CALL US: (234)-888-1236

Personal Injury Law

Learning the Basics

Personal injury law (also known as “tort” law) allows an injured person to file a civil lawsuit in court and get a legal remedy (“damages”) for all losses stemming from an accident or other incident. The purpose of the personal injury system is to allow the injured person to be compensated financially or “made whole” after he or she has suffered harm due to someone else’s negligent or intentional conduct.

The Basics of Personal Injury

There are a wide variety of different situations where personal injury rules apply:

Accidents. Personal injury rules apply in situations where someone acts in a negligent manner, and that carelessness causes harm to another person. Examples include car accidents, slip and fall incidents, and medical malpractice, among other types of cases. Learn more about negligence in personal injury cases.

Intentional Acts. Personal injury laws apply in situations where a defendant’s intentional conduct causes harm to another person. Examples of this include assault and battery, and other intentional torts.

Get a Free Consultation Today!

Who Makes Personal Injury Laws?

Many personal injury laws date back to old “common law rules.” Common law refers to law made by judges, as opposed to laws made by legislatures or passed in bills and statutes.
When a judge hears and decides a case, her decision on that issue of law becomes binding precedent on all other courts in the state that are “lower” than the deciding judge’s court. These other courts then have to apply what the first judge said, and eventually, all of this binding precedent creates a body of “common law.”
Common law can and does differ from state to state, so the rules for personal injury law may not be uniform across the country. Much of the common law has been collected into something called the Restatement of Torts, which is a sort of guidebook that explains what the rules are, and a lot of states draw guidance from this on personal injury matters.

How Does a Personal Injury Case Work?

No two accidents are exactly the same, so no two personal injury cases will follow the same path. But there are some standard steps that most personal injury cases take, from a big picture standpoint.

Defendant Does Something to Injure Plaintiff. This can be almost any bad act on the part of the defendant, with the exception of contractual breaches, which are handled under a separate body of law known as “contract law.”

Settlement Talks Occur. If it is clear to all involved that the defendant breached a legal duty, then the defendant (or the insurance company representing him or her) may wish to settle outside of court. This would involve making an offer of monetary compensation to the injured person, in exchange for the injured person’s binding promise not to file a lawsuit over the injury.

Let our experienced team fight for you. Don’t delay. contact us today!

detata law group

CONNECT WITH US

Facebook-f Instagram Google-plus-g
Site Design by: Universally Found

© 2024 DeTata Law Group P.A. All rights reserved.