What is Personal Injury Law
In many cases, people experience suffer and harm due to someone else’s improper behavior that might come as a result of bad intentions or carelessness. Personal Injury Law provides the legal basis upon which people can file civil lawsuits claiming physical and emotional suffering or harm with the purpose of receiving compensation for the damage incurred.
Personal Injury Law is applicable in the following circumstances:
- Accidents-Personal Injury Law covers cases in which individuals experience various types of accidents, such as slip and fall incidents or car accidents due to someone else’s lack of care to provide an environment that avoids the rise of such injuries. For example, in some workplaces, employees have to work in unsuitable working environments. In those cases, employees might experience physical injuries. Since employers are obliged to create safe working spaces, the injured employees have the legal right to file claims under personal injury law.
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- Intentional Acts-Personal Injury Law covers cases in which an individual experiences harm, such as assault, fraud, emotional stress, battery, and so on, caused intentionally by someone else. For example, many people find themselves feeling threatened by someone else’s offensive behavior that might pass to physical harm as well. This falls into assault and battery cases covered by Personal Injury Law.
Source: Pexels
- Defective Products- Personal Injury Law covers cases in which individuals suffer harm due to product defects, such as medical or pharmaceutical devices that cause side effects. For example, many drugs have side effects for which most of the patients are not properly informed. Sometimes, side effects can result in illnesses. In these cases, the patient has the legal right to file a claim against the pharmaceutical company.
Source: Pexels
- Defamation- Personal Injury Law covers cases in which someone gives a false statement for someone else, and the latter experiences personal and professional degradation, including material and mental damage. False statements are those presented as facts, not opinions. For example, if someone says “In my opinion, I think X businessman is corrupted,” is an opinion and as such is not considered as a defamation. However, if someone says “X businessman is corrupted,” the X businessman has the legal right to file a case pretending that a false statement related to his/her personality has been released.
Source: Pexels
There are 46,897 cases filed under personal injury claims in the area of New York. Most of the cases filed are related to medical and health care malpractice, false statements, assault, slander, libel, product liability, and employer liability.
Laws that govern Personal Injury
Personal Injury Law has been established mainly by courts and scholars. According to the rules, the injured person has a limited time to file a lawsuit that may vary depending on the state and situation. The allowed timeframe covers the period from which the person was injured or became aware of the injury. According to the law in New York, the injured person must address the case to the court within three years, otherwise it will not be considered by the court.
How to exercise legal rights under Personal Injury Law?
Anyone who believes to have experienced harm that falls in one of the above-described situations, has the right to file a civil lawsuit claiming for compensation. Each accident is unique, nevertheless, several uniform steps are followed in each case that address personal injury:
- An individual (Defendant) breaches a legal duty that has a direct impact on someone else causing physical and/or emotional injury.
- The injured person (Plaintiff) believes to have suffered physical and/or emotional discomfort and claims that the defendant is responsible.
- During the settlement, if it is evident that the defendant is responsible for the harm suffered by the plaintiff, the defendant may propose to reach an agreement informally. One of the most common agreement is financial compensation.
- However, if the injured person does not agree, he/she can file a lawsuit in the court. Personal injures can be handled by plaintiffs or by lawyers.
Does the plaintiff need legal representation?
If the injured person decides to file a claim, he/she should consult with a personal injury lawyer with the purpose of receiving a satisfactory compensation. Experiencing a personal injury, despite physical stress can cause emotional stress as well. As such, a personal injury lawyer can provide critical advice during the whole process. For example, if the injured person files a claim against a company, handling the case without a lawyer does not guarantee success since he/she would have to fight against many experienced lawyers who represent the company. Hence, hiring a personal injury lawyer, who has a vast knowledge and experience in legal matters, increases the chances of having a successful case settlement. A personal injury lawyer will advocate in the benefit of the injured person by providing the full case details to the court, including emotional consequences, which ensures a proper compensation.
Personal Injury Lawyers at L & D Law P.C.
L & D Law P.C. has an outstanding reputation in handling cases related to personal injury claims. L & D Law P.C. attorneys possess the required knowledge and skills to litigate your case. They are determined to use their expertise to fight on your behalf with the aim of bringing justice by ensuring the right compensation for all the damages incurred. Moreover, the team of L & D Law P.C. is trained to treat each case intimately and empathically with the aim of putting the wellbeing of the client first. As such, as a starting point, the firm offers free of charge consultations through which clients are provided with legal advice regarding their case.
If you believe you have experienced a personal injury, do not delay, let one of L & D Law P.C. attorneys aggressively pursue your claims. Please fill out the form below or reach out to schedule a free consultation by calling at 212-374-9786 or emailing here.
Sources:
https://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/personal-injury/introduction.html
https://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/personal-injury/laws-new-york.html
https://www.findlaw.com/injury/accident-injury-law/personal-injury-law-the-basics.html
https://dockets.justia.com/browse/state-new_york/noscat-3?page=30
https://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/personal-injury/handle-your-own-claim-hire-lawyer.html
