A Summary of the Issues Surrounding a Personal Injury Claim

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May 7, 2013

Personal injury is one of those legal terms not well understood by individuals who have not been through the process of filing a personal injury claim. The term refers to disturbing, mental and bodily injury, as compared to property. When a claim is filed, it refers to an aspect of what is referred to as tort law, to the effect that the injury of a plaintiff is the result of another person’s negligence and also occurs in cases of defamation torts.

Some of the most common personal injury claims include road traffic accidents, product liability (product defect), home accidents, assault claims, tripping accidents, and work accidents. In the same term, accidents related to loss of teeth (dental) and health (medical) are also incorporated and lead to a lot of negligent claims in the medical scene each year.

Once the other party’s negligence has been proved, the individual who was injured is awarded monetary compensation from the negligent party. Across the United States, the personal injury and compensation system is controversial and complex and a lot of critics have been calling for tort reforms on a number of issues. In most cases, attorneys always represent clients on a contingency arrangement. In this case, the fee the attorney gets is an agreed percentage of the eventual compensation the plaintiff is awarded, to be paid after the case has been resolved. In most cases, having a personal injury attorney is very important since cases are mostly very complex, and even more so in some types of cases, such as medical malpractice.

The compensation amount in personal injury cases depends on the seriousness or severity of the harm. The cases that receive some of the highest settlements include injury causing a substantial amount of physical suffering and loss of productivity, for instance brain damage, severed limbs, and broken bones. Apart from being compensated on the injuries, the individual can also receive compensation on the effect the injuries have caused in his or her life. For instance, a professional soccer player might suffer a leg injury that prevents him playing soccer during the soccer season. In terms of compensation, it can be done way above the physical injury. It is referred to as a loss of amenity and also included in the suffering and pain cases. Since an individual can be compensated for an injury or due to having injuries leading to inability to earn an income or go to work as he or she used to, the loss is termed as congenial employment loss.

There are so many complex issues and seeking a personal injury lawyer is very important if one is to get a good settlement. It is important to remember such a case is under tort law that protects people from civil wrongs that others have negligently or intentionally committed. Settlements in personal injury can include punitive damages or compensatory damages. In the case of compensatory damages, the settlements in personal injury seem to return the victim to the particular position he or she was prior to the injury.

Obviously, due to the nature of personal injury, having a good, local attorney with solid knowledge and experience is an advantage.