Personal injury lawsuits have gotten an unfair reputation for being petty and unnecessary. In reality, personal injuries can be physically debilitating, and injured victims need compensation to make ends meet while they recover.
Personal injuries may arise almost anywhere at any time. People sometimes like to chalk up personal injuries to unfortunate accidents, but you should always speak to a lawyer about your situation. If someone’s bad behavior caused your injuries, you can hold them liable in court. While many personal injuries are based on negligence, others are based on the defendant’s intentional conduct. Your damages depend on the severity of your injuries and how your injuries have interfered with your everyday life. To prove your damages and the defendant’s liability, you need to gather as much supporting evidence as possible.
If you were recently injured because of another person’s negligence or other bad behavior, our Lakewood personal injury lawyers can help you get financial compensation. For a free review of your potential lawsuit, call Legal Care New Jersey at (732) 838-9769.
How Personal Injuries Can Happen in Lakewood
There are numerous possible causes of personal injuries, and no two accidents or incidents are alike. Our office handles various kinds of personal injury cases, and our Lakewood personal injury lawyers have the skills and experience to advocate on your behalf.
Car accidents are very common, and people are left with injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to traumatic brain injuries. The driver who negligently caused your accident can be sued and held liable for your damages.
Products liability cases involve personal injuries caused by damaged or defective goods. For example, a power tool that malfunctions or is poorly designed may seriously injure someone. In that case, the injured person can file a personal injury lawsuit against the manufacturer or anyone in the chain of sale.
Medical malpractice is a type of personal injury committed by medical professionals. Unsuccessful medical treatment is not grounds for a malpractice case. However, if a doctor’s negligence caused your treatment to fall below mandated standards of care, you can file a lawsuit for your injuries.
Premises liability cases involve personal injuries sustained on someone’s property. The injury often comes from the property’s unsafe or poorly maintained conditions, like wet floors or uneven stairs. The property owner can be held liable for your injuries even if they were not present when you were injured.
Believe it or now, criminal acts can have civil consequences. If someone assaulted you and severely injured you, they would be arrested, charged, and prosecuted for the crime. Once the criminal trial is complete, you can sue them civilly in a personal injury lawsuit for your injuries.
How to Prove Liability for a Personal Injury in Lakewood
Many personal injury cases are based on theories of negligence. Negligence is a legal concept made up of four important elements. To prove a defendant was negligent and should be held liable, you must establish each element. If even a single element is not sufficiently proven, you cannot win your case.
The first element is duty and encompasses the legal obligation the defendant owed the plaintiff at the time of the injury. For example, if you were injured in a car accident, the defendant’s duty of care was to drive with reasonable safety under the circumstances. Different situations may involve different kinds of legal duties.
The second element, breach, is how the defendant violated their legal duty of care. Again, exactly what this element looks like depends on how your injuries occurred. Continuing with the car accident example, a breach might happen when the defendant ran a light or made a dangerous turn without signaling. Our Lakewood personal injury attorneys can help you determine just how the defendant breached their duty.
The third element is causation. This element is the connection between the breach and your injuries. Essentially, the breach must be the direct and proximate cause of your injuries. Defendants sometimes claim that other people or even the plaintiff caused the accident. Proving causation means proving the defendant is directly responsible.
The final element is your damages. Your damages have to be real and not mere possibilities or hypothetical scenarios. You cannot sue for a car accident where you almost broke your neck. You can only sue for the injuries that you actually sustained.
Personal Injury Damages and Compensation in Lakewood
“Damages” is another legal term and refers to your various injuries and losses, both physical and intangible. Your damages are unique to your case and situation, but some damages are common across many types of personal injuries. Our Lakewood personal injury lawyers will help you tally up your damages and determine how much compensation the defendant should pay you.
Many damages are connected to real money you lost because of your injuries. For example, people who suffer personal injuries typically have costly medical bills from receiving treatment for their injuries. The more severe your injuries are, the more expensive your medical treatment probably is. Treatment may also be ongoing, and you can claim the value of future expected costs.
Injured victims may have to take time away from work to recover from their injuries. If you missed time at work, you can claim lost earnings and income as part of your damages. If you do not expect to return to work soon, you can also claim lost future earnings.
Some damages do not come with a monetary cost but rather a physical or emotional cost. Your mental and physical pain and suffering deserve compensation just as much as your economic damages. Personal injuries are not only physically painful, but they can be emotionally traumatic. The more these experiences have taken a toll on your life, the greater your damages. Our Lakewood personal injury lawyers can help you prove just how much you have suffered.
Call Our Lakewood Personal Injury Lawyers for Advice
If you were injured in some sort of accident or were harmed by the willful actions of another person, you can file a personal injury lawsuit to get your just compensation. For a free case review, call Legal Care New Jersey at (732) 838-9769.
