Personal Injury Legalities: Beyond The Infomercial

Personal injury lawyer encompasses a seeming vast array of incidents that can leave one less able to have a satisfactory quality of life. Generally, personal injury cases may include:
• Animal bite or attack due to the animal being free to roam.
• Injury as a result of medical malpractice.
• Motor vehicle accident caused by driver intoxication.
• Injury sustained from industrial or construction sites.
Emotional injuries such as defamation, libel and slander also encompass personal injury law.
Negligence Cases
picture of a trustworthy lawyerThe overall term for personal law injury cases is civil lawsuits. These are where a person(s), business or other entities are charged with wrongful action or lack of action that resulted in the defendant being harmed. They are different from criminal cases, wherein punishment of the wrongdoer is being tried and sought. One negligence case example from the recent past was a restaurant chain being sued for selling hot coffee in a cup that did not provide ample protection from one being burned. The product, in this case the coffee and cup were defective and the customer sustained major burns from spillage. The defendant thus sued for financial compensation to cover medical expenses, which is a civil lawsuit. Negligence cases require the plaintiff demonstrate that under the same circumstances, a “reasonably prudent person” in the defendant’s position would have acted differently to minimize the probability of personal injury. A simple equasion in negligence cases may be stated ignored risk equals personal injury.
Practical Resolutions
• Financially compensate plaintiff for injuries caused by defendant’s actions or inactions.
• Provide compensation for any noted medical or property damage associated with personal injury.
• Emotional distress needing to be treated, in part, living with personal disability.
Causes and Considerations
Identifying Defendant: As mentioned, the defendant may be person(s), business or other entities, but the defendant needs to first be clearly identified. Perhaps the store clerk or delivery driver who has a major part in the plaintiff sustaining personal injury is unable to provide the needed compensation. Observers suggest it then becomes the role of the attorney to identify other defendants such as an employer, business or may be landlord. Judgments in personal injury cases may often be rather large in sum.
Intentional Actions: In this case, the plaintiff needs to demonstrate the defendant had purpose in allowing occurrence of personal injury. Examples include false imprisonment, theft, assault and battery and so forth.
Strict Liability: Legal opinion asserts at the opposite end of intention is “strict liability.” Even though the defendant took all the anticipated precautions to avoid mishap, an accident occurred resulting in personal injury. Situationally, this may include transport of hazardous materials, or faulty piece of equipment during building implosion. Moreover, “strict liability” may theoretically involve defective products. The claim needs to be substantiated that the defendant designed and sold a product that exhibited elements of being defective. The results from this instance can be monumental with many plaintiffs and enormous judgment rendered.

Finally, Common arguments used by the defense assert: The plaintiff did not exercise “due care” and thus assumes part or whole responsibility; the plaintiff by voluntarily participating in the action assumes responsibility, as in sport-related injuries. One may seek legal counsel to both argue these defenses, and retain attorney so as to be within the statue of limitations for filing a lawsuit. Interestingly, in the recent past about one-half of the personal injury lawyer cases regarding slips and falls occurred on the grounds of condominiums or co-op buildings.