Personal injury is an area of civil law that covers a broad range of categories. Essentially, personal injury is when a person (or the loved ones and survivors of that individual) has been caused personal, and direct injury because of the negligent actions of another person. Personal injury lawsuit provides an opportunity for people who have been harmed by others to seek out monetary compensation to help them with the damages that have been inflicted upon them as a consequence.
Areas of Personal Injury Law
Personal injury law covers a few unique scenarios. It’s really important to understand that this is different from criminal law. So, for example, if a man or woman is physically assaulted, the criminal charges (for example one count of assault and battery) would be addressed in the criminal justice system. If, however, that assault led to lifelong pain that impeded the victim’s ability to work his or her job, a personal injury lawyer could help pursue compensation for those damages.
Here are some of the most common cases that will be taken on by a personal injury lawyer:
Workplace injury / workers’ compensation. If a worker is hurt at work because they were put in a dangerous situation (unfit working conditions, faulty supplies, or dangerous physical environment) that the employer should or could have prevented, the employer can be held accountable for the consequences.
Medical malpractice. Medical malpractice is when a medical professional (doctor, nurse, nurses’ assistant, etc.) acts (or fails to act) in a manner deemed inappropriate by their peers, and consequently causes harm or even death to the patient.
Car accidents. When someone drives irresponsibly (by speeding, driving under the influence, distracted / cell phone driving, or reckless driving in general) and kills or maims a safe driver or innocent bystander, a few months in jail is clearly not going to help aforementioned victim recover. Personal injury law is a way to seek compensation that helps the victim with expenses related to the accident, and to provide compensation for emotional trauma.
Slip and Fall. When a city is responsible for a public area, and when a business owns property that members of the public is invited to enter for the sake of doing business (a retail store, for example), they are responsible for ensuring these places are safe. If a person slips and falls because of unkempt property, that man or woman may be eligible for damages from the party responsible for upkeep. Examples include wet (or dirty) floors in a store, loose carpeting or floorboards in a city or county building, and exceptionally hazardous parking lots.
These are just a few of the situations that a personal injury attorney is trained to handle. If you find yourself in a circumstance where you have been harmed because of someone else’s actions, you may be entitled to monetary compensation for your financial, emotional, and physical damages. If the negligent actions in question has led to the unfortunate death of a loved one, you may be able to pursue monetary compensation for emotional trauma, wrongful death, and lost financial support from future wages