Personal Injury

Personal injury refers to the area of law that seeks to protect victims who are harmed by the failure of another to do or not do something that causes injury. A personal injury claim can be filed for injury incurred by an individual either physically or mentally, and it can sometimes include damage to property.

Liability and Damages

There are two basic elements in every personal injury case: liability and damages. You must prove before you can recover damages that the other person was negligent. Once you resolve that issue the amount of damages becomes important.

Grounds of Personal Injury Claims

Liability and damages can be established on several bases.

• Negligence - When a case is filed for the failure or omission of another we call that a tort. This is where the defendant is accused of causing the injury by failing to prevent it. An example would be someone who was speeding and caused an accident.  Another example would be an accusation that a property owner failed to clear ice off a sidewalk.
• Intentional Wrong - Intentional wrongs can sometimes be brought as civil, personal injury claims apart from any criminal charges the defendant may be facing.

Types of Personal Injury Cases

Although it is not all-inclusive, the following list offers examples of the types of cases that may be considered personal injury claims.

• Automobile accident
• Nursing home negligence
• Slip and fall injury
• Defective product injury
• Exposure to toxic material
• Medical malpractice
• Wrongful death
• Drug injury
• Job injury caused by another
• Dog bite case