Motor Vehicle Litigation

A lawsuit is required when liability is contested. The defendant will then have the chance to respond to the complaint.

New York has a pure comparative negligence rule. This means that, if a jury finds you to be responsible for an accident the amount of damages you will be reduced according to your percentage of blame. This rule is not applicable to owners of vehicles rented out or leased to minors.

Duty of Care

In a negligence suit the plaintiff must show that the defendant owed them a duty to act with reasonable care. Almost everybody owes this duty to everyone else, but individuals who get behind the car have a higher obligation to others in their area of activity. This includes ensuring that there are no accidents in motor vehicles.

In courtrooms the standards of care are determined by comparing an individual's actions with what a normal person would do in similar conditions. In cases of medical malpractice expert witnesses are typically required. People who have superior knowledge in a particular field may be held to an higher standard of care than others in similar situations.

When a person breaches their duty of care, they could cause injury to the victim or their property. The victim has to show that the defendant violated their duty and caused the injury or damage they sustained. Causation is a key element of any negligence claim. It requires proof of both the primary and secondary causes of the damages and injuries.

For instance, if a person has a red light then it's likely that they'll be hit by another car. If their car is damaged, they will be responsible for the repairs. But the reason for the crash could be a cut or bricks that later develop into a dangerous infection.

Breach of Duty

A breach of duty by a defendant is the second element of negligence that must be proven to win compensation in a personal injury lawsuit. A breach of duty is when the actions taken by the person who is at fault fall short of what an ordinary person would do under similar circumstances.

A doctor, for instance, has several professional duties to his patients, arising from state law and licensing boards. Drivers have a duty to protect other motorists and pedestrians, and respect traffic laws. When a driver breaches this obligation of care and results in an accident, the driver is liable for the victim's injuries.

A lawyer can rely on the "reasonable persons" standard to prove that there is a duty to be cautious and Vimeo then show that defendant did not adhere to this standard in his actions. It is a matter of fact that the jury has to decide whether the defendant complied with the standard or not.

The plaintiff must also establish that the breach of duty by the defendant was the main cause of the injuries. It is more difficult to prove this than a breach of duty. For example an individual defendant could have been a motorist who ran a red light, but his or her action was not the sole reason for your bicycle crash. In this way, causation is frequently disputed by defendants in collision cases.

Causation

In atascadero motor vehicle accident attorney vehicle cases, the plaintiff has to establish a causal link between the defendant's breach of duty and the injuries. For instance, if a plaintiff suffered a neck injury from an accident that involved rear-ends and their lawyer would claim that the collision caused the injury. Other factors necessary to cause the collision, like being in a stationary car are not culpable and will not affect the jury's decision to determine the degree of fault.

For psychological injuries However, the connection between a negligent act and an injured plaintiff's symptoms may be more difficult to establish. The fact that the plaintiff has a troubles in his or her childhood, had a difficult relationship with their parents, used alcohol and drugs or prior unemployment could have a bearing on the severity of the psychological issues is suffering from following an accident, however, the courts typically view these elements as an element of the background conditions from which the plaintiff's accident arose rather than an independent cause of the injuries.

If you have been in a serious motor vehicle crash it is essential to consult with an experienced attorney. The attorneys at Arnold & Clifford, LLP have years of experience representing clients in personal injury commercial and business litigation, and motor vehicle accident cases. Our lawyers have established working relationships with independent doctors in various specialties, as well as experts in computer simulations and reconstruction of accident.

Damages

In motor vehicle litigation, a person can recover both economic and noneconomic damages. The first category of damages includes any monetary expenses that can be easily added up and calculated as a total, for example, medical treatment loss of wages, property repair and even future financial losses, like a decrease in earning capacity.

New York law also recognizes the right to seek non-economic damages such as the suffering of others and the loss of enjoyment of life, which cannot be reduced to a dollar amount. However the damages must be proven to exist by a variety of evidence, such as deposition testimony from plaintiff's family members and close friends medical records, other expert witness testimony.

In cases that involve multiple defendants, Courts will often use rules of comparative negligence to determine the proportion of damages awarded should be divided between them. The jury must determine how much responsibility each defendant had for the accident, and then divide the total damages awarded by the percentage of blame. New York law however, doesn't allow this. 1602 does not exempt vehicle owners from the comparative negligence rule in the event of injuries suffered by drivers of cars or trucks. The analysis to determine whether the presumption is permissive is complex. In general the only way to prove that the owner did not grant permission to the driver to operate the vehicle can overrule the presumption.