries that cause plenty of pain and stress to their daily lives. They may have to seek assistance with household chores, have a different diet, and miss out socializing or engaging in recreational activities. The victim could experience an absence of pleasure and this is a redressable loss as general damages.

To estimate the value of a claim for general damages attorneys and insurance companies usually begin by calculating the amount for medical special damages. They then add on the value of any income losses. Then, they multiply this by a number between 1.5 and injury lawsuit 5. The more severe injuries typically result in greater multipliers.

Liability

In law, liability refers to the person found to be responsible for harm or injury. It could be due to strict liability or negligence. The concept of negligence is the basis for most lawsuits for injuries. Negligence is the inability to act with reasonable care under the circumstances. The jury will determine what reasonable people in similar circumstances would do and decides if the defendant's actions or inactions were in violation of the law. Certain injury cases are based solely on strict liability. For instance, if a defective product is the cause of injuries.

Victims may also be entitled to compensation, in addition to economic damages in the event of non-economic damages such as discomfort and pain. It is difficult to value these damages however, our injury attorneys are experienced in maximizing the value of your claim.

Certain personal injury lawsuits are multi-plaintiff cases which include class actions or mass torts. These plaintiffs could be corporations, such as an insurance company or a pharmaceutical company or they could be individuals just like you. In these kinds of cases, several parties could be held accountable based on the evidence provided by each plaintiff and the results of a thorough investigation. If you've suffered injuries due to someone else's negligence or wrongful act, contact us right away to discuss your case.