Personal injury cases typically arise when an individual is injured due to someone else’s negligent or wrongful actions, and you can recover compensation for both existing medical bills as well as anticipated future costs such as home care, physical therapy, etc.
Personal injury law (or tort law) provides compensation to victims of accidents and social wrongs such as defamation. Most injury claims are settled out-of-court without even needing to go trial.
What is a Personal Injury Case?
Personal injury cases are filed by individuals (or their representatives) who were injured as the result of another party’s negligence, such as car accidents, work-related injuries, slips and falls, assaults, medical malpractice cases or product-related incidents.
For a plaintiff to succeed in a personal injury claim, according to Cellino Law, they must demonstrate that a defendant’s actions directly contributed to the harm experienced. Proving causation usually entails two steps: actual cause and proximate cause. Personal injury lawsuits seek compensation for victims’ losses both economic and noneconomic through either lump sum settlements or periodic payments; economic damages could include past medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering awards while noneconomic ones can be more difficult to quantify.
Negligence
Negligence is at the core of most personal injury claims and lawsuits. To seek compensation, victims must establish that someone was negligent in some manner that led directly to their injuries and experienced damages as a result of this negligent behavior, whether those damages be financial or non-financial such as pain and suffering.
Personal injury cases require four elements, which include the duty of care that was owed by defendants in your situation; breaching this duty; causation; and injury. Your attorney will present evidence showing this first element by showing how the defendant owed you legal duties of care – for instance, as drivers have an obligation to yield right of way or property owners must ensure their premises are safe for visitors.
Damages
When accidents cause personal injuries, their costs can be broken down into distinct expenses that are quantifiable and unquantifiable – these costs fall under general compensatory damages, which provide compensation for expenses of this nature.
These include reimbursement for medical treatment already received and anticipated costs, loss of wages due to missed work from your injury, lost vacation and sick time lost as well as property damage. General damages can also include loss of companionship/ consortium if an injury prevents you from enjoying as much love, affection, sexual relations and financial contributions to your family as before.
Due to all the different methods for calculating general damages, it is wise to speak with an attorney regarding your specific case before trying to calculate them on your own.
Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations is a legal deadline for filing civil lawsuits in each state and type of claim. It helps keep cases from dragging on indefinitely while giving people time to move on with their lives. The length of time may differ between states and types of litigation cases.
New York State generally sets a three year statute of limitations for personal injury cases filed within its borders, beginning from the date of an incident or accident that caused your injuries.
There may be exceptions; for instance, when filing suit against a municipality (a government agency), the statute of limitations tends to be much shorter; furthermore, minors may have longer limitations periods than adults do; it is wise to consult a lawyer regarding your individual case to discuss all relevant factors.
Consultation
Consultations vary based on the nature and cost of legal matters and lawyers; in cases involving negligence or negligent infliction of emotional distress (NIED), attorneys typically charge for this service as part of an attorney-client relationship.
Personal injury cases require the services of an attorney because a victim may be entitled to compensation for damages they have sustained, such as medical malpractice suits, car accidents and work-related injuries. Get in touch with our law firm now for a free consultation about your personal injury claim; our experienced team has years of experience seeking full and fair compensation on behalf of our clients. Plus we can explain what distinguishes bodily from personal injuries.
