There are no data or statistics available showing the average cost of compensation for a personal injury or wrongful death claim. Each case of negligence will have unique factors that make up its potential for a financial settlement. Because no two cases have the same factors, your potential for financial recovery will vary as well.
A lawyer can help you evaluate your claim for the economic impact another party created through an act of negligence. Legal principles and guidelines will govern a case for financial recovery. In addition to proving that your case meets the five elements of negligence, you may also have to produce specific and detailed paperwork and documentation to support your claim.
Time matters in your ability to receive monetary compensation. Every state has different guidelines for how long an individual has to file a personal injury or wrongful death claim. For example, Florida Statutes allow up to four years from the date of when an injury or fatality occurred, while Tennessee only allows one year to pursue damages.
Your allotted time may pass quickly when you are healing from your injuries or helping to care for an injured family member.
A lawyer may act as your advocate and can build your case while you concentrate on your physical health and wellbeing. Maryland is one of only four states where contributory negligence is practiced. An example could be someone injuring themselves on a wet floor, even though there was a wet floor sign present.
Vicarious Negligence is when someone is indirectly responsible. The most common example is a dog bite. Though the person themselves did not injure someone, their dog did, and thus they are responsible to cover any injuries caused by their dog. Very professional and glad I contacted them over anyone else. What did the defendant do or fail to do that made his or her conduct unreasonable under the circumstances?
In other words, how exactly should the defendant be considered legally at fault for causing the plaintiff's injuries?
Going back to the car accident case example, fault can be established by:. In some cases, the plaintiff's own conduct may have played a role in causing his or her injuries alongside the defendant's own negligence. Continuing with the car accident scenario, the defendant may have indeed made an abrupt left turn in front of the plaintiff's vehicle a clear example of negligent driving but if the plaintiff was driving a few miles an hour over the speed limit, the insurance adjuster or the jury might decide that the plaintiff's own negligence was at least a factor in causing the accident.
Learn more about when the other side disputes fault for the accident. In that situation, the plaintiff's total compensation or damages award will be reduced by an amount equal to the percentage of his or her fault. That's the rule in most states. Learn more about comparative fault.
But in a few states that follow a system known as contributory negligence, if a plaintiff is found to be even one percent to blame for causing the accident, he or she won't be able to collect any damages at all from other at-fault defendants. The last step in establishing negligence is to show how the plaintiff was harmed by the defendant's action or inaction. We've got this element covered in other sections of this website: Learn more about personal injury damages and the damages formula.
It is not enough to have been in an accident or to have suffered injury in order to obtain compensation from the courts. It must be clear that the party or parties you have sued were to blame for the accident and the injuries that you have suffered. It may be the case that a number of people are partly to blame for an accident, including the person suing. In that situation, the court will apportion or divide the blame between the different people involved.
This is compensation for the pain, suffering and inconvenience you experienced and will continue to experience as a result of the accident. The court will decide the level of damages by estimating the gravity of the injuries.
It will do this by considering all the medical evidence put before it, notably the pain already suffered by the person suing and the prognosis for the future — that is, how long and to what intensity the injured party is likely to continue suffering.
This is compensation for the financial costs and expenses, both past and future, you incurred as a result of the accident. This would include the cost of repairing your car if relevant , the medical costs you incurred, your loss of earnings as a result of being unable to go to work and all expenses, including travel, home-help and similar, you incurred.
You may be asked to produce receipts and bills to prove you have incurred all of these expenses so it is important to keep a file of every bill and receipt.
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