An individual can sustain personal injuries in a variety of accidents and situations. In fact, the possibilities are really limitless, but some of the most common accidents and incidents that cause personal injury claims are:
In any case, the personal injury plaintiff must prove that the at-fault party or parties acted unreasonably in causing the injuries and damages. This issue of fault hinges on the concept of negligence, which is made up of 3 parts:
Duty of care is defined as another person’s obligation to not injure another person or place them in harm’s way. Almost everyone has a duty to another person to not hurt them, but in a personal injury case, the question is often “how much?”
For example, a grocery store owner or manager has a duty of care to keep their customers safe from harm by cleaning up spills, fixing broken steps, etc. In order to ensure this, the store must take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of their customers. This can become a little complicated as the term “reasonable” is open to interpretation.
Once it is established that someone had a duty of care toward another, the next part of negligence deals with whether or not the person breached that duty, or failed to live up to it. If they breach that duty of care–say, failing to get a loose handrail fixed for months–then the courts call that: negligent.
Basically, did the defendant create a dangerous situation or allow a dangerous situation to persist? This can be easy to prove in cases where someone was driving over the posted speed limit. But it can also become complicated since what is deemed reasonable, can vary from situation to situation and from minute to minute.
Once your attorney has proved that someone had a duty of care and that they breached that duty, they must then prove that the breach led to the accident or injuries.
Did the store have a duty to clean up the spill? Yes. Did they fail to clean up the spill? Yes. Did your slip and fall in the puddle cause you to hurt your back? Yes.
This is a simple case of proving causation. But again, it can become complicated quickly.
Someone can admit that they were negligent, but that doesn’t necessarily prove that that negligence caused your injuries. Take the example above: the store owner may claim that your fall was not caused by the puddle but because you were looking at your phone. Or they may claim that you fell because of the puddle, but that your back injury was pre-existing.
Understanding these situations, in the simple way that they are presented above, makes it clear that having an experienced trial lawyer on your side can make the process a lot easier on you and with a much higher chance of a positive outcome.