What Is a Personal Injury Case
I’m Ed Smith, a Folsom personal injury lawyer. Personal injury cases represent preventable causes of death or injury caused by the negligence of another person or entity. They may be because of a motor vehicle accident, medical malpractice, a defective product or for many other reasons.
Personal Injury
Basically, a personal injury is one where there is damage to an individual’s body, emotions or mind. It does not include damage to property. There are two components that need to be proven for compensation to be awarded. They are liability and damages. Liability references one’s legal responsibility for their actions, causing harm to another. The harm, or damages, is described in terms of their financial loss.
Basis of Personal Injury Claims
The overriding basis for personal injury is negligence. To best understand the theory of negligence, it is a good idea to look at negligence in reference to car accidents. Drivers are obligated to behave in a prudent, responsible way on the road. It is the duty they owe to all other drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians. However, when they are derelict in that duty, they breach their obligation to others and can inflict injury. This injury causes financial harm, and the injured party can recoup their financial loss in a court of law.
Other Personal Injury Causes
Although negligence is the main basis for personal injury, two other components exist. One is strict liability where a designer of a product or its manufacturer can be liable for the damages a person suffers. The injured party is not responsible for proving negligence under strict liability. In California this is found in cases involving product liability.
The other component is when someone intentionally inflicts harm on another resulting in damages. This can be used in a personal injury lawsuit to recover compensation for the damages the perpetrator inflicted.
2016 Statistics
According to the National Safety Council, the following were the main reasons for deaths in the following age groups:
- Motor vehicle accidents were responsible for 33 percent of deaths in one to four-year olds.
- Motor vehicle crashes killed 56 percent of children aged five through 14.
- Motor vehicle accidents accounted for 57 percent of the deaths in young people from ages 15 to 24 out of 3,500 fatalities.
Bicycle Accidents
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported that about two percent of motor vehicle collisions occurred with bicyclists. In 2016, there were 835 fatalities, which represents the largest number of bicycle accident fatalities in one year since 1996.
Motorcycle Accidents
In 2016, as reported by the IIHS, 4,976 motorcyclists were killed in collisions. This number was 13 percent higher than the report the previous year on deaths caused by motorcycle accidents.
Pedestrian Accidents
Pedestrian accidents accounted for 5,997 deaths in 2016, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. This represented an 11 percent increase. Thirty-four states reported an increase in pedestrian fatalities in 2016. Factors contributing to pedestrian deaths included demographics, fuel prices, economic conditions, distance and weather conditions.
Folsom Personal Injury Lawyers
I’m Ed Smith, a Folsom personal injury lawyer. When an accident is caused by an individual or other entity through negligence, you may be entitled to fair compensation to pay medical bills and other expenses. For friendly, free advice, contact me at (916) 921-6400 or toll-free at (800) 404-5400. On AutoAccident.com, the website I own and founded, you can also find an online contact form.
Look over client reviews and other feedback about my law firm at Google, Avvo and Yelp.
As a member of the forum called Million Dollar Advocates, I join other top attorneys around with country who have won verdicts or case settlements of at least one million dollars for their clients.
One page you may wish to visit on my website is Verdicts and Settlements. This page offers helpful information on some of our previous cases and how they were resolved.
I am honored to have helped win fair compensation for numerous residents of Folsom and around Northern California for over 35 years by representing them in their personal injuries. Among the types of personal injuries I handle are included wrongful deaths and brain injuries.
Photo Attribution: https://pixabay.com/en/court-entry-stairs-entrance-door-144090/
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