Motor Vehicle Litigation

When a claim for liability is litigated, it becomes necessary to start a lawsuit. The defendant will then have the chance to respond to the complaint.

New York has a pure comparative negligence rule. This means that, should a jury find that you were at fault for an accident the damages you incur will be reduced based on your percentage of fault. This rule does not apply to owners of vehicles that are rented or leased out to minors.

Duty of Care

In a case of negligence the plaintiff must show that the defendant owed the duty of care toward them. Nearly everyone owes this obligation to everyone else, however individuals who get behind the driving wheel of a motorized vehicle are obligated to the other drivers in their zone of activity. This includes not causing motor vehicle accident lawsuits vehicle accidents.

In courtrooms, the quality of care is determined by comparing the actions of an individual with what a typical person would do in similar conditions. In the event of medical negligence experts are often required. Experts who have a greater understanding of particular fields may be held to a greater standard of treatment.

A person's breach of their duty of care may cause injury to a victim or their property. The victim is then required to establish that the defendant's breach of their duty caused the harm and damages they suffered. Causation is an important part of any negligence claim. It involves proving both the proximate and actual causes of the injuries and Motor vehicle Accident attorneys damages.

For instance, if a driver has a red light and is stopped, they'll be struck by a car. If their car is damaged they'll be responsible for repairs. The real cause of an accident could be a brick cut that develops into an infection.

Breach of Duty

The second element of negligence is the breach of duty by the defendant. It must be proven in order to obtain compensation for a personal injury claim. A breach of duty occurs when the actions of the person at fault are not in line with what a reasonable person would do in similar circumstances.

For example, a doctor has a variety of professional obligations to his patients stemming from laws of the state and licensing boards. Drivers are required to care for other drivers as well as pedestrians, and to adhere to traffic laws. When a driver breaches this obligation of care and causes an accident, he is liable for the injury suffered by the victim.

Lawyers can rely on the "reasonable person" standard to prove the existence of the duty of care, and then demonstrate that the defendant did not meet that standard in his actions. The jury will decide if the defendant met or did not meet the standard.

The plaintiff must also establish that the defendant's breach of duty was the primary cause of the injuries. This can be more difficult to prove than the existence of a duty and breach. A defendant may have run through a red light, however, that's not the reason for your bicycle accident. This is why causation is often challenged by defendants in crash cases.

Causation

In motor vehicle cases the plaintiff must prove an causal link between breach by the defendant and their injuries. If a plaintiff suffered neck injuries in a rear-end collision and his or her attorney will argue that the crash was the cause of the injury. Other factors that are needed in causing the collision such as being in a stationary vehicle are not culpable and do not affect the jury's decision of liability.

It may be harder to prove a causal link between a negligent act and the psychological issues of the plaintiff. It may be because the plaintiff has a troubled background, a strained relationship with their parents, or has been a user of alcohol or drugs.

It is essential to speak with an experienced attorney if you have been involved in a serious motor accident. The lawyers at Arnold & Clifford, LLP have years of experience representing clients in personal injury as well as commercial and business litigation and motor vehicle accident attorneys vehicle accident cases. Our lawyers have established working relationships with independent doctors with a variety of specialties and expert witnesses in accident reconstruction and computer simulations, as well as with private investigators.

Damages

In motor vehicle litigation, a plaintiff can be able to recover both economic and noneconomic damages. The first category of damages includes any monetary costs that can easily be added up and calculated as a total, for example, medical expenses or lost wages, property repair and even future financial losses like diminished earning capacity.

New York law recognizes that non-economic damages, like suffering and pain, as well as loss of enjoyment of life, cannot be reduced to monetary value. The proof of these damages is by a wide array of evidence, including depositions of family members and friends of the plaintiff medical records, as well as other expert witness testimony.

In the event of multiple defendants, courts often use comparative fault rules to determine the amount of damages to be split between them. The jury must determine how much responsibility each defendant had for the accident and then divide the total damages awarded by that percentage of fault. However, New York law 1602 specifically exempts owners of vehicles from the comparative fault rule with respect to injuries suffered by driver of these vehicles and trucks. The resulting analysis of whether the presumption that permissive use applies is complicated and usually only a clear proof that the owner specifically refused permission to operate the car will overcome it.