While you may have heard the term “personal injury law,” you may not know exactly what it means or entails. Personal injury law is a specific area of law that, as the name suggests, deals with those who have suffered an injury. It is a civil area of law established as a means for the injured to seek a remedy for the losses they have sustained as the result of an accident or incident. For more details on personal injury law, read on.
What is personal injury law?
As stated above, personal injury law allows an injured party to seek a civil remedy for the losses sustained in an accident or incident. The intent of personal injury law is for the injured party to receive the compensation that will “make them whole” again after suffering harm due to the negligent or intentional conduct of someone else.
The majority of personal injury claims are based on a theory of negligence. Every person has some level of responsibility to avoid putting other people at risk of harm. While not all harm is avoidable, the harm resulting from a person failing in their duty they owe to someone else may result in legal liability. For an injured party to seek damages from someone else for the harm he or she has suffered, the injured party must be able to show that the other person owed them a duty of care. The injured party must also be able to show that the person breached this duty and this was the direct and proximate cause of the injury.
Once negligence has been established, the injured party may seek compensation from the negligent party for harm suffered as a result of his or her negligent action or inaction. Damages can include property damage and medical bills. Damages can also include emotional distress and pain and suffering, as well as the loss of income and loss of future earning ability. In some rare cases, punitive damages may be awarded. Punitive damages are different from compensatory damages in that they are not intended to compensate the plaintiff, but are instead intended to punish the wrongdoing party and deter the type of behavior that led to the harm suffered in the future.
While personal injury law applies to accidents caused by a person who has acted in a negligent manner, such as car accidents, slip and falls, and medical malpractice, personal injury law can also apply in situations where a person’s intentional acts caused harm to someone else. For instance, a person can make a personal injury claim against an aggressor in an assault and battery case.
Personal injury law is also included in claims involving defective products, or “product liability” claims. In a product liability claim, an injured party can seek damages for harm suffered due to a dangerously defective product. Personal injury law can also include defamation claims where a person’s defamatory statement causes harm to someone else’s reputation.
Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys
The dedicated personal injury attorneys at Cooper Schall & Levy are here to stand up for the injured. Whether you suffered harm due to the negligent or intentional acts of another, we will fight for you and your legal right to full and fair compensation. Contact us today.
